Meet Taz Taylor, the new-age producer making waves in trap
At 27, Taz has already established himself as a big name producer on the rise, having worked with Lil Skies, Tay-K, and even Big Sean. If you’re a follower of the trap scene, it’s very likely you’ve heard some of Taz Taylor’s musical production at some point in the...
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How lockdown has changed the way Gen Z listen to music
Being tucked up inside all day has given new opportunities for artists to create music and get their careers off the ground, while quarantine playlists are booming. Coronavirus has had an enormous impact on nearly every country across the globe. Theatres are shut, restaurants are closing down, even entire...
How Cole Bennett became the Gen Z director of hip hop
Cole’s YouTube channel and home grown brand ‘Lyrical Lemonade’ has become synonymous with top tier music video quality – and he’s only 23. When Eminem first dropped the video to his recent single ‘Godzilla’, many were surprised to see it wasn’t posted by VEVO, the typical outlet for top...
Stormzy pledges £10m to fight racial injustice
The UK grime artist will be giving cash to various undisclosed organisations over the next decade. It comes as other artists speak out about the music industry’s racial biases and discrimination. In a statement released yesterday, Stormzy has promised to donate £10 million to ‘organisations, charities, and movements that...
Planet of the Humans is a well meant but inaccurate mess
Planet of the Humans argues that our current capitalist system cannot co-exist with truly sustainable living. It’s a messy, questionable work, one that uses flimsy sources for information and promotes outdated myths, but there are threads of truth throughout that open up the conversation of green energy. Michael Moore’s...
Drive-in concerts helping to keep live music afloat
Australia is beginning to trial drive-in concerts in a first attempt to give the live entertainment industry some much needed revenue. When Pixar released its 2006 film ‘Cars’, it depicted a world in which anthropomorphic vehicles attended live events together, formed giant crowds at stadiums, and lived fully fleshed...
KSI’s Dissimulation brings YouTube trap to the mainstream
Being a YouTuber before turning to music used to be a career choice that was ripe for ridicule. Thanks to new wave industry acts such as KSI, Joji, and Quadeca, the rules are finally changing. It wasn’t all that long ago when Olajide Olatunji, better known as KSI, was making a name for himself opening FIFA packs and playing horror games on YouTube. Known for his comedic energy and bubbling charisma,...
Coronavirus ticket refund policy sparks outrage
Paul McCartney has deemed Italy’s refusal to give ticket goers refunds ‘outrageous’ as coronavirus continues to wreak havoc on the music industry. Unless you’ve been in a coma for the last three months, you’ll have noticed how disruptive the coronavirus pandemic has been on normal life for nearly all of us since February. Large events have been cancelled or indefinitely postponed across the globe for the foreseeable future, including music...
Music labels to stop using ‘urban’ category
Republic Records has announced it will no longer be using the word urban. It’s a much-needed revision to a term that should have been retired decades ago. George Floyd’s death on May 25th and the subsequent protests across the globe have pushed industries everywhere to assess their behaviour and attitudes toward black people, culture, and equality. The music industry is no exception. On June 2nd many record labels and publications...
Is cross platform marketing the new key to owning the charts?
Call it sheer dumb luck or a stroke of marketing genius, either way Travis Scott may have given us a peak at the future of clout chasing in the music industry. With more registered players than the entire US population, it’s safe to say Fortnite was no flash in the pan. Developers Epic Games continue to grow the franchise into something of a mega conglomerate, and rapper Travis Scott is the latest beneficiary. The two joined...
