How Streaming Services Are Changing Music

Topics for research at the end of the post

Listening to music also means providing data to streaming services. Swipe & skip, and producers know how catchy the first 30 seconds of a hit should sound.

Lucas & Steve, a Dutch producer duo, were recently in the studio with an American singer. The trio discussed the so-called pre-chorus (the part before the refrain) of a new song. “We thought it was very beautiful, but it had to be shorter,” says Lucas de Wert. “Otherwise, people will click through to the next song.” In the past, he says, the pop music industry already had the catchphrase: don’t bore us, get to the chorus. “That applies now more than ever if you want to score a streaming hit.”[1]

De Wert knows what he’s talking about. Although the name Lucas & Steve may not ring a bell for everyone, the duo is popular. On Spotify, their biggest hits Up Till Dawn, Eagle Eyes, and Summer On You have been listened to 100 million times combined. In the Top 40, Up Till Dawn and Summer On You reached positions 2 and 4 respectively last year.[1]

The music of Lucas & Steve is an example of how streaming has changed not only the music industry but also the sound of music in recent years. How does this happen? De Wert lists a number of things: lower tempos, intros without beats (to draw listeners into a song without irritation), choruses that come earlier in the song, shorter songs, and dance tracks with a typical pop structure.[1]

“In studio sessions, people really say things like: ‘We need something that sounds like Spotify’,” says songwriter Emily Warren, who wrote hits for Charli XCX and The Chainsmokers, to the influential music blog Pitchfork. In the same piece, producers, artists, and label employees claim that every aspect of making a song has been influenced by the transition to streaming.[1]

Dominant Medium

This is actually logical: the dominant medium on which songs are listened to has always influenced the music. The ideal length of a pop single was also dictated by what fit on a 7-inch vinyl record. And artists responding to what’s popular in the charts is timeless.[1]

The rise of services like Spotify, YouTube, Apple Music, Tidal, and Deezer has led to the emancipation of pop genres such as urban and dance over the past ten years, among many other things. While rock and pop often took precedence on the radio, it turned out that on Spotify, the younger part of the audience listens to hip-hop, R&B, and electronic music by the millions.[1]

Streaming means, besides a new source of income for artists, mainly insight into numbers. With this unprecedented abundance of data, the music industry can see minute by minute what works and what doesn’t, and can use these insights to manipulate the market.[1]

Genre Blending

“Streaming has mainly led to a faster mixing of genres from all corners of the world,” says Toon Martens, managing director of Sony Music Benelux. “National borders have blurred in the music industry. Look at African influences in Drake’s music, like in the song One Dance. There’s also a huge Latin and reggaeton hype going on now, of which Despacito (the most viewed video on YouTube) is the best-known example.”[1]

Production Techniques

“Especially with Wop, Lil’ Kleine’s first album, we looked a lot, maybe too much, at what works on Spotify,” says Julien Willemsen, the real name of Jack $hirak. “After Drank & Drugs, there was a lot of demand for more music from Kleine. Then we made Wop in a week. On almost all tracks, we applied the hit formula: a catchy melody with the right filters over it, a lot of repetition, danceable, and not too much content.”[1]

Streaming Strategies

Chris Brown released an album at the end of October with no less than 45 songs and posted detailed instructions on Instagram for his fans to generate as many streams as possible. Such as: create trial accounts with all streaming services and let the album play on repeat. Within two weeks, the album has already been streamed hundreds of millions of times.[1]

The Crucial 30 Seconds

“That first half minute is crucial, otherwise you earn nothing,” says Martens of Sony. “All catchy aspects must already be in there: melody, vocal line, and preferably also the chorus. Recognizability is the most important.”[1]

Playlist Power

“Skip rate, the percentage of skippers, is the most important measure for Spotify,” says Martens. “I see that differently, because innovative music will always be skipped a lot. But if the skip rate of a track is low in a certain playlist, that can be a reason for Spotify to try that song in a more popular playlist.”[1]

The Future of Music Production

Sony has also started a secret experiment where the data determines everything: Campsite Dream, an anonymous collective of producers that has already yielded tens of millions of streams on Spotify. “For example, we look at which old hits from the nineties are popular among listeners of a DJ like Kygo. And then we make a new version in that style.”[1]

“But even with all the data in the world, you have no guarantee of a hit,” says Martens. “Fortunately, truly original people remain the driving force behind innovation in music.”[1]

Source: Volkskrant , Haro Kraak ( translated)

thematic analysis

Data-Driven Decision Making

Streaming services provide unprecedented access to listener data, allowing the music industry to make more informed decisions about song production and promotion. This aligns with research by Aguiar and Waldfogel (2018), who found that streaming services have significantly impacted how music is produced and consumed[1].

Changes in Song Structure

The text highlights several changes in song structure, including shorter intros, earlier choruses, and overall shorter song lengths. These changes are driven by the need to capture listener attention quickly. Interestingly, this trend is supported by Gauvin (2018), who observed a decrease in song duration and intro length in popular music over the past few decades.

Genre Blending and Globalization

Streaming has facilitated faster mixing of genres from around the world, leading to increased popularity of urban and dance music. This globalization effect is consistent with findings by Verboord and Noord (2016), who noted that digital music platforms contribute to the internationalization of music consumption patterns.

Optimization for Playlists

Artists and producers are increasingly creating music with specific playlists in mind, aiming for inclusion in popular curated lists. This strategy is explored by Bonini and Gandini (2019), who discuss how playlist curation on Spotify has become a new form of gatekeeping in the music industry.

Production Techniques

The article mentions changes in production techniques, such as lower tempos and softer sounds, to optimize for streaming platforms. This trend is corroborated by Askin and Mauskapf (2017), who found that successful songs often balance novelty with familiarity in their sonic features.

Economic Implications

Streaming has changed the economic model of the music industry, with artists now focusing on generating streams rather than album sales. This shift is examined by Ingham (2019), who discusses how streaming has altered revenue streams and business models in the music industry.

These themes demonstrate the profound impact of streaming services on various aspects of music creation, distribution, and consumption, reflecting broader trends in the digitalization of cultural industries.

References:

[1] Aguiar, L., & Waldfogel, J. (2018). As streaming reaches flood stage, does it stimulate or depress music sales? International Journal of Industrial Organization, 57, 278-307.

Gauvin, H. L. (2018). Drawing listener attention in popular music: Testing five musical features arising from the theory of attention economy. Musicae Scientiae, 22(3), 291-304.

Verboord, M., & Noord, S. (2016). The online place of popular music: Exploring the impact of geography and social media on pop artists’ mainstream media attention. Popular Communication, 14(2), 59-72.

Bonini, T., & Gandini, A. (2019). “First Week Is Editorial, Second Week Is Algorithmic”: Platform Gatekeepers and the Platformization of Music Curation. Social Media + Society, 5(4), 2056305119880006.

Askin, N., & Mauskapf, M. (2017). What makes popular culture popular? Product features and optimal differentiation in music. American Sociological Review, 82(5), 910-944.

Ingham, T. (2019). Streaming has changed everything. Music Business Worldwide. https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/streaming-has-changed-everything

Research Topics

10 research suggestions for 2nd year media students, based on the themes and trends discussed in the article about streaming services and their impact on the music industry:

1. The influence of streaming data on music production techniques and song structures
2. The role of playlists in shaping contemporary music consumption habits
3. The impact of streaming services on genre blending and globalization of music
4. Changes in artist marketing strategies in the streaming era
5. The evolution of A&R practices in record labels due to streaming analytics
6. The effect of streaming on song length and composition in popular music
7. The emergence and impact of playlist-specific music production
8. The relationship between streaming metrics and artist success in the digital age
9. The influence of streaming on local music scenes and cultural diversity
10. Ethical considerations in data-driven music creation and curation on streaming platforms