Taylor Swift Using Dubious Trademark Registrations To Put An End To Sales Of Fan-Made Goods

In an effort to capture maximum Swift Dollars, the popular singer's legal team has been outdoing themselves by attempting to  to copyright multiple key phrases from Taylor Swift's lyrics, and "swiftly" bringing down the hammer on any unlicensed fan made goods which feature them.

'Tis The Season, But Are Holiday Albums Profitable?

With November well under way, the sleigh bells are already ringing out, and holiday classics will soon dominate the airwaves, but for all the music played around the holidays, is releasing new holiday music really that profitable for the creator?

Taylor Swift First Day Sales Top 717K, Tour Announcement Planned [UPDATED]

[UPDATED] First day sales for Taylor Swift's new album "Reputation" topped 717,000, according to data gathered by BuzzAngle Music. "She's got a shot at 1.5M for the week given this," says BuzzAngle CEO Jim Ledestri. That makes it the biggest first day release so far in 2017.

Could Your Next Album Be Released On Floppy Disk?

Releasing albums on antiquated formats has become a common occurrence in music industry, but one artist has taken things a step further, releasing their latest album on the long outdated floppy disk.

Shania Twain’s "Come On Over" And Why It Sold Over 20 Million Copies

An icon release of mainstream pop country, Twain's 1997 release was full of crossover potential, loaded with hook-filled songwriting and produced by a rock legend, the album's impact on country music is clearly evident, even 20 years later.

Alex Awards Honor Best In Vinyl - Full List Of Winners 2017

After a 12 year hiatus, the Alex Awards returned this week to honor the best in vinyl record packaging at a ceremony at the Westin Book Cadillac Hotel in Detroit. The Alex Awards was last presented in 2006 when it had been primarily a competition honoring the best in DVD, CD and video game packaging.

Top 10 Merch Items With Highest Profit Margin

Performing live and monetizing your recorded music is only avenue of revenue for bands and artists. Merch sales also help cushion  the income of musicians, but the ROI tends to vary heavily. Here we look at the top ten merchandise items with the highest profit margin.

Record Growth: Pressing Plants Invest In Vinyl

While streaming may be the dominant form of music consumption, it's no secret that vinyl is also seeing an impressive renaissance among music consumers, which is causing more pressing plant to make the smart investment and poney up for vinyl.

 

Why DIY Musicians Should Be Pressing Vinyl

Now at a 25-year sales high, vinyl's resurgence among music lovers is undeniable, and as the cost of record players continues to dip and nostalgia continues to rise, the barriers to entry for artists looking to press their work on vinyl continue to crumble.

Young Music Consumers Are Still Buying Music

While the common conception of young music consumers may be that they would never so much as a glance at a CD or pay for a download, some recent stats suggest that young music consumers are just as apt to buy music as any other age group.

Top 3 Sites For Independent Artists Who Want To Sell Merch

While artists may typically think of music sales as being their primary stream of revenue, merch sales can also be a fantastic way for independent artists to put food on the table. Here we look at the top sites for getting merch out to fans.

The Billboard Charts: Can They Be Valid Without Including YouTube?

Tracking the position of a song or album was much easier for Billboard when such things were based strictly on sales, but in the age of streaming they've been forced to adapt how they get their numbers. That said, one service is still being conspicuously left out: YouTube.

Best Vinyl Services For Increasing An Artist's Revenue

Although music streaming continues to take main stage as the dominant form of music consumption, the value of physical should not be discounted, with vinyl in particular making a strong showing. Here we look at some of the top vinyl services for increasing an artist's revenue.

Albums And Why They Still Matter

With the rise of playlist culture, and the nature of music consumption changing so rapidly, many are questioning whether the conventional album is worthy investment of a band or artist's resources. In this piece we look at why albums still matter.

Best Selling Artists Of All Time

From retail to streaming, being able to quantify the number of sales for an album or song has always been an important part measure an artist's success, but doing so accurately has always been difficult. Here we look at the RIAA's ranking of the best selling artists of all time.

Beyoncé’s ‘Lemonade’ Accidentally Pressed w/ Punk Rock, + 8 Other Vinyl Mishaps

Nothing can ruin the normally serene moment of unwrapping a crisp new vinyl and placing it on your turntable than finding out you've come into the possession of a mispressed album. Here we look at eight famous instances of of vinyl mishaps.

How To (Properly) Release Music Online [FREE WEBINAR]

If you're confused about the best ways to release your music online, have we got a free webinar for you! Getting music up for sale is the easy part. The key is to have a strategy for where your music goes up for sale, and when. Join the Bandzoogle team online Wednesday to learn more.

Austin Welcomes New Short Run Vinyl Pressing Plant

Further evidence that the return of vinyl is as strong as ever, the city of Austin will soon see a new vinyl pressing plant known as Gold Rush Vinyl - this is good news for indie acts who often have lengthy waits when ordering their music on vinyl.

Record Store Day Summer Camp: 200 Record Store Staffers Converge On New Orleans

Going strong for ten years, Record Store Day has become a big part of the independent music retail business, but besides just being a single day, the event has grown beyond just a single day. One iteration of this is networking party that is Record Store Day Camp. Here we take a closer look at the event and its structure.

Diggers Factory Brings Community To Indie Vinyl Pre-Sales

Diggers Factory founder Alexis Castiel takes us behind the scenes of his crowdfunding styled vinyl pre-order and production service designed to keep artists from wasting money on vinyl production. In this article he explains how the idea for the company came about and where it's headed.

How To Encourage Fans To Buy CD's, Vinyl: 5 Techniques

While the majority of music consumers have switched to listening to music via online streaming, the physical product endures, and mediums like vinyl have even seen a spike in popularity. That said, moving physical product remains a challenge, so we're offering up some tips on how to do it more successfully.

Should Musicians Even Bother Making Albums Since Almost No One Is Buying Them?

Like it or not, we live in a singles driven music industry. A recent half-year report from Nielsen revealed that album consumption has taken a dramatic hit over the past six months, even for the industry's stars. So, should you even bother "making" an album?

Steely Dan’s Donald Fagen Just Doesn’t Get It (Unless He Does?)

Steely Dan's Donald Fagen was recently quoted griping about how he is no longer making enough money from his recorded music, and although it's hard to feel too badly for someone as financially successful as Fagen, his frustration does provide us with an interesting snapshot of music revenue overtime.

Warner Music Had Its Most Successful Quarter In 14 Years

The recorded music industry has only recently gotten back on its feet after plummeting to half of its former peak. Streaming seems to have picked up the slack though, and Warner Music is seeing the results with its most successful quarter in fourteen years.

The Beautiful Secrets Behind Vinyl

[UPDATED] This article takes a deep dive into the world of vinyl, exploring why vinyl is superior to a digital format, how one can maximize the sound quality of a vinyl record, several useful ideas for recycling a vinyl record, and more.

7 Tips For Improving Merch Sales

While physical music may not sell like it once did, the merchandise table remains an excellent way for artists at all levels of notoriety to pull in serious cash, as well as promote their music by putting their merch out into the world. Here we look at seven different ways to step up your merch game.

5 Tips For Helping Your Band Sell More Merch

While sales of physical music may be in a slump, other types of physical merchandise continue to provide a reliable source of revenue for both established artists and up-and-comers. Here we look at five techniques for selling even more.

Music's Top Money Makers, Where They Got It From

For all the talk of money in the music industry, it's interesting to take a step back and look at who's actually been pulling it off and raking in the real industry cash. Here we look the music business's top ten earners and where that money came from.

Vinyl Sales Are Flattening, But Why?

The income boost that many artists and labels get from vinyl record sales is in danger of shrinking. This year vinyl sales grew just 2% compared to 12% in 2016, according to new data from Nielsen Music. 

TuneCore Nears $1 Billion In Payments To Indie Artists, Offers FREE Track Distribution To Celebrate

Indie music distributor TuneCore has announced that its artists are approaching the milestone of $1 billion in revenue earned solely from downloads and streams. TuneCore along with its parent corporation Believe Digital are currently actively for sale.