Glamour and infinite riches
As the wet white sand cooled his cheek, he wondered where he could possibly be. His mind had no recollection of the events that conspired to bring him here. He could not only hear the ocean but could feel the water bath his Louis Vuitton clad feet. His eyes slowly cleared the dense fog to allow the palm tree’s seductive dance to enter. This was some sort of island paradise.
His hand scanned his immediate vicinity looking for his Chopard De Rigo Sunglasses. Were the 60 grammes of 24 carat gold for the frames safe? Did they still contain the 51 River diamonds? Did he keep the receipt for the $408,000 dollar purchase?
Oh yes, you read correctly. This is a crazy world we live in. Back to our story. As the neurons cleared the cerebral traffic jam and the information flowed smoothly, he saw the four way arrows. They were emblazoned on the most exquisite high top boot. Off white by the one and only late great designer Virgil Abloh. As his eyes journeyed northward to reveal the boot’s alluring owner, the music started.
There was a frenzy of well-choreographed movement and then the rest of the dazzling performers appeared. What unfolded was a masterpiece display highlighting the dance capabilities of what the world’s fittest and most talented could offer. He jumped up and joined the frenzied production. In the blink of an eye they were on a tarmac boarding a Gulfstream G650ER private jet. Cost $66 million.
Destination New York City. Even before anyone could take a sip of Krug Grande Cuvée Brut champagne, named the best of 2022, they were seated court side at the greatest arena in the world. That could only mean Madison Square Garden. A glance down the row of seats and you would see Madison Square’s most famous resident. That would be none other than Brooklyn’s own Oscar Winning director, Spike Lee. Knicks taking down the Lakers tonight.
That could be the script of any music video by Jay Z or Tom Zee for that matter. The lives depicted are one of glamour and infinite riches. Do music artistes make that kind of money? Undoubtedly the cream of the musical crop earn the type of mega money that fuels lives filled with Gulfstreams and Chopard. But not everybody can carry an American Express Centurion credit card.
That’s Amex Black to those in the know. How do music artistes make money? The US recorded music industry generated $15 billion of revenue in 2021, which turns out to be the highest figure ever. However, recent research estimates that artists in the US only take home 10% of that figure. One reason for such a disappointing amount is that streaming services like Apple Music and Spotify, while reinvigorating the music industry, are not very lucrative unless you are a major star like Taylor Swift or Drake. For a million streams on Spotify, artistes can make an average of $3,300 to $3,500.
Apple Music pays one US penny, which is approximately 12 thebe per stream. This may sound like peanuts but it is actually pretty good and much more than Spotify. A broad view of the revenue breakdown would appear something like this. Music platforms like Apple, Spotify and Tidal would keep 30% of the monies received, which include subscription fees and advertising earnings. Music publishers who represent songwriters get 15% and the record label collect 55%. Only then does the label pay a percentage of this to the artistes, after they have paid back the label’s investment in them. By far, most of us consume music using a platform and while this medium creates stars, a large portion of these artistes struggle to pay rent just from streaming revenue. But here is an uplifting story.
A British music artiste named Tom Rosenthal recorded a cover version of a song called Home. The song went viral on the TikTok app. Following which, every record company in the world (remember these are the guys that collect 55% of music revenues) contacted him to say they wanted that song. Tom steadfastly refused.
After being rebuked, the labels said that the song would be a flash in the pan and quickly fade away. They were wrong. And because he refused to go with them, he got to keep all of the money. The song has over 100 million streams. I’m sure all of us are curious how much money Rosenthal made from that single song. I hope you’re sitting down before I tell you. Rosenthal pocketed between $3.44.5 million. That is a real treasure.
Besides streaming, how else do artists make money? The majority of an artiste’s revenue comes from touring, selling merchandise, licensing their music for television, movies, or video games and partnerships or side businesses. When the COVID-19 pandemic began, artistes were severely restricted in performing live, which seriously curtailed their income. Consider, for example, the rock band U2. In 2017 they earned $54.4 million.
That made them the highest earning act that year. Of their total earnings, $52 million or 95% came from touring. Only four percent came from streaming and album sales. And so while we watch YouTube and see artistes piloting Lamborghinis with limited edition Rolex’s encircling their wrists, we realise that more often than not those are rented. The illusion is essential to sell the dream. For every time, each one of us compresses the download button for Han-C’s new release, the world ignited is a complex one.