Warner Music's CEO Just Told You The Plan (and it's terrifying)
Video Overview & Insights
Warner Music's CEO just published a shareholder letter laying out exactly how the major labels plan to grow profits — through price hikes, superfan monetization, AI licensing deals, and "improving the bottom line." As a musician and composer, I read between the lines so you don't have to.
This CEO is a joke, we were getting ripped off prior to streaming (or Napster)... $20-$30 per CD (and I was buying heaps of CD's). It was crazy. This joker wants us to pay more and yet artists get less than ever. No chance. I already cancelled my Spotify subsciption after 13 years. I''ll only buy direct on platforms like Bandcamp to support artists.
What I found sounds less like a music strategy and more like... well, let's just say EA Games would be proud.
In this video:
More vids like this would be great! I didn't know about this, and now I'm informed - and it's good to be informed!
→ What Warner Music's shareholder letter actually says
→ The drug dealer strategy: hook them cheap, raise prices later
Looking forward to the indy revolution!
→ Why the CFO's "bottom line growth" should worry every musician
→ How 73% of streaming is catalogue music — and what that means for AI
Great video, thank you for not editing in generic royalty free B-roll!
→ Why this might actually be good news for independent artists
Source: Robert Kyncl's Shareholder Letter, March 3, 2026
I buy and rip CDs! I once had over 700 vinyl LPs and nearly 400 CDs, but had to liquidate a few years back. However, I’ve beefed up my CD collection and continue to do so. I absolutely refuse to use music streaming services because they refuse to pay artists fairly, unless it’s a legacy artist with clout! The music business has lost its mind. The 70s and 80s were the heyday of the industry and Warner Bros. Records led the pack with an amazing roster of artists. However, that ended in the 90s when Mo Ostin retired, along with the roster of producers! Today, it’s Warners in name only! Such a shame!
https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/robert-kyncl-tells-wmg-shareholders-ai-is-musics-next-growth-engine-not-its-downfall/
My honest Bandcamp Recommendations for today:
Good analysis. CEOs aren't interested in creativity because most of them have none. They are number crunches whose only goal is to increase year-over-year profits. There is already a push back against streaming services - people (myself included) are buying CDs again often directly from the artists. I hope this is a trend that continues to grow. Big music companies are dinosaurs, artists must become the meteor.
Zach Hyde: https://zachheyde.bandcamp.com/album/the-call-of-ravens-hollow
Trip Mirror: https://trippmirror.bandcamp.com/
Very good insights, Samuel! Your thoughts are almost the same as mine on this matter. It's nice to have a hint of hope in these convulsed times, although it might as well just be wishful thinking. Fine background music, by the way!
Epigenetics: https://epigenetics.bandcamp.com/album/tunes-for-the-trip-to-alpha-centauri-2025-album
Martin Stürzer: https://phelios.bandcamp.com/
I'm torn because I'm a musician and want people to find and enjoy (and hopefully pay for) my music. But I became a musician because I loved the Beatles and Miles Davis and Boston and Metalica and I want more albums from them (early metalica obviously). AI promises to give me more music that is "like" the Beatles and Miles Davis. And its tempting... I hate it because it isn't real... but it's tempting to see "what might have been". sigh. Warner will make a gazillion dollars and artists will continue to get screwed. I can predict that with certainty. As for the indie scene: it'll exist. Will it support artists? Unlikely. People are so used to getting everything they want for a few dollars a month. it's hard to imagine how there's enough money to go around for all us wannabes.
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I'm SamuFL - composer, producer, and hybrid orchestral music nerd. I make videos about music production, the craft of cinematic composition, and the industry forces shaping what we create and how we create it.
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CHAPTERS
00:00 - Introduction
01:08 - Three Main Points
03:30 - Analysis
06:30 - A reason for hope
09:10 - Closing words
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#WarnerMusic #AIMusic #MusicIndustry #Suno #StreamingRoyalties #IndieMusic #MusicProduction #ComposerLife #MusicBusiness #AI #IndieRenaissance #gameindustry