Blog: Cultural trends - Page 5

Read our latest daily deep dives, hot takes, and exciting updates about the entertainment world. Check out the latest insight from your favourite analyst, or search by coverage areas - music, entertainment and fandom, creator economy and social.

The industry’s narrative is not always the same as the artist's narrative: Redefining success for independent artists

Cover image for The industry’s narrative is not always the same as the artist's narrative: Redefining success for independent artists
Keith Jopling
Last weekend, there was a fascinating quote from Maseo of hip hop legends De La Soul in the UK Guardian: “On our second album, we learned the importance of controlling the narrative. I learned early on that a hit record can hurt your entire body of work if you let the industry control your narrative”.
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Authenticity in the West versus artificiality in the East

Cover image for Authenticity in the West versus artificiality in the East
Ashleigh Millar
You might have heard the term “deinfluencing” floating around the internet recently. For context, earlier this year, a popular American TikTok beauty influencer, Mikayla Nogueira, took to the app to promote L’Oréal’s new ‘Telescopic Lift’ mascara , a brand with which she is a paid partner (although this detail was conveniently placed in a hard-to-read area of the video).
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The future lies beyond tech – a long(er) read

Cover image for The future lies beyond tech – a long(er) read
Hanna Kahlert
As entertainment companies start planning their next big steps for the coming year, the success and failure of their strategic decisions will hinge on one big, and perhaps surprising, existential question : is this it for the tech industry? Planning for 2023 seems to mean planning for disruption, and this is no easy thing to do – especially given the changes already wrought by the last three years of predominately virtual working.
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The economic crunch will reorient consumption around reasons, not ways, to spend attention

Cover image for The economic crunch will reorient consumption around reasons, not ways, to spend attention
Hanna Kahlert
The past few weeks have demonstrated that the economic downturn is not only affecting consumer spending, but corporate strategy as well. Venture capital investors are rethinking red flags , Amazon is rethinking its long-term bets , Facebook has acknowledged a downturn in consumer reach, and Twitter is, well, Twitter-ing .
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Lean-through listening: how does context impact consumption?

Cover image for Lean-through listening: how does context impact consumption?
Hanna Kahlert
Streaming has changed music listening dramatically, turning what was once a thoughtful, attention-intensive activity to a primarily ambient background media format. Or has it? Elevator jazz is far older than YouTube’s ‘lo-fi playlist to chill / elevator to’, and the invention of headphones and cassette players spurred the 80’s trope of angst-ridden teens escaping into their favourite mixtape long before the iPod.
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What happens when the “relentless toll” of the music industry meets the creator economy in a cost-of-living crisis?

Cover image for What happens when the “relentless toll” of the music industry meets the creator economy in a cost-of-living crisis?
Hanna Kahlert
The music industry is in a cultural crisis. It is more demanding than ever to be a successful artist, with the work required to meet the demands of social algorithms and to cut through the clutter being more competitive than ever, in addition to touring being hit hugely by the pandemic lockdown and now by a cost-of-living crisis limiting fans’ ability to attend real-life concerts.
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