The Daily Chord Weekly Recap – Friday, August 31

The final week of August brought Drake's dancing drones, another 'rock is dead' essay, and Taylor Swift mulling her future as a free agent. The Daily Chord shared these stories and more, as is our custom. Join the list for our email blast for the fresh stories.

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Monday, August 27

• Independent festivals call on authorities to probe Live Nation dominance in the UK
  Post from Pollstar
• Cox settles with BMG in lawsuit that demanded ISPs get tough on piracy
  Post from Billboard
• Jason Aldean reflects on the 'guilt' he felt about Vegas shooting
  Post from Today
• We're living through the merch bundle wars
  Post from The Fader
• Geto Boys DJ Ready Red dies
  Obituary from Houston Chronicle
• Big noise: The essential pop, jazz and folk music of autumn 2018
  List from The Guardian

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Tuesday, August 28

• Taylor Swift stands to make music business history as a free agent
  Post from Variety
• Addressing Robert Glasper and other common misconceptions about me (in no particular order)
  Post by Lauryn Hill via Medium
• The trouble with SiriusXM's opposition to the Music Modernization Act
  Op-ed from Music Business Worldwide
• Esperanza Spalding is the 21st century's jazz genius
  Profile from NPR
• Queeneth Ndaba, champion of South African jazz, dies at 81
  Obituary from NY Times
• How the 1968 DNC protests in Chicago 'killed' protest folk singer Phil Ochs
  Story from Chicago Reader

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Wednesday, August 29

• State of the YouTube music economy 2.0: A major turning point for all parties
  Post from Music Industry Blog
• New Nashville-based streaming service seeks to be craft beer for music industry
  Story from The Tennessean
• Michael Jackson's brand is stronger than ever, but what about his image?
  Post from LA Times
• Bland on Blonde: Why the old rock music canon is finished
  Post from The Guardian
• Caroline strikes distribution deal with JustGold, label run by 20-year-old college student
  Item from Variety
• The truth about Devo, America's most misunderstood band
  Story from Noisey

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Thursday, August 30

• Drake's tech-filled concert is using drones as backup dancers
  Post from CNET
• Dr. Luke's queasy two-front comeback effort
  Post from The Atlantic
• Members of Spoon, Sonic Youth, more to perform at 'Flip These Houses' benefit concert
  Item from Pitchfork
• How to manage the Rolling Stones: 'If you start taking it for granted, that's doomsday'
  Interview from Music Business Worldwide
• Songwriters blast Oregon senator with 'Why do you hate music?' billboards
  Post from Variety
• Massive Stax Records box set to include every 1968 single label released
  Post from Rolling Stone

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Friday, August 31

• Eminem releases 'Kamikaze,' a surprise album
  Item from NY Times
• Viagogo taken to High Court by competition regulator
  Story from BBC News
• How 'brite' a future is there in Eventbrite's IPO?
  Analysis from Pollstar
• 'Art shouldn't be weaponised': The atonal concert championing Berlin's homeless
  Post from The Guardian
• This music theory professor just showed how stupid and broken copyright filters are
  Story from Motherboard/Vice
• 'Since U Been Gone': The crossover pop needed, the anthem rock deserved
  Post from NPR