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Johnny Rodriguez,  country star, dies at 73
Johnny Rodriguez, a country singer who had six No. 1 hits in the 1970s and '80s, including "You'll Always Come Back to Hurting Me," died May 9, 2025, in San Antonio, Texas at the age of 73. After some rocky times as a young man that saw him spending time in jail, Juan Raoul Davis "Johnny" Rodriguez made a name for himself on the local country scene in Texas and Tennessee on the strength of his voice. When he signed to Mercury Records in the 1970s, a string of hits followed. He hit No. 1 in 1973 with "You Always Come Back to Hurting Me" and "Ridin' My Thumb to Mexico." His debut album also hit the top of the country charts, and in 1975 he upped the ante by releasing three No. hits: "I Just Can't Get Her Out of My Mind," "Just Get Up and Close the Door," and "Love Put a Song in My Heart." He remained a consistent top 20 artist through the 1980s, but his later career was hampered by drug addiction and a 1998 incident in which he shot and killed a friend he thought was a burglar. His final album was 2012's "Live From Texas." Rodriguez is in the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame and in 2010 received the Institute of Hispanic Culture Pioneer Award for being the first major Hispanic country singer. 

Three Ways Creativity Helps Future-Proof Your Problem Solving
When we talk about “future-proofing” something, the understanding is that we can’t predict the challenges that will face us in the days, months and years to come yet we still want to prepare. While we’d all like to think that our past problem-solving approaches will work for any future issue, the reality is that we can’t possibly know what’s around the bend and whether our problem-solving “hammer” will be ready for an issue that isn’t a “nail.” This is why developing your innate creativity is an essential preparation for the unexpected. Below are three ways that creativity can help handle unanticipated future problems. We have no way of knowing what challenges await us. But by making the effort to re-kindle our innate creativity, we stand a much better chance of navigating towards novel and satisfying solutions. Creativity isn’t the domain of a gifted few but, rather, an essential survival skill that we all possess and need to nurture. A creative mindset is as critical as a willingness to do hard, productive work when it comes to facing whatever problems the future holds for us.

Five Tips for Saving Money Between Gigs and Royalty Checks 
What's the one thing all musicians and songwriters have in common when it comes to their income? Fluctuation. Whether you have a chart-topping hit, are in the middle of a successful tour, or are seeing some royalties appear for the first time – rest assured, your monthly income is likely to change. It may go up, and it may go down – for career musicians and songwriters, this is pretty much a given and a standard way of life. And it’s not a bad thing, provided you are prepared and plan accordingly. The good news is there are ways to set yourself up for success and make sure you are consistently saving for the future and not caught off guard when there is a pause or break between paychecks. 

ASCAP Affiliated Foreign Societies
This is a list of societies that ASCAP has direct or indirect relations with; there are many smaller societies that are administered by larger societies and many countries and territories that are administered by larger societies where the country has no society of its own. For example, Bermuda has no society and is administered by PRS, the UK Society. See the list here.

Understanding Copyright in Music: Types of Music Licensing
There are many kinds of music licenses. What and how you license will depend on the type of work you are licensing—whether it is a musical work or sound recording (or both)—and what kinds of uses you are allowing the licensee to do with your work. Below is a list of several types of music licenses and how they are used: Public Performance License, Mechanical License, Print License, Synchronization (“Sync”) License, Master Use License... Understanding your rights and the various types of music licenses is important since the terms of those licenses will specify what rights you are licensing and how someone is allowed to use your musical work or sound recording. These licenses will also specify how much and when you will be paid for allowing such use (i.e., your royalties) and for how long these payments will continue, as well as many other aspects that govern the relationship between you, the music licensor, and the person or entity who is using your music, the licensee.

Does Radio Still Rule The Car?
With the rise of connected technology does radio still rule the car? Seemingly since carmakers started installing radios in the dashboards of cars about a century ago, the radio and automotive industries were joined at the hip. Most people got used to sitting behind the wheel and turning on that radio – a habit that most certainly worked for the burgeoning broadcasting business. And while automakers worked to modernize many aspects and features over the decades – power windows, convertibles and sunroofs, automatic transmissions, etc. – the basics of the in-car radio remained constant. Two knobs, six presets – or thereabouts. Yes, FM radio started to make its way in during the early 1970s, and in sequence, 8-track players, cassette decks, and CD slots and multi-disc changers followed. But it was mostly about drivers and passengers listening to their favorite radio stations, and most people developed a “punching order,” starting with their favorite and then working their way down the list using those presets to navigate their choices.No doubt about it. Radio was “king of the car” all those years.  But has its hold on listening supremacy slipped especially given how media choices in vehicles have expanded? While there are many charts in the report – and many are compelling – one jumps out:  And, yep...In-car total audio shares, AM-FM totally dominates. Read the report.

Does opening major tours help emerging artists? Yes and No
Conventional wisdom is that the best way for a new act to build an audience is to open for a superstar. But the boost that a emerging artist gets when opening a major tour is not guaranteed. “There’s often a perception that opening for a major headliner is a guaranteed career boost for emerging artists—but the reality is far more complex,” says study author Jeff Apruzzese from Drexel University. “There hasn’t been much research into how accurate that conventional wisdom really is. This research aims to unpack some of the less visible dynamics in the music industry—especially those that shape the career paths of rising artists.” Being part of a major tour has a more positive impact when the opener tours on their own.
68% of survey respondents said they had discovered new bands who were opening acts. About 50% had later purchased tickets to see an opening act when they returned to the area as a headliner.  81% of ticket buyers say they arrive early enough to see opening acts perform. 39% considered the openers when buying tickets.

Sirius XM Earnings: Results Remain Weak Despite Efforts to Transform Business 
It undoubtedly takes time to see results, but we still fear the competitive headwinds are too great. Sales metrics remained weak at Sirius XM Holdings SIRI in the first quarter. The firm lost another 303,000 self-pay SiriusXM subscribers, average revenue per subscriber continued its descent, and the firm again cited a weak advertising market. Total sales were down 4%, while adjusted EBITDA was down 3%.  Why it matters: The company has been pulling numerous levers to recharge its business, including better SiriusXM subscription options and aggressively pursuing advertising opportunities. It undoubtedly takes time to see results, but we still fear the competitive headwinds are too great. The bottom line: We maintain our $30 fair value estimate. The firm lacks a moat, in our view, and we don’t think the business can grow, but it still generates sizable free cash flow—some of which gets returned to shareholders—and it has a clear runway to expanding free cash as investment ebbs.

SXSW Undergoes Major Leadership Changes 
In a major leadership reorganization at South by Southwest, Jenny Connelly, the executive vice president of product and technology at SXSW parent company PMC, was elected by the SXSW board to lead the long-running film, music and technology festival with the title director in charge. (PMC is also the parent company of Variety.)  Connelly has overseen digital and technology strategy and execution at PMC since 2017, and previously spent seven years as an executive at Live Nation. Her new position at SXSW was announced during a town hall meeting on April 25. Connelly replaces SXSW president Hugh Forrest, who has departed the company. 

When An Arrangement Isn’t Working (and What to Do About It)
Some of the culprits that can derail a production— including wrong tempo, key, or instrumentation—and how to address them in real time. You can hear the finished work in your head, and yet weeks go by and your song-in-progress just isn’t happening—one day it seems too fast, the next day it’s too slow, or the bass part is too busy, the guitars are too shrill, and so on. Rather than waiting for the arrangement to miraculously fix itself, there are times when it makes more sense to try an alternate approach. Here we consider some of the culprits that can prolong the production process—including problems with tempo, key, instrumentation, as well as the mix itself—and how to effect changes in order to get the ball rolling again. Having trouble hitting all them high notes? It’s not a good sign when you can’t comfortably sing your own song—therefore, ensuring you’re in the correct key should be priority one. This can sometimes be a little tricky, particularly if the melody has a lot of range—for instance, you might be in a lower register during the verses, then have to jump an octave for the chorus. A splash of reverb can add some extra dimension to an otherwise arid recording, but it can also turn the whole thing into a big wet mess if you’re not careful. Never apply a single layer of effect to the entire work; instead, use the channel effect-send controls to tailor the amount of reverb going to each track—say, less effect or none at all on bass or bass drum, more for voices, horns or strings. More here.

US Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission launch public inquiry into live music business
The US Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have jointly launched a public inquiry to identify “unfair and anticompetitive practices and conduct in the live concert and entertainment industry”.  The two government agencies are inviting members of the public to submit comments and information on “harmful practices and on potential regulation or legislation to protect consumers in the industry”. The Agencies said on Wednesday (May 7) that they will use the information in their preparation of the report and recommendations directed by Donald Trump’s Executive Order on “Combating Unfair Practices in the Live Entertainment Market”.  Trump issued the Executive Order (No. 14254) on March 31. It directs the Attorney General and the FTC to “ensure that competition laws are appropriately enforced in the concert and entertainment industry.”  The Executive Order also directs the FTC to “rigorously enforce the Better Online Tickets Sales Act, 15 U.S.C. 45c.”

Willie Nelson, Who Turns 92, Still Going Strong As He Sets Out on New Tour
Age continues to be nothing but a number for Willie Nelson, who celebrates his 92nd birthday today, April 29th. No further proof is needed than his exhaustive touring schedule, launching with his annual “Outlaw Music Festival Tour” on May 13th in Phoenix, Arizona.  The 36-date tour will once again be co-headlined by Bob Dylan. They will perform alongside a rotating all-star lineup featuring Billy Strings, Wilco, Sheryl Crow, The Avett Brothers, Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats, Waxahatchee, and more. Other artists appearing on select dates of the “Outlaw Music Festival Tour” include Turnpike Troubadours, Lucinda Williams, The Red Clay Strays, Madeline Edwards, Trampled by Turtles, and Lake Street Dive, among others. 

How Proper Metadata Improves Your Music’s Chance Of Success
Think of metadata as a kind of SEO (search engine optimization) for your music. The information you provide helps DSPs like Spotify, Apple Music, etc. better understand your music on a deeper, more specific level, which in turn helps them better recommend your music to fans who enjoy similar genres. Not only that, but imagine if someone is trying to remember the name of your song, but all they can recall are a couple lyrics and maybe your artist name… if you’ve provided in-depth metadata to describe your track, their search will be easy. If not, they may never find your song… or use that momentum to stream the rest of your music either. All because they couldn’t find that one song. That’s why accurately providing things like the genre, lyrics, mood/theme tags and more all play a huge part in how easy or hard it is for anyone, not just existing fans, to find you online. These details, among many others, ensure your music is as discoverable as possible to both the independent masses and the big league DSPs.