Episode 100: What 100 Music Industry Conversations Taught Me

Episode 100 is a landmark for me, so I went back through the first 99 conversations and pulled out the 10 biggest lessons I want every music creator to use into 2026. If you make songs, release recordings, or collaborate with anyone at all, this is the practical checklist that helps you protect your work, get your royalties paid, and avoid the silent mistakes that cost artists money for years. 

We start with the unglamorous stuff that decides whether you get paid: song splits, ownership clarity, and registering the right rights in the right places. I talk through why works registration and recording registration are not the same thing, how bad metadata leads to unclaimed royalties and black boxing, and how identifiers like ISWC and ISRC help connect the dots. If you are independent without a label or publisher, I explain why the responsibility lands on you and how to make that manageable. 

Then we zoom out to the reality of streaming and discovery, where old music competes with new releases and dormant tracks can explode later through playlists, sync, or algorithmic momentum. I also share why music fintech is becoming a real funding route, why catalogue value matters, and what to consider before you lock rights away in long deals. Finally, we get tactical: think globally, embrace AI tools to save time and sharpen strategy, listen to seasoned professionals, map your next 12 to 24 months, build your team your way, and stop waiting to be picked. 

If this helps, subscribe, share it with one music maker who needs it, and leave a review so more creators can find the show.

Transcript

Episode 100 And What Changed

SPEAKER_01 0:16

Welcome to the music business, buddy. With me, Johnny Amos, podcasting out of Birmingham in England. I'm the author of the book, The Music Business for Music Creators. I'm an industry consultant, an artist manager. I'm a music creator myself, and I'm also a senior lecturer in both music business and music creation. Wherever you are, whatever you do, consider yourself welcome to this podcast and to a part of this community. My goal is simple to try and educate and inspire music creators from all over the world in their quest to achieving their goals by gaining a greater understanding of the business of music. Okay, it's a landmark moment in the music business buddy because this is episode 100. So that means that I am now two years into my journey as a podcaster here on the music business buddy. And time flies when you're having fun and all those old cliches. But my goodness me, I have learned a thing or two throughout that time. And not even just from talking to people, but just literally listening to people. Some of the stuff that goes into this podcast is partly research, understanding people, understanding change, understanding my trying to do my best, I should say, to try and simplify things uh as much as I can, which is quite difficult in such a complex industry, but I do my best as you all know. Now, the first 89 episodes of this podcast were audio only, and then I switched to a video and audio format. So I'm kind of what 11 episodes into being a video podcaster now, um, and I am enjoying the process. And I thought, well, what can I do in episode 100 uh to try and be as resourceful and as useful as I can be? Well, what I've done, everybody, is I've looked back over everything that's happened in the first 99 episodes of this podcast, and I have compiled what I believe to be 10 of the most important factors that I think music creators should be aware of. They could be a combination of things uh that have been talked about a lot. Uh they could be common problems that I've identified or that I hear a lot from other people. Um, they can be things that a lot of guests have talked about. So I kind of went through and did a bit of an analysis, and I've come up with what I am calling my top 10 tips for 2026. You wouldn't think I'm a songwriter,

Song Splits And Ownership Talks

SPEAKER_01 2:43

would you? Okay, so starting with number 10, song splits. The first episode I ever did on this podcast is still, to this day, the most popular episode. And it was called The Trust in Terms of Song Splits. Uh, it's an episode that I did on my own with a couple of clips here and there from other people, but generally speaking, it talks about the idea of splitting songs, right? What that's all about. Actually, I think one of the reasons why it's so popular is because there's a lot of complexities to what is seemingly a simple thing. There are no right or wrong ways of splitting a song, um, but there are a couple a lot of complexities to it. One of the most common problems, if not the most common problem, is when people don't talk about it. So, my question to people is not just how are you splitting something, but what are you splitting? Is it the song? Is it the recording? Is it both? Both is fine as well, as long as everybody knows where they stand. You know, we're in a golden age of collaboration, people working together on videos and film projects and songs and recordings, and it's wonderful. But it can become problematic if people don't talk about what the ownership of those things look like. In fact, you can't even register a song properly until you know what that looks like. So that is number 10, song splits.

Registering Works To Stop Lost Royalties

SPEAKER_01 3:57

Okay, now that leads quite neatly on to number nine, which is registering songs and recordings properly. Now, you can't really do nine until you've done ten, right? There is a sense of chronology to that, in as much as that if you don't know what song splits look like, you can't register them properly. Now, again, one of the most common problems that I have come across in talking to people uh through the podcast and through my consultancy work outside of the podcast is the idea of lost metadata or inaccurate metadata, I should probably say. Amit Dubay uh from Beach Street Music and Publishing from Mumbai recently said to me he sees far less bad deals out there for songwriters these days, but there is a major problem with unclaimed royalties or black boxing, if you will, which is the idea of performing rights organizations and collection societies saying, right, we've got all this money, we don't know who to give it to because the metadata is inaccurate or we don't know who it goes to, so we're just going to black box it and siphon it off over there. It's a major problem, not just here in the UK, but in many, many countries throughout the world. And actually, if we register our songs and our recordings properly and separately, it kind of goes in some way to solving that problem. So, just to simplify, when we register the songs, that's the underlying copyright of the actual song, not the recordings. That's the people that wrote the song. That gets registered with the Performing Rights Organization. Here in the UK, that's PRS Music, but it's going to be different organisations for wherever you are in the world, and that's the song. Nothing to do with the recording, just the song. Over there, we register the recording. For us, again, in the UK, it's PPL. They're the only place we can do that with, right? But again, it's going to be different organizations, different collection management organizations around the world where you will register your recordings with. Now, some places you can actually do those two of those things together. And I would love it if we had some kind of, you know, system that combines all that stuff. But in most countries we haven't, in the UK, we haven't. So we have to do it separately. We have to register our songs and register our recordings and then draw some kind of tie that binds the two together. Because if we've got a tune code or an ISWC code for a song, we can actually link that by putting the ISRC code into the song registration or the works registration. Now, of course, there might be multiple sound recordings of the same song. So again, we can compile ISRCs into a works registration, therefore, drawing a link between a song and a recording. I try and make it sound as simple as possible. The reality is it isn't. It is a bit of a complex beast, but just be aware that you have to register the songs and the recordings. Yes, a record company might do their thing on the recording side if you've got a record company. Yes, a music publisher might do it on their side if you're with a music publisher. But if you're not with either, then who is it that registers those things? It is you. Okay, number eight, understanding that old is the new

Old Music Becomes New Again

SPEAKER_01 7:03

new. Okay, now what I really mean by this is I'm talking about audio streaming and music discovery, right? So let's think about there's a lot to this, right? But let's just categorize it into two different things. First of all, when new music comes out, it used to be that new music was effectively up against other new music that came out on that day. It's no longer that case, is it? Because new music is up against old music that's been around for decades. The other aspect is this it could be that your music is sat dormant, seemingly doing nothing on Spotify or Apple, and then all of a sudden, a few years down the line, it gets a major bump, a major boost because of, let's say, a sync or a playlist placement or some kind of algorithmic sway. And all of a sudden, the song has got a new audience. That that's magic, isn't it? But it happens, it happens all the time, right? In fact, it's not magic, it's reality, and it happens all the time to lots and lots and lots of people. Because new is not really new if something that we thought was new is actually old, right? I hope you're still with me on that. But just think about that, right? It might be old music to you, but it's new to somebody else. And that is a hallmark of the algorithmic landscape that we now live in.

Fintech And The Long View

SPEAKER_01 8:17

Seven, understanding fintech. Okay, so I have spoken about this uh on the podcast uh probably three or four different episodes, most recent being episode 89. So if you're not sure what fintech is, go and check out episode 89 where I explain it all in detail. But to summarize it, it's this financial technology, and it's playing a big part in the music industry and in many industries. But where it sits in music is this it's actually a new way of funding the music creator, right? So you can actually gain money for partial or wholesale of your music, right? And by that, by why your music, I mean your songs or your recordings, right? Two very different pieces of intellectual property. So my advice with FinTech is this. Now, if you think long term, try and think, I know this is hard, we live in a very short-term world right now, don't we? But try and think long-term about your catalogue. So, for example, it might be that your music is starting to gain growth and earn royalties, and once it reaches a particular threshold, and I'll be honest, it's about £2,000 a year in earnings, roughly, for most fintechs, then they're going to want to hear from you and understand a little bit more about the shape of your data and the shape of your catalogue to see the kind of things that your music is doing in the streaming world. Now, here's the thing to try and remember if you're locking yourself into working with a record company or with a music publisher by assigning rights, just think about when you get those rights back or think about when those recordings will be coming back to you if you're signing them on, let's say, a licensing deal. Because otherwise, fintech doesn't really mean a whole lot to you. It's about long-term value, it's about understanding the role that assets play in data. Again, it's all in episode 89, but to summarize, just take this tip home with you. Understand fintech and understand what your catalogue might look like in the future.

Find Your Audience Worldwide

SPEAKER_01 10:12

Number six, it's a big wide world out there, isn't it? And I feel like I'm saying the obvious by saying that, but it's worth remembering because the reality is this it could be that you're working on music and you're thinking in a very kind of localized or regionalized way and kind of going, where's my audience? Do that why don't they understand this? And actually, there might well be an audience, it might just be that they're not in the country that you live in. That's a rather common problem. And it used to be quite a big problem economically to try and fix, and I don't think it is anymore because the internet has kind of shortened the world. It's easier to find funnels and tunnels and reach people in niche areas. So actually, it's about understanding that there is a big wide world out there. Um, then there's a lot of burgeoning economies that are doing wonderful things in music and discovering music all the time. Just recently, I've interviewed um experts on China and India. Again, two economic landscapes of great intrigue and huge growth that we barely understand in the Western world, right? That two countries that are going to make a big difference in many, many years to come. So, you know, it's about thinking about hey, there's a big wide world. It's not just about where I am right here, right now, it's about everything else that's around me. And I know it can be overwhelming, but actually the answer is very often in research and understanding where your music best sits. If you're not getting the results that you want right here, now where you are, it might not be because of your music, it might be because of where your understanding it's fitting itself to. And actually, just remember, there's a big wide world out there. Okay, number five, embrace AI tools.

Using AI Tools Without Fear

SPEAKER_01 11:54

I know that you just rolled your eyes at me potentially when I said that, but please, I do not want you to fall behind, and I boldly predict you will if you don't do this, right? Embrace AI tools. Now, it doesn't mean that you have to use AI to create your music. If you think I'm saying that, you're missing the point. It's not. It's about using generative AI and predictive AI and using things like Chat GPT or Perplexity or Claude or any of those tools to be able to do a number of different facts for you. Things like uh saving time, right? Writing copy, building strategy, identifying potential partners, amongst many, many other things. These are all things that can be done very quickly, very effectively, and can just help your career. So embrace it. Please, just try it. Just type some of your ideals into Chat GPT and just see what it comes up with. Because there's a lot of people that are doing that and they're getting a really, really good head start ahead of those that aren't. So I'm not saying the answers are in AI, and I honestly don't think it's replacing us. I just think it's good to try and embrace some of the tools that are out there, especially if they don't cost us anything. Give it a whirl. Number four, listen to professionals. Um, and again, it might sound like a simple thing, but um

Learn From People Who Know

SPEAKER_01 13:06

I see a lot of people that don't, and I see them suffer as a result of it. Um, you know, sometimes uh as a consultant or if I'm talking at a seminar or a workshop or something, sometimes I can see kind of people's eyes go blank when they hear something that maybe they didn't agree with, and it sometimes prevents them from being able to see the truth around them and their music. So listen to professionals, uh, talk to professionals, listen to you don't even have to meet them to listen to them. Listen to the ones that come on my podcast. They may well drop some absolute gems that you can use going forward that it becomes a real Eureka penny drop moment for you. So listen to professionals, listen to people that have been doing it for a while,

Plan Releases And Build Your Team

SPEAKER_01 13:44

that know what they're doing. Number three, strategize your next 12 months. Gosh, that sounds really business like, doesn't it? But it's so important. Um, if you're an artist and you are trying to work towards your goals, um, many of the potential people that could come into your working life and work with you will probably want to know what your next 12 months looks like. Now, when I say that, what I specifically mean is what your release schedule might look like over the next 12 to 24 months, say, for example. So the next year, next year and a half, maybe even the next two years. Just build an understanding of what your recorded music is going to look like. Because once you've done that, it's easier to strategize around it and build live plans. Once you've mapped it out and you've got it in front of you, you'll see what I mean and you'll see what happens next. It enables you to find the confidence to be able to talk to other people about what those plans are and where they might fit into it, which builds perfectly into number two plan your team, right? Now, a lot of people talk about the team, don't they, and what your team is. If you're in a position right now where you don't have a team, don't think that's a bad thing. It's actually a good thing because you're at the start of something, right? And if you think about who you would actually like to have in your team, and I don't necessarily mean people's names or names of companies, but the kind of people that you want in your team. So if I think to a lot of the artists that I know of that have built their team and that are kind of doing their thing, um, sometimes they might start with a music publisher. Uh, in other cases, they might start with a manager, in other cases they might start with a booking agent. So please don't go looking for the blueprint on how this is done because it's customizable to you. It always has been, it always will be, but it's got to start somewhere. So think about who you would like to have in your team and when you think will be the right time to work with them.

Be Forthright And Reach Out

SPEAKER_01 15:30

Okay, number one, and you know what? I thought this two years ago before I start the podcast, and uh, I think it even more now, two years in, right? And that is this don't wait, be forthright. When I was a younger man, people used to say to me, Um, yeah, the music industry, it's all about like who you know, and it's all about like, you know, waiting for them to come to you. And so for years I kind of thought that was true. And it very much isn't, right? I think a lot of the things that have happened to me in my career have been as a result of me going forward and presenting myself to something or to somebody and saying a little bit about who I am. That generally yields a much more proactive result than it does for waiting for things to happen. And I think when people say, let people come to you, I don't think it's the same thing as wait for things to happen. I don't think you can, right? This whole life thing, you know, it goes around once, right? You've got to be happy. That sounds really philosophical, doesn't it? But it's kind of true, right? We only get to do it once, so we just gotta make things happen. And sometimes that is about going out there and saying, hey, hello everybody, you know, this is what I do. You don't have to be the loudest person in the room, but you have to know what you want to say, don't you? Try and summarise who you are in one sentence. Again, it sounds simple, but it's actually quite difficult. Once you can do that, you'll have a much better idea of how to communicate what it is that you do, what you are, and how you sell it. So be forthright, be confident, don't waste, put yourself forward. Okay, so there it is, right? Just to kind of uh summarize kind of 10 points um uh to think about, right? Of things that have come up time and time and time again um over the first two years of doing this podcast. Um and can I just say this, everybody, as well? A really, really, really big thank you, right? Whether you've sat through every single episode, my God, I applaud you if you have. If you haven't, maybe you've just stumbled across this recently. At whatever point you've come across this, right? Thank you. I appreciate it, right? You are you are showing me that you care about what you do, and I can tell you I wholeheartedly care about what you do, even if I don't know you, if I haven't met you yet, I still care. That's why I do this, right? So if there's any subjects, any topics that you want me to cover, if you want to reach out and go, do you know what? Let me ask that guy a question, please know that you can. That is why I do this. Okay, have a great day, everybody. May the force be with you.