“This is the final straw AI,” Drake wrote on Instagram Stories after an AI-generated version of him rapping to Ice Spice’s “Munch” went viral. The Canadian artist is the latest prominent industry figure to express concern over AI-generated music. Streamers urged to take charge The Financial Times reports that Universal Music Group (UMG) wrote a letter to major streamers, including Spotify and Apple Music, to clamp down on AI-generated music. UMG, which controls about a third of the global music market, said they were concerned about AI bots training on their catalog and
A Surf Ghana event with several panellists including Sandy Alibo. A Vibrate poster is visible on the wall.
Spotify has allegedly spent less than 10% of a $100 million diversity fund it launched after its top podcaster, Joe Rogan, came under fire for spreading Covid-19 misinformation and using racial slurs in his podcast. The world’s largest music streaming service announced its $100 million Creator Equity Fund in February 2022 to support the licensing, development, and marketing of music (artists and songwriters) and audio content from historically marginalized groups. However, Bloomberg News reports that, after its first year, Spotify had spent less than 10% of the money on that work. Riddled with
Tech accessory company, oraimo, has announced a new ambassadorial deal with Grammy award-winning artist Burna Boy. For many, the partnership between one of Africa’s leading tech brands and the artist known as the ‘African Giant,’ is a marriage made in heaven. What is oraimo? Described as ‘as far from your regular smart accessory brand,’ oraimo is Africa’s leading TWS (true wireless technology) and smartwatch brand. The company’s initial product line of durable charging bricks and chords became hugely popular amongst the Nigerian community when it first launched due to its
As the world has become more digitized, more accessible payment systems such as Cash App, PayPal and Venmo have become hugely popular. According to data, Cash App has generated over 40 million monthly active users and over 100 million downloads. Recent research reveals that 59% of Black Americans report using Cash App, compared to 37% of Hispanic Americans and even a smaller percentage of white and Asian Americans. Hackers and scammers The popularity of these payment systems among Black and Hispanic Americans is in spite of concerns about security and
Rapper, Zoey Dollaz, has launched a new “Uber service but with bulletproof vehicles” in response to the deadly shootings of entertainers and athletes. In an interview with Radar Radio, Zoey Dollaz opened up about the business initiative he says had been brewing before his own experience in a drive-by shooting. Zoey Dallaz isn’t the first musician to be a drive-by shooting victim, a long line of stars in hip-hop have also been a victim of such attacks, including legendary rapper Notorious B.I.G who died after being shot to death at
Capitol Music Group has severed ties with the FN Meka project following accusations that the AI rapper perpetuated racial stereotypes online. FN Meka, a virtual “robot rapper,” created by the founders of Factory New, a “first of its kind, next-generation music company specializing in virtual beings.” In a short time, FN Meka amassed over 10 million followers on TikTok and 500,000 monthly Spotify subscribers based on music and lyrics generated by an AI based on popular rap music. The robot rapper, which industry professionals described as a “preview of what’s
Music platform, Shazam, has officially crowned Drake as the most searched artist of all, with over 350 million searches. According to Variety, the platform put together a list of its most searched artists to celebrate the app’s 20th birthday. Unsurprisingly, musician Drake was ranked as the most sought-after artist on Shazam’s radar. Out of all tracks in Drake’s discography, “One Dance” was one of the most searched tracks with over 17 million Shazams. Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy” took second place as the most Shamazed song, with most people searching for the
Is there anything the Grammy-award-winning musician can’t do? After releasing his fifth studio album, Kendrick Lamar is moving into new territory with billionaire investor Ray Dalio and comedian ExavierTV to discuss all things money as a part of Cash App’s ongoing “That’s Money” campaign. Popular finance app, CashApp, announced the launch of its new commercial on its YouTube channel. According to the clip, EXavier saved up money to open his franchise but lost it all due to gambling. Kendrick asks for Dalio’s opinion on the situation, and he explains exactly where he
Black Ambition, owned by world-renowned singer and producer Pharrell Williams, recently announced its $3 million investment in content curator platform Trend. The pre-seed funding round was led by venture capital firm Flybridge and included a range of investors, including Techstars Ventures, live-streaming service Twitch, famous anime brand Crunchyroll, and reviewer platform Rotten Tomatoes. The investment firm, Black Ambition, which was founded by Pharrell in 2020, is dedicated to supporting Black and Latinx business owners. The non-profit organization aims to bridge the gap to success for entrepreneurs of color working in
