At the October 2019 Music Tectonics Conference in Los Angeles, we hosted a Blockchain Cage Match, refereed by NWA’s Arabian Prince, with three skeptics and three enthusiasts facing off in wrestling masks and capes. Podcast host and conference organizer Dmitri Vietze came up with the idea for the cage match after attending music industry conferences where entrepreneurs and engineers were touting the benefits of blockchain on stage while music industry veterans snickered at the back of the room. At our conference, Dmitri wanted to bring the factions together instead of having separate conversations. Though the cage match was fun, it didn’t quite turn out the way we’d hoped.
Dmitri invited two of those panelists to the podcast for a Blockchain Peace Summit, so we can find out what really happens when a blockchain skeptic and a blockchain supporter talk to each other—peacefully—about solving music industry problems. On the skeptic side is Portia Sabin, President of the Music Business Association and host of the Future of What podcast. And coming in on the supporter side is Ken Umezaki, CEO of Verifi Media, a rights data management company that uses blockchain, and President of Digital Daruma, a music tech investment company. Portia and Ken examine the roots of the music industry’s . . . less than thrilled reaction to blockchain evangelism. What have we learned about blockchain since the heady hype of “Crypto Summer” a few years ago? What other tech solutions have both Portia and Ken excited about the future of the music industry, and what’s the missing piece that would change the data landscape in the music biz for good?
Listen to the full episode here on our website, or wherever you pod your favorite casts.
Let us know what you think! Tweet @MusicTectonics, find us on Facebook and Instagram, or connect with podcast host Dmitri Vietze on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook.
The Music Tectonics podcast goes beneath the surface of the music industry to explore how technology is changing the way business gets done. Weekly episodes include interviews with music tech movers & shakers, deep dives into seismic shifts, and more.
Comments