Shmoozic Biz

Bill Hochberg
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Music attorney and journalist Bill Hochberg breaks bread with A-list business, legal and creative professionals to get the low-down and the high-up on the most interesting and consequential news, views and shmooze in today's music world.

  1. Aug 21

    Episode 20 - Blink 182 vs Slop 183

    Did Suno just use Blink-182 or Green Day tracks as training data to generate a generic pop punk ditty from California? Can anyone really figure out exactly which human songs, and how much of each, went into an AI song? Our guest Matt Adell, COO of Musical.ai (and former head of Beatport), says, yes they can. Their program determines who should get paid and who ought to get attribution when robots write songs based on human music. He shares with music attorneys Bill Hochberg and Sami Kazi where this new and interesting tech came from and where AI training is going in the music industry on this episode of Shmoozic Biz. Table Of Contents: 0:00 Intro: the 12% Blink-182 Solution 0:58 Meet Matt Adell: Music Tech Legend 1:58 Matt’s History: From Napster to Beatport to Musical AI 5:05 Music Tech From Synthesizers to AI Music 10:29 The Jorja Smith AI Vocal Case 13:26 How Musical AI "Unscrambles the Egg" 15:00 Master vs. Composition Attribution Tech 18:05 Deterministic Similarity vs. "Magical Thinking" 26:10 Challenges in Detecting AI-Enhanced Tracks 33:40 Major Label Lawsuits vs. Indie Attribution 35:25 Why Licensing is Feasible, Not Inconvenient 35:00 Future Implications for the Music Industry For news, views and shmooze you can use about the business and law of music, subscribe to Shmoozic Biz on YouTube and follow us on Instagram, Spotify (Video), and TikTok... links in the profile. Bill Hochberg is a music and media lawyer at Raines Feldman Littrell LLP and he writes regularly in Forbes and other top publications on the business and law of music. Our musical theme is "8 Church Birds" by billeeto. https://tinyurl.com/billeeto DISCLAIMER: This program and the associated written materials are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

  2. Aug 11

    Music Lawyer Dina LaPolt On NO FAKES, Joel Katz And More

    Joining Bill Hochberg and Sami Kazi on this episode is music attorney Dina LaPolt, who reps major artists and songwriters and advocates on Capitol Hill for laws like the NO FAKES Act, designed to protect against "deepfakes" and to give creators and content owners new property rights over voices and images separate from copyright and trademark law. Dina kicks things off by sharing some sage advice she took from the late music law titan Joel Katz that has steered her throughout her career. Then the conversation takes some fascinating and sometimes surprising twists and turns, like when Dina says its the Republicans who are the intellectual property party, not the Dems. "This is the time to get the No Fakes Act passed because intellectual property is a Republican issue," she says. After the mid-terms it may be too late, she asserts. Bill and Sami are not necessarily buying all of that, but its a provocative point to consider. This insight-filled convo is a must-not-miss no matter on which side of the political aisle you sit or where you stand on AI music, deepfakes, parody with digital replicas, Silicon Valley influence on Music Row, and other issues rocking the music biz today.

  3. Jul 21

    How to Avoid Gig Disasters – A New App for Touring Musicians

    n this episode Bill Hochberg and Sami Kazi get Shark Tanky on a new app called GigLogic designed by musicians for musicians. The app's developers Craig A. Meyer and Gary Arbuthnot say their software will help an act figure out which gigs to play and which to stay away from if they want to succeed on the road (or the high seas). GigLogic is supposed to help predict whether shows are going to be profitable or money-losers on both larger and smaller scale tours. Will this app result in some cities and towns around the country and around the world seeing fewer and fewer tours coming through because the tour economics just don't make sense? We get into that and other interesting aspects and implications of tour accounting software like GigLogic. Table Of Contents 00:00 - Introduction And Overview 02:18 - Gig Logic Dashboard and Show Profiles 04:37 - Tour Economics and Market Selection Strategies 06:57 - Tour Deficits and Independent Artist Touring Realities 09:24 - Gig Status Categories and Budget Adjustments 11:49 - Official Launch 14:07 - Travel, Lodging, and Historical Touring Comparisons 16:30 - Multi-Ensemble Show Profiles and A/B Scenario Comparisons 18:55 - Founders' Backgrounds and Closing Remarks For news, views and shmooze you can use about the business and law of music, subscribe to Shmoozic Biz on YouTube and follow us on Instagram, Spotify (Video), and TikTok... links in the profile. Bill Hochberg is a music and media lawyer at Raines Feldman Littrell LLP and he writes regularly in Forbes and other top publications on the business and law of music. Our musical theme is "8 Church Birds" by billeeto. https://tinyurl.com/billeeto Headshot of Craig A. Meyer https://www.pacificsymphony.org/artist-details/541/ DISCLAIMER: This program and the associated written materials are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

  4. Jul 14

    Major Labels Want The Indie Share Of The Record Biz, Now One Third Of The Global Pie

    Independent labels and music distributors have increased their market share to an astonishing one third of the total global recorded music revenue pool, according to sources Bill Hochberg and Sami Kazi reveal on this episode. And the major labels want to take a slice or two of that share for themselves, so they've established indie distribution arms to co-exist with their major label distribution businesses. How does this all work and what's the best way for an artist or indie label to understand and deal with the situation? Find out what's on the menu for the majors and whether it's you! Table of Content 00:05 Introduction: The rise of the independent music sector 00:47 Bad Bunny and the rise of fiercely independent artists 01:53 Virgin Music Group's history and role as UMG's independent arm 03:35 Major label independent distribution arms (The Orchard, ADA, Virgin) 05:23 UMG's strategic acquisitions: Downtown, CD Baby, and Fuga 06:14 The "craft beer" analogy for major-owned indie labels 06:57 The history of The Orchard and Sony's acquisition 08:36 AWOL (Artists Without A Label) and its history with Sony 09:44 Truly independent entities: Empire and Secretly Group 13:06 BMG's position as the "fourth major" with a full distribution stack 15:26 Upstream deals: Evolution and advice for artists shopping for deals 17:33 Conclusion: Will the majors remain dominant or will indies take over? For news, views and shmooze you can use about the business and law of music, subscribe to Shmoozic Biz on YouTube and follow us on Instagram, Spotify (Video), and TikTok... links in the profile. Bill Hochberg is a music and media lawyer at Raines Feldman Littrell LLP and he writes regularly in Forbes and other top publications on the business and law of music. Our musical theme is "8 Church Birds" by billeeto. https://tinyurl.com/billeeto Photo credits: Bad_Bunny_2019_by_Glenn_Francis.jpg (glennfrancis@pacificprodigital.com) Goose Island IPA https://guruofbrew.com/mygooseipa3.JPG DISCLAIMER: This program and the associated written materials are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal or financial advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

  5. Jun 30

    Live Music Biz Is Healthy But High Costs Could Kill It: Experts Say

    Post Malone and other superstars recently had to cancel tours because of low ticket sales in certain markets. But on this episode we shmooze with top music agent Jarred Arfa and music promoter/attorney Danny Hayes who say big live concerts are not in danger, as long as show costs stay in check. But what about increasing ticket prices in a challenging economy? We discuss the economics of all that and also the Live Nation and Ticketmaster settlement and where that may find us in the future. For news, views and shmooze you can use about the business and law of music, subscribe to Shmoozic Biz on YouTube and follow us on Instagram, Spotify (Video), and TikTok... links in the profile. Bill Hochberg is a music and media lawyer at Raines Feldman Littrell LLP and he writes regularly in Forbes and other top publications on the business and law of music. Our musical theme is "8 Church Birds" by billeeto Post Malone image inside podcast from: The Come Up Show from Canada, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons DISCLAIMER: This program and the associated written materials are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

  6. Jun 28

    Spotify Keeps More Streaming Revenue Than It Pays To Labels, Top Law Firm Calculates

    On this episode we consider three surprising conclusions about music streaming revenue drawn by top music attorney Jordan Bromley and analyst Trent Smith at Manatt Phelps & Phillips. NOTE: the firm's findings, based on their music streaming revenue calculator, are not independently confirmed on the podcast. But here's what they are claiming: First, Amazon Music pays at a rate more than double of what Spotify pays to the record labels, artists, publishers and songwriters. That doesn't mean they pay double the amount of revenue overall, but the rate per 1 million streams is double, which is significant, says Manatt; Second, Spotify pays itself more revenue from music streaming than the labels who own the recordings; and Third, Amazon Music takes NO cut AT ALL from the royalties before paying it over to the content owners. But how can that be? Go to the episode for more on this. The Manatt team stands by the data and you can try their calculator yourself at: https://www.manatt.com/music-streaming-royalty-calculator Spotify has pushed back against this podcast, claiming that the Manatt calculator is dead wrong, but Manatt stands by their numbers and conclusions. Please add your comments if you have an opinion one way or the other. For news, views and shmooze you can use about the business and law of music, subscribe to Shmoozic Biz on YouTube and follow us on Instagram, Spotify (Video), and TikTok... links in the profile. Bill Hochberg is a music and media lawyer at Raines Feldman Littrell LLP and he writes regularly in Forbes and other top publications on the business and law of music. Our musical theme is "8 Church Birds" by billeeto. DISCLAIMER: This program and the associated written materials are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

  7. Jun 16

    Why'd Whitney, Axl, Prince And Marley Catalogs Come To Primary Wave – Exec Explains

    David Weitzman, a top executive at Primary Wave, reveals what they've been doing to boost the premiere music assets they've acquired. He also provides tips for those interested in buying and selling catalogs in 2026 and beyond. Table of Content: 00:00 Introduction: PW's Successes With Whitney Houston 01:25 Primary Wave's Philosophy 03:45 More On Whitney Houston branding. 07:12 Managing the iconic Bob Marley catalog. 11:30 Acquiring Prince's Assets: The strategy 15:50 Axl Rose and Guns N' Roses 20:15 How Primary Wave uses non-traditional marketing. 25:40 Future of Catalog Acquisitions: Where the market is heading 31:00 Working with Heirs and Estates: Navigating the complexities of legacy management. 34:20 Final thoughts on the intersection of music, business, and legacy. For news, views and shmooze you can use about the business and law of music, subscribe to Shmoozic Biz on YouTube and follow us on Instagram, Spotify (Video), and TikTok... links in the profile. Bill Hochberg is a music and media lawyer at Raines Feldman Littrell LLP and he writes regularly in Forbes and other top publications on the business and law of music. Our musical theme is "8 Church Birds" by billeeto. https://tinyurl.com/billeeto DISCLAIMER: This program and the associated written materials are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

  8. Jun 9

    How Exactly Did Bill Ackman Try To Buy UMG With UMG's Own Money?

    It's game over for Bill Ackman's $64 billion buyout bid for Universal Music Group, but the billionaire activist may have another music biz play up his sleeve. On this episode, Bill and Sami recap Ackman's longshot and discuss whether tricky deals like these are good for the creative community and music companies. Table of Contents 00:00 Introduction: The Bill Ackman & UMG Deal 01:25 Understanding SPACs and the PSTH Strategy 03:10 Universal Music Group's Market Position 05:45 The Mechanics of the "Buy with Own Money" Attempt 08:30 Regulatory Hurdles and the SEC's Response 11:15 Lessons Learned from the Failed Acquisition 14:00 Final Thoughts and Implications for Music Business For news, views and shmooze you can use about the business and law of music, subscribe to Shmoozic Biz on YouTube and follow us on Instagram, Spotify (Video), and TikTok... links in the profile. Bill Hochberg is a music and media lawyer at Raines Feldman Littrell LLP and he writes regularly in Forbes and other top publications on the business and law of music. Our musical theme is "8 Church Birds" by billeeto. https://tinyurl.com/billeeto DISCLAIMER: This program and the associated written materials are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended, and must not be taken, as legal advice on any particular set of facts or circumstances.

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About

Music attorney and journalist Bill Hochberg breaks bread with A-list business, legal and creative professionals to get the low-down and the high-up on the most interesting and consequential news, views and shmooze in today's music world.

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  • Creator
    Bill Hochberg
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    21
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Bill Hochberg