Change may be inevitable but not so for the music industry as Ted Gioia discussed in an edition of his newsletter The Honest Broker:
This lack of interest in new offerings would be troubling in any industry. After all, innovation is the lifeblood of a business. But an obsession with the past is particularly ominous when it comes to music.
Music has long been a leading cultural indicator. Throughout history you could predict societal changes before they happened, simply by studying what songs are climbing the charts. What does it mean when this forward-looking art form unexpectedly turns around and decides it prefers the past?
Ed Sheeran’s Shape of You isn’t that good.