The Department of Justice has settled its lawsuit against Live Nation - Ticketmaster. There will be no breakup of the live entertainment company, but Live Nation has agreed to several remedies in an effort to improve the ticketing industry. But more rust that’s settled… what’s next? What will this change?

In this episode, we are joined by returning guest and NYU professor Larry Miller to break down the DOJ’s settlement with Live Nation/Ticketmaster.

We also dig into the bigger question fans care about most: will this make tickets cheaper?

CHAPTERS

04:13 Why Did DOJ Want to Settle?

11:14 Will Ticket Prices Fall?

13:05 Primary vs. Secondary Ticketing Market

22:48 StubHub and SeatGeek’s Challenge

24:56 Live Nation’s Consent Decree

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Investors have poured more money into music than ever before. Music as an asset class if hotter than ever,. But the public markets have discounted the value of music companies:

• UMG stock is currently trading near its all-time low
• WMG trades at a discount on its earnings relative to UMG
• RSVR is going through a takeover attempt
• Several publicly traded music companies have been taken off the public markets

This is a huge disparity, and it was time to explain why.

In this solo episode, I break down this paradox. We will also connect the dots to real estate, the post-2021 repricing, and why more take-private attempts may be ahead.

CHAPTERS

00:10 Private vs Public Money in Music

07:26 Similarities in Music

08:19 2021 Reset

15:10 WMG and UMG

24:02 What’s Ahead

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Sphere Entertainment is now profitable, Wizard of Oz was a hit, and more locations are coming. Has the business turned the corner, or are there still question marks?

In this episode, I’m joined by Tati Cirisano, MIDiA Research, to assess where Sphere Entertainment stands in 2026. We unpack the company’s narrative, scalability, residencies, challenges, and more.

CHAPTERS

01:34 Is It Really Profitable?

10:01 The Concert Residency Model

14:58 Sphere Expansion Plans

22:33 Novelty Risk

26:07 Does Sphere Have a Comp?

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In music right now, the winners aren’t just the artists with the biggest audiences, they’re the teams that control the infrastructure.

First, I sit down with Mag Rodriguez, CEO and co-founder of EVEN, to break down how Even became a key part of J. Cole’s The Fall Off rollout, from exclusive drops and direct-to-fan sales to tour presales and fan community features designed to keep people coming back.

Then, I’m joined by Lior Tibon, CEO and co-founder of Duetti, to unpack the financial plumbing behind catalog deals: how Duetti raised $200M, why equity and debt get used differently, and how data, underwriting, and marketing operations power the rights-acquisition machine.

CHAPTERS:

04:27 Why J. Cole Uses EVEN

10:16 EVEN-UMG Deal, Explained

16:49 Clearing the Rumors

32:30 Duetti’s Equity vs. Debt Stack

33:34 What a typical Duetti deal looks like

38:38 Catalog Marketing Playbook

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For the past 20 years, subscription streaming has produced an outcome that still gets overlooked. The category winners weren’t the big tech giants or the major studios. In music, Spotify became the default. In premium video, Netflix did the same.

In this episode, we break down how pure-play focus, faster decision-making, and a single retention-driven scoreboard create compounding advantages that big tech’s money and bundling can’t easily copy.

CHAPTERS

01:03 Why Spotify and Netflix Succeeded

06:13 Pure-Play Edge

10:36 Speed & Ownership

14:29 Survivorship Reality

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We just came back from the 68th Grammy Awards. I am joined by Tati Cirisano of MIDiA Research break down what it’s actually like to the experience the Grammys up close from industry events and late-night conversations to crossing paths with artists, executives, and power players shaping the music business. We unpack standout performances, unexpected moments, and how attending the show in person is different from watching at home.

CHAPTERS

01:43 Bad Bunny’s Big Night

05:11 The Grammys In Person vs. On TV

08:36 Lauryn Hill

10:07 Cher on Stage

14:02 Polymarket and the Grammys

20:39 Grammy Week

25:19 Big Changes Next Year

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YouTube is the biggest TV, music, and video platform in the world, but it’s not satisfied. The company still wants to compete for the dollars that go to traditional TV. But can YouTube have it all?

In this episode, we examine YouTube’s push into the living room, from securing the NFL Sunday Ticket to becoming the exclusive home of the Oscars starting in 2029. But as YouTube chases TV legitimacy and higher profit margins, it faces a core tension: how can it get there without losing the creator-driven ethos that made it dominant.

We break down YouTube’s battle for short-form dominance, where YouTube TV fits in, and what its evolving strategy reveals about the future of media, creators, and global attention.

CHAPTERS

02:12 YouTube’s Ambition

04:59 YouTube vs TikTok

10:04 YouTube TV

13:16 Future of YouTube

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Meta’s short-form video surface, Reels, now generates $50 billion in annual run rate. That’s more than some of the largest media companies like Netflix, TikTok, and YouTube’s ad business.

Reels may be less culturally relevant than those companies, and its users spend less time on the platform than others, but it prints money and shows no signs of slowing down.

This episode explores how Meta’s infrastructure made Reels one of the most successful monetization plays in modern tech and what could threaten its momentum next.

CHAPTERS

02:51 Culture vs. Cash

04:30 How Reels Makes Money

06:49 Meta’s Advantage

15:34 Risks Ahead

18:54 What’s Next for Reels

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In this episode, we sit down with Will Page, economist and author of Pivot, for a deep dive on the global economics of music. Using Will’s latest Global Value of Music Copyright Report, we explore streaming economics, global market gaps, AI, and where the music industry’s next phase of growth may come from.

CHAPTERS

02:45 Global Value of Music: 10 Years in Review 11:24 Emerging Music Markets 13:37 Africa’s Music Economy 18:11 Brazil’s Music Market 21:12 The Crocodile Smile 33:18 AI and Music’s Future

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GUEST

Will Page, former Chief Economist of Spotify and PRS for Music, Author of Pivot

LINKS

Global Value of Music Copyright - Will Page

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Prediction markets like Polymarket and Kalshi have had a big year in 2025, but what are they really? Securities? Derivatives? Sportsbooks? They may be all of the above.

Listen to my breakdown on how these markets have evolved over time, and what led to their current rise today. We then dive into the opportunities, risks, and the regulatory challenges that may shape their future.

CHAPTERS

02:54 The Origin of Prediction Markets

06:43 Polymarket, Kalshi, and Modern Prediction Markets

09:16 Regulation and What’s Next

09:31 Bucket A: Policy, Finance, and Economics

13:36 Bucket B: Sports, Entertainment, and Pop Culture

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