Musicians of the World Unite and Decolonize the Music Industry feat. Rich Jensen from Resonate

The Blockchain Socialist

This week I spoke with Rich Jensen (@richjensen), Co-op Executive of Resonate (@ResonateCoop). Resonate is a cooperatively owned music streaming platform aiming to give more power to artists rather than corporate record labels and VC-funded tech companies.On average their model gives a larger payout to artists as compared to other music streaming platforms like Spotify. Rich has had a long career in the music industry of starting ventures and has a passion for decolonization.
During the interview we spoke about the recent history of music culture creation, it's commodification, and how the music industry was affected by P2P platforms like Napster. We discuss how blockchain could be used to help in making sure artists receive the value of their work rather than being exploited by companies or otherwise. We then connect how this model could be used to help in efforts to decolonize the oppressed including indigenous and black communities. Since Rich is based in Seattle, we also talked about his recent experience in the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (#CHAZ) and the legacy of Kurt Cobain.
If you liked the podcast be sure to give it a review on your preferred podcast platform. If you want to see more content like this, please consider donating to my Patreon starting at just $3 per month. At the moment I've spent more on this 9-month old project than I've ever made so any amount helps. Also, sign up for the Newsletter, follow me on Twitter (@TBSocialist), and join the r/CryptoLeftists subreddit to continue the discussion and give your thoughts.

Support the show

ICYMI I've written a book about, no surprise, blockchains through a left political framework! The title is Blockchain Radicals: How Capitalism Ruined Crypto and How to Fix It and is being published through Repeater Books, the publishing house started by Mark Fisher who’s work influenced me a lot in my thinking.
The book is officially published and you use this linktree to find where you can purchase the book based on your region / country.