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Despite recent struggles, SoundCloud says it's 'here to stay'
After last week's reports that SoundCloud would layoff 40 percent of its staff and consolidate its offices, the company is spreading the word that it's here to stay. SoundCloud tweeted earlier this week that it wouldn't be going anywhere, a message it reiterated in a blog post, and Chance the Rapper tweeted a similar sentiment following a cryptic tweet about "working on the SoundCloud thing." According to a company spokesperson, Chance, as a member of the SoundCloud community, called the CEO to inquire about the situation and his takeaway from that conversation was reflected in his tweet. However, the company recently held an all-hands meeting and reports from employees in attendance as well as information about how SoundCloud has handled these layoffs tell a different story.
Jay-Z’s Tidal-exclusive ‘4:44’ went platinum in less than a week
Jay-Z's latest album 4:44 had a very exclusive release. It was available only on Tidal and new customers signing up to the streaming service days before the album dropped were also required to be Sprint customers in order to get access to 4:44. But despite those limitations, the album is the latest streaming-only release to go platinum. The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) tweeted the news today, meaning 4:44 hit the milestone in less than a week.
Apple paid Chance the Rapper $500,000 for a two-week exclusive
It's tough for streaming music services to stand out. Cosmetic differences aside, all of them offer virtually the same thing. Each major platform has the songs listeners want, for the most part. One method that services are using to stand out is exclusive releases -- even if they're only exclusive for a short time.
Chance the Rapper wins the first Grammy for a streaming-only album
This year is the first time streaming-only albums were eligible to win at the Grammys and Chance the Rapper took full advantage. The hip hop artist won for Best Rap Album Sunday night, notching the first win for a collection of songs that weren't released as a physical album or sold digitally. Back in May, Coloring Book was the first streaming-only album to hit the Billboard 200 chart. Chance also took home Grammys for Best New Artist and Best Rap Performance for the song "No Problem."
The Grammys finally embrace the streaming age
Chance the Rapper's Coloring Book was the first streaming-only album to hit the Billboard 200 chart, and now the album will be eligible for the Grammys. The Recording Academy announced today that streaming-only recordings will now be included in the voting for the awards starting next year. This means that one of the year's most popular hip-hop albums may get even more recognition. As Chance noted in a tweet about the news, it also means that the masses of aspiring artists now have a better shot at winning an award.
Chance the Rapper's streaming-only album hits Billboard chart
In late 2014, the Billboard 200 chart began to take into account both album sales and streaming plays for its rankings. When the list is updated this week, the first streaming-only album will be included on the chart. Chance the Rapper's Coloring Book debuted at number 8 on the list with 38,000 in equivalent sales since its debut on May 13th. The album is an Apple Music exclusive until May 27th where it has tallied 57.3 million streams so far. According to Billboard, there are no plans to make the album available for sale. When Billboard started including streams over a year ago, it announced that 1,500 streams from an album would translate to "an equivalent album unit."
