Music Ally Focus

Ep. 190: At a time when streaming dominates and independent labels are supposedly fighting to survive, Frontiers Music has marked its 30th anniversary by taking Megadeth to No.1 on the Billboard 200. It’s the first US chart-topper of the band’s career.

In this episode of Music Ally Focus, made in association with Frontiers Music, we talk to the label’s founder, Serafino Perugino. He tells the story of how he quit his job in Naples in 1996 with two kids at home, no salary and a huge CD collection. That became a global rock label that has worked with Journey, Toto, Whitesnake and now Megadeth.

In this episode:

• The road to No.1: how Frontiers built an international team that could handle a release the size of Megadeth’s – and why it put out around 15 different vinyl variants.
• Expanding beyond classic rock: Serafino explains the BLKIIBLK (metal) and FLG (alternative) imprints.
• Legacy acts in the modern market: backing heritage artists that the majors had dropped, and pushing legends to keep raising their game.
• Staying independent and profitable: why knowing your limits and not overpaying kept Frontiers going from the CD era into streaming.
• Physical still rules: why physical formats still bring in most of the label’s revenue, and how to make variants that fans actually want rather than cynical cash-grabs.
• What’s next: we talk about the Frontiers Rock Festival 2027

Plus: the one record Serafino would keep forever, and the artist who inspired him to start Frontiers.

Links:

Frontiers Music: ⁠https://frontiers.shop/⁠

Frontiers Rock Festival: ⁠https://www.frontiersrockfestival.com/en/⁠

Megadeth – Megadeth: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLFJaod-oManGRhs9rwllXZsQNz1I0BseW&si=5jzotzMIS1w4y0nr

Journey – Escape: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-GlUFI6iWdU

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This is a Music Ally Co-Labs podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠musically.com/music-ally-co-labs⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Co-Labs content is created by publishing partners in liaison with the Music Ally Editorial Team. We work closely with partners to ensure that it adheres to Music Ally's high expectations of quality, thoughtfulness, and usefulness.

Ep. 189: Earlier this year, German rights society GEMA took generative music platform Suno to court in Munich, and won — demonstrating legally that AI models memorise human compositions and then reproduce them. But securing that win inside a courtroom is only half the battle.

In this episode, Music Ally chats with Dr. Kai Welp, General Counsel at GEMA, and he walks us through the nuts and bolts of how they proved Suno was infringing copyright, why US fair use didn't protect them, and the hard truth about why court wins alone won't solve the AI dilemma.

We also dig into the race against so-called “synthetic data,” why GEMA believes songwriters must be compensated on the output side whenever AI music is monetised, and what the EU AI Act actually delivers versus what creators genuinely need.

Here's GEMA's page of information about their legal case, including the sound files we discuss: https://www.gema.de/en/news/ai-and-music/ai-lawsuit

And here's more on the case, including Suno's response: https://musically.com/2026/07/31/german-collecting-society-gema-wins-its-copyright-infringement-lawsuit-against-suno/

Here's GEMA's PLAI dataset: https://www.gema.de/en/about-gema/ki-hub/plai-by-gema

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Ep. 188: If you own an indie label, publishing company, or back-catalogue, there is a very high chance your IP is leaking revenue right now. Between messy global metadata, unclaimed rights, and passive distribution, most independent rightsholders are leaving serious cash on the table.

In this new episode of Music Ally Focus, in association with Indie Music Rights we sit down with Pål Sigvaldsen to break down the lowest-hanging fruit for plugging those leaks, the unsexy admin fixes that drive immediate returns, and how a new “cash-plus-equity” co-ownership model is helping independent creators cash out without walking away from their legacy. (Disclosure: Music Ally holds an equity stake in Indie Music Rights.)

In this episode:

• Indie rights, right now: we get past headline-grabbing mega-deals to examine what the acquisition and catalogue market actually looks like for mid-sized indie rightsholders.
• Plugging the leaks: where labels lose money every day – and why fixing “unsexy” stuff like metadata and broken claims often beats chasing viral TikTok moments.
• Auditing your catalogue: Pål explains the high-impact checks busy label managers can perform right now to stop revenue bleeding.
• Rethinking catalogue sales: Why traditional “hand over the keys” catalogue deals can alienate indie founders, and how a shared-equity model aligns long-term incentives.
• Active caretaking: What happens behind the scenes during the first six months of optimising a newly acquired catalogue?

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This is a Music Ally Co-Labs podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠musically.com/music-ally-co-labs⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Co-Labs content is created by publishing partners in liaison with the Music Ally Editorial Team. We work closely with partners to ensure that it adheres to Music Ally's high expectations of quality, thoughtfulness, and usefulness.

Ep. 187: Back-office admin – from distribution and DSP analytics to neighbouring rights and D2C sales – remains a massive operational drain for indie labels, publishers, and self-releasing artists. In this episode, in collaboration with Absolute Label Services, we sit down with Simon Wills (Co-founder & MD) and Paul Purcell (Director of Platform) to explore how modern "music operating systems" are replacing clunky, fragmented tech stacks, and endless open browser tabs.

We discuss why Absolute built their own platform, Anthology, how private AI empowers lean teams to operate with major-label firepower, and what the future holds for independent rightsholders aiming to scale without expanding headcount.

Anthology: absolutelabelservices.com/anthology

And here's what we discussed:

• Ditching spreadsheet hell: Why juggling dozens of portals is breaking indie workflows, and why music-led teams build better tools than tech bros.
• Taming the admin monster: Unpicking the daily operational time-killers and centralising rights, metadata, and D2C into a single engine.
• AI that's safe for your data: How to use private, walled-off data models that supercharge your catalogue without risking your IP.
• The 2028 indie blueprint: How a three-person team can punch with major-label firepower - and why AI is here to kill busywork, not take your job.
• Unlocking hidden catalogue cash: Turning passive data into active revenue, automated restocks, and slept-on sync opportunities.

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Ep 186: Forget AI music for a moment: more humans are making music than ever before – and they're using powerful, accessible tools to do it. One of those tools is the digital audio workstation FL Studio – and we spoke to Constantin Köhncke, CEO of Image-Line, the company behind FL Studio, and chief product and technology officer Robert Linke about navigating the creator environment in 2026.

They talk about the delicate balancing act between human creativity, generative AI, and accessible production tools in modern music making.

Originally created in 1997 as Fruity Loops, FL Studio has developed into a dominant digital audio workstation responsible for defining major electronic and hip-hop sub-genres.

Constantin and Robert also discuss FL Studio's strict ethical guardrails around AI training models; how they use the DAW's famous "pay-once, get free lifetime updates" business model to their advantage; and how they meet the needs of millions of music creators, from bedroom producers to those at the top of the Billboard charts.

FL Studio Beta: ⁠https://fl.studio⁠

Boards of Canada – Amo Bishop Roden:

https://youtu.be/sFBMIra45lU

Radiohead – Everything in Its Right Place (Gigamesh remix):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHp370aZvsM

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Ep 185: We're sharing an episode from our other music biz podcast, The Price of Music (follow it here! https://musically.lnk.to/TPOM) - because we went and had another chat with the team from EcoRecord, a couple of years after we first spoke to them here on Music Ally Focus.

EcoRecord is a PVC-free, injection-moulded alternative to the traditional vinyl record, which cuts, they say, factory energy use by up to 85%, and swaps PVC for recyclable PET plastic. Recently, artists like Coldplay and Lorde have released versions of their albums using the process.

We chatted to Sven Deutschmann, CEO of record manufacturer Sonopress, about what he's learned over the last two years of production, whether the records sound as good as traditional vinyl, how Coldplay have switched all of their back catalogue from PVC to PET, and if most records will be made this way in the future. (Plus, Joe gets very excited by some gold and silver coloured records.)

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Ep. 184: We’re thrilled to be joined once again by Stuart Dredge, Music Ally’s head of insight, as we chat about our June 2026 Insight Report. This one is the International Issue (https://musically.com/category/reports/) and is the result of spending 12 months speaking to local experts who know how to break artists in each territory. It's packed with on-the-ground insight and marketing advice.

We’ve picked out three key global issues from the last 12 months to discuss here:

• Trend 1: Transition to video-first discovery and "seamless funnels"
• Trend 2: Decentralisation of live music and infrastructure challenges
• Trend 3: Localised marketing: sincerity over stardom

You can also hear more of Stu 'n' Joe each week on The Price of Music: https://tpom.uk

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A little bonus cross-over episode for you Focus listeners. On our The Price of Music Podcast, we had two very special guests talk about how to actually make important change happen in the UK’s live industry at grassroots level, and improve the live music fan's experience: Lord Kevin Brennan of Canton⁠, Labour member of the House of Lords – and a ⁠recording musician⁠ himself.

We also speak to ⁠Shain Shapiro⁠, who amongst other things is author of ⁠This Must Be The Place: How Music Can Make Your City Better⁠. (They are both speaking about this on 10th June at the ⁠Music Cities Convention in Hull⁠, FYI.)

** As ever, our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon Superfans⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ get the full interviews – with 50% extra conversation! Become a ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Superfan of the podcast for free – and enjoy the exclusive weekly Lock-in bonus section! ⁠⁠⁠⁠**

We talk about the important stuff that fans care about: surge ticket pricing, local grassroots venues, music fan associations and more – and it’s all built on the results of the ⁠UK’s Fan–led Review of Live and Electronic Music⁠, the House of Commons committee special report that Lord Brennan oversaw. He explains what he learned and what can – and should – be done next.

Then Shain explains why live music must be treated as a "vital public good" – i.e. just like libraries or the NHS – and how people like you can build real political heft, in order to save their struggling local spaces.

• Lord Brennan reflects on his past work with the Music Streaming Inquiry, examining how parliamentary reports can ripple out to create real-world impact for creators, even when they don’t instantly become law.

• Essential learnings from the live fans' report: From transport and safety to fair ticketing, Lord Brennan boils down the core pillars that everyday music lovers actually care about.

• The surge pricing backlash: The data doesn't lie – fans are united in their hatred of dynamic ticket surging. We discuss the urgent need for primary market transparency and why standard "free-market" arguments don't apply to the emotional experience of a gig.

• Shain Shapiro breaks down how society has prioritised the passive consumption of music (the noun) while deprioritising community participation (the verb), leading to the isolation of modern music fans.

• Why you should know your ward councillor. Shain outlines how forming local "Music Fan Associations" can force local councils to unlock underutilised property and rethink how spaces are used.

• The 24-Hour Dictators: Both guests flex their imaginary emergency powers to fix the ecosystem, including slashing VAT on tickets, restructuring property business rates, and mandating grassroots funding.

As ever, we welcome your feedback, emails and – in particular – any questions you might have about how the music biz works!

Email us: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Stuart and Joe

======

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Ep. 182: 30 years of running an indie record label is a monumental milestone. We speak to Chris Goss about exactly that – three decades after he co-founded the highly influential jungle / drum and bass label Hospital Records.

Chris has lots to say about the "blood, sweat, and tears" required to stay independent for three decades; modern A&R and how Hospital balances a classic "gut feeling" with data; why drum n bass is currently enjoying its most prolonged "hot streak" in history; and the future of the label.

Founded in West London in 1996 by Chris Goss and Tony Colman, Hospital didn't start with an aggressive business plan. Today, Hospital stands as - possibly - the largest independent drum n bass label in the world.

Hospital records: https://hospitalrecords.com/

High Contrast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XoSscshAG-4

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Ep. 181: This is the second episode in a two-part series about the evolution of CMOs – recorded as collective management organisations undergo their most significant transformation in decades.

In this episode, Sacem’s Director of International, Caroline Champarnaud chats with Julien Dumon, its Director of Digital. They explain how the global infrastructure only works if it ultimately serves creators –whose needs are evolving just as fast as the systems built to support them.

They go on to explain how Sacem is redefining its services, tools and philosophy to support modern creators – from digital-native artists to global collaborators – while maintaining fairness, transparency and trust.

⁠SACEM: Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music⁠

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Series recap:

In the first episode in the series, ⁠⁠David El Sayegh, Deputy CEO of Sacem⁠⁠, discussed how the organisation is defining the future of copyright.

In the second episode, ⁠we were joined by Julien Lefebvre⁠, the Head of Innovation and Sacem Lab, to talk about its startup partnerships, and the strategic decision to open up certain proprietary technologies to all creators.

In the third episode, we spoke to Caroline and Julien about how CMOs are evolving into interconnected, global infrastructure players: the challenges of global metadata, why international partnerships with organisations like ASCAP and GEMA are more vital than ever, and how Sacem is scaling its systems to match the explosive growth of music streaming in emerging markets.

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This is a Music Ally Co-Labs podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠musically.com/music-ally-co-labs⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Co-Labs content is created by publishing partners in liaison with the Music Ally Editorial Team. We work closely with partners to ensure that it adheres to Music Ally's high expectations of quality, thoughtfulness, and usefulness.