Billboard On The Record

Is there a bad way for songs to go viral? Fifteen years after the release of “Friday,” singer-songwriter Rebecca Black sits down with Billboard’s Kristin Robinson to explore whether artists can go viral before they’re able to capitalize on it — a question Black knows better than almost anyone after becoming an internet phenomenon at just 13 years old. With today’s TikTok algorithms creating more opportunities for virality, Black and Robinson discuss how the internet has evolved from a more unified “monoculture” to a hyper-personalized algorithmic experience. Black walks listeners through the aftermath of her viral moment, how she reclaimed “Friday” as her own and how she built an independent career beyond the song that first made her famous. Plus, Black discusses her new album, Age of the Exhibitionist, and what she’s learned about navigating the music industry over the past 15 years. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord, TikTok @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From coaching superstars like Ariana Grande, Shawn Mendes and ROSÉ to training actors like Timothée Chalamet, Angelina Jolie and Austin Butler, Eric Vetro has become one of the most in-demand vocal coaches in the entertainment industry. Vetro sits down on this week’s episode of Billboard On The Record for a look inside his process of keeping today’s biggest stars performance-ready and helping actors transform into music legends for film. He breaks down what makes a great singer, how artists can protect their voices throughout their careers and how his coaching sessions help shape some of the industry's most memorable performances. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord, TikTok @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Taylor Swift is among the most powerful artists of her generation — and her fans, the Swifties, are among the most powerful fandoms. On this week's episode of Billboard On the Record, host Kristin Robinson explores the nature and business of superfandom with Olivia Levin, the New York Times best-selling author and founder of social media page @swiftiesforeternity. Levin shares how she turned her page into a six-figure income, spanning ticketing, social media management, writing and brand deals. She also explains why Taylor Swift continues to inspire such loyalty with her listeners, why her re-recordings changed the game and what she thinks the music business gets wrong about superfans like her. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord, TikTok @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is dance music coming back to the mainstream? On this week’s episode of Billboard On The Record, John Summit — DJ, producer and founder of Experts Only — discusses what makes the dance music industry unique, how DJs went from underground clubs to arena shows and festival headliner slots and why he decided to launch his own label. With his own discography evolving from singles to full album releases, Summit walks through how he laid the foundation for his upcoming arena tour while losing $1 million in the process — and yes, what led to him lighting a Rimowa suitcase on fire. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord, TikTok @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With over 100,000 songs hitting streaming platforms every day, according to Luminate, is the music industry struggling to keep up? Milana Lewis, co-founder and CEO of Stem, sits down on Billboard On The Record to break down what this fast-growing number of daily uploads means for artists, discoverability and the future of music making itself. Lewis explores whether AI songs and white noise should be given the same royalty as human-made songs, how social media has rewritten the path to success and why artists today have more tools than ever to make music — but less clarity on how they can actually break through. This episode of Billboard On The Record is presented by KOSIGN. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord, TikTok @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Prediction markets have become mainstream and are changing the way fans engage with music and pop culture. Kalshi COO and co-founder Luana Lopes Lara joins Billboard On The Record to discuss how the platform is expanding into new categories and giving music superfans the ability to put money behind their favorite artists and predictions. She breaks down why she believes it was essential for Kalshi to be fully government regulated, how the company views insider trading and why she sees music and entertainment as essential to the platform's future. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord, TikTok @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christian and Gospel music are having a major moment. According to Luminate, Christian and Gospel has risen by 25% from 2024 to 2025 — making it the second fastest growing genre in America behind Rock. Lecrae, four-time Grammy-winning Christian artist and founder of Reach Records, joins Billboard On The Record to break down the genre’s rapid growth, how it’s attracting younger fans and the nuances of combining faith with business. From building his own independent label to staying tapped in with rising artists, Lecrae shares his journey creating a career outside the traditional system, why speaking out matters and what makes Christian music a uniquely powerful and complex space. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord, TikTok @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Music catalogs have quietly become one of the most valuable assets in entertainment — so who’s really shaping the future of music ownership? Golnar Khosrowshahi, founder and CEO of Reservoir Media, joins Billboard On The Record to break down how she built a music catalog powerhouse before the space became crowded, why music rights offer long-term, reliable value and how her team approaches acquisitions with artists, estates and families. She also discusses preserving legacy while driving cultural relevance for new generations, how licensing, film/TV and biopics impact catalog value, the role of sampling in today’s music economy and how generative AI could reshape valuations across the industry. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mark Cuban joined Billboard On The Record for the first-ever live taping of the podcast at SXSW to share his take on the music industry — and why breaking through as an artist has never been harder. Speaking from his perspective as an investor, Cuban explains how the industry has shifted, with music now treated as an asset class and algorithms shaping what becomes a hit. He reflects on why Spotify succeeded, where new music tech could create opportunities and how fans might respond to AI-generated songs. Cuban also emphasizes the importance of artists thinking like entrepreneurs, leveraging the right tools and securing placement in legacy media. In the conversation, he highlights why music is “recession-proof” and what it really takes to succeed in today’s ever-changing music landscape.  Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why is it so hard to earn a living as a songwriter today? Ryan Tedder — artist, songwriter, producer and founder of Runner Music — and David Israelite — president & CEO of NMPA — join Billboard On The Record to talk through the many economic pressures facing modern songwriters. Tedder and Israelite discuss how social media and streaming has impacted the way songs are written, and how the growth of writing rooms, sampling and courtesy credits for non-writing artists has led to less money for the average working class songwriter. Israelite explains why radio's decline threatens crucial income for songwriters, and Tedder opens up about his creative process and how embracing collaboration has become his key to crafting hits for artists like Tate McRae, Beyonce, Jonas Brothers and Maroon 5 in recent years. Additionally, the two talk about creative opportunities with emerging AI tools, like Suno, and why K-pop has become a particularly lucrative genre for songwriters today. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does it take to steer the world’s largest music company through one of the most disruptive eras in music history? Michael Nash, Chief Digital Officer and executive VP, Universal Music Group, joins Kristin Robinson on Billboard On The Record to discuss how UMG is navigating AI, platform power and artist rights at a critical turning point for the industry. Nash reflects on when generative AI first landed on his radar and revisits the pivotal Grammy Week moment two years ago when Universal pulled its catalog from TikTok, following a company-wide stance led by CEO Lucian Grainge. He breaks down the negotiations, the risks of AI-generated content diluting artist royalties and why UMG drew a hard line that reshaped its platform deals. The conversation expands to AI-driven fraud, discovery overload, copyright challenges and how Universal is working to embrace innovation, offering listeners a rare inside look at how one of music’s most powerful companies is helping define the rules for the industry’s next era. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does it really take to write a Christmas song that lasts forever? Singer, songwriter and producer Charlie Puth sits down with Kristin Robinson on Billboard On The Record to unpack the magic behind holiday hits, from the one chord that seems to appear in nearly every classic to the ’60s influences that continue to shape today’s festive favorites. Puth shares how he once wrote a Christmas song in just an hour, why some tracks become seasonal standards almost by accident and how artists balance tradition with originality when creating holiday music. He also takes listeners inside piano sessions, highlights his favorite Christmas albums and songs, answers rapid-fire holiday questions and reflects on how the craft of songwriting has evolved, all while offering a sneak peek at what’s next for his own music. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The U.S. is the only major music market where artists don’t get paid when their songs play on FM/AM radio, but why? Michael Huppe, CEO of SoundExchange, breaks down the century-old laws that shaped American radio, and what SoundExchange is doing to push for artists to get paid on radio through efforts like the American Music Fairness Act. He joins host Kristin Robinson to unpack the history of radio from payola scandals, the creation of satellite and online radio, the rise of consolidation and the shift from tastemaker to follower status in the streaming era. With AI radio personalities and data-driven choices on the rise in 2025, the radio landscape will certainly keep evolving in the years to come. Love what you hear? Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe so you never miss an episode of Billboard On The Record. Keep up with us on IG @billboardontherecord and @wordsbykristin. Billboard On The Record is a podcast in partnership with SickBird Productions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices