The Innovating Music podcast, hosted by Dr. Gigi Johnson, has spent years delving into the profound changes shaping the music industry from 2016 to 2023.
While the Innovating Music podcast is on hiatus, we invite you to dig through our extensive archive.
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Interested in continuing to explore these themes of music industry careers and innovation? We invite you to explore Rethink Next programs and events for future opportunities and conversations.
Dr. Gigi Johnson designs futures programs that help creators and organizations navigate AI-driven change. Through Rethink Next, she builds experiences and labs that blend systems thinking, creative practice, and agentic AI. She ran the UCLA Center for Music Innovation and co-founded the global virtual conference series Amplify Music. Earlier, she produced media foresight programs while teaching MBAs and executives at UCLA Anderson, after financing media-sector M&A at Bank of America.
Mike Butera, founder and CEO of Artiphon, shares how he’s reimagining musical instruments for everyone—making music creation as approachable as taking a photo. In this episode of Innovating Music, we explore how sound studies, sociology, and product design converge in...
KCRW DJ and veteran music curator Jason Kramer shares his perspective on music discovery in a digital-first world. In this conversation, Kramer discusses the instinct and human connection that guide his curation, the role of radio in championing emerging artists, and...
Jordy Freed, Director and Head of Brand & Business Development at Sony Corporation of America, has navigated a career that defies traditional industry pathways. In this episode of Innovating Music, Freed shares how his early love for jazz and technology shaped his...
SoundExchange royalties have become a critical part of today’s digital music economy, and Michael Huppe, President and CEO of SoundExchange, joins Innovating Music to explain why. From his roots as an amateur musician and intellectual property attorney to leading one...
Dave Ratner moved from skiing to managing bands into law, and now works with creative companies out of Boulder, CO to understand how to maneuver so many different new opportunities in music. He talks of innovation in his own life as to how to add capabilities,...
Kevin Breuner explores how artists can build lasting careers in an ever-changing music landscape. As SVP of Engagement and Education at CD Baby and a founding member of Grammy-nominated Smalltown Poets, Kevin has lived through the major-label era, the rise of indie...
Jessica Powell, co-founder and CEO of AudioShake, leads the conversation on AI music stem separation—a technology that splits audio into individual components for remixing, restoration, and licensing. In this episode, Powell reveals how AudioShake’s AI is helping...
Has a single postcard changed your life? Have you offered a "postcard" to others that pushes and lures them to pivot to a new life adventure? If you're looking for inspiration, then be sure to check out this video. We'll share with you our favorite Postcard Moment...
Independent record label technology is at the heart of this conversation with Bruno Guez, founder of Revelator and longtime music industry innovator. From his early years as a UCLA ethnomusicology student and world music DJ to managing a boutique label and curating...