Culture
Billboard Changes Rules To Ticket, Merch, Digital Downloads Bundles
Billboard Changes Rules To Ticket, Merch, Digital Downloads Bundles
Billboard has announced a few changes to their rules concerning merchandise, ticket and instant download bundles to reflect the consumer behavior in a better way. This affects the Billboard 200, Hot 100, and their other album and single charts.
Artists selling merch bundles, where they offer a digital download or a physical copy of the album along with an item such as a T-shirt or hoodie, has been widespread in the industry for many years. However, in recent past, artists like Justin Bieber, Ariana Grande and 6ix9ine, Travis Scott and others have used the tactic to boost their sales in a manner which potentially gives them unfair advantage. There are two changes that Billboard is bringing — here’s the breakdown.
1. Under the new rules, all albums and singles bundled with either merchandise or concert tickets must be promoted as an add-on and not part of the same package where the price of the album is not publicly disclosed. In that case, the sale will not count towards the album’s sales total. This means that if you purchase a hoodie or a concert ticket and the website lists that you are receiving a digital copy of the album along, the same will not count towards the tally.
For it to be eligible, the album/single copy has to be offered as an add-on to the originally intended product (like a T-shirt or a ticket).
2. The second change is that Billboard will no longer allow sales of physical albums or singles that are bundled with digital downloads to be reported as digital sales towards the charts. Often times, artists will sell a copy of the album, like a cassette, and offer an instant digital download of the album which counts towards the first week sales. The idea is to eliminate the practice of “spontaneous” items that have not been shipped, counting towards the chart rankings. Only when the physical item that the consumer is buying is later shipped, will it be counted in Billboard’s official tallies.
Back in January, Billboard had made some alterations to the bundle rules to reflect the conscious purchasing decisions of consumers in a better manner but it failed to achieve the goal. Under that change, there was a “requirement that albums bundled with merchandise be available for purchase concurrently and individually on the same website, as well as a requirement that merchandise sold on its own be priced lower than bundles that included the album.”
But with the new change, Billboard is hoping that it will level the playing field for all artists. Interestingly, the start date of the new rules has not been announced by the company.
In recent interview rap legend Lil Wayne Revisits Signing Nicki Minaj & Drake
You can’t talk about Drake or Nicki Minaj with mentioning Lil wayne, as he was instrumental and helping both artist turn into the superstars there are today, and Lil Wayne is sharing his blueprint on breaking rising stars. Those Young Money Cash Money golden years are untouchable and fans remember when you couldn’t go anywhere without being confronted with yet another YMCMB hit. Weezy recently sat down with the I Am Athlete podcast and spoke at end about his love of music and why it’s important for Rap veterans to welcome new talent with open arms.
“You can’t be the person that’s saying, I don’t like the new music. You gotta love it,” he said. “Learn it, like it, and love it, because you better understand, that’s music. That’s not a certain type of music, that’s music. You got to Apple Music and Top 100s and [it’s] them folks right there.”
“Then you got a Drake. He’s music. My goal now, if you want to be the ultimate artist, that’s what I want to be,” Wayne added before giving insight into why he decided to add Nicki and Drake’s talents to his roster.
“It was just about…I seen potential. That’s when I saw way more than just potential. When Drake’s music was brought to me from the homie [Jas Prince], it was about Rap,” he said. “I was like, ‘This dude sound different.’ What I loved about him, he was sounding just as dope as we were. When I say we, I’m talking about the streets and what we came from.”
Weezy said he told Drake that he could make anything sound “dope,” but Wayne was even more impressed when he heard Drake belting out a hook.
“One day, I heard, ‘[him singing].’ Like, ‘What the f*ck was that?’” he added. “You gotta be the ultimate artist. My homie could do two nights when he hits your city.” you can Watch Lil Wayne on I Am Athlete below.
In recent interview rapper Kodak Black revealed how he was Gifted $300k Worth of Bitcoin by Drake.
Rapper Drake and Kodak Black seem to be getting along smoothly. So much so that the superstar recently gave him a gift of a good amount of Bitcoin.
Kodak recently called into the Breakfast Club to chat with DJ envy, Charlamagne Tha God and Angela Yee about his hit ‘Super Gremlin‘, getting shot recently, his upcoming project Back for Everything dropping this Friday, relationship with Donald Trump, cutting his hair, and his friendship with Drake.
Kodak says Drizzy randomly hit me one day and said “You got bitcoin?” to which the Florida rapper replied in the negative. “I was like ‘nah.’ He was like ‘Set up a bitcoin then.’ So you know, I’m like, ok, you know what I’m sayin’?” From there, Yak says Drizzy sent me about 6.6 BTC which made his wallet value over $300k. Lucky him.
Kodak also teased an upcoming collaboration with Ed Sheeran, even hinting that there might be two songs in the works with him. He added that after his project this Friday, he will drop his main album in August so we’re guessing Back for Everything is being treated like a mixtape.
You can watch the full interview below.
Rap lagend Lil Wayne officially turns 39 today, prompting birthday love from daugter Reginae Carter, fans, and fellow rappers.
Young Money boss and rap titan Lil Wayne marks his 39th birthday today and it’s safe to say his position in the rap game is understood by fans spanning several different generations. A legend through and through, Wayne is a rare sort of emcee capable of declaring himself the Best Rapper Alive with credibility while also securing mainstream commercial dominance. As such, he tends to receive a lot of love on a daily basis — let alone today, his 39th birthday.
In honor of the milestone occasion, his daughter Reginae Carter took a moment to share a few heartfelt words for her father, hitting Instagram with a father/daughter picture. “Happy birthday to the [GOAT],” she declares. “I love you fatherrrrr besties forever & ever . We turning up fasho when I see you ! Enjoy your day.”
“Wayne being 39 is insane,” writes Mez, reflecting on his own experience listening to Weezy throughout his life. “Bro been a star what feels like my whole life. He really started as a kid.” It really is incredible to consider that Wayne truly did begin his career as a child prodigy, honing his hip-hop talents under the watchful eye of Birdman. Before long, he was playing an integral role in the rise of Cash Money Records, emerging from the collective as a standout favorite.
