🗓️ 2025-06-23 – Weekly Music News & Trends: Industry Shifts and New Sounds

What's News in Music
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:musical_note: Music Weekly Brief: June 17–23, 2025

This past week in music brought a mix of exciting developments and ongoing challenges. We saw continued growth in music publishing, new tech tools making production easier, and artists using their platforms for powerful statements. Meanwhile, the festival circuit is still navigating some tough economic waters.

  1. :musical_note: Mary Halvorson’s ‘About Ghosts’ Captures Jazz Trends
    Guitarist and composer Mary Halvorson’s new album, ‘About Ghosts,’ has been highlighted for capturing defining trends in jazz for the 2020s. Halvorson, known for her virtuosic playing since the mid-2000s, leads her sextet Amaryllis, featuring a stellar cast of musicians. The album offers a fresh perspective on contemporary jazz, showcasing innovative compositions and dynamic performances. This release underscores the continued evolution and vitality within niche genres.
    :date: Published: June 20, 2025
    :link: Mary Halvorson's 'About Ghosts' captures the defining trends of jazz in the 2020s - capradio.org

  2. :robot: Deezer Rolls Out AI Tagging System to Combat Streaming Fraud
    Streaming platform Deezer has launched a new AI tagging system aimed at combating the growing issue of fraudulent streams from AI-generated tracks. The company reports detecting over 20,000 AI-generated tracks daily, with up to 70% of their streams identified as fraudulent. This new tool will clearly indicate which albums contain fully AI-generated tracks and exclude them from algorithmic recommendations. This addresses a major concern for legitimate artists and royalty payments.
    :date: Published: June 20, 2025
    :link: Deezer rolls out AI tagging system to fight streaming fraud; says up to 70% of streams from fully AI-generated tracks are fraudulent - Music Business Worldwide

  3. :money_with_wings: US Music Publishing Revenue Cracks $7 Billion for 10th Consecutive Year of Growth The National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) announced this week that U.S. music publishing revenue reached $7.04 billion in 2024, marking a 13.41% increase from the previous year. This is the tenth consecutive year of double-digit growth for the sector, outpacing the growth rate of recorded music. NMPA President David Israelite highlighted that nearly $2 billion of this revenue came from new licensing sources, underscoring the expanding value of songwriting and intellectual property.
    :date: Published: June 23, 2025
    :link: NMPA Head Says It's Time for Labels to Stand With Songwriters

  4. :microphone: Nezza Sings National Anthem in Spanish at Dodgers Game, Sparking Conversation
    Pop singer Nezza made headlines this week after performing the U.S. national anthem entirely in Spanish at a Los Angeles Dodgers game, despite the team’s prior request for an English rendition. Nezza stated she felt it was her “duty to represent my people” amidst ongoing social and political discussions. Her performance quickly went viral, igniting conversations about artistic freedom, cultural representation, and the role of public platforms in social commentary.
    :date: Published: June 18, 2025
    :link: Why Nezza sang the national anthem in Spanish at a Dodgers game | WBGO Jazz

:hammer_and_wrench: Tools & Tips

  • :computer: Pro Tools 2025.6 Brings AI and Seamless Sample Integration Avid’s Pro Tools, a staple in music production, just rolled out its 2025.6 update with some pretty cool new features. It now includes direct Splice integration, making it super easy to pull in sounds from one of the world’s largest royalty-free sample libraries. Plus, there’s a new AI-powered Speech-to-Text analysis feature that helps quickly search sessions for speech or lyric information, streamlining the workflow.
    :link: https://www.avid.com/pro-tools
  • :rocket: Drop Rocket: A Game Changer for Independent Music Releases For independent artists, managers, and publicists, managing a music release can feel like a juggling act. Enter Drop Rocket, a new tool built by an independent musician specifically to streamline this process. It offers an industry-standard template with five core hubs—Campaign Assets, Tasklist, Social Media Content, PR, and Distribution—helping to map out and track a release from start to finish, all in one place.
    :link: Music Industry Tools for 2025: Manage Your Music Release with Drop Rocket — COBRA PROMOTIONS

:bulb: Fun Fact

:cd: Vinyl’s Comeback: Spinning Past CDs Did you know that after largely being replaced by CDs and cassettes decades ago, vinyl records are making a huge comeback? For the second time since 1987, revenue from vinyl albums actually outsold CDs in 2023, reaching an impressive $1.4 billion! It seems there’s a real love for the tangible side of music.
:link: 50 Fascinating Facts About the Music Industry | Stacker

:ear: We’d love to hear from you! Have you participated in any Music events or utilized new Music tools recently? Share your experiences or insights with us—we’re featuring selected community voices in next week’s edition.