Kanye West’s album The Life of Pablo has achieved platinum certification just based on streaming performance. The album, which was released in February 2016, has reached 1.5 billion streams in the U.S., enough to attain platinum certification from the RIAA. Continue Reading
We’d heard rumors that Apple was considering a purchase of Tidal, and at least one person is adamant about making that idea a reality. On Saturday, Kanye West posted a series of tweets pushing for an end to “beef” between the two music services. Continue Reading
The saga continues! A new song from Kanye West briefly emerged on Apple Music then disappeared again. The track, called “Saint Pablo,” showed up in a user’s profile on Apple Music and quickly circulated on Reddit and through the music media. Continue Reading
Kanye West’s The Life of Pablo has been a source of great interest to the music media in recent weeks, thanks to the rapper’s unique take on defining an album and his unusual approach to distribution. But the creation has also been very successful in attracting listeners. Pablo topped multiple album charts on the back of its strong streaming performance. Continue Reading
Brief news items and worthy reads from around the web: Is Kanye West a tactical genius? Should there be more podcasts for kids? Can musicians benefit from streaming data? Continue Reading
Never is a very long time. Or, if you’re Kanye West, it’s somewhere in the range of seven weeks. West’s latest album was released on Apple Music, Spotify, and Google Play today. It’s also now available for purchase through West’s website. Continue Reading
After all the big statements about his new album “never” going to appear on Apple, Kanye West appears to have changed his mind. For one song, at least. The track “Famous” arrived on other streaming services, including both Apple Music and Spotify, over the weekend. Continue Reading
When Kanye West launched his latest album, the focus was on his protective approach to distribution. The strategy was controversial at best, especially given the immediate wave of piracy the title faced. But in the weeks following the official release, West has been less obviously changing how his fans perceive the very idea of an album in the streaming age. Continue Reading