Everything Wrong With The Music Business According To The Black Keys [Video]

During their recent appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast, Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney of acclaimed duo The Black Keys dished on everything wrong with the modern music industry, dispensing some hard-to-swallow pills on what life in music today is really like.

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Guest post by James Shotwell of Haulix

During a recent appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast, The Black Keys shared hard truths about life in music today.

The success of The Black Keys feels like something out of a movie or novel. Hailing from a place in Ohio most never knew existed, the band has developed a global following with a unique approach to music that leans heavily on the golden age of rock and roll. They have topped charts, both with singles and albums, and regularly perform at some of the biggest venues on the planet. Essentially, The Black Keys have accomplished everything an artist or group could hope to achieve, and they are still going strong several albums into their career.

The math didn’t make sense to The Black Keys, so they ultimately decided to pass on the idea.

The success of The Black Keys feels like something out of a movie or novel. Hailing from a place in Ohio most never knew existed, the band has developed a global following with a unique approach to music that leans heavily on the golden age of rock and roll. The dup has topped charts, and they regularly perform at some of the biggest venues on the planet.

The Black Keys have accomplished everything an artist or group could hope to achieve, and they are still going strong. Most would assume such success makes them happy, but on a recent podcast appearance, the band shared the struggles that may surprise fans.

Speaking to Joe Rogan, The Black Keys first vented about bundling, which is one of the more popular methods of boosting album sales in 2019. The band explained that for every ticket sold they would give five dollars to their label, who would then deliver a download link of their new record to the ticket buyer. However, the ticket sale only counts toward the band’s album sales if the purchaser downloads the album. If 50% of fans who purchase concert tickets download the record, that means The Black Keys are paying their label $10 per record sold. Furthermore, they do not earn royalties on those album sales.

The band then revealed that they had sold roughly 250,000 tickets for their Fall tour, which meant 125,000 fans would likely download the record using links they received from the label. That 125,000 downloads would cost The Black Keys more roughly $1.25 million, which is more than the band was given to make the album.

The math didn’t add up, so The Black Keys passed on the bundling offer.

Rogan was clearly surprised by the revelation, but The Black Keys were only beginning to share their concerns about the industry.

The Black Keys’ latest album, Let’s Rock, is available now wherever you get music. Don’t miss it.

James Shotwell is the Director of Customer Engagement at Haulix and host of the company's podcast, Inside Music. He is also a public speaker known for promoting careers in the entertainment industry, as well as an entertainment journalist with over a decade of experience. His bylines include Rolling Stone, Alternative Press, Substream Magazine, Nu Sound, and Under The Gun Review, among other popular outlets.