Pandora is giving artists more control over their own narrative. Today, the popular music streaming website launched Pandora Stories, a tool that allows artists to weave commentary throughout a specific playlist, giving them the time and space to tell fans what inspired them to create their art. One of the first artists to use the platform is John Legend, who has short snippets of commentary before each song. For example, before “All of Me”, Legend has a thirty second audio clip called “A Song for Chrissy”. This is a potentially valuable tool for artists who want to go outside of the normal avenues — Facebook, Twitter, Instagram — to connect with audiences. It gives them the chance to explain the meaning behind their music as people are listening to it. It also has the potential to be widely used by people other than musicians. If you’re an athlete, business leader, or any kind of public figure, the new feature by Pandora gives you an opportunity to connect with people through the...

Damson Idris is a British actor best known for his roles in projects such as “Snowfall” and “Outside The Wire,” as well as a few other front-and-center placements in productions such as “ Black Mirror .” Despite having amassed only a handful of prominent roles, Idris seems to be playing his cards right in his career, taking a real quality over quantity approach. This is evidenced by his impressive net worth, which is said to clock in at $10 million to $13 million, according to a write-up in Tuko . With under 2 dozen screen acting credits on IMDb, this nest egg is clearly an impressive feat. But Damson Idris hasn’t amassed his entire fortune on salary alone, as he has also made a large sum off of endorsement and brand deals , his modeling career, and a few other key investments along the way. Let’s take a moment to examine the multiple streams of income developed by the 32 year old actor, and better understand how he’s developed this generational wealth in such a brief period of...

The passing along of wisdom, particularly in the Black community, is a rite of passage. Learning from an Elder or an “OG” is a core part of Black culture and can even find roots in the historic nature of storytelling and oral history exchanges. NBA veteran Andre Drummond has found himself in the proverbial seat of an uncle and was recorded dropping some knowledge on a group of young athletes while coaching. But what makes Drummond’s words of wisdom worth digesting for future and practical use? Drummond is a Mount Vernon, NY, native. The center entered the league in 2012 as the ninth pick of the Detroit Pistons. As a current player for the Chicago Bulls, Drummond has experienced a range of career highlights, including making the NBA All-Rookie Team 2nd Team in 2013. While he’s spent time with other NBA teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, Philadelphia 76ers, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Brooklyn Nets during his ten-season career, his current placement with the Bulls is proving beneficial....

We will be enjoying more tunes from artists thanks to TikTok’s newest platform SoundOn. The “all-in-one platform for marketing and distribution” will showcase the talents of rising artists by broadening their influence. SoundOn will allow artists to upload music directly through TikTok, Resso, CapCut, and streaming giants such as Apple Music, Spotify, and Pandora, among others. “New artists and musical creators are a vibrant community within TikTok and SoundOn is designed to support them as they take the first steps in their career,” Ole Obermann, Global Head of Music at TikTok said, according to a press release. “Our SoundOn teams will guide creators on their journey to the big stage and bring the expertise and power of TikTok to life for the artist. We’re incredibly excited about how this will surface and propel new talent and how SoundOn will contribute to an increasingly diverse and growing global music industry.”

Last summer, the Black Music Action Coalition (BMAC) called out major record labels and streaming services in the music industry to do more to address their racial inequities. One year later, the U.S.-based organization has launched their own “report card” to grade various companies in the industry on how much progress they’ve made so far. Over the past year, many companies and corporations have announced their own initiatives and multi-million dollar funds to tackle systemic racism in America, but the BMAC didn’t think that was enough to create change in the industry. In an attempt to hold companies accountable, the organization decided to publish a report measuring all public pledges and promises made in the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the music industry’s widely-observed initiative, #TheShowMustBePaused. According to its website, the BMAC shared that it sent out a brief survey to over 60 executives at more than 20 companies. Their results reported that “five replies came...

More Black women are stepping into leadership roles within the media and entertainment industries, and this week SiriusXM and Pandora Music has named Nicole Hughey as its new vice president of diversity & inclusion, Variety reports . We’re thrilled to welcome Nicole Hughey, our new Vice President, Diversity & Inclusion, to the @SIRIUSXM + @pandoramusic family! We couldn’t be more excited to have her on board. Welcome, Nicole! #sxmpandoralife pic.twitter.com/LvG7Y9bEPy — SiriusXMLife (@siriusxmlife) July 16, 2020 Hughey’s new position is based out of New York, and she’s expected to report to Dara Altman, the company’s chief administrative officer. According to the company’s memo, Hughey will have a hand in creating and executing programs as well as evaluating the company’s policies and practices to “enable us to cultivate an organization with individuals of diverse backgrounds at all levels, and where all of our people are included and have the opportunity to grow and succeed.”...

Hip hop’s first billionaire, Jay-Z, is shattering the glass ceiling yet again. This time with his venture capital firm, Marcy Venture Partners (MVP), a San Francisco based VC co-founded by Jay-Z, his long time business partner, Jay Brown, and Larry Marcus. According to Forbes, MVP has raised $85 million toward its fund and SEC filing documents show the VC firm has a total of 54 new investors. Does this mean the business mogul has something new in the works? Although only time will tell — MVP has already invested in a number of startups last year. According to Crunchbase , the VC invested in Wheels, an electric transportation company, and Hungry Marketplace, a food tech company. The firm also led the $70 million funding round for Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty lingerie brand. Jay-Z and his team are not new to the business of investing. In its early stages of funding, Jay-Z invested in Uber , and Larry Marcus, a seasoned investor, has invested in industry giants like Netflix and Pandora via...

Spotify will soon be the next platform to introduce a “stories” feature to users. The company is currently testing out “Storylines” that highlight artists’ lyrics, creative processes, and insights, according to Android Police. So far, Storylines are not expected to have video or live streams. The feature will be more closely related to its “Behind the Lyrics” tool that pulls background information about artists and their music from Genius. Spotify’s upcoming Storylines will be similar to Instagram Stories as far as design goes. Users can tap through each story card to learn more about their favorite artists and the history of their music. Spotify is the top music streaming service in the U.S., beating out its competitors Apple Music, Tidal and Pandora by pretty wide margins. The company has built out partnerships with Hulu to expand its reach even more. Its latest update could keep users more engaged within the app while bringing a social media aspect to the platform. Story features...