Drowned in Sound is 25 today: Big lessons from the past and a new era unfurls

DiS founder Sean Adams sits down with DiS’s newest staff writer, Emma Wilkes, to mark 25 years of Drowned in Sound and what the future holds for the website, newsletter, and podcast.

They reflect on Emma’s recent interview with Jeremy Corbyn as he champions grassroots venues, and turn the tables by asking each other questions usually reserved for podcast guests. Sean finally reveals how he would spend the $450m Spotify gave Joe Rogan, as this conversation explores the intersection of music, politics, journalism, and the survival of independent culture.

Sean and Emma discuss how music can be a gateway into politics (and vice versa), the pressures facing artists, publicists, and journalists in today’s music industry, and what a fairer ecosystem could look like. They also imagine music’s future in 2050 - the hopes, fears, and possibilities of where culture might go next.

Edited by:

Josh Craggs at Dubble Audio (dubbleaudio.com)

Chapters:
00:00 – Introducing Emma Wilkes & 25 years of DiS

02:00 – Jeremy Corbyn, grassroots venues & music for the many

07:00 – Why music and politics can’t be separated

14:00 – Music as a gateway into politics

15:00 – Ticketmaster, Live Nation & the fight for fairness

18:00 – What is journalism today?

24:00 – Asking questions, telling stories & accountability in music journalism

29:00 – $450m for Joe Rogan: how should money flow into culture?

33:00 – Building connections between artists and audiences

37:00 – Music media as infrastructure

39:00 – Supporting mental health and addiction in the music industry

45:00 – Stress behind the scenes: labels, PRs & campaign work

46:00 – The albums we love and buried treasures

48:00 – Music in 2050: hopes, fears & future sounds

57:00 – What’s next for DiS at 25

Continue the Conversation:
Head to the Drowned in Sound community (community.drownedinsound.com) to chat about the topics in this episode.

Subscribe:
Sign up to theDrowned in Sound newsletter (drownedinsound.org) for weekly insights on music, culture, and resistance.

Links:

• Drowned in Sound Newsletter (drownedinsound.org)

• Emma Wilkes on interviewing Jeremy Corbyn (DiS) (drownedinsound.org/jeremy-corbyn-on-grassroots…)

• Music Venue Trust – safeguarding grassroots venues (musicvenuetrust.com)

• Music Minds Matter – mental health support for musicians (musicmindsmatter.org.uk)