Could a Return to 'Retro' Be the Key to Artists' Financial Survival?

This topic has been circulating for a while—both inside and outside the music industry. Accusations (and some receipts) have emerged about Spotify using AI, or commissioning producers, to create tracks that sound like chart-toppers—allowing the platform to pay itself and avoid compensating actual artists. It reads like a Black Mirror episode, but it’s just capitalism doing what it does best: exploiting creators under the guise of innovation.

So where does that leave artists?

Most are paid between $0.003 and $0.005 per stream. Do the math, and it’s clear: streaming doesn’t sustain the people actually making the music.

It raises the question—could we see a return to the physical? Will buying music outright, whether on Bandcamp or even iTunes, make a comeback as a form of resistance?

Because honestly, what do we own anymore? Our music? Our films? Our libraries of shows and albums can disappear at the whim of a licensing deal. If your favorite platform decides Taylor Swift’s latest release is off-limits, how do you hear it?

Maybe a retro revival isn’t just nostalgic—it might be necessary.