Gavin Rossdale Says Making a Living in Music Is ‘Terrifying’ for New Artists
Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale has been in the music industry for over three decades, but even he admits he’s baffled by how young artists can sustain themselves financially in today’s streaming-driven landscape.
Speaking on Canada’s Q with Tom Power, the rocker didn’t hold back on his concerns about the modern music business.
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“I’ve been a musician my whole life, and I’m at a loss to explain to someone how to do it, how to build from the ground up, how to get a career in that,” Rossdale said. “It’s just terrifying because how do musicians, how do young bands get paid? I can’t work it out.”
The 58-year-old rocker, who is preparing to hit the road with Bush this spring alongside Rival Sons and Filter, He went on to describe the industry’s longstanding financial imbalance, calling it “the same deal—artists getting screwed, record companies making a fortune.”
While streaming may offer exposure, Rossdale pointed out that it doesn’t always translate to sustainability. “Maybe you get one song with loads of streams, but we know that barely pays.”
“You just do the best you can. And you can obviously make money touring, but it takes a while to build up a catalog, so if you wanna come and see you, that’s a crap shoot.”
Rossdale, who rose to fame in the ’90s when CD sales and MTV airplay could catapult a band into the mainstream, pointed out the stark difference between then and now.
“I think it’s much, much harder now, and it was nearly impossible then. So, I don’t know what the odds are, but they don’t feel good for young musicians, which breaks my heart for them because we always need music.”
He added,”We always need people’s opinions. A.I. can take care of many things, but you talk about people relating to other people, it’s by writing that brutally painful, honest lyric that other people can relate and get strength from.”
Rossdale isn’t alone in his concerns. Artists across genres have been speaking out about streaming payouts, with industry veterans and rising stars alike calling for better compensation structures. The issue has even led to policy debates, as musicians advocate for reforms in how streaming revenue is distributed.
In response to Rossdale’s comments, a Spotify spokesperson told Billboard on Thursday:
“As Gavin correctly points out, streaming services do not pay artists or songwriters directly. They pay rightsholders, who in turn pay artists and songwriters based on their individual agreements. Once that revenue leaves a service like Spotify’s hands, how much money goes to artists and songwriters depends on their own contracts with their rightsholders.
It’s a misconception that Spotify ‘doesn’t pay well’ – as we’ve proved time and time again. The $10B we paid out in 2024 and $60B all time is industry-leading and record-breaking – the largest contribution to the music industry.
“We’ve also seen the number of artists ‘making it’ grow from hundreds competing to be in the Top 40 to hundreds of thousands vying to be among the top thousand. There are now over 66,000 artists generating at least $10k from Spotify payouts, and the number of artists generating at least $1M, $100K and $10K, has nearly tripled since 2017. Industry analysis suggests that these artists’ total overall revenue is x4 that when you take into account their additional revenue streams. The music industry is healthier than ever.”
Rossdale rose to widespread fame as the frontman for British rock outfit Bush, who reached No. 4 on the Billboard 200 with their 1994 debut album, Sixteen Stone, which included charting singles such as “Comedown” and “Glycerine”. Two years later, they would best their previous accomplishments and top the chart with 1996’s Razorblade Suitcase. Their latest album, The Art of Survival, arrived in 2022.
Bush will embark on a North American tour this spring, kicking off in April. Tickets are available now.
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