Artists believe that Facebook ‘Likes’ hold more value than email signups, Youtube subscribers, and twitter followers according to a survey conducted by ReverbNation and Digital Music News.

Madonna signed a three album deal with Interscope at a base of $1 million per album, after performing 5 years without a record deal. In 2007, she signed a multi-million deal with Live nation that handles her merchandise and touring.

“It’s just about keeping relevance so that she can tour,” a source said, adding, “She is still in the demo phase, but the idea is to get the first album out early next year.”

According to a new survey 93% of Americans (over the age of 12) listen to broadcast radio at least once a week.

One would think that traditional radio would have taken a serious blow from new technology including the iPod, satellite radio, and music streaming sites like Spotify. In fact, broadcast radio listenership has increased since last year.

Rather than discussing theories why Americans still choose broadcast radio, let’s look at the beneficiaries which are the major music labels. Regular radio rotation remains massive for artists and this gives major labels a huge promotional advantage.

“Call radio crusty and out-of-touch, but this is one of the few formats that still reaches tonnage while severely restricting content.” (Digital Music News)

Adele made Billboard history becoming the first female singer to be names top artist, have the top album, and a top single “Rolling in the Deep”, all in one year.

Tye Comer, editor of Billboard.com, attributed Adele’s success to her being a “breath of fresh air” in a market saturated with pop artists cut from a “certain cloth,” like Rihanna, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga.

“Her success is really inspiring because it shows that there is still room in the music industry for an artist to make it with true, raw talent,” Comer told Reuters.

“It’s not necessarily always about the outrageous outfits or flashy videos, but an amazing voice coupled with the right song still has the ability to turn the ears of millions of people and keep them interested,” he said.

An article “12 Extremely Disappointing Facts About Popular Music” posted by bloggers and Facebook users has become a popular read in the last few days. It’s a nice sound byte but holds no merit when one digs beneath the surface.

The article states blurbs such as Ke$ha’s “Tik-Tok” sold more copies than ANY Beatles single and Katy Perry holds the same record as Michael Jackson for most number one singles from an album.

First the landscape has changed, therefore the variables change. When comparing the 1960’s to the year 2011, one must consider a host of factors including demographic, technology, distribution, cost, radio, and disposable entertainment income.

iTunes and sites such as YouTube and Amazon spiked the sales of singles within the last 5 years. The explosion of mobile phones and computers also played a role in the distribution of music. Also note that Nielsen SoundScan began tracking sales data for Nielsen since March 1, 1991, prior to that, the tracking system wasn’t efficient. Many sales from The Beatles and artists like Michael Jackson simply weren’t tracked.

Don’t worry folks, Paul McCartney’s estimated worth is 725 million. Our favorite songs by The Beatles will outlive the beats written for artists like Ke$ha and Katy Perry.