DoItYourself rapper Tom MacDonald has made it. He’s flying high under the radar. He cut through the noise and did it himself with no one to thank but his fans. He is self managed and directs his videos. He probably etches his own tattoos.

He took the internet by surprise when he purchased Eminem’s NFT for 100k and made a single called Dear Slim in which he praises Eminem.

His track Snowflakes reached #1 on the iTunes Charts. Heck, he has 17 songs in the 200 iTunes Hip Hop Charts including Fake Woke, White Boy, Clown World, Best Rapper Ever, Sober, and Everybody Hates Me.

Right now, the Canadian rapper, singer, songwriter, and former professional wrestler is the biggest independent rapper.

But where are the music labels? In normal circumstances the majors would be enticing MacDonald with a million dollar signing bonus. He’s proven with several songs on the charts with little promotion, and he comes with a fanbase. He is also popular with conservative influencers.

It could be the majors are afraid to touch the controversial rapper with songs like Fake Woke and Snowflakes. Right now, companies are fearful of cancel culture and are treading carefully.

Like ‘Em, Love ‘Em, Or Hate ‘Em – MacDonald is breaking the internet.

Post pandemic events are going to be big. “We’re just seeing massive, pent-up demand for concerts globally,” said Live Nation president. “Our festivals have been selling out faster than ever before. Our amphitheater business is ramping up quickly and leading into this fall and ’22, we expect to be our largest years ever,” added Berchtold.

Dua Lipa was the most played artist of 2020. Her mega tracks dominated radio and TikTok. With all that success, she couldn’t tour because of the pandemic. Lots of money left on the table.

Times they are changing, and so is culture. Marketeers and artists have come under attack with accusation of “queerbaiting” . The term refers to using allusions to LGBTQ romance in order to gain fans or viewers can come in any form of media, including advertising, social media, TV shows, film and pop music. Several artists have dropped recent videos and have been accused of queerbaiting.

Billboards supporting Morgan Wallen pop up in Nashville right before CMT Music Awards. Yep, the country singer stays.

Snoop Dogg is now a record executive and takes job at DefJam Records. Snoop’s biggest record was “Doggystyle” in 1993.

Pop diva Mariah Carey changed management and followed her key woman Melissa Ruderman that left Roc Nation to Range Media in January.

Clive Davis is putting together Concert of All Time for Central Park August 21st. There is talk that Paul Simon, The Boss, Alicia Keys, and Diana Ross could perform.

Unsigned country artist Kaleb Austin goes to number #1 on iTunes with Sun Goes Down track. He has a big following on social media.

Foo Fighters will perform Madison Square Garden on 6/20. “We’ve been waiting for this day for over a year,” said Dave Grohl. “And Madison Square Garden is going to feel that HARD. New York, get ready for a long ass night of screaming our heads off together to 26 years of Foos.”

Bruce Springsteen is back on Broadway and will open the theatre on 6/26. Attendees will have to show proof of full COVID-19 vaccination to attend. –

Some analysts made note that Billie Eilish is quickly sliding off the charts with her latest single Lost Cause.

The single sold just 2,600 downloads and sits downward on the iTunes charts and it’s sluggish on Spotify’s Global Viral chart.

Has Billy Eilish peaked? I don’t know, but marketeers want to know because they want to know where trends are heading.

The TikTok community and the rise of Olivia Rodrigo are the two big ticket items that came on the scene since the emergence of Billie. Right now, Rodrigo is taking center stage in the room, and in the media world, there is no room for two. Hence, TikTok and Rodrigo could be to blame for Billie’s sluggish start.

Billie Eilish has found her niche. She’s comfortable. She wrote enough hits to tour for a lifetime. Also, Billie drastically transformed visually. The 19 year old ditched her baggy outfits and black eyeliner and went pin up on the cover of Vogue. Maybe some aren’t along for the ride. I don’t think she lost fans, if anything, she may have not picked up new fans. But does it really matter?

Billie Eilish pulled a switcheroo with her latest song and video Lost Cause. Not sonically, but visually. Musically, she stays in the bedroom dark pop lane. But this time, the 19 year old ditched her baggy outfits and black eyeliner and went FULL POSH.

Will the legion of fans follow Billie in her new journey? I don’t know. It’s a risky business. But people who take risks are more content and satisfied with their lives.

Plus, I don’t think Billie cares if she loses a fan or two. “My Thing is That I Can Do Whatever I Want” she told British Vogue.

Billie confronted her critics before that challenged her transformation. She isn’t looking to be a role model or an influencer.

Billie’s journey just isn’t new to you, it’s new to her. ““I’ve literally never done anything in this realm at all,” she said, adding, “Y’know, besides when I’m alone and shit.

Billie is an artist. Everything an artist should be. She makes a statement, is unpredictable and doesn’t shape her preferences around others.