By Steven X
Since this time last year, artists have been forced to make changes in how they produce and market their music due to COVID-19. Even before the pandemic was an issue for the world, artists as a whole have fought for greater shares of profit and equity in their partnerships with the various businesses involved with the music industry.
I have covered and studied the Verzuz series since it began with the face-off Swizz Beats and Timbaland. The concept of having two high-profile artists going head to head with their best hits is something that fans do amongst themselves through methods like barbershop talk and social media discussions.
Since the first installment, Timbaland and Swizz have made exceptional strides in expanding the exposure and impact of the Verzuz series as a brand. Although they began with a set of Instagram Live feeds bred from the desire for music amidst social distancing, the Verzuz series has grown to a brand that has formed a partnership with the Triller Network.
The deal between the Verzuz series and Triller was a great victory for artists because every performer from the Verzuz series received equity in the partnership with the media network. With the performing artists having equity in the deal with Triller, they are allowed an opportunity to receive profit that would not be available to them through a standard partnership.
The artist community as a whole championed this move acknowledging how difficult it is to secure your full worth in negotiations with media networks.
With information about the importance of having equity within business partnerships becoming more prevalent thanks to the internet, power moves like the buying of the Verzuz series by Triller Network will have a greater chance of occurring.
Going forward it will be interesting to see which artists will be smart enough to leverage their overall talent into a position of ownership and equity. This moment with Swizz and Timbaland selling the Verzuz series brand has set a new precedent for artists because performing artists have historically been underpaid and undervalued in the structuring of their contracts.
Congratulations to everyone involved with the Verzuz series for their new partnership! This deal is a great example of showing the true market value and cultural impact Hip-Hop culture has had on the world.