MIRC Lecture Series:
Sam Whiting on the Fragile Political Economy of the Australian Music Industries

The Australian music industries are in crisis. While venue closures and festival cancellations affect the live music sector, GenAI, market consolidation and “chokepoint capitalism” has begun to seriously impact the production, consumption and distribution of recorded music. Using a political economy approach, Sam discussed key problems and emergent solutions in the Australian music sector.

Sam is a 2024 Vice-Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow at RMIT University. His research is primarily concerned with issues of capital, labour, and value as they relate to the music industries and the cultural economy. His book ‘Small Venues’ is out now.