Drew Thurlow, Founder of Opening Ceremony Media, Host of the Lone Wolves Community podcast, and former Head of A&R at Sony, sees a shift coming. He's bullish on immersive tech reshaping music and says the industry needs better frameworks to keep up.
Now streaming: Streaming's grip won't necessarily last forever. "There’s no guarantee that streaming is going to stay the main way that fans engage with music," Thurlow says. While he doesn't see a shakeup in the next three to five years, he expects cracks to form—especially in licensing—as Gen Z and Gen Alpha reshape how they consume content.
Next stop, immersion: Thurlow's all in on what's coming next. "I'm really curious and bullish about the AR/VR future," he says. He acknowledges current skepticism but points to past tech shifts that "take a long time to germinate, often starting with early adopters and academia before transitioning to a consumer market." As for what's ahead: "There's a huge world out there with AR/VR, the Metaverse, and virtual worlds, where music is going to play a central role in how fans are engaging."
Licensing for the future: The AR/VR frontier is a chance to fix what's long been broken. "Not only is it a huge growth area, but it's also an opportunity to get the licensing structure correct so rights holders can continue to be paid, so we can incentivize people to be artists because we want artists in this world." Effective licensing, he adds, is "a balancing act"—one that ensures fair use while fueling innovation. And with streaming platforms, social media, and entertainment apps all operating at scale, the infrastructure is there. Now it's about making sure the rules are, too.
Set the (virtual) stage: Live music is getting a digital remix. Thurlow sees virtual concerts and interactive artist experiences becoming the norm. "It's a balance between meeting your fans where they're at and being a trailblazer," he says. While early virtual shows were pricey and clunky, the tech is catching up—"vibe coding" is now possible, and access is widening. The rule is simple: "If the audience is there, then the artist will be there too."
The hologram horizon: The next leap? Hyper-personalized concerts, beamed straight to wherever fans are. Thurlow says hologram shows are "pretty close" to real, with startups racing to build the tech, especially as devices like Meta’s Ray-Ban glasses hit the market. "It's getting crazy. There just needs to be a tipping point and it’s going to happen," says Thurlow.
Despite the chaos, Thurlow is optimistic: "I think we’re going to get it right," he says. "I think the future for entertainment and music is going to be really interesting."