Angus & Julia Stone: Streaming bubble is bursting but Aussie artists shouldn’t starve

Angus & Julia Stone have waded into the hot topic of music streaming and artist earnings. Here is what they had to say.

Singer-songwriters Angus and Julia Stone have thrown their support behind the global push for streaming platforms to pay artists more for their music.

The sibling folk and indie pop duo from Sydney said Australian artists needed more support “to cut through” the highly competitive industry.

“Spotify, Apple and all those platforms that have been utilising music to build their businesses have been a great benefit to artists by connecting them to audiences that in the past, they wouldn’t ever necessarily reach,” Angus told The Daily Telegraph.

“We’ve been through the phase of ‘This is pretty incredible technology’. But now there needs to be a change in the way those platforms are actually giving back to the artists in monetary value,” the Big Jet Plane singer said.

A report by Creative Australia released in May found that it’s harder than ever for our professional artists to make a living, with musicians making an average annual income of $56,000 (with $22,000 of that earned from non-arts sources).

Musicians Angus & Julia Stone at the Abercrombie Hotel in Sydney as they took place in The Wild Turkey Music 101 Mentorship Program. Picture by Max Mason-Hubers

“Because earning 0.001 of every play …. It’s gotten to a point where it’s been great for exposure, but we don’t want to leave this industry when we’re older knowing that artists are struggling more than ever because massive multi-billion dollar corporations refuse to change the conversation,” he said.

The multi-platinum selling duo treated a small Sydney audience to an intimate performance on Tuesday night at The Abercrombie in Chippendale, sharing the stage with their Wild Turkey Music 101 mentees for an invite-only showcase of emerging Australian talent.

As mentors of ten young musicians, Angus and Julia said their most FAQ has been:

‘How do you know your worth?’ … whether that relates to a live performance fee, the number of streams a song gets, the number on the ARIA charts, or on a record label deal.

“It’s a tricky thing because, in our culture, the idea is your worth is connected to how much money you earn and what you’ve got in the bank,” Julia said.

“You have to make enough to survive, but Angus and I were trying to reinforce that even if you’re not where you want to be, it doesn’t mean that what you’re doing is not of worth.

“It’s always of value to contribute creatively in the community. It’s so precious. Often, the why of making music is to navigate the hard parts of life and transmuting darkness into light.”

The indie pop stars launched legal action in the NSW Supreme Court against their former manager Tim Manton and management firm TaP Music in March, who they allege overcharged them $2.8m on management fees over 10 years.

Angus & Julia Stone perform during the 2024 Shure Rolling Stone Australia Awards. Picture: Getty Images

The UK talent management company filed an appeal on Monday, per Lawyerly.

When it comes to signing management and record label deals, Angus said the advice they’ve been giving their mentees is: “Don’t ever rush into anything.”

“If someone is rushing you, it’s probably not the right thing — and if they are, give us a call,” he said.

“We’ve signed 50 contracts in our life around the world, with different management, labels, and lawyers … it’s about making sure that the younger generation are looked after and have awareness of the smoke and mirrors of romance and money versus stripping all your rights away for 20 years of your life.”

The Stones spent their childhood in Sydney’s northern beaches with their parents and another sister, an environment in which Julia said the family was always trying to make ends meet. Their father was a wedding singer, who Angus joked they thought had written every big song by Neil Diamond and The Bee Gees.

Angus and Julia Stone at a sound check for the Sony Foundations Wharf4Ward concert. Picture: Tim Hunter.

“We didn’t understand the concept of a cover band,” he said. “It was like, ‘how did you get dad’s tape’?”

As teens, Angus and Julia said they very much didn’t want to be in a band together and would try to sell their individual CDs after sharing a stage together. “We’d try to make our friends choose, and it was very awkward, so often they’d buy both,” Angus said. “It was actually a good business strategy.”

They are currently playing a world tour after releasing their fifth studio album Cape Forestier earlier this year.

Meanwhile, The Wild Turkey Music 101 Mentorship Program offered emerging Aussie artists access to top industry mentors in partnership with Studios 301 and Angus & Julia Stone.

The program ran in Sydney this week with 10 selected mentees attending six exclusive workshops that saw them learn from Australia’s finest audio engineers, vocal producers, and songwriters.