Inside the Playbook: Steve Rifkind on The Street Team Strategy That Built Hip-Hop Fans
In this clip, Steve Rifkind breaks down the year he spent managing New Edition, and why it became his real-world education in the music industry. From meeting key players like Lady B, Hiriam Hicks, an...
23 Jan 18min
The Manager’s Playbook 051: Steve Rifkind - Loud Records, Street Teams, Wu-Tang Clan, Akon & Record Label Strategy
Steve Rifkind helped build the modern music business playbook, and he’s one of the people who created and popularized “street teams” before anyone had a marketing department to hand it to.In this epis...
20 Jan 2h 35min
Inside the Playbook: Mike Biggane on Why Artist Development Is Now the Manager’s Job
The music didn’t get worse. The way it travels changed.In this clip from The Manager’s Playbook, Mike Biggane and I unpack why hits feel smaller in the streaming era; not because of talent, but becaus...
19 Jan 13min
Inside the Playbook: Mike Biggane on Why the Current Music Industry Is at a Turning Point
Most conversations about streaming focus on artists or platforms.This one starts where the pressure shows up first: songwriters, publishers, and the economics underneath the music.In this clip from Th...
18 Jan 21min
Inside the Playbook: Mike Biggane on Why Record Labels Don’t Build Artist Careers Anymore
The music industry didn’t pivot because of trends. It pivoted because the returns disappeared.In this clip from The Manager’s Playbook, Mike Biggane unpacks why major record labels quietly changed the...
17 Jan 13min
Inside the Playbook: Mike Biggane on Why Playlists Don’t Break Artists Anymore
Before playlists became leverage, before algorithms dictated discovery, before release strategy turned into guesswork, there was New Music Friday.In this clip from The Manager’s Playbook, Mike Biggane...
16 Jan 28min
The Manager’s Playbook 050: Mike Biggane - Spotify, Personalization, Artist Development & The New Music Business
The music industry didn’t slowly evolve. It structurally changed.And most people are still trying to operate inside a version of the business that no longer exists.In this episode of The Manager’s Pla...
13 Jan 2h 14min
Inside the Playbook: Nima Nasseri on The Mental Shift Artists Need to Survive the 2026 Music Biz
In this clip from The Manager’s Playbook, Nima Nasseri and Mauricio Ruiz unpack one of the most overlooked drivers of success in the music industry: visualization, mindset, and mental discipline.This ...
22 Dec 202517min
