Music & the Entertainment Economy

Music Scenes to Music Clusters: The Economic Geography of Music in the U.S., 1970-2000 by Richard Florida, Charlotta Mellander and Kevin Stolarick Abstract Where do musicians locate, and why do creative industries such as music continue to cluster? This paper analyzes the economic geography of musicians and the recording industry in the U.S. from 1970 [...]

Sonic City: The Evolving Economic Geography of the Music Industry by Richard Florida and Scott Jackson Abstract Our research tracks the location of musicians and music establishments in U.S. regions from 1970 to 2004. We find that the music industry has become significantly more concentrated over time. New York and Los Angeles remain dominant locations, [...]

See the Sound, Hear the Style: Collaborative Linkages between Indie Musicians and Fashion Designers in Local Scenes by Atle Hauge and  Brian Hracs Abstract Although economic geographers have paid significant attention to the competitive dynamics, organizational and employment structures of specific cultural industries, the existing research privileges large firms and established centres such as New [...]

The music business is a fascinating example of a creativity-driven industry. Advances in manufacturing and sound recording technology mean that only a small part of the value of the final product – a compact disc or digital download – is generated by manufacturing and distribution. Instead, most of the costs of the music business today [...]

That’s Entertainment: Scale and Scope Economies in the Location and Clustering of the Entertainment Economy by Richard Florida, Charlotta Mellander and Kevin Stolarick Abstract It is argued that the introduction of new technology is leading toward the decentralization of the production and consumption of creative products and industries. But creative industries and workers may benefit [...]

Music Clusters: A Preliminary Analysis by Richard Florida and Charlotta Mellander This research note is part of a large scale project on the popular music industry and system see Florida and Jackson (2008). Using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), it calculates location quotients (LQs) to identify regional concentrations of employed musicans. It [...]