Trackstack Podcast E37: Reviewing 500 Tracks a Week | Oskar (Songstats Co-Founder)

Oskar (Co-Founder, Songstats) joins us in Bangkok for a wide-ranging conversation about the real mechanics behind building a music career from reading streaming data to embodyingyour artist identity.We cover the Songstats origin story, what the data actually tells us about how the music industry is changing, and why some of the most important decisions artists can make have nothing to do with algorithms.TOPICS COVERED– How Songstats was built bootstrapped from Bali, and why that shaped everything– What streaming and playlist data reveal about artist growth and label strategy– Why artist-owned labels are replacing the old industry gatekeeper– The economics of labels: Beatport vs streaming, and what actually pays– Oskar's demo curation process — reviewing 500 tracks a week and what he's listening for– DONT BLINK and LOW CEILING Records: running two labels with very different approaches– The 1001Tracklists / Tomorrowland joint venture (1001 Recordings) and how it works– John Summit, Experts Only, and the rise of artist-run labels– Songstats data integration coming to Trackstack — what that means for artists and labels– AI's impact on small dev teams: how Songstats and Trackstack operate at scale with tiny teams– The "artist mindset" shift — embodying your identity before the bookings come– Going full-time in music: ramen profitability, geographic arbitrage, and the real leap– Tour life realities: staying healthy, giving 100% every night, and building markets from scratch– Argentina, Brazil, Korea, US debut: how DONT BLINK approaches new markets– Why storytelling is the most underrated skill in electronic musicCONNECT WITH OSKAR & SONGSTATS🔗 Songstats: https://songstats.com📱 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/styline/👀 DONT BLINK: https://instagram.com/dontblinkmusic 🎵 LOW CEILING: https://instagram.com/lowceilingmusicCONNECT WITH TRACKSTACK🔗 Website: https://trackstack.app📱 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trackstack.pro/KEY TIMESTAMPS00:00 – Intro: Bangkok, postcards, and AI dependency05:00 – Cursor, Codex, and how AI changed the dev workflow19:30 – Songstats: bootstrapped, artist-first, and staying ahead of copycats25:00 – Building features vs. building value: the incremental problem31:00 – Growing a remote team: culture, trust, async communication36:00 – Trackstack OS and what's coming in 202539:00 – Oskar's demo review process: 500 tracks a week on Trackstack44:00 – LOW CEILING: music-first, dancefloor-first47:00 – Why labels exist and what trust in a label really means50:00 – 1001Tracklists: joint venture with Tomorrowland + Universal distribution53:00 – The rise of artist-owned labels (John Summit, Experts Only)55:00 – DONT BLINK strategy: owning your own catalogue going forward58:00 – Club culture shifts: less going out, saving for the big event01:06:30 – Making music for your tours, not for trends01:08:00 – Vibration, number ones, and why they never chased the follow-up01:12:00 – Touring health, routines, and giving every crowd the same energy01:13:00 – The artist mindset shift: Tomorrowland, Amelie Lens, and embodiment01:15:00 – Why storytelling is the most underrated tool in music01:17:30 – Level one: the internal blocks artists face before the tactics matter01:27:30 – Producers who want to make a living, not just perform01:30:00 – Ramen profitability, geographic arbitrage, and the full-time leap01:33:30 – How Bali made Songstats possible01:35:00 – Songstats data integration coming to Trackstack next month01:39:00 – Wrap up#TrackstackPodcast #Songstats #MusicIndustry