Machines want to choose your music. Let's not let them!
Samuel Ferraz-Leite
2 min read
Hey fellow music explorers,
A lot is happening today, and I wanted to share all of it with you — because somehow, it all connects.
New video: Warner Music's CEO just showed us the roadmap
I just published a video that's been on my mind for a while. Warner Music Group's CEO recently published an open letter to shareholders - and if you read between the lines, it maps out exactly where the corporate music machine is heading.
But here's the thing - I don't want to leave you in the dark. The video also carries a message of real hope. It's up to us - musicians and music lovers - to build a future where human, emotional, artistically honest indie music is a real and thriving thing. Not a niche. Not a footnote. A movement.
It's Bandcamp Friday - go find something you'll actually love
Which brings me to today. Because today is Bandcamp Friday, and I genuinely think it's one of the most meaningful days in the independent music calendar.
From midnight to midnight PDT, Bandcamp waives their revenue share and passes the funds directly to artists and labels. That means when you spend even a few euros on an album today, essentially all of it goes straight to the person who made it.
Here's my challenge to you: don't let an algorithm decide what you listen to today.
No Spotify Discover Weekly. No "recommended for you." Instead - search, explore, follow a recommendation from a friend, a newsletter, a YouTube comment. Rediscover what it feels like to find music rather than have it served to you.
I've been doing exactly this lately, and here are some artists I've been genuinely listening to on repeat. Most of their albums cost very little - and today, your support lands even more directly in their hands:
- Zach Hyde - A master of musical story telling
- Trip Mirror - Evolving synth textures, rhythms and hybrid sounds.
- Epigenetics - Planning an interstellar travel? This is your soundtrack.
- Martin Stürzer - A true maestro of live performed analogue synth textures.
And... well... you can also find SamuFL on Bandcamp and support my work.
Go explore. Follow a thread. Buy something small. It matters more than you think.
From my studio: I'm switching DAWs (and I have feelings about it)
One more thing I wanted to share - something a bit more personal.
I'm in the middle of switching from Presonus Studio One to Cubase.
The short version: I've been having recurring issues on my setup with the Fender Studio Pro 8, and while Studio One 7 itself works fine, I still decided to take the leap and learn a new DAW.
Honestly? It's been... a ride. Learning Cubase from scratch while also trying to stay creative is equal parts exciting and absolutely exhausting. There's that strange feeling of being a beginner again — which is humbling in ways I didn't expect.
I'd love to know if that's something you'd want to follow along with. A series on my step-by-step discovery of Cubase — the confusions, the surprises, the moments where it suddenly clicks.
→ I just posted a community poll on YouTube - go vote and let me know!