Back in June it was confirmed by Billboard that Matthew Adell would be stepping down from his role as the CEO of Beatport to be replaced by former President of Beatport Pro and COO of Beatport, Lloyd Starr. Now, in an interview to be printed in the July 26th edition of Billboard Magazine, the new President of one of dance music’s most relevant properties discusses his plans for the platform, his beliefs on EDM’s potential growth, and the consumer-based fraudulent activities that have marred his company’s brand in recent months.
The short but sweet Q&A addresses Starr’s vision for Beatport’s rumored September relaunch, a move that will make the juggernaut online store a more community driven experience; “[The change] takes on different forms than just selling a download, such as social media, events, community, that sort of thing.” It’s a shift in attention for the brand that he hopes will acknowledge the non-purchasing music consumer’s in the EDM audience.
He goes on to discuss the “download farms” that have jeopardized the validity of Beatport’s strongest assets, its Top Ten list.
“Fuck those guys,” Starr tells Billboard, “its a cat-and-mouse game […] we have to outsmart them.”
