There is also something to be said about the public itself. I can see it with my own brother and father, who might want to listen to “some music” and just ask their favourite app/AI for “jazz” or “chill electronic music”. Was it the industry that incited people into behaving like that or was it a human motivation ? probably a little bit of both.
With that in mind, i can see the music landscape getting more and more polarized, with successful music (not be be mistaken with successful musicians) being either “idol” pop-stars with cross-media presence and a strong “brand” identity, or generic music that is not abrasive and does not annoy you in any way… with less and less in-betweens. Or at least, less opportunities to discover these rich in-betweens.
So, how can we do to counter that industry ?
What comes to my mind immediately is: curation. Good curation, human curation, the one that strikes you for its boldness or accuracy. Whether it’s in music venues with real-life musicians or in web playlists. That’s what sparked the recent discussion on GarageBand : the curation was so good that the industry’s big fiery-eye could not ignore it anymore.