Together with
A line of beauty. Hey, Future Party people. Yesterday was the 2023 Met Gala, and it did not disappoint. This year’s fundraising event honored the late (and legendary) Karl Lagerfeld with plenty of star-studded looks on the red carpet. Thanks to Jared Leto, there was even a giant cat. We can’t make this stuff up. #LongLiveChoupette
In other news… Hybrid work disrupts the airline industry, Partiful crashes the party, and AI singers strike a chord.
Top Trends
YouTube → “They Don’t Love It” - Jack Harlow
Twitter → Blake Lively
Google → LEGO
Reddit → Jack Black
TikTok → “New Freezer” - Rich The Kid
Spotify → “Give It To Me” - Miguel
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TRAVEL
Hybrid work takes the airline industry to new heights
The Future. Before the pandemic, work and school schedules largely determined American travel patterns. But now that people can work and learn from anywhere, every weekend can be a holiday. This trend could help airlines manage capacity better and offset demand during peak holidays while giving crews more flexibility with vacation time.
Holidays are no longer fixed guideposts
People used to take a day or two off around a major holiday weekend (like July 4th) because it wasn’t socially acceptable to be in the office those days. Without the urgency to return home, though, there have been fewer spikes and slumps in travel volume.
Spirit Airlines joked that September was the only month with six weeks since it began on August 15th when kids returned to school. But the days when a big drop-off follows summer travel are gone.
Fall 2022 was a boom for US airlines as people continued to travel since they could stay connected to work. This fall is likely to be strong as well… even after the summer months see an increase in travelers.
It’s time to wing it
While the airline industry is still figuring out post-pandemic travel patterns, they have identified a few major changes.
When holidays de-peak, consumers could pay a tighter range of fares. Rather than one person shelling out $2,000 for a ticket and another paying $200 for the same flight, everyone is spending around $500.
With fewer peaks (and a fall season that doesn’t drop off), airlines might have an easier time scheduling maintenance on planes that would otherwise be unavailable.
As travel demand smooths out, more crews could take vacation time when they want to — as opposed to when they have to.
Once the airline industry adapts to this new normal, the sky’s the limit for their employees, processes, and revenue.
CULTURE
There ain’t no party like a Partiful party // Illustration by Kate Walker
Event planning platform Partiful gets its groove on
The Future. In March 2020, Shreya Murthy co-founded Partiful as an alternative to Facebook Events, which “no one was using anymore.” Today, the platform boasts millions of users and has grown the number of events created on its site by over 1,000% year-over-year. If Partiful’s organic success foretells anything, it’s that tech designed to get people off their phones and interacting IRL is a worthy venture.
Where’s the party at?
Partiful is a one-stop shop with all the info people need for any party, including a place to trade GIFs, photos, comments, and memes.
It's best used for small community events like birthday parties and happy hours.
By early 2022, Partiful had spread throughout NYC, LA, Barcelona, London, Berlin, Johannesburg, Tokyo, and Sydney.
After an NYT article about Partiful hit newsstands in September 2022, site traffic surged, and “high-profile” events (NYFW, Coachella, Art Basel) became available on the platform.
Why’s it still word-of-mouth?
While Partiful originated in NYC, its early adopters “started to take it with them when they traveled,” according to Murthy, helping to liberate the brand from traditional marketing methods.
The company has yet to run any paid ads, since the platform doesn’t see immediate conversion from any type of sharing.
Nor has it worked with a marketing agency.
What’s next?
Right now, Partiful’s primary focus is building out a mobile app. Eventually, it’ll offer paid features for its “power hosts,” including tools to help them plan parties.
TOGETHER WITH THE JUICE
Content served right
If you create content, but no one sees it, it’s kinda like baking a Funfetti cake and not serving it to anyone. Sure, it might be delicious, but it doesn’t do what it’s supposed to (feed our cravings!).
Meet The Juice — they don’t bake cakes, but they do curate the best content for B2B marketing and sales professionals.
Their sleek and easy-to-navigate platform shows you the top articles and podcasts resonating with marketing and sales professionals right now.
The sprinkles on top: The Juice is a platform for creators and consumers.
If you’re a content creator, they can help build your following based on your ideal audience and report the ROI findings. If you’re here to learn, there are tons of resources for you to check out, like your own modern-day marketing library.
So, check out The Juice. It’s a piece of cake! (Sorry, we couldn’t resist. 🎉)
MUSIC
Unsplash
AI voice cloning tech isn’t going anywhere
The Future. As deepfakes become more ubiquitous online, they could force the music industry to consider whether artists own the sounds produced by their vocal cords. Instead of punishing copycats, labels might gain more from embracing the new tech and finding ways to monetize it.
What’s the new tech anyway?
So-Vits-SVC is a free, open-source voice model that can run locally on any computer. Since launching in March, the AI has gotten easier to use as updated versions arrive almost daily, per Vulture.
A good model can perform any song as long as the user has isolated vocal and instrumental tracks. If not, other programs can help separate them.
For best results, the AI clone should have the same vocal range as the artist it’s simulating. It’ll follow their inflections, so singers with accents or other distinctive traits might be harder to replicate.
How can musicians take advantage?
While no software can write good music and lyrics on its own, the best AI-generated songs still require the human touch. But together, the possibilities are intriguing.
Many artists already outsource their songwriting and could become wealthier by lending their voices to new material — including the estates of dead artists who can no longer release new music.
Talented unknowns could finally make money from their music.
AI-generated vocals could provide backup for artists whose voices have changed over time.
TOGETHER WITH THE GIST
The play-by-play behind the plays 🏈
Want the inside scoop on the business side of women’s and men’s sports? Well, The GIST gives you “the gist” of what’s up off the field — all delivered in bite-sized, fun-to-read stories.
The GIST is an awesome and FREE newsletter written by WOMEN, btw. You can take our word for how great it is or follow the lead of the 12,000 readers who are already fans.
Highlights
The best curated daily stories from around the web
Oatly employs self-deprecation in marketing campaigns
Last fall, the plant-based milk brand launched a website called “F*ck Oatly,” detailing the company’s PR mess-ups and scandals. “It’s super convenient to have the latest boycotts and criticisms all in one place.” It’s also lucrative. After Oatly aired an ad during the 2021 Super Bowl, it sold T-shirts featuring its CEO and the text “I totally hated that Oatly commercial.” The shirt sold out in less than five minutes.
Read More → insider
Analysts say the US dollar is overvalued
According to the WSJ Dollar Index, the greenback has dropped 8.3% from a peak in September and is experiencing its worst start to the year since 2018. Investors believe the dollar has further to fall as the Fed nears the end of its most aggressive interest rate hikes since the 80s. Concerns over the banking system, a potential US debt default, and the looming recession are also weighing heavily on the dollar.
Read More → wsj
It’s still hard to break into Hollywood as a first-time director
A new UCLA study reports only 23.4% of first-time directors have worked on major feature films in the last 12 years. The study also found the racial and gender composition isn’t that different between the first-time and experienced director pools. Only 4.8% of experienced directors are female, compared to 95.2% being male — and 16.3% are BIPOC.
Read More → variety
Aerosmith is peacing out with one last tour
The Grammy-winning band that’s been recording and performing music since the early 70s will launch its farewell tour in September. The group’s 40-date run of shows (called the ‘Peace Out’ tour) will begin in Philadelphia and end in Montreal on January 26th, 2024. Right on.
Read More → deadline
Vice is reportedly preparing to file for bankruptcy
Per one insider, the company has been looking for a buyer (and still might find one), but the chances are growing increasingly slim. In 2017, after a funding round from the private-equity firm TPG, Vice was worth $5.7 billion. Now, it’s worth a fraction of that.
Read More → nyt
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Today's email was brought to you by Kait Cunniff. Editing by Nick Comney. Publishing by Sara Kitnick.