Spotify’s TRL

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Happy Friday, Future Party. The Late Show with Stephen Colbert may be over, but part of the late-night show lives on — specifically, its iconic neon sign. Auctioned off after the show’s cancellation, the 12-foot illuminated sign now hangs above WeHo Bistro in Los Angeles. The restaurant’s owner, Jeff Douek, beat out 169 bidders to purchase the sign for $102,100, with all proceeds benefiting World Central Kitchen.

Movie-themed popcorn buckets have suddenly become a major revenue driver for theater chains — and a fun, creative conversation starter for studios.

The Big Picture: Hollywood and the exhibition industry at large are open to anything that gets people returning to theaters — which has finally started happening this year. That resurgence has coincided with the rise in popularity of popcorn buckets, underscoring how activations, merch, and other marketing stunts have become part of the entertainment experience.

Behind The Scenes: Who’s in the market for a $50 to $70 collectible popcorn bucket? Apparently, a lot of moviegoers, per NYT.

Last Bite: Three companies rule the movie-bucket game — Snap (which made The Odyssey buckets), Zinc (the infamous Dune bucket and Mission: Impossible), and Golden Link (all of Disney’s buckets). Lately, designers at these companies have been working with filmmakers and studios early in the process to get the buckets just right. For example, Snap creatives got an early look at Christopher Nolan’s script for The Odyssey and spoke with director James Gunn about the Superman sequel.

They’re now marketing royalty.

Coming Soon: It’s possible that theater chains will start tying exclusive access to popcorn buckets to their membership plans to help drive subscription revenue.

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In 1980, the median company went public at six years old. In 2024, it was 13. That’s seven extra years of growth happening entirely in private, before a single share hits the public market.

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Spotify is expanding further into music videos with several new features and tools that could turn the platform into the modern-day MTV.

Why It Hits: During the ’80s, ’90s, and ’00s, music videos were a huge deal — they broke artists, served as the centerpieces of album rollouts, and minted new Hollywood directors. That largely disappeared with the advent of streaming, which shifted the industry’s priorities and hollowed out its middle class of artists. Could music videos find their place in popular culture again?

Behind The Videos: Spotify is making it easier to watch and share music videos on the platform.

Final Chorus: Music videos have clearly been doing well for Spotify since their rollout last December. The company reports that users who watch a music video listen to that song 64% more often over the following three weeks than those who haven’t seen the video. They’re also 1.4 times more likely to save a song, share it, or add it to a playlist. Better yet, artists with music videos have seen their overall listenership increase by 57% compared with those without them.

In other words, music videos are an earworm.

The Future: Expect labels to start pouring money into music videos once again, potentially ushering in a renaissance for the format.

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29.2% of you voted I don’t really get it. in yesterday’s poll: What’s your take on “Disney Adults?”

“The movies are literally made for children. It’s time to leave Neverland, folks.”

“Direct reflection of how consumerism and emotional immaturity collide.”

“I am one, BUT there is 100% a line when it comes to going too far. I don’t ever want to get engaged or married at Disney — I just grew up in the ’90s and early 2000s, when Disney VHS movies raised me.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join Poll Of The Day, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

🎮 Amazon Prime is expanding into video games with a new Luna integration.

👀 Xbox is testing ad-supported games for its streaming offerings.

📺 Apple TV is rolling out its first dating show, The Last Person on Earth.

🤖 A bipartisan bill would like to add a “kill switch” to AI systems.

🚀 Nvidia is sending its chips to the Moon via a new partnership with Lunar Outpost.

🤳 Google wants you to log in with a selfie (aka facial recognition).

🥡 Yelp is licensing its reviews, photos, and restaurant info to OpenAI.

🛍️ Olivia Rodrigo is collabing with Etsy on exclusive merch tied to her upcoming tour.

🍻 Correction for every headline about Gen Z’s abstinence: they’re drinking now.