The article opens "This one feels surreal" ... no, this feels like clickbait or marketing.

So I checked the "label" that is doing these "multimillion dollar" deals...

Their Privacy page is named "new-page-1" https://www.hallwoodmedia.com/new-page-1

They describe themselves (all caps courtesy of Hallwood Media):

> "HALLWOOD ISN’T ANOTHER MERCH SUPPLIER. WE’RE PARTNERS IN CULTIVATING ARTISTIC VISIONS INTO REALITY. WE’RE A ONE-STOP FOR MERCHANDISE DESIGN, PRODUCTION, AND FULFILLMENT. FINE-TUNED FOR ARTISTS AND THE MUSIC INDUSTRY AT LARGE. OUR COMPETITIVE EDGE IS OUR DEEP-ROOTED FOUNDATION IN MUSIC. WE’RE NOT ONLY BUSINESS PROFESSIONALS. WE’RE MUSIC MANAGERS, LABEL EXECS, AND CREATIVE DIRECTORS. WE’VE WORKED ACROSS THE INDUSTRY TO AMPLIFY ARTISTS AND THEIR VOICES AT THE HIGHEST LEVELS. WE UNDERSTAND THE POWERFUL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ARTISTS AND THEIR FANS BECAUSE WE’VE EXPERIENCED IT AS BOTH. THESE FUNDAMENTAL PASSIONS ARE AT THE CORE OF OUR IDENTITY. OUR MERCHANDISE REFLECTS THAT. MERCH IS NOT JUST A PRODUCT, BUT AN EXTENSION OF AN ARTIST’S STORY. WE PROVIDE AN INTIMATE EXPERIENCE THAT LARGER MERCHANDISERS CANNOT.

COMING SOON"

I think this is PR stunting and I'd love to see the check if any meaningful amount of money actually changes hands here.

Two AI-driven musicians have recently signed multimillion dollar record deals with Hallwood Media. • Xania Monet, created with Suno, signed a $3M contract. Her track “How Was I Supposed to Know” hit No. 1 on Billboard’s R&B Digital Song Sales chart. • Imoliver, another AI-heavy creator, is releasing a single and full album under the same label.

The AI music market is projected to reach nearly $3B by 2030, with forecasts suggesting it could be worth $16B annually by 2028. Lawsuits over training data are already underway, and questions remain about royalties and authenticity.

Is this just hype chasing novelty, or the start of a structural shift in music?