Entertainment · Music · 2 hrs ago
Music lawyer says electronic music offers lessons on fan connections
At Amsterdam Dance Event in the Netherlands, music lawyer Cliff Fluet discussed where industry power is shifting.
He used Radiohead’s 2007 pay-what-you-want album release to argue that the key issue was who connects with fans, not what music costs.
Fluet said electronic music has long relied on direct fan relationships and independent infrastructure.
He pointed to DJs who build devoted audiences and earn ticket revenue without much traditional industry support.
The global dance music scene was valued at $15 billion in 2025, up 7%, according to figures he cited.
Fluet said electronic music’s younger catalogs offer room to grow, while clubs and live shows could help protect its value from AI disruption.
He argued that ideas from clubs today may spread across music tomorrow.
Music lawyer Cliff Fluet said the wider music industry could learn from electronic music’s direct relationships with fans.
Speaking at Amsterdam Dance Event 2026, he argued that electronic music has long built communities and monetized fans directly.
Fluet said Radiohead’s 2007 pay-what-you-want release of In Rainbows was about who owned the relationship with fans, not the price of music.
He described the global dance industry as worth $15 billion in 2025, up 7%.
He said clubs, DJs and live events could help protect electronic music from some effects of AI.
- Who
- Cliff Fluet, co-head of media and entertainment at U.K. law firm Lewis Silkin LLP.
- What
- He argued that the wider music industry could learn from electronic music’s direct-to-fan model.
- When
- He spoke on Friday, Oct. 23, at ADE 2026.
- Where
- Amsterdam Dance Event in Amsterdam.
- Why
- He said electronic music offers lessons in fan engagement, direct monetization and independence.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Radiohead released In Rainbows and invited fans to pay whatever they wanted for it.
Cliff Fluet spoke at ADE 2026 about shifts in music-industry power and lessons from electronic music.
- Speaker
- Cliff Fluet
- Event
- Amsterdam Dance Event 2026
- Talk date
- Friday, Oct. 23
- Global dance industry value
- $15 billion in 2025, up 7%
- Average catalog age
- 2005 for electronic music; 1990 for other genres
1 source
What people are saying
It was about who owns the relationship with the fan.
I think electronic music shows the way, in so many ways, that the rest of the music industry isn’t spending enough time looking at.
There’s so much more that the music industry could and should be learning.
What works in the clubs today will tend to reach the rest of the business tomorrow.