David Schulhof

David Schulhof brings an unusual resume to the ETF world. He's spent his career in the music industry , not just as a fan, but as an executive who's watched the business transform from vinyl to CDs to streaming. MUSQ, the music industry ETF he created, is built on a thesis that music isn't just entertainment , it's as essential to human life as food and water, and the companies powering this ecosystem represent a non-correlated investment opportunity that most portfolios completely miss.

Music as a Non-Correlated Asset Class

"Our view is that this is a non-correlated investment and it's as important in life as food and water," David says. "I don't think a human being can go through life without listening to music in some way. You celebrate music in good times , at your weddings and your proms , and you use music in unfortunate times, like COVID."

The emotional case is compelling, but the business case is equally strong. The MUSQ index covers companies across the entire music value chain: streaming platforms, live music and ticketing companies, radio, music labels, and the technology companies enabling distribution. These revenue streams have been growing structurally as music consumption shifts from physical ownership to digital access, and the addressable market continues to expand as mobile phone penetration grows globally.

The Streaming Revolution and What Comes Next

David's perspective on where music consumption is heading is shaped by watching every prior technology shift. Ten to fifteen years from now, he sees a world where "everybody has a mobile phone, everybody is consuming short-form content, and everybody's accessing music. Music is incorporated into every aspect of life , every video, everything you see all day."

The live music connection is critical to his thesis. Streaming drives discovery, which drives demand for live experiences. He shares a personal moment: "I'll never forget when my daughter saw Taylor Swift for the first time at the iHeart Radio festival. She had been listening to Taylor Swift, and it was like this figure came alive. The look on my daughter's face , that was a beautiful moment. And that's why live music is so important."

Radio persists too, as passive discovery. "You still spend two to five hours a day in the car. You can't look at your phone , obviously you're driving. But what you can do is listen to the weather, listen to news, and discover new music." Discovery feeds streaming, which feeds live attendance , it's a virtuous cycle that benefits every company in the MUSQ index.

AI's Impact on Music: Opportunity Over Threat

The conversation addresses AI head-on. Over 100,000 new songs are being uploaded to platforms every day, and AI is making music creation accessible to virtually anyone. David acknowledges the piracy and forgery threats , the fake Drake and Weeknd AI-generated tracks that went viral , but argues that the existing legal infrastructure handles it effectively. "General counsel was on right away to Spotify. They took it down in a second."

More importantly, AI is actually making the labels more valuable, not less. "Now you have curators that are actually out there having to listen to this music. You still need a company to come up with a marketing plan, to take a song to radio." The explosion of AI-generated content increases the premium on curation, marketing, and the human connections that drive fandom. "The benefits far exceed the threat of the costs associated with it."

Index Construction and Portfolio Fit

Building the MUSQ index required defining the investable music ecosystem , streaming services, live entertainment companies, ticketing platforms, labels and publishing, radio, and the technology infrastructure underneath all of it. The companies in the index represent the full value chain, from content creation to consumption.

For advisors, MUSQ offers exposure to a specific secular growth story , the expanding monetization of music consumption globally , in a wrapper that doesn't overlap heavily with standard sector funds. You're not getting broad tech or broad communication services; you're getting the music economy specifically. And David's deep industry relationships give MUSQ a level of sector expertise that generic thematic ETF providers typically lack.

Whether music is truly as essential as food and water is debatable. What's less debatable is that global music consumption is growing, the companies enabling it are profitable, and most portfolios have zero dedicated exposure to this theme. MUSQ makes the bet that this structural growth story , streaming, live events, and the technology enabling both , is worth owning as a distinct allocation.

David's industry background gives him access and insight that pure financial professionals lack. He understands the business relationships between labels and streaming platforms, the economics of touring and merchandise, and how technology shifts , from radio to MTV to Spotify , have repeatedly transformed the revenue model without diminishing music's importance to consumers. When he talks about AI-generated music flooding platforms with 100,000 new songs per day, he's speaking from direct experience watching the industry manage similar disruptions before. Each technology wave has ultimately expanded the pie rather than shrinking it.

Key Takeaways

• David Schulhof brings an unusual resume to the ETF world.
• MUSQ, the music industry ETF he created, is built on a thesis that music isn't just entertainment , it's as essential to human life as food and water, and the companies powering this ecosystem represent a non-correlated investment opportunity that most portfolios completely miss.
• Over 100,000 new songs are being uploaded to platforms every day, and AI is making music creation accessible to virtually anyone.
• For advisors, MUSQ offers exposure to a specific secular growth story , the expanding monetization of music consumption globally , in a wrapper that doesn't overlap heavily with standard sector funds.