On the Record with Poppy Reid

Cowboy Up: Kaylee Bell on Fear, Fame & Nashville Hustle

On the Record with Poppy Reid

Show Notes

In this episode, Kaylee Bell opens up about the long road behind her so-called “overnight success” from growing up in New Zealand where country music didn’t exist on the radio, to becoming one of the region’s biggest modern country exports.

She talks candidly about spending nearly two decades grinding without guarantees, being told releasing a tribute song could be “career suicide,” and why trusting her instincts even when the industry pushed back changed everything. Kaylee breaks down how songs like Keith and Cowboy Up came to life, what interpolation really means, and why fan connection now matters more than gatekeepers.

Beyond the music, this conversation goes deep into the realities of being a female artist in country music the double standards, the business side no one teaches you, and the pressure to look perfect while holding everything together. Kaylee also shares her deeply personal health journey, years in and out of hospital, being told she might never have children, and the emotional shock of discovering she was pregnant right as her career reached a new level.

This episode is about resilience, risk, self-belief, and redefining success on your own terms proving that you can chase big dreams, speak up, become a mother, and still do meaningful, creative work.

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For this one-off special episode of On The Record, Poppy Reid sits down with Sam Duboff, Spotify's Global Head of Spotify for Artists, Marketing & Policy, for one of the most transparent conversations ever recorded about how the world's biggest streaming platform actually works. From artist royalties and streaming payouts to AI-generated music, algorithms, discovery, exports and the future of the music industry, Sam answers many of the questions musicians, managers and fans have been asking for years. The conversation breaks down how Spotify's royalty system really works, why there is no fixed payment per stream, what actually happens after Spotify pays labels and distributors, and why so many artists misunderstand where their money comes from. Sam also responds to some of the biggest industry debates, including Discovery Mode, user-centric payments, AI-generated music, spam tracks, artist verification, export myths and whether Spotify's algorithm really limits artists' global reach. Whether you're an artist, songwriter, producer, manager or simply curious about the future of music, this is an essential conversation with one of the people helping shape the industry's next chapter. Topics discussed: How Spotify royalties actually work

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