The omnivore monoculture raised the cost of breaking new artists above one million dollars.

Evidence

Moreover, the omnivore monoculture created steep barriers to entry for younger artists. In the past, distinct genres allowed emerging musicians to build followings in niche scenes before attempting to cross over into the mainstream. Underground movements often developed sounds that made established artists seem outdated—but those ecosystems had largely disappeared. Instead, new artists were forced to compete directly with established stars, using the same playbook but with fewer resources. And poptimist critics only took notice once newcomers had already made it big. A rising artist might land a spot on a popular Spotify playlist, but few listeners bothered to learn their name. This explained why breaking a new artist cost labels more than $1 million. — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 632

Categorization

• QUESTION: The $1 million figure is asserted without citation direction; worth verifying as a specific data point for the counter-argument.