Paramount+ debuted the official trailer for How Music Got Free, the two-part docuseries on the how technology changed the music industry, from executive producers Marshall “Eminem” Mathers, LeBron James, Maverick Carter, Paul Rosenberg and Steve Stoute.

The series features interviews with Eminem, 50 Cent, Timbaland, Jimmy Iovine, Rocsi Diaz, Rhymefest, Steve Stoute and more

Release Date

Directed by Alexandria Stapleton (God Save Texas, Reggie), How Music Got Free made its world premiere at the 2024 SXSW Film & TV Festival, and will premiere exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. and Canada on Tuesday, June 11 and Wednesday, June 12 in the U.K., Australia, Latin America, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Italy.

Synopsis

How Music Got Free details the fascinating, and often funny, inside story of the technology-driven disruption that changed music during the late-90s and early-2000s. File sharing technology, combined with the insatiable demand for new music, created both the means and the motive for millions of young people to participate in outright theft – and be celebrated for it.

From New York City, to Los Angeles, to the small factory town of Shelby, North Carolina, the two-part series features the quirky genius of the heretofore-unknown “pirates,” the drama of the FBI investigations and convictions, and the frontline accounts of music’s biggest artists and executives. An unbelievable story of cunning, illegality, celebrity, and innovation, these are the events that changed the music industry forever.

“As a filmmaker, I wanted to challenge the narrow lens of who we regard as tech innovators,” said director and executive producer Alexandria Stapleton. “How Music Got Free is a story that proves brilliant minds can be found in unlikely places, like the rural, forgotten factory town of Shelby, North Carolina.”

Official Trailer

Watch the official trailer for How Music Got Free