“To answer that question we need to decide what it means to be an artist. Many of us grew up in an environment where we were only taught what art means at a superficial level. Maybe our first definition of an artist was someone who was really good at making realistic paintings or drawings or maybe someone who made weird abstract creations that were supposedly only understood by special people. Perhaps we made a vague translation of those ideas and applied them to music in some way and that’s as far as we got.”
“Some people want to publish their content with strict copyrights and old marketing models. However, in this day and age, unless you have a big record label or publisher behind you, getting that ‘big break’ can be difficult if you are unwilling to let go, take a risk and take advantage of some of the wonderful tools at your disposal that will allow you to have control and a lot of freedom over how you distribute and market your content. In my opinion, getting your music heard is the most important thing. It will be easier to make money from it if you make it easier for people to listen to and share your music.”
“Indie bands and musicians – What can we learn, if anything, from the viral marketing techniques employed by the world’s biggest pop star (except Justin Bieber of course), Lady GaGa? If at this point you’re grumbling “Not my thing” or “I hate pop music” you’ve quite possibly closed some of the potential doors available to you and sorely missed out as a result. Let’s also forget the obvious point that GaGa has millions of followers anticipating her every move. I plan to use this individual simply as a conversation starter on the topics of controversy and originality, which are becoming ever-more important in today’s music industry.”
“Here’s a concept that feels pretty 20th century right now: compilation soundtracks to films. They had their moment — 1984′s Footloose (9 million copies sold), 1987′s Dirty Dancing (11 million), 1986′s Top Gun (9 million), 1994′s Pulp Fiction (3.5 million) — but during the past four years, sales across the category are down 40 percent, with eight of 2010′s top 50 soundtracks belonging to Glee. It begs the question: In the digital age, when music fans can pick and choose individual songs to buy with a critical and budget-conscious eye (iTunes prices tracks at 69 cents, 99 cents and $1.29), is a compilation that aggregates singles past and present worth the price of admission?”
Where do pirates situate themselves in the market for creative works? It shouldn’t come as a surprise that they are distributors, rather than producers. Formerly, they would probably have some production role – printing or pressing copies of works – but in the age of the Internet, this particular role is no longer necessary. Digital distribution sees the buyer making his own copy, with the distributor simply providing a master file to copy from (in the most basic – technology-agnostic – terms).”
“Clearly at a crossroads, the music industry is looking increasingly at the mercy of what has been blamed for its demise over the last decade: technology. And as new business models for music delivery continue to emerge, it is apparent that music’s future is linked to new technologies and devices.”
“How To Turn Your Superfans Into Guerrilla Marketers” is a nice quick intro to the concept of the “superfan” who is often a teenager and is highly motivated to do quite a bit of marketing on your behalf, if they’re rewarded in an appropriate manner.”
This piece is for my sophisticated and unsophisticated, producers and artists, creating groundbreaking new music. This will be useful for those using chopped up Lil’ Wayne verses or scenes from Belly on their hooks. Not to forget the garage bands and techno producers using those Jimmy Hendrix guitar riffs or lines from Scarface on your masters. These are a few examples of what has been termed “Sampling.”
“Sampling” = taking a previously recorded copyrighted sound, taking a sample of it, and inserting it into your own creative work. Continue reading…
What do vinyl records, 8-tracks, cassette tapes, the VCR, and the CD have in common? In a few years they will all be antiques, destined for private showings at museums. They will be replaced by the thumb drive, the Ipod, the Android, the Blackberry, and all other types of media holding devices. Alas, it is now time to move on to an age where an Android phone is a boom box, where Pandora and Grooveshark.com are radio, where I-tunes is Virgin Records, and where laptops are recording studios.
