Ok, so technically it doesn't work/exist yet but if Rhea Jeong can bring her concept to the market she may have a big winner on her hands!
"Designer Rhea Jeong's Void LP player seems devoid of reality, but it was inspired by the very real and very cute "Vinyl Killer," a little VW Bus that can propel itself around a record and play the tunes with its tinny speaker, naturally wearing out the precious LP in the process. The Void LP takes the concept of a self-sufficient speaker, amp and needle (the red ball), and then tosses them all into the air with a magnetic saucer. We're sure it sounds terrible, and it seems a little fantastical, but one thing's for certain: we want."
From what I have read/heard everywhere, it seems like Coachella was extremely successful this year, even despite a crippled economy. So does this mean that this season of music festivals will continue to see the same success as previous years? Not necessarily, but it may be a good indication.
I for one have already purchased a ticket for one day of the Pitchfork Music Festival, and am planning on going to all three days of Lollapalooza (line up announced!). With headliners like the Dead and Bob Dylan playing Rothburry, they are making it tough to ignore as well.
Are going to a festival this year, or will a sour economy keep you indoors?
Here is a link to an article about how Jim Jones was updating his twitter status while he was being arrested two weeks ago. (Even though he was handcuffed and taken to jail, he was never stopped from using his phone to update twitter.)
My roommates and I have been watching Scrubs religiously for many years now. Though J.D. (Zach Braff) and Dr. Cox (John McGinley) were the reason we tuned in week after week at first, we also quickly fell in love with the music featured on the show.
Not only did last week's episode deliver, it also included one of the best covers I've heard in a long time. Cast regular, Sam Lloyd (Ted), was accompanied by a band as he performed Outkast's "Hey Ya" at the Janitor's wedding. For the past week my roommates and I have spent more time than I would like to admit trying to find an mp3 version of the song to no avail. Instead, we've memorized every word in the scene. Check it out here and if you happen to come across the track anywhere, PLEASE let me know.
The first conference call when we discussed Twitter I have to say that I was rather clueless. I didn't understand why this was so hott and why so many people were using it. As I've continued to follow more people and my followers have began to grow I starting to see the impact it has.
I think it will take some time to understand all of the abbreviations and shortcuts, but I have recently discovered something called twtfm. This is a wonderful way to share music on Twitter. First, you follow twtfm. Once you are following twtfm you head on over to http://twt.fm
Next you log in to your Twitter account and search for a song.
The song you will search for will appear and you can listen to it or tweet it. If you decide to tweet the song a link will appear in your twitter box and you can share the song with everyone who is following you.
Twtfm is growing with new music everyday. With more that 260,000 followers this may be one of the easiest ways to spread the word about new music.
A couple months ago, Youtube hosted a worldwide audition for the first ever "Youtube Symphony". Michael Tilson Thomas (the director of the San Francisco Symphony) had the honor of conducting the symphony.
Don't underestimate the power of this orchestra based on Youtubes stereotypical video. No, there aren't any laughing babies in the orchestra or Charlie's getting their fingers bitten. They are all professional musicians who took the time to audition and gather "hits" in order to play in Carnegie Hall, the Mecca of Concert Halls.
What is next to come? An audition for youtubes first ever Hip hop group or Rock group?
I dunno, but while Classical music continues to decline among the younger generation, props to Youtube for linking it to the world wide web in an attempt to revive it.
I know Andrew Bird is gaining tons of fans by the day, and if you haven't heard him yet you probably will. Here in Chicago, as a native of the city, he is a huge deal. While I enjoy his records, seeing him live is a completely different (and better) experience. The first time I saw Andrew Bird was over the summer at a free outdoor show in Millennium Park, and he completely won me over.. In fact, the Chicago Redeye called it "the best show of the year" in the city. On Thursday night I had an opportunity to see Andrew Bird here at the Civic Opera House; a beautiful old theater with amazing acoustics and three levels of balconies. Again, he did not disappoint. Whether or not his stuff is your "style," I think you would be hard pressed to find someone who does not appreciate his talent and genius songwriting after seeing him live. Two nights in a row, Andrew Bird sold out the 3,500+ capacity Opera House to crowds full of indie kids, university professors, families, etc. If you get a chance, go see him live, you will not regret it!
I don't know if anyone saw this but I thought this article was really awesome. John Mellencamp weighs in on the state of the music industry- click this guy.
Though I was reluctant to try Twitter and am still trying to get acquainted with the site, one of the coolest marketing campaigns I've heard about in recent months is being implemented through the social networking service by none other than Lily Allen, who has 120,000+ followers. She also once had the most MySpace friends in the UK.
Before her shows across the country, Lily Allen has been hiding tickets in various locations and standing in the sidelines waiting for them to be found after sending out hints through Twitter to her fans.
Some of her most recent Tweet hints for free tickets include:
-San francisco Is known to house many a mincer, you'll find these tickets stuck to a pincer.
-If you're out shopping then keep your eyes peeled, the tickets will be in the west of the field.
-Please pay attention now here are your orders, I'm under the four right outside a Borders. GO !
In an interview with Jimmy Kimmel, she talks about how it took one fan 40 seconds after she sent out a Tweet hint to find the hidden tickets. You can check out the interview here.
Here is another recent video from Murs commenting on the Rick Ross & Fifty Cent Beef… Freestyle over “The Boss” (Commenting on Rick Ross speaking Murs’ name)
In his analysis of the Net 2.0, Andrew Keen writes, “the new internet was about self-made music, not Bob Dylan or the Brandenburg Concertos. Audience and author had become one, and we were all transforming culture into cacophony.” Keen’s statement may, however, seem unfounded in the context of file-sharing, as the internet is still about Bob Dylan and the Brandenburg Concertos…and countless others for that matter, they’re simply just free of charge (most of the time).
Music isn’t dead as Keen later asserts in his book. He is right however, in that the audience and the author have become one, although not necessarily in the same way he had originally intended. Keen is writing here of amateur musicians, mashup artists who piece together material for their own purposes, other ‘amateurs’ who post their music as part of “open source music” on sites such as Jamendo, or users who post pieces on youtube simply to “share their personal lives” or “contribute to the collective intelligence of the internet.” However, for our purposes, audience and author are as synonymous as producer and consumer (or rather distributor and consumer).
Keen goes so far at to suggest that “Napster and Kazaa…pale in comparison to the latest Web 2.0 ‘remixing’ of content and ‘mashing up’ of software and music.” But, yet again, his ultra-conservative cultural claim that ‘music is dead’ is unfounded when compared to official data from the IFPI that 80% of all internet traffic is derived from peer to peer file sharing, of which is mostly music. Although Keen’s remarks are a bit extremist, he does have a salient point that can shed some light on the issue. He writes, “Cutting and pasting [enables] a younger generation of intellectual kleptomaniacs, who think their ability to cut and paste a well-phrased thought or opinion makes it their own.” Obviously, written in the context of mix and mash up culture, his words make perfect sense. However, the statement takes a very different tone when describing the motivations and behaviors of filesharers. Indeed, the simple act of cutting and pasting may affect what Keen calls mash up culture, but more importantly, the ease of operations on the Net 2.0 and the seemingly undeniable right to user-generated content has taken hold in the social ideologies of filesharers.
If Keen’s argument that young people are “intellectual kleptomaniacs”, I would argue that the normal, every day filesharer, simply doesn’t know any better. However simplistic this statement may be, I believe that there is a severe disjuncture between the current (old style) entertainment industry and their Web 2.0 consumers. The music industry has always relied on the younger generations to drive sales. However, today’s youth (post-Gen Y) is comprised of “postmodern, eclectic, Google-generationists, Wikipediasts, who don’t necessarily recognize the concepts of authorships/ownerships”, a generation of people of whom the industry is deathly afraid of.
But, who’s to blame for the so-called demise of the entertainment industry? Can the industry “blame” (read: sue) young file sharers for adhering to a social norm that they grew up on? The internet is a social construct, millions of (mostly American) teenagers use the internet for social networking purposes on a daily basis, spending hours a day online. Keen is right in some respects; Teenagers born in 1990 were told in 2006 that they were Time Magazine’s Person of the Year: “Yes, you. You control the Information Age. Welcome to your world.”
They have been given a seemingly undeniable ‘right’ to content on the Internet, it is “their world”, and cutting, pasting, and sharing are their tools.
Need proof of these 'ownership' sentiments? Type 'Warner Music Group' into youtube's search engine (evidently, these people didn't read youtube's user agreement before accepting the terms, i.e. anything they post becomes 'property' of youtube)
The new business models of digital commerce 2.0 (Youtube, Myspace, Facebook) amplified the social norms of the Net 2.0, originally instilled by Napster, Gnutella, and the Open Source-derived ideologies of digital general public licenses have fostered sharing ideals in this generation. Essentially, and unfortunately, the entertainment industry brought their supposed demise upon themselves by not responding early enough to the sociality and social norms created by the Net 2.0.
Now what? Is music becoming something like water...why buy bottled water when you can get it for free?
I think the more pressing question for the industry is: how can we reconnect with our consumers and get rid of the 'bad guy' stigma? How can we rebuild trust?
I'm sure that most people already knew about this, but I was very happy to just hear the news earlier today. Ecstatic even. Somehow this will be my first year going to Pitchfork. Every year there is one band that I'm pleasantly surprised to see on the line-up, and I've already made plans to be out of town by the time it's announced. I'm still kicking myself for missing Os Mutantes a few years ago, but I won't let it happen this time. While this probably should not merit a blog posting, I felt it had to be pointed out.
By the way, if you haven't checked out the video of The Flamings Lip with Stardeath and the White Dwarfs doing Madonna's "Borderline," you're missing out... try listening with headphones on.
There's good news for a media industry forced to trade analog dollars for digital pennies. According to Jeff Zucker, the NBC Universal chief who coined the famous conversion rate, digital pennies are now migrating towards dimes. "We're at digital dimes now, we're making progress," Zucker said last week during the McGraw-Hill Media Summit in New York.
Overly optimistic? The updated assessment appears rosy, at least according to back-of-the-envelope calculations. Zucker refused to discuss Hulu-related financial figures, though estimates peg annual revenues at $70 million. In 2008, NBC Universal revenues landed at roughly $17 billion, yielding a ratio (4/100) that beats a penny, but falls short of a dime. Whether that gap narrows over time remains unclear, though Zucker admitted that digital assets may never reach dollar-to-dollar replacement parity with analog.
Of course, Zucker is most concerned with the evolution of television, though his dollar-to-pennies comment resonates with related industries like music. But in music, specifically the recording industry, the ratios are quickly moving in the wrong direction. Paid downloads were once considered a high-growth category, though annual volumes seem to be plateauing. Other digital formats and concepts are struggling, and CDs are enduring a double-digit freefall.
The broader music industry - including touring, publishing, and licensing - is in better shape, and majors are wisely pursuing more diversified artist agreements. Still, labels are heavily rooted in recordings, and some are broadening better than others. Universal Music Group, for example, has been benefiting from aggressive acquisitions into publishing (BMG Music Publishing) and artist services (Sanctuary).
Perhaps Universal Music Group crosses the chasm, and successfully transforms itself into a different type of music company. But does a successful transition involve ditching attempts to monetize the recording? Instead of fighting a complete lack of scarcity, simply allowing the recording to move towards zero? Not a digital dime, not a penny, but simply nothing?
In reality, the transition happens with or without UMG - or EMI, Sony Music, or Warner Music. Sure, a download costs 99-cents on iTunes, but averaged against the immense volumes of file-traded music, the effective valuation is just above zero. Indeed, the disruption is already well underway, and labels are left weighing short-term, protectionist strategies against less-certain, longer-term bets. Either way, selling overpriced downloads against a backdrop of zero-scarcity is a difficult play.
So why the slow-footedness? A recent interview between an unnamed major label executive and TechCrunch suggests that the short-term could be a better strategic bet. Instead of rushing into a sea of digital pennies or worse, why not protect and prolong a dwindling pile of billions? That means litigating, restricting, and maximizing licensing fees on ill-fated companies like Spiralfrog, while worrying about the future later.
Perhaps that makes sense for an exiting executive, one whose strategic roadmap includes a golf course in 2012. But it makes little sense for the twenty- or thirty-something executive, and even less sense for artists attempting to build sustainable careers. That would explain why many artists are increasingly moving with market forces, and building their careers around moneymakers like touring, publishing, licensing, sponsorships, and other, cash-generating assets.
Or, simply rolling with what the market offers for the recording. Radiohead and Trent Reznor spring to mind, though artists across all tiers - developing, mid-range, and superstar - are crafting homegrown business models that make sense for them - and more importantly, the broader changes happening in music and media consumption.
Just a few years ago, when the crew was “Ballin’ ” thanks to Max B’s ghost writing skills on Jim Jones’ biggest single to date “We Fly High”, I never thought that I would see the day when Dipset would break up and every member become a relevant force in hip hop on their own.
Yet this has become the case:
Jim Jones is about to release his 4th studio album entitled Pray IV Reign on March 24th featuring the smash hit “Pop Champagne” as well as “Frienemies” in which Jim Jones takes shots at Max. B and Cam’ Ron. Frienemies can be heard here:
In addition to the album, Jim Jones is releasing an off Broadway play, a film about his life, and a book that he recently wrote!
Cam’ Ron is putting together what is shaping up to be an amazing album in “Crime Pays.” Both “I used to get it in Ohio” and “I hate my job” are awesome songs that are getting a bunch of internet buzz around Cam’Ron ‘s name!
Max B is very comfortable within the Boston based hip hop label Amalgam Digital where he has been releasing mixtapes and video blogs left and right. Max B is as much a comedian as he is a rapper!
Check out Max. B “riding the wave” in this episode of Max. B TV:
I recently got an e-mail from my favorite band Incubus telling me about the new greatest hits album coming in June. I have been a pretty hard core Incubus fan for the past 8 years now. With that being said, I own all of their albums and have all of their music that would be on a greatest hits album. I heard about a greatest hits album coming out a couple of months back and didn't really get too excited because of the fact that I already have heard all of these songs, but would some added value items get me to purchase?
When reading through this e-mail I came across the fact that if I pre-ordered this album I would get a pass code that would give me access to their new single, "Black Heart Inertia" before anyone else. I was very excited because I really didn't want to wait until June to own this song. In addition to the pass code for the song I would also get a pass code to pre-order tickets to see Incubus at any concert on their upcoming tour. It's very ironic because the show I picked is in Chicago on July 25th, at the same place where I saw them July 25th in 2007. If the excitement for the new song was not enough, then this was the factor that made me immediately grab my credit card.
As many people know vinyl is quickly gaining popularity. While checking out, I noticed I could get this greatest hits album on Vinyl. This would be my first Incubus Vinyl!
So here I am $30 poorer and my album will not arrive until mid June. The feeling is not that bad because I know that I will be seeing Incubus this summer! Epic records has been doing this strategy with Incubus for quite some time now and it really seems to help with album and concert sales.
This is just one example of how a little added value can go quite a long way.
I'll admit, when I was younger I was one of those people who, when asked what type of music they prefer, would respond with "anything other than country." And at the time, it was true, I was listening to jazz, punk rock, blues, soul, indie, etc. I was a purist, sure, and only listened to a small portion of those genres. Nonetheless, I never even let country on my radar. I'm sure that I'm not the only one; it's a pretty common response from what I've witnessed, and it continues to be so. Today I asked a new acquaintance what they listened to, and their "anything but country" response is what inspired this blog. But why is this the case?
In my opinion, which I won't get too far into as to avoid offending anyone, today's mainstream country is the problem. Perhaps not a problem, because there are obviously a whole lot of people buying those records, but it maybe a barrier. For instance, if you turn on a country station today, you might hear passionate songs written about the artist's Ford-F150, drinking Bud Light, or perhaps about sticking a boot in someone's ass. But what happened to soul in country? What happened to the great songwriting? (just my opinion*)
Over the past few years, maybe 7 or 8, I have been having what you might call a love affair with Jamaican music. I can't get enough of the early 60's traditional ska, the rocksteady grooves, the dark psychedelic dub, and of course the dirty gritty reggae. I am also a huge fan of old soul and R&B, specifically a lot of stuff that came out of the sixties. Otis Redding, Wilson Pickette, Ray Charles, anything off of Stax or Motown. In fact, I am one that would argue that Sam Cooke is one of the greatest singers/songwriters of all time.
It wasn't until I truly began to appreciate these forms of music that I realized, I really really like country. I heard Ray Charles singing Hank Williams Sr.'s "Your Cheating Heart," I heard the reggae greats, Toots and the Maytals, cover John Denver's "Country Roads." And then it hit me. All of these styles; country, soul, reggae, old rock&roll... it's all the same. Hell, Willie Nelson even put out a reggae album, "Country Man," a few years back (not bad by the way). Bob Dylan has a ton of stuff that borders on the country sound. The same songwriting styles, even the same topics within the lyrics, and the soul.... It's got to be the soul. I don't just hear it as country anymore, with that same stigma attached. Now it's just good songwriting to me. Since then, it's been hard for me to keep the likes of Hank Sr., Johnny Cash, Les Paul, and Willie out of my regular rotation.
Lately I've also been hearing a lot of (good) country show up in the music of my generation. Jenny Lewis has a lot of country influence on her latest album, particularly the track "Carpetbaggers" with Elvis Costello. Even Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys has shown some liking for the country style on his record "Keep It Hid," which I can't get enough of. While it might not be obvious, a lot of bands are starting to embrace the country style in their writing, and I for one think it's great. Now you won't find me listening to Kenny Chesney, Toby Keith, or any of that.. but I'll put on Willie Nelson's "Red Headed Stranger" and listen the whole way through any day. So while I still may be picky about the music that I enjoy, I've long since left the "anything but country" mindset.
I went to an artist signing/ meet n greet recently. Entrance to this meet n greet was contingent upon people buying the new CD online WITH their ticket to the event purchased through Ticketmaster. I thought this was a great way to make sure that everyone attending bought a CD... which makes sure to drive up album sales. Has anyone else been to a similar type meet-n-greet?
It seems like every time I read hip hop news, I hear about a new beef.... And although following these beefs can be quite entertaining at times, I know deep down in my heart that all beefs get squashed and that rap artists truly love each other!!! hehe
Here are some brief descriptions of recent, current, and brand new beefs that are relevant to the hip hop world:
T.I. vs. Shawty Lo
THIS JUST IN....
The beef that went on forever between two of my favorite WMG artists has officially been squashed!
T.I. and Shawty Lo have publicly squashed their beef (right before T.I. goes to jail) Here is a link to T.I. bringing Shawty Lo on stage at a recent performance symbolizing the squashing of the beef:
T-Pain vs. everyone who says he abuses the Autotune
I personally side with T-Pain in this whole discussion concerning his use of Autotune. When speaking on the Autotune situation, T-Pain basically states that he has had the same sound since he entered the game, and now that other hip hop artists are starting to jock his style everyone is starting to rip on T-Pain. Also, if the song sounds good/ is entertaining, who cares about how the artist came about producing the sound?
In this video, T-Pain does a great job of addressing how he feels: ( I LOVE THIS VIDEO AND THIS SONG’s LYRICS)
Fifty Cent is going out of his way to try and end Rick Ross’ career. (Fifty Cent took Rick Ross’s baby mother shopping and bought her fur coats etc. ) Fifty Cent is also publishing a book about how Rick Ross used to be a correctional officer. (Fifty Cent is releasing this book on the same day that Rick Ross’ album drops…The book and Rick Ross’ album will have the same title.)
One positive side effect of this beef is Fifty Cent’s hilarious Pimpin’ Curly webisodes! Rick Ross calls Fifty Cent Curly, so Fifty Cent has decided to make webisodes where he plays a character called Pimpin’ Curly.
I now have a great appreciation for Fifty Cent’s creative side!
These two artists went at each other with diss tracks for about 2 weeks straight, they have since ended their beef, and now find themselves on the same label!
Joe Budden vs. Boston Hip Hop Scene
I was personally at the hip hop show in Boston where this beef was created. It was a heated show from the beginning with a member of the crowd being slapped across the face with a mic by the show’s MC before Joe Budden even came out!!! (I have never seen a member of the crowd get hit with the mic before!)
When Joe Budden finally did come out on stage, he asked that everyone on the stage who had nothing to do with him go away. After saying that he kindly stated that all the women could stay. These words were taken as an insult and Boston’s hip hop scene was offended.
This is where my latest beef begins:
Boston DJ’s say that Joe Budden “ is no longer welcome in Boston and needs to apologize…Budden is a wrap in the Bean!” In a conversation with the CEO of Joe Budden’s record label, Boston DJ’s say, “Please never bring another artist here who disrespects Boston.”
I have recently stumbled across a service on the Internet that may quite possibly bring cable and satellite companies to a very uncomfortable position. All of our life we've always seen big cable companies duke it out with the major satellite providers. Battling over the cheapest rates, or having 15 ESPN's, or why the other isn't worth that much money! Shit, why pay for either when you can view your favorite programs for free on the Internet? Unlike illegally downloading your music online, this stuff is free.
FREE!?
No Way! ? For Realz?
Yes! Fo Realz!
Meet Hulu, and I am not talking about the hoop!
Hulu allows you to access your favorite videos, movies, and television shows right from your web browser! As this gigantic spider web we call the internet grows, more and more of us humans are getting stuck and we like it! We love it! We check our bank accounts, order pizza, read the NY Times, purchase our music, and even find our fucking spouses!! Why not catch the last episode of The Real World in between those activities and not owe Mediacom/Charter/ DISH a dime! For Real.
The entertainment world is changing ever so quickly. With computers quickly becoming as common around the house as a toothbrush (wait...... I have 1 toothbrush and 3 computers) and wireless internet shooting at us from all directions how will the cable and satellite companies respond to all of their programs being so easily accessible on the net?
It is very important for us as students and young business professionals to follow things like this because the world is constantly changing and evolving and we need to learn how to respond. Something like this could quite possibly make or break an industry. This is not going to immediately destroy every cable or satellite company there is, but if they ignore this and hope it fades away they may be in for a rather unpleasant surprise. So here's a bit of advice to our beloved cable and satellite companies.... Go adjust your SWOT table, there is a new player on the court...
For the vinyl enthusiasts out there, you might enjoy checking out some pictures from my recent tour of United Record Pressing in Nashville, TN. Really cool experience to watch how a great audiophile piece can go from a bucket of vinyl pellets to a 12", 180 gram piece of pure audio bliss. Ahh..
I've already posted about this in a certain context of discovery but it's so fascinating and transformational that I have to again comment on this trend. Around USC dance parties are where it's at. Our local college station have done 3 of these for fundraisers each bigger than the last, the previous one having a little over 250 people in attendance.
I got to asking myself why the Columbia scene has had this explosion in the popularity of dance music. Well, simultaneously I am working on my History research seminar project that is on the "Big Apple" which was a dance started in Columbia in the early 30's and became a national phenomenon in about 1935, during the Great Depression. Analyzing my evidence and contemplating this contemporary trend I am theorizing that during economically depressed times people turn to more simple pleasure such as dancing for relief. This is the thesis I am developing. Also I believe I could probably make one of those quintessential, awkward marketing reports and sales pitch with this information. . .awesome.
I love Absolutepunk.net. They provide me with everything I need to know about the bands I actually listen to and what's going on with everything in the music world. Totally awesome site. It's also really great for getting feedback on stuff. Their posters are notoriously brutal when they don't like something so you know when you ask questions you're going to be getting honest answers.
I'm not big on message boards at all, they're definitely not my thing but I wanted to do some research and get some feedback about viral marketing. I posted the question on their "General" thread and asked how people felt about viral marketing. I've gotten two pages of feedback so far and I keep posing open ended questions to get more and more feedback.
Follow all of the action here. Feel free to add anything, all you have to do is make a username, it's free.
Jake
p.s. what have you all been listening to lately, and what do you recommend? For me it's been-
About a week or two ago, a relatively popular LA radio station flipped from a primarily talk radio station to one playing Top 40 and other hits; it's now known as "AMP RADIO." The station, KLSX 97.1FM, had boasted such talk show hosts as Adam Carolla and Tom Leykis, and caused quite an uproar when it decided to become "yet ANOTHER Top 40 station," not least because it was a dramatic switch from talk radio as opposed to a change in the genre of music played.
There are a couple reasons why this story interested me, impressive perhaps because I don't actually receive this station anywhere near my apartment. After reading some irate comments from listeners, I thought they had some good points. How many Top 40 stations does an FM frequency really need? I can understand having a couple, as people will flip between them during a commercial break. But is the rapidly growing number of these stations completely killing talk radio? There is always AM, but sometimes you need the FM humor of people like Adam Carolla (though the Car Talk guys will always have a special place in my heart). Carolla actually started a podcast after the station switch, and after only six episodes became the most popular podcast in America. Yeah, I don't quite understand the station's decision either.
In a crazy twist, this new AMP RADIO station is starting off with a bang, marketing themselves to Top 40 followers by opening with 10,000 songs, commercial-free. This is approximately 28 days of music (I didn't calculate that myself, sorry if it's not right), and has definitely appealed to listeners. Amidst the negative press about the transition, 97.1FM is gaining some listeners... for the first 28 days of its new life at least.
Winter Music Conference, in its 24th year, is regarded as the singular networking event in the dance music industry, attracting professionals from over 70 different countries. With its high concentration of top international artists, DJs and industry professionals, WMC permeates the international press and is thereby one of the most publicized events in the business. Every aspect of the industry is represented including the top technological innovators, artists, DJs, producers, radio and video programmers, retailers, distributors, audio manufacturers and many more. There are countless reasons why people from all over the world return year after year for this event, the most outstanding one being that there is nothing else in the world like it.
Industry Development
Currently, the music industry is engaged in a profound structural metamorphosis. CDR's, MP3's, download streams and other new technologies are forever changing the ways in which people create, buy, sell and listen to music. Such matters are among the many debated at Winter Music Conference. The WMC program brings together informed professionals to present new ideas, discuss industry issues, and build new inroads for business development. Meetings and seminars focus on topics such as market strategies, artist development, copyrighting, publishing, writing contracts, artist management, distribution, radio, promotion, internet retailing, and the media, just to name a few. With more than 30 important meetings and seminars on the agenda, WMC will continue its mission to provide a decisive global platform for resolving the current challenges and stimulating new industry growth and revenue.
Artists, DJs and Events
One of the most exciting aspects of Winter Music Conference is the convergence of industry executives, press and A&R reps, as well as artists and DJs of all levels bumping heads on the dance floors and rubbing elbows at the bar, while enjoying their favorite DJs spinning on the decks. The level of exposure WMC provides for artists and DJs is invaluable. WMC offers endless opportunities for DJs and artists to network and have their music heard by an international audience of music industry professionals. The Demo Listening Workshops, CD compilation, DJ & performance stages, DJ Spin Off and a host of other performance events, showcases and release parties throughout the week, provide limitless opportunities for innovative DJs and artists to break out of the box. Venues throughout Miami feature a non-stop schedule of nighttime events showcasing legendary artists and DJs from all over the world. WMC also presents the International Dance Music Awards, revered as the premier annual awards event for the dance and electronic music industry. Ultra Music Festival, the largest music festival of its kind in the U.S., is the official closing event for WMC. Nowhere other than WMC will you experience such diverse and unique talents gathered together to share one week of exclusive music industry events.
It looks like the IFPI has been foiled again as Norwegian ISP Telenor has refused to block the BitTorrent tracker site, The Pirate Bay. The article reports, "Asking an ISP to control and assess what internet users can and cannot download is just as wrong as asking the post office to open and read letters and decide what should and should not be delivered." This is a major change in the attitude of ISPs and will certainly shake up the Recording Industry’s push to internationally instate the “3 strike” policy. So what now? Seems to me that the industry needs to stop looking like the bad guys. I’d even venture to say that 40% or more of digital music piracy could be fixed by running PR damage control. Education is the key, but education can only go so far. Education must become norm before this problem is curbed.
This isn't a legal problem; it's a social norms issue. The industry wasn't ready for the Internet and the new social norms created by it. Why can't the industry just admit it? I say start over. Start over with a new business model that will be conducive to the social norms of the Internet, not anachronistic 1990s business tactics.
Although I don’t usually trust any sources from the Register, this report actually is verified by Reuters:
Here in Columbia, SC dance parties are getting more and more popular. Our college radio station, WUSC, has had 3 such events with DJ's spinning electronic music and they been insanely popular. I could imagine this in bigger urban areas such as Philly, NY, Baltimore etc. but in Columbia, previously, dance music wasn't the thing. Maybe we're playing catch up, heh, but it seems like the latest trend around here.
I often hear people complain that MTV does not air music videos anymore. Even when they decide to finally show a music video, they give us a mere clip or sample of the artists' work. But fear not, music videos do exist on MTV2... they're hidden on this wonderful show called 'Subterranean' that airs from 1:00-2:00am EST on Thursday nights.
Thanks to my insomnia during midterms week, I discovered this short one hour program that airs about ten independent and semi-under the radar bands' music videos. Sometimes they even showcase artist interviews about upcoming projects or projects they are currently working on.
I've fallen in love, my DVR is set to record every single episode that airs. My friends and I watch all of the videos on Friday while we're all starting to enjoy the weekend. Some artists I have discovered through this show are Laura Marling, Angus and Julia Stone, The Duke Spirit, Chromeo, Friendly Fires, Lykke Li, Chromeo, and Passion Pit. Other artists that have been aired include Fleet Foxes, Dr. Dog, TV on The Radio, Of Montreal, MGMT, Okkervil River, Death Cab for Cutie, and Vampire Weekend.
This is the website to view the Subterranean blog and see previously aired videos from previous shows and has many more features to check out. http://www.subterraneanblog.com/ So if you're up late at night and in the mood for good music, I'd recommend spending some time on MTV2 and check it out!
Here's a cool article from Sunday's Detroit Free Press. While it's focusing more on the Kansas City area of independent stores, it really goes into how vinyl (an old "relic" they refer it as) is becoming more important for stores. Check out the article here.
One of my best friends is on tour now with his band Other Lives. They are phenomenal musicians. I got to see them develop from 2 guys playing in their living room into what they are now - which is awesome. If get a chance, go see them. O and tell Josh (the bassist) Ryan says hi. You won't be disappointed.
It was really sad to hear this a couple of days ago, and has been a hot topic among my group (mostly in retail) about this happening. While it's good they will continue on as a label group (thank god...), it's worse to hear the distribution arm leaving the company. It's upsetting mostly because this is really going to affect the smaller labels that partnered with T&G for some many years in distributing and marketing their releases. For myself, what it boils down to is how hard is going to be for me, as both a consumer/lover of music/record-slinger, to continue in finding this titles out there? But mostly, what's coming next for labels like Dim Mak & Thrill Jockey and their artists who prospered so much in addition to Touch & Go's help??
For those not familiar with T&G and it's diverse catalogue of great artists check 'em out here. For more on the article go here. Below is a small press release that I received the other day.
It is with great sadness that we are reporting some major changes here at Touch and Go Records. Many of you may not be aware, but for nearly 2 decades, Touch and Go has provided manufacturing and distribution services for a select yet diverse group of other important independent record labels. Titles from these other labels populate the shelves of our warehouse alongside the titles on our own two labels, Touch and Go Records, and Quarterstick Records.
Unfortunately, as much as we love all of these labels, the current state of the economy has reached the point where we can no longer afford to continue this lesser known, yet important part of Touch and Go's operations. Over the years, these labels have become part of our family, and it pains us to see them go. We wish them all the very best and we will be doing everything we can to help make the transition as easy as possible.
Touch and Go will be returning to its roots and focusing solely on being an independent record label. We'll be busy for a few months working closely with the departing labels and scaling our company to an appropriate smaller size after their departure. It is the end of a grand chapter in Touch and Go's history, but we also know that good things can come from new beginnings.
-- Miranda L. - Director of Publicity for Touch and Go/Quarterstick
The first thing I did today after a terribly boring day at school was hurry to my mailbox. It's something that has become rather habitual. And, to be quite honest, I never know when my check from WMG will arrive. Most of the time I'm disappointed to find a cable and internet bill from Charter or an unusually high electricity bill from Madison Gas and Electric. Today, I found neither of those. When I opened my rusted mailbox I discovered a beat-up copy of Rolling Stone.
The standard protocol is to flip through all the pages until something especially compelling catches my eye. I was lucky, as Taylor Swift was ever-so kind to grace the cover. What a babe!
I noticed the usual ads promoting the newest and coolest 18-blade Gillette Razor and how Turbo Tax will make my taxes so much easier. I even stopped to smell Diesel's fragrance (dag!).
Damn, doesn't that quarter-pounder with cheese look [oh-so delightful.]
As I continued to thumb through, I also dealt with the most frustrating thing of my day -- my copy of Wii Sports failed to load. I continued to insert the disk while simultaneously flipping pages. And, in true mundane fashion, the process was repeated for the next five minutes.
I passed over the Taylor Swift cover story, missed out on a new blues prodigy, and cruised past a very interesting article about the decline of the auto industry. Just as it seemed I could dedicate all my effort towards virtual sports, I see a man that I happened to talk to last week! Donald Cumming and his band The Virgins were rocking pages 64-68 with some nice photos and some very sexy ladies.
The Virgins were featured in the fashion section of the issue, and photographer Theo Wenner did a stellar job capturing the rock stars looking like nothing but. The photos that capture our attention serve as a perfect introduction to many eager music fans across the globe. The world we live in spins so fast that oftentimes we can't even slowdown to read more than a couple paragraphs at a time -- shit, maybe even in a day.
A compelling introduction will most definitely keep the reader's attention throughout the entire article. This article may have appeared to some like another Calvin Klein ad – without the semi-nude adolescents, of course – but after a closer look you're quickly captured by a wonderful story about an up-and-coming band that very few have been exposed to.
An interesting tidbit I've learned through a fascinating class in my final semester of school is that exposure is a necessary, but not sufficient condition for processing information. Rather, in order to have that information processed you must capture one's attention.
This article immediately caught my attention, it will catch my peers,it will catch my friends. And there is no doubt in my mind that it will catch millions of others readers racing through their own beat-up copy of Rolling Stone. Whether their copy of Wii Sports loads, however, remains to be seen.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the Pirate Bay (piratebay.org), I’ve been following this story for a while. Basically, it’s a torrent-tracking site that allows users to find pretty much any content seeded on the network During a random search on Feburary 1, 2009, The Pirate Bay reported 3, 438, 560 registered users (registered users have profiles indicating which torrents they have available in HTML format on the website). Unregistered users made up a population of 9,888,928 seeders and 12,040,264 leechers. The IFPI reports in its 2008 Piracy Report that filesharing accounts for 80% of the traffic on the internet, but only 20% of all Internet users are doing it. In other words, 80% of the information that’s passed through the Internet is content that comes from filesharing protocols.
Back to the Pirate Bay, the operators claim that the IFPI has no authority over the intellectual property they make available because it is in torrent form (bits and pieces of copyrighted/non-copyrighted content). As they say in a response email to WBR (posted on their website):
“Do you actually claim to own the copyright of these 160 bit hash values? Since there is an infinite number of possible files that would produce the same hashes, would they also violate it?”
This is something that's really important. period. All parties need to tread lightly in this situation.
It’s only February and already some of the biggest names in live music have announced their upcoming summer tours, some for the first time in years. The summer regulars like Jimmy Buffet and DMB have found themselves in a field vying against some of the greatest Jam Bands of all time. Phish, who broke up in 2004, are returning to the road to a dedicated fan base of Faithfull’s and a whole new generation of “Phish-Heads”. The Allman Brothers are playing a 10 show stand in New York in commemoration of their 40th Anniversary and it is rumored that there will also be tributes to the late Duane Allman, complete with guest appearances (Possibly Eric Clapton and Boz Scaggs according to Rolling Stone). Last but not least, the Dead are set to return to the stage after the surviving members reunited for a Barack Obama benefit concert in Pennsylvania, touring for the first time since 2004. So all of this squashed together creates what I’m dubbing, the summer of Jam, and I think it’ll be a great summer for live music indeed.
But all of these great Jam band returns bring a very important point to the surface. There’s obviously a void of some kind among the Jam community if Phish, The Allman Brothers, and the Dead are all touring in the same summer. It makes one think that maybe that “jam community” that was so prevalent a couple of years ago all but disappeared, but then Phish goes and sells out every show they put up for sale in under 4 hours and the Dead are forced to add shows in key markets like Chicago because demand is so high. So after much contemplation, there’s only one question that enters my mind. Where did the big jam bands go? Sure, I know there are bands out there, but none that would even come close to being mentioned in the same breath as these 3 legends. So again, I’m left with this thought, and it won’t go away; where did all the Jam Bands GO? ? ?
So a friend of mine told me about this hysterical website called fmylife.com. The premise is simple, anyone can get on there, write a few sentences about something awful that just happened to them, and then the rest of world gets to laugh at their misfortune.
At first I was under the impression that this was just a random website that my friend had found. However upon being at the library last week studying, I quickly became aware of the fact that several other computers also had this website up on their screen. So then I was just under the impression that this was a website that had become the latest craze at our campus alone, however, on facebook I have now seen 3 different people mention this website in their status that I know from places other than Miami.
So, I thought that it was worth mentioning. This is just another website that people can go to and spend a good 30 minutes wasting time, instead of doing their work. If we potentially had the possibility to advertise albums on this website, I think we could definitely reach a large audience. Those that write on the website seem to vary from high school age to those that have just started families. The advertising also doesn't seem to be from any large companies, so I would suspect that because the website hasn't gotten to be all that large yet, the advertising prices would be pretty cheap. However, as I mentioned, this definitely seems to be one of those websites that nobody knows about one week, and suddenly is a topic of casual conversation the next. So if possible or deemed worthwhile, we should potentially jump on this train soon.
Regardless of whether or not WMG advertises with them though, I highly recommend checking the website out. Its super funny, and definitely makes you realize that no matter how bad your day is going, someone elses is definitely worse.
Lately, I've noticed that there is a new branch of electronic music that is catching on very quickly amongst the college-age youth: the so-called livetronica. What it boils down to is a blend of experimental, largely improvisational rock music with computer generated beats and electronic sounds that are produced live to accompany the other instruments. Call it trance-fusion, call it a jam band with a DJ, call it whatever you want...it's a style that is blowing up right now, especially in the southeast, and Knoxville is no exception. Bands like Sound Tribe Sector 9 and The Disco Biscuits sell out shows left and right around here and in places like Asheville, NC and Atlanta, and there are plenty of similar bands that love to open for the bigger names or play their after parties like Pnuma Trio, Future Rock, Eoto, and Knoxville's own Arpetrio (pronounced like Arpeggio but change a couple of letters). Part of the appeal with this style seems to be that it introduces electronic music in a way that places more emphasis on live performance and instrumentation. Many people seem to think makes this makes the show more legitimate than a DJ or typical electronic performance, which many mistake for being nothing more than the mere act of "pushing buttons" (in the case of a good DJ or electronic producer, this couldn't be further from the truth).
The scene for this type of music has evolved into a pretty interesting amalgamation of hippie culture and rave culture, which makes sense due to the fact that they share so many of the same ideals, but it has created a breed of music fan that has potential to be absolutely out of control insane. I have seen proof of this being at shows by some of these bands, where you are likely to see kids on unfathomable combinations of drugs on their wildest behavior. At times, this can lead to a lot of energy and everyone having a great time, but other times it can lead to people passing out or getting arrested. Either way, this creates an environment that makes it easy to confuse having a good time with being at a good concert. Sometimes those two things coexist, but sometimes it seems like people get wrapped up in the fun and forget about the music and what makes it worth listening to.
I don't mean to make generalizations about this music or the people who are really into the scene. I enjoy some of these bands quite a bit, and I've had many a good time at their shows; I just though I'd share my thoughts on some of the things I've noticed in my epxeriences throughout the years. If anyone else finds this subculture interesting or has any other thoughts to share, please leave a comment. I'd love to talk about this further.
Last but not least, I'd like to engage in some shameless self-promotion. If you like electronic music, check out my radio show here in Knoxville, The Midnight Voyage. You can find out more details and a link to listen online at the following address: http://www.myspace.com/midnightvoyage903.
It was my birthday the other day, and I can usually expect to open my mailbox and find a birthday card from my grandparents. The card is usually a "To our beloved grandson on his birthday...." and a crisp bill usually falls out as I open it. However, this time around, to my surprise I received a box from them. I opened it up and it was a Sirius satellite player for my car. I was stunned. I figured maybe they were trying to be hip, or up-to date with current technology. I can just hear my grandma telling me every holiday, "I never know what to get you all anymore." Anyways, I was pretty excited about it. To be honest, I've always wanted one since I travel a lot, but never bit the bullet for some reason.
When Satellite radio first hit the market, I thought it would be a smash hit. It created a big fuss, that's for sure. I, like many people thought in the next few years it would be a staple in every one's vehicles. I've heard many people talking about satellite radio, or that the new car they bought already had it. But I never had any friends who bought it. I guess I didn't think about why? I thought for sure traditional radio would soon be completely irrelevant, especially after they tried to compete with satellite radio by announcing the "New, crystal clear, HD radio". Today, while getting my radio installed at Best Buy, an employee said, "No use installing this, there will be no Sirius soon."
I arrived home and went online to check out what was going on, and it appears the employee at Best Buy might be right. Even after the recent merger with XM, Sirius is having a hard time making a profit. Apparently $3.2 billion in debt. All along I thought satellite radio was popular. As I said earlier, I have heard many people talk about it. But I guess I never took notice as my friends would talk about it, but not one of us has actually purchased it. Was satellite radio all hype? Are people just listening to local talk radio or their iPods? My friend pointed out that if satellite radio is just commercial free material, then what makes that different than just listening to a CD or iPod in your vehicle? Whatever the reason, apparently satellite radio is on life support. Somewhere radio execs are smiling! Is this a good thing for the labels? Well, I suppose I should check out subscription prices....(maybe I can stomach Howard Stern.....nah).
I knew nothing about Watchmen until I heard we were promoting the soundtrack. When I looked it up, I knew it wasn't my thing but I was definitely into the soundtrack. I thought it was like X-Men and all the other comic book stuff that I'm not into...but apparently I was wrong. From the folks I've talked to, there seems to be a very devoted (and extremely excited) fan base, a completely oblivious crowd, and then some people who are very against this film for some reason. Like they're offended.
Anyways, I wanted to ask everyone what they're doing to push this album and film in their markets? As I mentioned before comic books and stuff aren't my thing and aside from comic book stores, I don't really know how to reach fans of this film. I know it's more about the music on the soundtrack for us but I was just wondering what y'all were doing.
These two giants combining could shake things up a bit. I would hope that it does not mean larger amounts of fees being added to tickets. I know many college students have stopped going to 9:30 club and other small venues becase they can't afford tickets. Some of the smaller veiues here in Virginia like TT Reynolds have closed down. What will this mean to working class kids involvement in the concert scene? http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=asX96gt7UtCY&refer=us
Remember last year when you were at a house party, Crank That Soulja Boy came on the speakers... and you didn't know the moves... Or when you were walking in circles while everybody was doing the Cupid Shuffle...Alright, well maybe you didn't commit those most heinous of party fouls but none the less you don't want to be that guy/girl. Here's a couple of dance crazes that should be taking over parties soon (if not already):
Stanky Leg - GS Boyz (Must Know)
Ricky Bobby - B Hamp
Bird Walk - Soulja Boy Tell 'Em
(Alright, nobody else is going to know how to do this one unless you're at his concerts but if you can pull it off with a group of friends you'd be in rare company) -Jordan (Ann Arbor)
With the below article written about lack of sales in retail, I thought this article would be good. Based on how the Grammy's can affect retail store! Check out the fact that norah jones sold over 500,000 the year she won all those awards!!! WOW
Retailers Predict Post-Grammy Sales Spikes For Krauss, Plant, Perry February 06, 2009 - Retail
KATY PERRY
By Ed Christman, N.Y.
While the Grammy show doesn't generate music sales like it used to, retailers are happy for any event that can drive traffic into stores.
"The Grammys don't have the same effect on sales that it used to, but having said that, the biggest impact could be driving sales of new artists and breakout artists," says Value Music VP of merchandising Brian Poehner.
Joe Nardone, VP at the seven-unit Gallery of Sound chain, says that the Grammy show this year has a "pretty good line-up of performers, so hopefully it will wake some people up" and get them out to stores to buy music.
In some years, a Grammy show might drive as much as 1 million or 2 million in incremental sales units. As for individual artists, Norah Jones experienced the biggest jump in the Nielsen SoundScan era after her "Come Away With Me" album picked up eight Grammy awards in 2003 and resulted in sales of 621,000 units the following week.
While merchants are always hopeful that some artists might have that kind of night, they will take any sales bump that the Grammy show can deliver. This year, merchants are betting that the artists most likely to enjoy sales bumps with the right performance could be the "Raising Sand" album from Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, even though it's already sold 1.2 million units; and Katy Perry's "One of the Boys," which is approaching 900,000 units, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
"If people don't know one of their favorite artists has an album out and then that artist rules the Grammys, you get a fair-sized jump, like what happened last year when most didn't know the Herbie Hancock album existed," says Newbury Comics head of purchasing Carl Mello.
"That could be the case for Robert Plant and Alison Krauss; they might sell a couple of hundred thousands more, even though it's already sold more than a million. There are probably plenty of old people out there who still don't know that Plant has an album out."
Gallary of Sound's Nardone agrees that the Krauss/Plant performance might be the one "that gets the adult record-buying crowd moving again, if they somehow missed that the album was out. While ["Raising Sand"] is not new at this point, it will be new for some viewers."
Nardone adds that depending on how Perry performs, the show "could push her album over the top."
Down in Nashville, at the 10-unit Music City chain, VP of retail Chuck Thatcher e-mails that his guess is that "Katy Perry, (this year's smile!) will be the breakout record."
Other artists that have the potential to drive sales thanks to the Grammy show are Jennifer Hudson, whose self-titled album has scanned nearly 600,000 units since its release in September 2008; and Adele, whose "19" is approaching 400,000 units.
Mello is betting that Hudson also will receive a sales boost, as does Andre Hunter, co-owner of Record City in Paterson, N.J., who says that her appearance singing the national anthem at the Superbowl is already also driving sales of her album this week.
Value Music's Poehner says the Grammy show could boost sales for Adele. "It's a great album, and typically artists that haven't had their albums purchased in significant quantities are the ones that benefit the most," says Poehner.
Outside shots at getting sales jumps are Radiohead and Lil Wayne, both of which are at the outer limit of retail's sales expectations.
While most merchants believe that most Radiohead fans already acquired the "In Rainbows" album, which has scanned 700,000, after undisclosed sales from a pay-any-price-you-want initial offer for a download version of the album was sold from the band's Web site.
Still, the show might expose Radiohead to customers beyond their devout fanbase, Newbury Comics' Mello says, while Gallery of Sound's Nardone adds that Radiohead's performance might appeal to "fans that thought 'Creep' was their last record."
Retailers also say Lil Wayne might already be maxed out saleswise now that his "Tha Carter III" album is approaching 3 million units. But Mello adds the caveat that even with that amount in sales, "Lil Wayne is a wild card because he might do something off script" at the show."
At least one merchant, Music City's Thatcher, believes "Carrie Underwood could sweep us all of our feet again." He also was the lone merchant that said the Grammy show might help the Jonas Bros. reach a wider audience.
Finally, Newbury Comics' Mello was the lone merchant, during the Billboard Grammy survey, that mentioned U2, which will release "No Line On the Horizon" on March 3. "U2 probably wishes the Grammy show was a month from now," Mello says. "I am surprised U2 couldn't make them move the show."
Story came out a few weeks ago, thought I'd share... Scary As Hell
Just how bad is the recording industry decline? Since peak year 2000, US-based album sales have dropped an unbelievable 514.6 million units, or 54.6 percent. In 2000, the climax of a dreamlike 90s, album sales surpassed 943 million units, according to figures published by Nielsen Soundscan. The splashy year was spurred by mega-titles like No Strings Attached by 'N Sync, certified double-platinum after just one week.
The 'N Sync release symbolized a headier era, one that rewarded superstars with serious CD sales. In contrast, today's superstars are usually sub-platinum in their first week, with the notable exception of Lil Wayne last year. Then, over the life of the release, top-level sales are far more subdued. Overall, album sales in 2008 (both digital and physical) landed at 428.4 million, also according to Nielsen.
Of course, positive things are happening on digital side - but not enough positive things. Soundscan counted more than a billion a-la-carte downloads last year, a first for the business. Other formats have surfaced since 2000, mainly ringtones, though the mobile jingle has been fading for years. Other, non-sanctioned digital developments have been more influential, starting with the late-90s arrival of Napster.
That was the beginning of P2P, an antidote to forced album bundling. By 2002, annual album sales slipped to 803 million units, and by late 2003, major labels were suing file-swappers for infringement. Now, the majors are finally moving away from that strategy, and attempting to forge enforcement alliances with ISPs.
I don't know if this will be considered a blog, but I found this on Facebook and really wanted to give it a try. . . A little insight about my music style and some great facts about me. Right? : /
. : . Enjoi . : .
RULES:
1. Put your iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc. on shuffle.
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer.
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER HOW SILLY IT SOUNDS.
4. Have Fun!
IF SOMEONE SAYS 'ARE YOU OKAY' YOU SAY? Hey That's No Way to Say Good Bye - Nickel Eye
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF? Loser - Cute is What We Aim For
WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL? Hospital Bed Crawl - The Hush Sound
HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY? Ares - Bloc Party
WHAT IS YOUR LIFE'S PURPOSE? Mix Tape - Brand New
WHAT'S YOUR MOTTO? Your New Twin Size Bed - Death Cab For Cutie
WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU? Bend and Not Break - Dashboard Confessional
WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU? Shadowplay - The Killers
WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN? From Here to Eternity - Frank Sinatra
WHAT IS 2 + 2? Daisy Duke - Rooney
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND? Rejections Cold - Unwritten Law
WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY? Sway - Lostprophets
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP? S.E.X. - Nickelback
WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE? Strawberry Swing - Coldplay
WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING? Work Me - The Black Keys
WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL? Good Times Bad Times - Led Zeppelin
WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST? Bang The Doldrums - Fall Out Boy
WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST FEAR? Private Affairs - The Virgins
WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET? My Best Friend - Hot Hot Heat
WHAT DO YOU WANT RIGHT NOW? Holy Roman - The Get Up Kids
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS? Scarecrow - Beck
WHAT WILL YOU POST THIS AS? Street Lights - Kanye West
If you find yourself completely bored some day please try this and leave your results in a comment! Would love to see your answers. Sometimes the results can be pretty funny. Farewell!
I am not going to take sides in this debate, but I do think it is awkward for T.I. to have a snitch hotline and be one of the biggest rap icons in the world.
In closing, Pimpin Ken (Who gets a lot of respect in the hip hop world) is basically taking shots at T.I. because T.I. and his group of friends call themselves the Pimp Squad Click but do not literally speak about how they are pimps/ do not actually act like pimps.
The most awkward part is that T.I. is being hated on for doing the right/legal thing!
Actors do some pretty crazy things and it's not really a secret. Some like drugs, some like to party, and others like music, which is cool, it's when they start trying to make music that the problem arises. I won't lie, I owned Big Willie Style, Willenium, AND the "Wild Wild West" single when I was younger, and some people, although I'm not one of them, like Jared Leto's band 30 Seconds to Mars. But for every success story there is Bruce Willis putting out "The Return of Bruno," or Eddie Murphy singing "Party All The Time."
What got me thinking about this was Jason Schwartzman, of the movie "Rushmore" fame, recently released his second album, titled "Davy," with his musical project Coconut Records. Schwartzman isn't a musical rookie, he was the drummer of Phantom Planet for a long time. I bought this album completely oblivious to the fact that this was in fact an actor making music and making it really well. Zooey Deschanel, from "Yes Man," was the front-woman for She & Him and their release last year received a lot of critical acclaim as well so it's not impossible for an actor to be a successful musician.
With the advent of Auto-Tune, I can just imagine more people in show business making their way into the musical world. Hell, if T-Pain can make a career out of Auto-Tune couldn't anyone else? If Kanye West can make "great art," (his words, not mine) with Auto-Tune what's stopping someone like Nicolas Cage or Julia Roberts from trying the same thing?
Point is, how do you feel about actors making music? Is it a gimmick and they're just using their names to fulfill some farfetched dream of theirs? Or is it something you support, regardless of the outcome? Personally, I'm against it in most cases. When it's obviously a gimmick, like Bruce Willis and Eddie Murphy, then I can't support someone who is obviously not musically talented taking the spot of someone who has dedicated their whole lives to music.
With the Grammys looming, I printed off the nominees and chose my winers and also who I think the winner will be in each category. In the time since the nominations were made public, I'd almost forgotten how many nominations Lil' Wayne pulled in for Tha Carter III. One of few artists who sold 2,000,000+ records or more in 2008 (especially notable in this economic times), Weezy F. Baby successfully completed his mainstream crossover.
Wayne-heads have been following Weezy obsessively via mixtapes and features since Tha Carter III. Knowing this, when Tha Carter III dropped and I saw the tracklisting, I didn't forsee such a huge commotion. Half the songs that made it onto the album have been circulating the internet and showing up on mixtapes for the last 2+ years. I could sing most of them word for word, hence I was not inclined to rush out and buy the album the second it dropped.
Was it loyalty that made people go out and buy Tha Carter III? Or was the material legitimately new to them? Or was it the annoucement of the I Am Music Tour? It was amazing if you didn't catch it. This man has done everything from killing the stage at Hot 97's Summer Jam to performing at the Country Music Awards with Kid Rock in 2008. How does he do it?! More importantly, will he do it again?
I came across this article the other day on Kings of A&R (somewhat similar to the velvet rope, but not updated as frequently; also not a forum).
The article talks about how Quincy Jones (legendary, Grammy winning producer) is yet another musician turned journalist. The article goes on to talk about how is the current slump of the newspaper world, more and more people are getting their news elsewhere before reading it in the newspaper.
Basically, the "entertain"-ment columnists (not literally though) are starting to write columns for very notable & successful papers like the Chicago Tribune, about topics that transcend their musical endeavors. Also as a way to spark interest once again (kind of stirring the pot if you will). Check out the original article from Reuters and the topic link for Kings of A&R.
I think it's interesting to see guest writers like this. Actually, its not that too old of a practice to see guest columnists from a different media background venture into the journalist/columnist world. I often remember reading "Ask Vinnie" in revolver, where readers could send in their questions for advice, or reading about a musician or actor's favorite recipe in a local paper or magazine.
