The longer I work in the music industry the more I find it lacks direction. For a long time now it has been run is wild west kind of way, and until now the old mans club of the major labels has been completely in control. In the last few years the music industry has been really taking a hit from press and media about how they aren’t really too sure where they are headed.
Music licensing and royalty collection is very confusing to the average artist, and I must admit that it seems as though there are many music organisation not really doing too much but seem to think they have control and rights. For example in the USA what organisations are collecting royalties for musicians for mechanical licenses and radio plays etc? Is this organisation the only company in charge of doing so? Are reports from this organisation in control of also creating official music charts that are based on real sales and not preempted sales?
These are just a few of the many questions that not only artists are asking but also the average person. The music industry needs a complete reform from the ground up and no one seems to even know where to start.
Garageband is a really interesting peer-review and music discovery site. Artists submit music to be hosted onsite, which is then sent to 20 other artists, who review it. If they like the song then it tends to rise up the GarageBand chart and get more plays, reviews and ratings. Reviewing songs earns you entry into competitions that the site runs for various prizes, giving a continual incentive to help out other producers and artists with advice and peer review, and provides the opportunity to get free stuff and good press for your music.
It can be a bit difficult to keep perspective when all you hear is bad news. The music industry may be in turmoil, but it always has been, and change breeds creativity rather than destruction. Here’s Frank Zappa more than 20 years ago, explaining just what was causing the decline of the music industry back then (and a bit about masturbation, for some reason). Given that so much great music has been made since then, and how diversity and innovation are flourishing more richly than ever before due to the internet, I have to raise an eyebrow when I hear about the industry’s decline.
Japan’s Internet music market saw healthy growth in the third quarter of this year but a collapse in the once-mighty ringtone market led to mixed results for the cell phone sector of the country’s digital music industry, according to figures released on Friday.
Total downloads over the Internet and on cell phones totalled 118 million during the July to September period, down 3 percent compared to the same three months of 2007, while revenues grew 11 percent to ¥22 billion, the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) said. The group collects data from most of Japan’s major music publishers.
Growth was strong in the Internet download portion of the market where downloads jumped 30 percent to 10.6 million and revenue surged 49 percent to ¥2.3 billion. The relatively new music video download market more than doubled in size but was still small at 391,000 downloads.
Your music’s perfect? There’s nothing more to do? Then it’s time to start planning your explosive entrance onto the world scene. Think about who you are, what image your music projects, how you want to succeed? Do you want to be Bob Dylan or The Chemical Brothers? Both are massive superstar acts, but with totally different images and vibes. What’s yours?
Your music should go a long way to helping you get this central image focused in your mind, but get it right, because everything else in your arsenal of self promotion will take a lead from this primal idea. Of course it helps if you’re hugely outgoing with bulletproof confidence (because it will take shots, guaranteed), but there’s room for everyone.
Indie star Cat Power started out gigging with her back to the crowd because her stage fright was too bad to let her look at her audience. Recognise your strengths and capitalise upon them – it’s easier than pretending to be something you’re not.
A strong image will make people believe in you, want to buy into your look and associate themselves with you. A poor image makes you look uncool and unprofessional. Look at the hundreds of sloppy band websites and myspace pages out there – this is often your first contact with a new listener, if you want them to like you it’s worth making the effort. Care about that first impression, it shows you care about yourself and your fans.
We can’t really help you dream up your image, but there are some things on the RouteNote tools page that should help you actuate it: sites to help you build a good looking myspace profile, guides to setting up your own website and to building widgets to put on your own and your fans myspace pages and websites, places to get t-shirts made.
Chris Anderson over at The Long Tail has compiled stats showing that the music industry as a whole is still growing!
Overall a lot has been happening in the music industry in the last few weeks, Radiohead, Madonna (leaving her label and signing with LiveNation), Prince, NIN, etc. The results of these have fueled great discussion about the industry and where it is headed.
Chris mentions it is a big mistake to equate the major labels and their plastic disc business with the industry as a whole, and when you stand back and look at all of music, things dont look so bad.
And, if you include the iPod in the music industry, as I’d argue a fair-minded analysis would: UP, UP, UP! (+31% this year)
Only CDs are down (-18%). They’re around 60% of the industry not including the MP3 players, but just around 25% if you do include them.
So the problem with the music labels is not that music is an industry in decline, but that they have a too-narrow view of what business they’re in. Madonna’s switch from a label to a concert promoter should be a clue.
I am not too sure if I agree with Chris that portable music players should be part of the music industry, but the remaining facts show the true story.
I see the entire industry moving close together and the majors are slowly losing market share and overall industry dominance. The huge majority of new releases are from the independents and I can see the industry becoming a lot more cut throat thus giving greater opportunities to unsigned and independent bands and labels to make a healthy living without losing huge royalties to the major labels.
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