I think that the way to saving the music industry is to use inspiring content and distribute them in creative ways. One of my favorite methods is deploying them in video games, specifically Rock Band. Last.fm is also a great way to integrate music with social media with the focus being on music and not necessarily communicating with your peers. CD Baby is a tried and true method but it has a surprising resource that may be valuable.
Rock Band has created the Rock Band Network, which allows users to upload, customize, and distribute their music into the game. Not only does the consumer listen to the music, but they also feel and play the music by themselves or with their friends and family. They can purchase the mp3s for listening on the go or use the artist's avatar in their game for their own playable character. The artist's profile is directly linked with the artists site and linked with social media.
Last.FM is available online and as a mobile app for online radio. It connects and streams artists to users instead of a downloadable feature. It has intuitive music recommendation ability and it updates users with concert information. Fans can connect with other fans and share links to the artists with others. Music is also available for purchase on the website by Amazon.
CD Baby is great for mp3 and CD distribution but what you may not realize is that they also press vinyl. Vinyl records have become increasingly popular among audiophiles and music lovers as they provide a consistent high quality audio source that many mp3s can lack after ripping from compact disks. Digital files are also easily traded and copied to friends or pirated. Vinyl records are a solid piece of audio that will most likely not be copied or reformatted. They can be traded and resold but most likely will be collectable pieces for a collection. They can be included in bundles with other merchandise and mp3s.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
If You Build It, They Will Come
Over the last year I have had the opportunity to go to Recording Academy events on a regular basis. One of the most reoccurring topic is the continuing relevance of Myspace as an outlet to musicians. Most musicians who are savvy with social media shy away from acknowledging Myspace altogether. Even though its popularity with users is down, many well-known users such as Lady Gaga and Green Day keep their Myspace pages updated and current.
The weaknesses of Myspace for musicians are many. There is little security preventing users to download mp3s and video. Those who use facebook and twitter frequently may connect their feeds to post onto Myspace and vice versa. This cuts off the ability for users who see this to use one platform to communicate to the artist using another. If the musician posts from Facebook and connects it to Myspace, users who comment on Myspace may not be heard from, as their comments are not fed back into Facebook. Since Myspace is not as popular as Twitter and Facebook, fans move to these other sites. Twitter has created a more direct contact to artists like Billie Joe Armstrong, Fat Mike, Gavin Rossdale and others with it's popularity with fans.
Myspace can be a creative outlet for musicians with interactive artwork and those who feel free to post music on the site. The ability to completely customize a Myspace page that is enjoyable can be compared to the cut and dry pages on Facebook. Myspace has an all-around inclusive site for videos, music, and commentary. A large amount of fans could help show that you have a strong enough following to be signed to a label.
Though there are strong cons to using Myspace as an outlet for music, it still is a tool available. Would it hurt to have one more site, one more page, one more listing in search engines that bumps your name up in your own search for popularity?
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Law Podcasts and Our Future
This week I have researched and listened to three podcasts from three different sources on three very different topics that media professionals should all be aware of.
The first podcast is hosted by Colette Vogele Rules for the Revolution: The Podcast. She interviews Alex Curtis, the Director of Policy and New Media at Public Knowledge. They discuss the topic of Orphan Works, which has become a problem for copyright law in Congress. Orphan Works occur when the owners of copyrighted materials cannot be found. Some organizations believe that laws should be put into place so that there would be proof that someone who wanted to use an Orphan Work had tried to find the copyright owner in order to ask for permission. Those of us who find great materials such as old photographs and sound recordings might not be able to use them in our own materials with the expanding copyrights terms that are available today.
The next topic I have listened to comes from TED and covers the problems and challenges of copyright in fashion. Johanna Blakley opens with a scene where a woman discovers a unique piece of clothing and not only tells her friend she is going to buy the jacket, she is going to replicate it. In the fashion industry, copyrights are not available to clothing and fashion. Trademarks and logos are protected but the design and craftsmanship are not. She says that the reason for this is that the "courts decided long ago that the apparel is too utilitarian to qualify for copyright protection. They didn't want a handful of designers owning the seminal building blocks of our clothing". Having a creative field without the pressures and restrictions creates two things, dilution and creativity. Trends grow and expand but once they have reached their peak, it's time for something new to take over.
The final topic I have listened to covers Design Patent Infringement and Gohram Vs. White - How one Man's Spoon Revolutionized Design Law from Suffolk University's intellectual property law series. Christopher V. Cariani describes Gorham Mfg. Company's created a design for a spoon handle that was patented in 1861. Leroy S. White was accused of patent infringement when he tried to patent his own spoon handle designs. The lower court ruled that there was no infringement as the ordinary observer test but the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Gorham and declared infringement on the other designs. This is the only time that the Supreme Court has ruled on a design patent case. They ruled that if the design were to be very similar to the common person but enough that it would force the consumer to choose one over the other, then it was infringing on the original patent.
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Celebrity Troubles
In the entertainment industry there can be many setbacks as you try to start and grow your business. Here are three current event examples to review and learn from.
On Monday, CNET published an article revealing a lawsuit that accuses high ranking companies of fixing worker pay. The lawsuit suggests that "senior executives from Adobe, Apple, Google, Intel Intuit, Lucasfilm and Pixar 'entered into an interconnected web of express agreements to eliminate competition among them for skilled labor'" and that those affected should be compensated. For those of us starting and growing our companies, money can be tight but we need to make sure that our employees are compensated for their creativity and involvement fairly.
Twitter has proven to be a useful social media tool, but despite it's professional uses others have found the entertainment value in creating false accounts. When I first joined Twitter in 2009, I ran a general search for Green Day, my favorite band. After a drawn out search I realized Green Day did not have their own twitter account but there were many accounts claiming to be. There is a new California bill being put into place to prevent false accounts like these and could be charged with a misdemeanor and could face a fine up to $1,000 and up to one year in prison. While everyone should be mindful of their own social media accounts, a law such as this one could help you recover a domain or username that infringes on your brand.
This week has been an interesting week for copyright infringement suits as Jay-Z has been accused of infringement in his 2000 hit "Big Pimpin'". His accuser is Osama Ahmed Fahmy whose father Baligh Hamdy wrote the original composition for the 1960 Egyptian film Fata Ahlami. Though Jay-Z and others say they obtained the proper licenses, it appears it was only for the unaltered sample and not a "mutilated" sample. This is a reminder that we must be aware and diligent of the copyrights and licenses we borrow from others. Be careful what you consider your own intellectual property, great minds do think alike.
On Monday, CNET published an article revealing a lawsuit that accuses high ranking companies of fixing worker pay. The lawsuit suggests that "senior executives from Adobe, Apple, Google, Intel Intuit, Lucasfilm and Pixar 'entered into an interconnected web of express agreements to eliminate competition among them for skilled labor'" and that those affected should be compensated. For those of us starting and growing our companies, money can be tight but we need to make sure that our employees are compensated for their creativity and involvement fairly.
Twitter has proven to be a useful social media tool, but despite it's professional uses others have found the entertainment value in creating false accounts. When I first joined Twitter in 2009, I ran a general search for Green Day, my favorite band. After a drawn out search I realized Green Day did not have their own twitter account but there were many accounts claiming to be. There is a new California bill being put into place to prevent false accounts like these and could be charged with a misdemeanor and could face a fine up to $1,000 and up to one year in prison. While everyone should be mindful of their own social media accounts, a law such as this one could help you recover a domain or username that infringes on your brand.
This week has been an interesting week for copyright infringement suits as Jay-Z has been accused of infringement in his 2000 hit "Big Pimpin'". His accuser is Osama Ahmed Fahmy whose father Baligh Hamdy wrote the original composition for the 1960 Egyptian film Fata Ahlami. Though Jay-Z and others say they obtained the proper licenses, it appears it was only for the unaltered sample and not a "mutilated" sample. This is a reminder that we must be aware and diligent of the copyrights and licenses we borrow from others. Be careful what you consider your own intellectual property, great minds do think alike.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Managing Family
As a member of Grammy U, the student membership of the Recording Academy, I have been through many workshops dealing with managing and artist. Most of the workshops come from the artists perspective, one of the most frequent topics from the band's perspective is family. Should a band use and hire family to run their business?
There are plenty of artists who have had a positive experience with family management such as Beyonce and Ozzy Osborne. There are others like Lindsey Lohan that have had a hard time with parents for managers.
As an artist, there are many things to consider. A manager has to be experienced, dependable, trustworthy, and easy to work with. For a new artist there can be a lot of responsibilities that they must either take upon themselves or delegate power money to others. It can be convenient to have a relative that has had experience, any experience managing finances or contracts.
Think about it in the managers perspective. Is it a good idea to get involved in the business of family? What kind of outcome would occur if the artist does not succeed? Or, on the other hand, what if the artist does well? These are things to consider.
Personally, I think there are much more 'what if' scenarios with family than with strangers. It can be much easier to be professional with a client than with a brother or sister.
There are plenty of artists who have had a positive experience with family management such as Beyonce and Ozzy Osborne. There are others like Lindsey Lohan that have had a hard time with parents for managers.
As an artist, there are many things to consider. A manager has to be experienced, dependable, trustworthy, and easy to work with. For a new artist there can be a lot of responsibilities that they must either take upon themselves or delegate power money to others. It can be convenient to have a relative that has had experience, any experience managing finances or contracts.
Think about it in the managers perspective. Is it a good idea to get involved in the business of family? What kind of outcome would occur if the artist does not succeed? Or, on the other hand, what if the artist does well? These are things to consider.
Personally, I think there are much more 'what if' scenarios with family than with strangers. It can be much easier to be professional with a client than with a brother or sister.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Media Design and Music Culture
I have been interested in web design since GeoCities offered free web hosting. Laugh if you must, but because of this interest, I spent most of my undergraduate studies learning best practices in web design, social media, and media editing. There are a few music artists that have successfully mastered the art of best practice and way too many who have not. One band that tries to balance this line is Green Day.
When you first visit the official web site, greenday.com, you are redirected to an ad page for their latest live album. This page is decorated with the album artworkI have been interested in web design since GeoCities offered free web hosting. Laugh if you must, but because of this interest, I spent most of my undergraduate studies learning best practices in web design, social media, and media editing. There are a few music artists that have successfully mastered the art of best practice and I believe one of them is Green Day.
Greenday.com initially redirects you to an ad page for the band's latest live album. I think that the most important information is laid out in a great way to present video, international stores, the bundle package and track information. Take notice how everything is grouped in boxes lined up. The lines match up and everything is in the same artwork as the advertised album. There is also a link at the to to redirect you back to the home page. To be nit-picky, also notice that the ad page is not www.greenday.com but instead is http://greenday.com/cigsvaltn_splash/index.html and the actual home page is http://www.greenday.com/site/homepage.php. This allows you to book mark the actual, permanent url for the home page instead of always being redirected.
The home page has a lot of content to take in. One of the first and most important features of a web site is its navigation. I think this is one place where the web site could make a few changes. An important feature of the design is that the user should never feel like they are taken to another page while accessing information from the same web site. There are a few things like the fan club, the Broadway show, and the Rock Band game that require a redirect to different sites. I think that the navigation should be rearranged to fit the average users needs and not the promotions needs. I think that tour info, music, pics and videos and the store should be listed first, since these are the most sought after details from fans and these are the pages that are actually under the same domain name and look like the homepage.
Also on the home page, there is a flash player with slides for the latest live album, American Idiot on Broadway information, current news and images. It is good to put these things up on the home page so that people who are just browsing do not have to dig too deep to find quick information.
One thing that the home page lacks is information about Green Day's social media. This information can be found in the Extras section, which I think is a big mistake. This information should not be buried under a miscellaneous title. Instead, either put icons on the home page or make a tab in the navigation for these accounts. I think that since the home page is busy enough, so an additional tab should suffice.
Also, if the lead singer has a twitter, post it somewhere. Anywhere. Everywhere.
Not all of this information is perfect but I believe there are some brilliant design elements currently in place but there are always room for improvements. Continue to look at other artist web sites and take note of their good and bad points as these are often frequently done.
When you first visit the official web site, greenday.com, you are redirected to an ad page for their latest live album. This page is decorated with the album artworkI have been interested in web design since GeoCities offered free web hosting. Laugh if you must, but because of this interest, I spent most of my undergraduate studies learning best practices in web design, social media, and media editing. There are a few music artists that have successfully mastered the art of best practice and I believe one of them is Green Day.
Greenday.com initially redirects you to an ad page for the band's latest live album. I think that the most important information is laid out in a great way to present video, international stores, the bundle package and track information. Take notice how everything is grouped in boxes lined up. The lines match up and everything is in the same artwork as the advertised album. There is also a link at the to to redirect you back to the home page. To be nit-picky, also notice that the ad page is not www.greenday.com but instead is http://greenday.com/cigsvaltn_splash/index.html and the actual home page is http://www.greenday.com/site/homepage.php. This allows you to book mark the actual, permanent url for the home page instead of always being redirected.
The home page has a lot of content to take in. One of the first and most important features of a web site is its navigation. I think this is one place where the web site could make a few changes. An important feature of the design is that the user should never feel like they are taken to another page while accessing information from the same web site. There are a few things like the fan club, the Broadway show, and the Rock Band game that require a redirect to different sites. I think that the navigation should be rearranged to fit the average users needs and not the promotions needs. I think that tour info, music, pics and videos and the store should be listed first, since these are the most sought after details from fans and these are the pages that are actually under the same domain name and look like the homepage.
Also on the home page, there is a flash player with slides for the latest live album, American Idiot on Broadway information, current news and images. It is good to put these things up on the home page so that people who are just browsing do not have to dig too deep to find quick information.
One thing that the home page lacks is information about Green Day's social media. This information can be found in the Extras section, which I think is a big mistake. This information should not be buried under a miscellaneous title. Instead, either put icons on the home page or make a tab in the navigation for these accounts. I think that since the home page is busy enough, so an additional tab should suffice.
Also, if the lead singer has a twitter, post it somewhere. Anywhere. Everywhere.
Not all of this information is perfect but I believe there are some brilliant design elements currently in place but there are always room for improvements. Continue to look at other artist web sites and take note of their good and bad points as these are often frequently done.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Don't Search, Listen and Google Music
I live in a small town in Texas, which is about 45 minutes away from Fort Worth. My commute to work is around 20 minutes of solid thinking time by myself in my car. Recently, I purchased a Droid Incredible and I download and test music apps for easy listening. What seems to be the best option is subscription services like Rhapsody so I can stream and download songs to my phone for a small monthly fee. Otherwise, I am at the mercy of Last.FM and Pandora’s picks for my playlist. It can be dangerous to expose my good mood to music I would rather not listen too.
One option I have been waiting for is Google Music. I love using Google for their Gmail, Reader, and Docs. However, after reading updates from the rumor mill, Google Music plans to be Google’s answer to iTunes. According to TechCrunch, Google Music will be a browser-based web store with the option of having a cloud “locker” to access and stream music from any computer and phone for an additional fee. This means you would have to purchase an album, purchase locker space, and hope that the full song preview does not kill your appetite to fork over your money.
I think that at this point, Google Music is going to take a bit longer to launch than I have hoped for. Right now, I pay eleven dollars a month to stream Rhapsody from my phone and any computer. Over the last few months, Rhapsody rolled out a download feature for subscribers to their iPhones and Droids for no extra fee. I think that Google has a good plan to combat iTunes but not such a good plan to compete with the subscription and free music providers. Here’s to hoping Google Music will rethink their strategy.
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