Tag Archive for 'Activism'

What Do Album Sales Measure?

Published on November 1, 2007 in Blog. 8 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , .

On the surface, this may appear like an obvious question. Album sales measure the number of people who buy an artist’s music. Let’s look a little deeper at what album and track sales are an actual measure of.

Many artists that experience high volumes of downloads on p2p networks also experience brisk sales. The days of mega-platinum albums are pretty much at an end, so I’m defining brisk sales as between 50,000 to 7 million units sold. This is abroad spectrum, as it includes middle tier artists as well. The future of music will most like include far more middle tier artists, making a decent living, and fewer multi million dollar pop sensations.

The actions of Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and Saul Williams are not meant to devalue music to nothing. These artists want people to buy their music. They pay their mortgages, buy their gas, and feed their kids off music sales and gigs. The intention behind these artists’ actions are to move forward a major shift in the music business. The sooner major labels are out of the picture, the sooner our culture can have a conversation about the value of music. It;s great that people can choose how much they want to pay to support artists. At the same time, all of us in the middle or lower tiers of the industry cannot sustain a vibrant career without revenue. Digital music sales are expanding rapidly; obviously people are buying music.

Consider that people can get almost any music they want for free. With a small amount of effort, any album can be found, downloaded, and added to a collection as an MP3. So when people do buy music, what does it measure?

The Love of the Music

Album and track sales measure artist support, and appreciation of the music itself. When major albums are leaked well in advance of release dates and still sell well, it’s clear that the people buying it don’t have to. Why would people buy something they can get for free? It’s not consistent with a capitalist mentality.

Music is in a post capitalist environment, and totally uncharted territory for any commodity. There is no scarcity of music, and the supply outstrips the demand by miles. When people buy an album, they are saying “I like this music or artist enough to support them. I want them to continue to make great music, and I am moved and touched by what they create.”

Sales dynamics and trends for non-major label releases follow a completely different set of rules than mainstream music sales do. Mega-Artists that are joining the ranks of independent musicians aren’t breaking new ground as much as they are creating a public awareness of the way the music business works for most of the artists in it. For those of us in the trenches of our careers, they are putting a spotlight on how we do business.

Free downloads from major artists are simply a proving ground that in the post major label era of music, people will still buy music they support. The only difference between downloading an album for free on an artist site or off Bit Torrent is the amount of effort one has to put in (i.e. clicking a link instead of typing a name into a search prompt).

Although accurate sales totals for In Rainbows won’t be available till the end of the year, it’s clear people are willing to pay for music when they are not forced to. Now that big time acts are involved in the independent music world, there’s no denying that people buy music they love, even if it’s free. The only thing that has changed with In Rainbows is the kind of market analysis we are seeing in major media publications. Major labels can’t whitewash entertainment news about the reality of the business anymore.

When people have access to the music they want for free, and without being treated like criminals, supporting the artist is a natural action to take. it’s when we are treated like criminals, or asked to pay large sums of money for long dead artists, that the public begins to resent buying music.

The Bottom Line: Album sales no longer measure marketing ability or brand placement, they measure people’s love of the music.

What do you think?

What do album sales measure?

Are Radiohead/Saul Williams/NIN breaking new ground, are are they amplifying a message that most of us already hear?

The Major Labels Are Crying Wolf

Published on October 30, 2007 in Blog. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Spotted on: The Long Tail

Chris Anderson deserves a parade in his honor.

This brilliant post completely uncompresses the major label view of the music business with the actual music business.

“…it appears that every single part of the music industry except the sale of compact discs is up.

  • Concerts and merchandise: UP (+4%)
  • Digital tracks: UP (+46%)
  • Ringtones: UP (+86% last year, but probably just single-digit percent this year)
  • Licensing for commercials, TV shows, movies and videogames: UP (Warner Music saw licensing grow by about $20 million over the past year)
  • Even vinyl singles (think DJs): UP (more than doubled in the UK)
  • 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)”

With statistical data to back up the claim, it’s clear that all the hoopla around the death of the music industry is a death cry form major labels. They could revamp their business models, and in fact they could have ten years ago when they knew this was coming. It’s as if these major companies have absolutely no relationship to reality.

The end of Chris’s article seems almost directed to this blog: “…for those who say that this avenue [giving away all music free] is only available to artists at the head of the curve…I’d point out that the other group poorly served by the labels are those at the bottom of the curve…”

As the major labels fail and become some new form of entertainment companies (most likely a clearinghouse for content or booking agencies), music will lose almost all of its value. Once we (the audience) are no longer pressured to buy, or told we are criminals for our actions, music will begin to regain its value.

While touring and swag are viable outlets for artists to generate revenue, the question becomes: where can smaller artists play, and is gigging still viable?

What is your take on the state of music sales, given this exciting and inspirational update on sales figures?

The Cult of Personality – The Modern Artist’s Mantra

Published on October 26, 2007 in Blog. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Lately I’ve notice that there are musicians and artists that are tuning into this frequency, so here’s something for you to consider:

The future for musicians looks like more than just great recordings and live shows. The opportunities that the internet provides modern artists is available to everyone, and thus its potential is diluted. One powerful tool in creating buzz around your project or career is to get noticed. And one way to get noticed is to generate interest in who you are, and what you’re saying. in other words, creating and maintaining a conversation with your audience.

Pop culture can overwhelm us with the personal lives of famous people, and annoy us to no end with the antics of celebrities. Billboard has an excellent article on the effect of this kind of marketing on the careers of the ultra-famous. Keeping themselves in the public eye is a critical element to the careers of these top tier entertainers. Even bad press is good press for them.

For the independent artist, this same technique can yield different results. We can expand our scope and reach by generating attention for who we are, and what we have to say. Marketing a personality is nothing new. Here’s an article from Time Magazine in 1978, looking at the same methods and issues we are discussing today.

Once you have fulfilled your artistic vision, and you’re putting yourself out there, the make-or-break factor in success becomes notoriety. While having ten thousand friends on Myspace seems like a powerful promotional tool, does it really measure anything other than the number of people that landed on your page and clicked add me?

One of the most effective tools for creating a buzz for yourself, your project, and what you’re up to is blogging, and blogging often. If you are anything like me, you spend at least some of your week surfing the internet and consuming content. You have sites that you visit regularly. Consider that what keeps you coming back to a site is the steady stream of new and interesting content. Content that speaks to you.

A healthy career is grown through a fanbase. Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, Prince, and Madonna are able to free themselves from major labels and even give away their music because their fans are loyal, and people are tuning in.

While it may seem like the forward momentum is slow, steady and regular content on your project webpage, blog, or social networking page is critical to bring people back. And the more time people spend on your sites, the more interested they will be in supporting your cause.

I am guilty of not providing a steady stream of information on my blogs at times, and it impacts my return traffic, and the hype around my own projects and Polyvibe. I am preparing to condense this blog with my personal blog, providing the same great content with half the work. Like Uncle Scrooge says, work smarter, not harder.

For any artist who is committed to bringing viability to their career, having a powerful voice, and keeping the conversation going are critical elements to success.

I invite you to comment on this post with your opinions. If the waters ripple, we’ll talk more about creating a cult of personality, the results people are seeing from this kind of grassroots marketing, and methodology that can be implemented to increase your results.

Album Sales: A Realistic Perspective

Published on October 15, 2007 in Blog. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

In getting a picture of what’s next for the music business, let’s take a moment to look at reality right now. There are a few reports from mid-2007 that CD sales are way down (15% from the first half of last year), while digital sales are up over 48% (If you find any more recent industry sales reports, I invite you to post them as a comment to this post).

CD sales are dropping, set to be a small fraction of overall sales – and sooner, rather than later. A recent survey of high school students showed that there is a downward trend in music downloading in that age group. This is the next generation of music buyers. Perhaps their actions are pointing to something.

The Freakonomics blog posted an editorial recently with analysis of the record industry by five people who ought to know. Koleman Strumpf, an economics professor at the University of Kansas, had this to say:

“If file sharing hurts record sales, then albums that are more heavily downloaded should experience lower sales than comparable albums that are less downloaded. But, after controlling for the role of popularity, we found that downloads had little effect on album sales.” He wrote a whole paper on the subject, if you want to find out more.

In other words, file sharing is not the source of the drop in album sales. A powerful insight like this is the last word on file sharing for me (although not for the RIAA).

Audioholics.com posted a great editorial on whether CDs are approaching the event horizon of obsolescence. They include a buffet of statistics showing that while physical sales are slumping, digital sales are growing with velocity.

As the digital music market overtakes physical sales, CDs will become less available (relegated to major chain stores like Wal-Mart). We can see this shift with the demise of? Tower Records. When people can get all the music they want without going to overpriced record stores, they will. This trend has yet to infect mom and pop record stores, like Orlando’s own Park Avenue CDs, and since most of these stores are seen as boutiques rather than purveyors of the lastest industry tripe, most of them will likely survive (don’t forget that most small record shops deal with smaller and indie labels, and used CDs and vinyl).

People are still buying tons of music, and if digital music sales are any indication, music will continue to be a commodity. Although most commentary is still focused on what major labels can do to revive sales, the real issue is becoming what can artists do to empower themselves in this new realm.

People are exposed to a larger variety of sounds than ever before. Demand for music has skyrocketed, while profits are shrinking. The idea that music has lost much of its monetary value in the current market is a two fold effect: the novelty of file sharing and mega hard drives, and the price difference between a digital single or download and a CD.

We live in an era of convenience, and audiences consistently choose the format which is most user friendly (think audio tapes in the 80′s). The shift toward digital libraries has been predicted for years, and even with DRM, digital is already the industry standard. I’m still surprised that such a well-known and predicted phenomenon can cause such panic among executives. It’s almost as if upper management in the record industry has been ignoring the experts.

The quality of the music is a major factor in sales when people have access to massive catalogs, too. Hip Hop is a great example of this trend. Collapsing under the weight of violence and misogyny, some hip hop artist still enjoy huge mainstream and underground success. And the cause of this slump seems to be the choices made my industry executives over the last ten years.

The reality is this: The fate of major record labels has nothing to do with whether or not musicians will be able to create fulfilling careers, absolutely nothing. With unlimited access, people aren’t compelled to buy any album unless they absolutely want it.

And in case you wanted to know the secret to success in the music business in any climate:
Make Great Music!

RIAA + Jammie Thomas = The Beginning of the End Pt. 2

Published on October 12, 2007 in Blog. 1 Comment Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

Spotted on: The Seminal

Our friends at The Seminal caught our attention with their take on the RIAA “victory”.? I put the word in quotes because the nature of a victory is that it advances your cause in some way.

I invite you to check this astute commentary. Here’s my favorite part:

“That’s right, the artists who slave for years to make records, pour out their souls into their CDs, and enrich our lives in a myriad of ways don’t actually get any of the money recovered through these ridiculous lawsuits. Not one red cent.”

The commentary on this case is already so powerful, there;s little left to add.

Over the next few weeks, we will begin to look at other ways artists and musicians can generate revenue besides signing their futures over to transnational behemoths, and the future of record labels.