Music as Business: Are We Adapting to the Changes?

[Carlo Borromeo]

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I'm writing this because after almost two decades of being just a "part-time" guitarist, I've actually decided to get off my ass, get a bunch of guys (and one girl) together and start writing and recording original music. But, there's an elephant in the room that's giving me the creeps, and I feel that this has to be mentioned, not just for my sake, but for the sake of anyone interested in being a musician.

For probably the first time in history, big business has not been able to catch up to the changes in technology, and big business is crying foul, time out, help! Don't buy pirated CDs, yaddayaddayadda.

I'm talking about how in the last two or three decades, technology has been growing at such a rapid pace that the business end of it has been unable (or unwilling?) to keep up.

Take three very simple recent innovations:

1. The Internet
2. The MP3 format.
3. The iPod.

These three innovations are all simultaneously making the music industry as we know it OBSOLETE. Who needs record companies? Who needs CDs? Who needs to BUY music when you can download it for free?

Yes, I understand the Intellectual Property issues and the ethical issues and all that, but thinking like that is just as naive as parents believing that their 16-year-old child will avoid ***, drugs and drinking SIMPLY BECAUSE THEY ARE TOLD SO.

But let's look at the plus side of this: No more having to whore oneself to ignorant businessmen, those suits who say THIS IS COOL, THIS IS NOT; The Internet has made it so that the artists are the masters of their own marketing fate. They no longer have to be "packaged" as one thing or another. They can be themselves, they can reach the people they want to cater to, on their own terms.

So, guys, what do you think?

[level42]

first of all musicians need money, bisan unsa pana kanindot inyo compositions nya poor ang production bati gyud na. maunang dili gyud ko mooyon anang piracy kay daghan muscicians mga pordoy.

thats why musicians need to sell their records para makakuha sila og sakto nga pundo para mas ma creative sila.

unya kung walay saktong budget ang musician ma frustrated then mawala ang creativity.

[godCode]

sa gigs and "appearances" nalang na daugon sa mga artists... kay almost all of us rely on the internet to get free mp3s... naman so lisod na kaayo i baligya nang mga cd's...

[Rennaov]

serious issue for the serious musician or for those who want to earn a living out of music. its tough to create music, much more earn a living out of it. w/ the net and innovations on music media, indies grow bigger. its a good thing, who wants to wait or struggle his/her way up to signing a record deal anyway. life is too short for that, or perhaps too tough for the aspiring and struggling musician for a country w/ a difficult situation like ours. the world is too big for one to be noticed. or fate is just too selfish to hook you up w/ the right people who are in the business. wake up, it aint gonna happen, too many talented musicians for a few record companies to handle (or perhaps too tough for their TASTES to handle). You aint gonna be heard if you dont sell yourself out, and the internet is just the perfect creature to help you with that. It just provides a wide avenue for publicity and other things. Its a blessing.

for me, if popularity and money, or the business end of it is the greater half one is after, then go and struggle your ass out to signing a record deal, please them and the people to the best of your abilities(sucks...). but if you're an artist just wanting to express the music in you, just wanting to share and be heard, w/o regard or hell care to please everybody, just leaving your music to those sensitive enough to notice and take it, indie's the way. provided you've got enough equipment, passion, and enough sum to back you up. it wont be easy, it wont be big time, but it will be fulfilling...

[level42]

modownload man pud ko sa internet pero kung kauyon ko sa muisic mopalit gyud ko sa ila cd's mas nindot gyud kung naay booklet nga imo mabasa basa. its one way of supporting them.

kung gusto lang gyud ta nga daghan manggawas nga mga nindot nga banda, palit orig ayaw supportahi ang piracy pero impossible na kaayo na karong panahuna.

[Carlo Borromeo]

Point taken, but let's be realistic. What I'm saying is that, given the current advancement in technology, the conventional way of making money through music is obsolete.

No manner of wishful thinking, or laying guilt trips, or saying NO TO PIRACY, none of that will work.

Heck, don't forget bluetooth technology as well. I can pass the songs on my phone to my friend's phone and so on and so forth.

Don't get me wrong, I'm still going to record music. I'm spending my own money and paying for the recording (this saturday in fact). But, I'm not going to take it against anyone if they download or pass along the song to others via iPod or Bluetooth or e-mail.

Right now, all I want to do is get my music out to people. First, through gigs, then, through the recordings. Right now, I don't care whether or not I profit from it.

[donato_borces]

A true artist :mrgreen: Be meticulous on the production, please.

[larvs]

but musicians are still alive aren't they? or am i just seeing the mainstream with backing by big recording companies. anyways, take for example bisrock, very promising if we look at it, but who's to say that 2 years from now, we can see their full albums posted in popular torrent sites? i just personally feel like music is too expensive. heck, i'd pay top dollar to watch a gig i like, coz i'm going there for the experience, not to listen to the music for the first time, that's what the radio is for. but i would want to be able to access music as freely as i can, monetarily speaking, but prices of CD's (which has a good quality than tapes) are far too expensive for Cebu's, or even for the Philippines' economy. therefore, my stand is still against piracy, although i do it, but at teh same time, music should be affordable. i just feel like when i buy an original CD, it's such a big deal alreddy like "omg! that's how you like that band, huh? i should have bought you that for your b-day instead!" see?

[EZRA]

The bulk of a band's income don't come from CD Sales anyways.... how much money do they get from CD's.. like a dollar per album sold at most?? Most of the income comes from Music Publishing and Concerts/Gigs.

I say go on and record your music and seek the services of a music publishing company.

[Carlo Borromeo]

And don't forget, the band as a BRAND. Look at my new Avatar. It's my band's logo. People have been telling me it'd make a great t-shirt design....