The first factor that was discussed in depth was File Sharing. Let’s move on now to the other remaining factors.
Everybody has a certain amount of income alloted for entertainment in their lives. It may be a strict budget , or a percieved limit imposed after you figure out you are spending much more than you make! Naturally, people will gravitate towards entertainment options they feel gives them the best value. Competition for recorded music comes in the form of video games, movies and internet browsing (videos, blogs, social networking, etc.). Video games have probably been competing with music for a while now. In their infancy, games were more of a luxury item for those who could afford these exotic toys; they began to become more mainstream and affordable in the late 1980s, but were mostly bought by parents for their kids. It was a huge market then, and has grown exponentially. The same kids who grew up with video games are now adults with disposable incomes, add to that the traditionally strong youth market, and you’ve got a recipe for success. The time spent playing games is time that cannot be used for other activities, namely listening to music. DVDs, Blueray movies and tv shows are also selling strong so music retailers everywhere have noticibly cut back their music in favour of more floor space for movies and games. Lastly, you can’t ignore the impact that the internet itself has on music. Before 1995, there wasn’t really much internet access at all; and certainly nothing like youtube, myspace or facebook. These sites all occupy an incredible amount of users time, and even though many users can stream music in the form of videos or radio streams, its still time spent away from the retail shops.
This argument, while true isn’t the whole story. That’s because when I look for a music medium, there are a bunch of other factors far more important to me than simple portability and ease of storage. For one thing, when talking about music the most important element should probably be….SOUND QUALITY! Music is for listening…you just need your ears…so give them the best! Sure you can use lossless files nowadays, but its still far too rare to see. I like to know that my favourite songs are all available to me in AT LEAST CD quality…that makes me happy. I can always rip an mp3 if I want it later. Maybe your priorities are different…and that’s OK too…there isn’t really a right or wrong, its just personal preference.
Another thing I really like about having a physical CD or Vinyl record is that its tangible…I can hold it in my hand and look at the artwork. I can also store it in my environment…call me old school, but I still enjoy that aspect. That gives me a much greater feeling of OWNERSHIP then a non-tangible, digital file does. Why is this the case? I feel that file sharing and online culture has created a sort of ‘collective ownership’ when it comes to digital files. This probably stems from obviously the ’sharing’ aspect, as well as the nature of the digital file…it can be effortlessly copied over and over, almost instantaneously! Also rising in popularity are the subscription type models which can be found at music retailers such as Napster. The idea is you pay a set monthly fee in exchange for downloading whatever songs you want on your computer or portable player. As long as the subscription fee is payed, you are free to enjoy anything in their vast, vast catalogues. This model directly challenges the notion of owning your music…its more like music rental. With brand new services such as Spotify making waves, it seems that soon downloading the file itself will be seen as archaic compared with new ’cloud computing’ (files are stored on central servers and accessed remotely as streams).
All of these developments are fantastic for the listener who loves portability and convenience with music. For myself, I’m not so sure its the best way to go. It struck me recently that I really value owning my music. It helps me put it all into perspective. When I buy music, I’m effectively INVESTING in it…I’m giving my money and time in exchange for the hope that I will enjoy the music, learn something, gain inspiration, and maybe even grow as an artist and a person in the process. Music is that powerful. If I’ve made this investment, I want to give the music the chance to do all these things. I’ve had so many albums that haven’t struck me at first, only to reveal themselves after repeated listening…some are now my favourites. I give the album time to grow, and I give myself time to fully understand the message. This is what critical listening is all about. Having my music in a physical form further solidifies this sense of ownership and investment…and consequently my enjoyment of the music.
A few years ago, I used to hoard digital albums…I’d download every new thing that came along because I didn’t want to miss anything…but I also didn’t invest in any of it. The truth of the matter is, most of them just sat on my hard drive, never to be listened to. The ones that I did listen to only had one, brief chance to shine…because there was something else right around the corner! I had to consume everything in sight. I was surrounded by music, but I sure didn’t enjoy any of it…I didn’t ABSORB it….it just felt like an empty, endless quest for more.
I’ve since rediscovered how great it is to buy physical music again…but the costs do add up for a music junkie like me! To help out, I’ve utilized the amazing world of used music. I can now, from the comfort of home, find a ton of albums I really want to own for prices that are just amazing. I buy a lot of these CDs (probably too many!), but I find that because of my investment I really take the time to enjoy them all, and I’ve really learned a lot as an artist because of that. Its a great feeling. Here are a couple of my favourite used sites.
Be careful, they are addictive! The Beat Goes on will even order new vinyl! I especially like their ‘wishlist’ feature…check it out! These sites are simply fantastic for finding ultra rare gems that would be nearly impossible to find stocked anywhere.
If you can, I also urge you to visit your local independent music store…they are amazing places, and deserve our support. I promise you, there isn’t a more fulfilling music purchase than finding a great album in a small, independent store. It will just sound better!
I’d love to hear your thoughts on owning music!
]]>As an artist, today’s online music environment can seemingly be your best friend, and your worst enemy all at the same time. Proponents will say that the internet has leveled the playing field for all artists, allowing even the very obscure and underground acts to compete with the biggest, mainstream offerings. That’s a bit of an exaggeration, but there is some truth to it. It’s incredibly exciting to have your latest tracks on iTunes, or get great fan feedback from the other side of the world. So why is it that an environment that can seem so powerful for artists on one hand, can also promote feelings of pessimism and despair on the other?
The answer, I believe stems from the shift in public perception of the value of recorded music (possibly even music in general) and the artists that create it. The reasons for this shift are many, but there are a few core issues that I feel have contributed the most.
To begin, I think its important to start by discussing listeners. I think all too often, artists and industry people tend to over-estimate the importance of their craft to society as a whole. I’m probably making a large generalization here, but it would seem plausible to me that over the entire listener base, you could probably categorize two types of music fans. A very small portion of the listeners will be hardcore fans who live and breathe for music. Many artists will fall into this category…I know I do! For many of these hardcore fans, the daily happenings in the music world are a big thing, that merit constant discussion and analysis. The overwhelming majority of the remaining listeners will be casual fans. For this type of fan, music is a much more subtle element in their everyday lives…it is of interest to them, but not a passion. The traditional music industry runs on the economy of these casual fans. It is expected that fans will jump from chart hit to chart hit, buying each track and then tossing it when the next one comes along. This is why CDs were so lucrative; fans had to buy a high priced CD to get the one track they wanted. Some of the revenue generated by these buyers were then used by the labels to fund more obscure acts which appealed to the hardcore fans.
As Kyle suggests in his post, most casual fans have reached a point where they no longer feel music is worth paying for anymore. This creates a huge problem for the industry, as all that revenue they used to depend on to run the huge machine has now dried up. The hardcore fans who still willingly hand over their cash are nowhere near a large enough group to take up the slack. The industry is built like a huge building on the top…but underground the foundation has crumbled…it needs to be repaired, or torn down and rebuilt.
So how did it get this way?! I feel that 3 core reasons are to blame:
File Sharing
The mass copying of ones and zeros isn’t really a big deal in the grand scheme of life, but it has had a very negative effect on the music industry, and music culture. Going strong for 10 years now, it has become habit and routine for many music listeners. The funny thing is, I don’t remember it ever being seen as totally acceptable in its infancy, sure many people used Napster like a buffet for the shear sense of discovery and novelty of it all, but at the same time there was a lot of over the shoulder looking and sentiments of how long the whole thing could possibly last before the fun was over, much akin to the cops breaking up an awesome party. People definitely had a sense that it was damaging on a large scale, but the temptation remained too high especially after a ton of crackdown threats came and went without much consequence. Now, in 2009, many younger fans don’t even remember a time where there wasn’t file sharing…the sense of the guilty pleasure is now replaced with one of entitlement, and all sorts of justifications (greedy label/artists, art should be free, it’s only a copy, etc.) have sprung up to put forth its legitimacy in popular culture.
The point is, that the casual fan who likes to hop from hit to hit now has no real motivation to pay for the songs anymore…they know they’ll get sick of the tune eventually and move on, so why bother to buy it? It can be found easily online, and downloaded in seconds for free. This ideology is GAME OVER for the traditional industry as far as I’m concerned. You simply can’t run the old business the same way anymore. Doesn’t matter if its right, or wrong, it’s the nature of the beast when your primary market has always been fairly indifferent to what you are selling them.
Unfortunately, the fans that lose out the most in my opinion are the minority of hardcore, passionate music fans. With the loss of traditional record sales, labels don’t have many resources left for finding and supporting new artists and bands. To make matters worse, I feel that the majority of music listeners are setting the precedent for the value of music. This will eventually have a trickle down effect, where even the most ardent of band supporters will come to believe that the music should be free.
Its not the concept of artists giving away free music that bothers me (I support the artist’s choice), its the nonsense involved in justifying why there should be NO CHOICE other than free. I’m not saying that all music is entitled to have monetary worth; consumers will decide what they are willing to pay for…that’s the way our system works (provided its a fair market)…but I am saying the problem with allowing music to become monetarily valueless in our culture is that it suggests artists who put a lot of time and effort into their work do not deserve to be fairly compensated for their labour. That concept, to me, doesn’t reflect any of the most basic values we champion as a society.
In part 2 I’ll tackle the remaining issues and summarize what all of this means for the future of music.
In the meantime, let me know what you think…do you feel the value of music is changing?
]]>Anyways, back on topic. My name is Jay and I am a songwriter…and a singer…and a musician…and a performer….how can I sum that up better…let’s just go with ‘artist’!
A few months back I released a full length album called ‘Burst’ which can be heard in its entirety in the convenient sidebar music player! After being on half a dozen social networks, I realized that what I really wanted was a place on the net to call home…a place for everyone to experience what its like to be an independent artist in todays music scene, and a place where I can provide some hopefully relevent commentary on the current issues which artists must face.
I’m also looking forward to sharing new songs and demos with all of you.
If you’ve made it this far, congratulations…I promise things will get better….but then again promises aren’t what they used to be. Ponder that for a moment!
see you soon.
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