Can New Up-and-Coming Artists Or Labels Afford to Give Away Music For Free?

With the proliferation of large megastar artists giving away their music for free, think Prince, Oasis, NIN Radiohead and Coldplay, is giving away music just a brief trend or is it here for the long-haul? Where does it leave young new artists who have not had the benefit of large marketing budgets to build national and international audiences? Will young up and coming artists be able to derive an income from other income sources if they give their recorded music away for free? Where does this, leave record labels in terms of investment in new talent?

This last year has witnessed numerous free or quasai free music giveaway models where large globally recognized artists primarily of megastar status have given away their music for free. Quite often these artist were actually paid and it was a brand whether that be a newspaper or a radio station that paid the artist a fee to give away the music to their customers for free. So to the consumer it appeared as a free giveaway but in reality the artist was paid a fee. The Prince giveaway was a hardcopy CD with the aim to drive footfall at concerts, whilst Oasis was a digital giveaway by a radio station, NIN was a straight digital album giveaway and Radiohead was a set your own price mechanism for a digital album with the aim to release a high cost physical album at a later date.

Now are any of the above variations feasible for new and upcoming artists? I seriously doubt it, as all of the above artists had seriously large marketing budgets put behind them at the beginning of their careers to which played a significant role in the international audience levels they now command. To gain exposure and build an international career in the music business requires serious marketing budgets, none of which, new and upcoming artist have access to. New artists, have none of the income streams available to massive megastar stature artists. Subsequently, I personally believe that giving away recorded music for free will actually lead to a further downward cycle in the sale of recorded music.

Implicit in the giving away of music for free, is a direct association with the devaluation of recorded music in the eyes of the consumer. So are these megastars playing a direct part in the devaluation of music in the eyes of the fan? Reluctantly, I would state that they are, as whilst it increases there own income potential, on the flip side it adversely effect's the income streams available to new and un-established artist's. If new artist do not have significant marketing budgets behind them to build and grow an audience base from which they can afford to give away their recorded music for free, obviously larger artists giving away their music for free is detrimental to new and upcoming artists career potential.

Does creating the perception of recorded music being given away for free even if that is not the case ie. It was paid for by some brand so it would be free to the consumer do artists, songwriters, labels and publishers any favors? If anything it reinforces the perception of music being valueless in the eyes of the music consumer. The argument follows that if consumers are expecting their recorded music for free where is the money for a label to sign an artist or a publisher a songwriter, going to come from if that label cannot sell that recorded music to music consumers? Faced with ever-receding incoming revenue labels cannot afford for music to be given away for free.

If free is the model of the future, how will labels and artists make their income? Flogging artists to endorse other consumer brands may be one option. But realistically, how many artists would even consider such tie-ups? As obviously, if brands are paying for a release they are going to want to have a much high level of control not yet seen over artistic creativity and style of the artists they are funding. Is such a model sustainable in the longer-term? It may have a part to play in large manufactured pop artists careers, but apart from that in my mind it has limited viability.

Sadly, I do believe that due to the increasing number of megastars demonstrating the appearance of giving away their music for free that it may be a model which is here for the long haul. My main concern is that it is the 360 deals artists are doing with the likes of Live Nation that are driving this freebee model. Perhaps they can sustain it, yet the record labels certainly cannot. If recorded music is being given away for free, what money will labels have to invest in new artists? If labels have less to invest in artists due to recorded music being devalued in such a manner how can an artist expect to have a reasonable chance at a long-term career as an artist like the megastar artists. What happens when these massive global stars pass away? What will there be left for the industry and artists if the music we all love is unsustainable as a business?

Jakomi Mathews - Digital/mobile music consultant, speaker and innovator jakomi@themusicvoid.com
http://www.themusicvoid.com

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Do Present Day Music Artists Lack The Caliber of Past Performers?

Is Something Lacking In Our Musical Performers?

There seems to be a gap in the musical industry at this time. It seems that only the most extremes of music have survived this very fickle industry.

For example, if you turn the radio on, what you'll hear are extremes and styles of music. On one station you'll hear just talk. On another station you'll hear rapping, with words of violent underscores. On another station you'll hear classical music. On another station you'll hear someone singing about whiskey and forgetting their pain. On yet another station you'll hear what's left of what we used to call, "pop music."

The change in pop music, and what may be lacking, is what I would like to address at this time. It seems there used to be a larger variety of pop music available when listening to pop music stations. However, at this time it has decreased to a narrow amount where one singer sounds like much like the last singer. There is not many songs available to hear of Celine Dion. One's singer that has managed to stay on top consistently is Christina Aguilera.

One could not argue with the fact that twenty years ago popular music was much different than today. And I'm not sure it could be argued that it is getting better all the time. Just about ten years ago Elton John had hit songs from the movie The Lion King, Celine Dion had a hit song from the movie Titanic.

The eighties and nineties had many hit songs from movies, including CaddyShack, Officer and a Gentleman, Dirty Dancing, Good Morning Vietnam, Moonstruck, and La Bamba. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that there are not many hit songs or hit song soundtracks from popular movies these days. Hollywood has attempted to do this but has not reached the peak it once achieved.

Going back farther in time, one could trace pop music back to the roots of rock-and-roll itself. Elvis Presley carved out a whole new trend in music. The Beatles followed with great songs and performances that changed the music world. The Beatles seemed to go through several stages and reflected it in their music.

When the Beatles first came to America, they recorded songs of love with lollipop lyrics. Following this, they let their hair grow out, and recorded music with more convoluted meaning, which seemed to question the rulers and authority of the times. When the Beatles finally broke up, brand-new music trends evolved with the music of Paul McCartney and Wings, and John Lennon's solo work.

Elvis started out as the Hillbilly Cat, recording for Sun Records. His Southern drawl was very prominent and his hair was a dirty blond color. Then he entered into the era where he died his hair black, completed a stint in the Army and had a whole new career in movies. This was the "movie Elvis." Then, Elvis entered into his musical comeback phase. He recorded music and performed live in Las Vegas during this time. The final stage was his jump suit stage, sometimes called the last days of Elvis Presley. This was the time during which, although he still sounded good vocally, he appeared overweight and bloated.

Let's change styles right now in music and turn to Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin were part of the Rat Pack. They performed in Las Vegas, recorded records, and made several movies. Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra certainly reflected unique talent, good voices, and wonderful music that we have to enjoy.

However, who is the next big talent we follow with a fine-tooth comb, from beginning to end? Who is the next Elvis Presley, Beatles, Dean Martin, or Frank Sinatra?

There is certainly a gap in popular music today. Sure, you can find many popular artists with popular songs. However, they all lack that certain uniqueness in caliber of performers of days passed. Maybe it's a lack of charisma. Maybe it's the lack of mystery. I don't know.

However, shows like American Idol are certainly trying to recapture that with what they are doing. American Idol is trying to discover talent that could be turned into another Elvis Presley or someone who will change music and be remembered forever.

Although they have discovered many unique and great talents, if you ask Simon Cowell or Randy Jackson, I believe they would tell you they have not found talent that has achieved what they originally intended.

Yes, they have found great talent. The talent they have discovered certainly lacks nothing on the vocal side of things. However, perhaps it is something in the personality of the performer that's missing that has not launched them to the status of Elvis Presley, John Lennon, Dean Martin, Jim Morrison, or Kurt Cobain.

Perhaps it is something these legendary artists possessed that was mysterious and unknown to us. There is definitely something missing. American Idol, along with many other music labels, are certainly still looking for someone to turn the music industry upside down.

I don't know, perhaps that won't ever happen again.

Perhaps the performers that managed to change music forever, like Elvis, the Beatles, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, are of our history and days past. I hope not.

Jonathon Bates is a reporter and researcher of past myths and legends of Rock and Roll, and publisher for various news programs and publications. His weekly column can be read at [http://www.searchforelvis.com].

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New Female Pop Music Artists - Shaping a New Pop Music Era

How New Female Pop Music Artists Are Making A New Pop Era

The pop music industry is taking on new female pop music artists who are and shaping the world of pop in a whole new way. Let us take a look at how new female music artists are shaping the industry, and the pop ladies who are breaking those boundaries.

As the years went by, music has taken a new course. You can see the change in music televisions and you can hear it on the radio. Artists like Lady Gaga, Ke$ha, and Beyonce are just some of the new female music artists who are taking the music world by storm and at the same time shaping the entire pop culture around their style of sound. They are setting up a new path for pop and they are leading young future new female pop music artists in the process. To tell the truth, they may be the last chance that the pop genre has.

New Female Pop Music Artists and The Industry

We all know that the music industry is one of the largest and the most resistant industries there are in the world. They have mastered the strategies of creating music, recording it, and distributing it to the masses. They tell us what is popular, unlike a few years ago when new female music artists - and men alike - were really known for their hard work and talents. If the radio station could not afford fresh new pop music, they looked for local and unsigned artists' music - many of those being the freshest pop music girls out there today - both female soloists, and bands alike.

Today, the music industry is striving hard to maintain what they had built, and at the same time they are struggling to fight piracy. As the styles of music change throughout the years, the industry has also suffered its own ups and downs, and today, the cost of music creation and production has dropped as well as the cost of distribution and marketing.

Pop Music Ladies - A Bit Of History

In the past few years a lot of new genres have developed, and the industry has called them "micro-genres". A lot of them are combination's of existing music styles. For example, the new genre ska is described as a fast punk with some Jamaican inspiration. Other micro-genres include Nu-metal, which combined hip-hop and hardcore into a song.

The rise and fame of these micro-genres was the beginning of how the Internet changed the music industry. Today, it is very hard to stereotype listeners, because you no longer had to be a part of a single genre-you can now listen to both types and more. Kids who listen to hardcore and metal can also listen to house music whenever they want. The Internet has also made it possible for everyone to discover new songs with just a click of a mouse.

Today it is obvious that the industry is taking on a new wave of female pop music artists and talents who focus more on their appearance rather than their music. They have taken control of the pop culture and they now decide what is "hot" and what is not. A decade ago, it was never like this.

New Female Pop Music Artists Leading The Way

Pop stars like Lady Gaga, Ke$ha, and Beyonce are letting other new female pop music artists have a run for their money. They have created numerous songs that have constantly made its way through the top charts. Although they dress in a peculiar way, their fans know that this is a new era - one to be owned my pop music ladies, and this is the new pop culture.

But other than paving the way for future new female music artists into the new era of pop culture, these artists are showing the music industry that one thing never changes-artists still write about their own experiences in life. Their songs still have that substance, and they still like to include personal stories and experiences as inspiration for their songs. This makes their songs even more close to the hearts of their fans because they can relate to what their favorite artists sing about.

You're Right To Want More Original New Female Music Artists!

But one thing is always right and most important- you and me as the fans. Whatever the artists suggest, the fans know what they want. Despite what many record labels and music bosses might make of the change that you as fans are asking of them, there is no argument that YOU as a fan are correct to love originality, uniqueness and personality in new female pop music artists, and the guys of pop alike.

Inspirational New Female Pop Music Artists You Haven't Heard Of..

Personally, I am thrilled that new female music artists are shaping a new music industry, and breaking the boundaries of pop music. If you're tired of the same old outdated pop too, try listening to some of these original, upcoming new female music artists, for free or click for a heads up on a some pretty cool, brand new female lead pop music around at the moment and listen free to this group of new female pop music artists - Ziggiville, who have just released a fresh new album.

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