Music Business Year-End Rewind of 2004

Written by Ritch Esra and Stephen Trumbull


Continued from page 1

Forward-thinking artist managers, agents, venues, indie labels andrepparttar artists themselves arerepparttar 109926 ones who have become (and truthfully have been for some time) responsible for buildingrepparttar 109927 next generation of career-artists. Careers are not supposed to be events that have huge a build-up and then are over like The Super Bowl. As we all know,repparttar 109928 best careers (The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Neil Young, U2) are long journeys that have been built on solid and viable foundations that can (and do) sustain a wide array of paths and experiences. Each of these artists was able to build extremely solid and viable foundations without a major label and in most cases, had no mainstream radio airplay at all. What these artists (and their managers) do have in common (regardless of genre) was an entirely new way of thinking and approachingrepparttar 109929 marketplace with regard torepparttar 109930 development of their careers.

They all utilized new and non-traditional methods that did not haverepparttar 109931 luxury of an enormous marketing push behind it to create awareness. Most were lucky atrepparttar 109932 start to get Public Radio exposure and critical acclaim.

But today, with so many more marketing and exposure options available to artists (iPods, Internet radio, websites, non-traditional retail),repparttar 109933 artists who develop and build careers for themselves won't necessarily be household names inrepparttar 109934 first few years, but they will have a built a very solid base of fans that actually want their music and will attend their live performances. These artists will have built their followings over a long period of time, not through hype and over-exposure on MTV, VH-1 or other media outlets that in so many cases actually damage careers instead of enhancing them. More than ever, today's youth culture is looking for something real, something it can feel a genuine connection with, not something it's oversold on!

This isrepparttar 109935 tragedy ofrepparttar 109936 major labels. They keep looking forrepparttar 109937 formula that will give themrepparttar 109938 huge multi-platinum sellers. Only problem is, we don't live in that world anymore! The system today doesn't allow these types of massive sellers like it did inrepparttar 109939 past. Today, we have FAR too many choices. And that's their tragic flaw. Major labels do not see thatrepparttar 109940 harder and louder they continue to market their acts,repparttar 109941 morerepparttar 109942 audience they're trying to reach doesn't seem to hear them or care.

Doubt me? Just ask any 13-18 year old today and they'll tell you. Or ask any 35-50 year old why they don't buy CDs anymore and they'll tell you "They don't put out any artists who I can connect with." Let's face it, Norah Jones' enormous breakthrough and continued success wasn't a fluke, but rather a very strong indicator thatrepparttar 109943 so-called "target demographic" (12-21 year olds) is completely out of touch withrepparttar 109944 times we live in. And forrepparttar 109945 record, Norah is another example of a recent career that was built entirely from this new paradigm of artist development - It is this particular phenomenon that I believe will alterrepparttar 109946 type of artists, regardless of style, that will emerge and be able to build viable careers for themselves inrepparttar 109947 coming years. Will these new Artist's careers look like what came before? Not a chance! This will berepparttar 109948 most difficult lesson for us as an industry to truly get. Letting go of what we've always held asrepparttar 109949 definition of success (Out-of The Box Top-10 radio hits, videos in high rotation on MTV, VH-1, BET, product endorsements for anything and everything, appearing in TV commercials, transitioning into motion pictures all withinrepparttar 109950 first 12-18 months. Today, for those inrepparttar 109951 know, these things are no longer seen as a path to career longevity. These are all things we have seen over and over duringrepparttar 109952 last 5 years that have hurt careers when they occur too quickly or without direction.

The new breed of artists and managers (and yes, there are a few who do think long-term) emerging today do not appear to see their clients' careers with this same unhealthy compulsion. They have a solid grasp of who and what they are and have been able to map out a career path that is consistent with that vision. This is what will contribute to building careers, rather than destroying them.

A recent development inrepparttar 109953 Industry that we would be remiss in not mentioning isrepparttar 109954 recent trend of "upstreaming". This is where an independent label develops an act fromrepparttar 109955 ground up, and at a certain sales level,repparttar 109956 act goes upstream torepparttar 109957 major label system. The catch is, of course, thatrepparttar 109958 smaller label will have to give up their acts torepparttar 109959 major ifrepparttar 109960 acts become successful. The great flaw in this scenario is thatrepparttar 109961 major labels have traditionally thought that any act doing 100-250K on an independent label should be able to do at least three times that within a major label system. As we've seen overrepparttar 109962 last few years, 'it just ain't so!' Most acts do not go from 150K to 500K inrepparttar 109963 course of one album. And there is nothing wrong with that. An act's evolution (both artistic & commercial) is an organic process and a long one. We don't expect our children to walk in their first six months, nor should we. Often,repparttar 109964 problem withrepparttar 109965 major labels' expectations isrepparttar 109966 unrealistic sales goals set for their acts simply becauserepparttar 109967 act is now in a 'major' system.

So often we've seen labels set their spending based on totally unrealistic sales expectations. All too frequently, a label declares that its sales goals have not been met and dropsrepparttar 109968 act. Is it any wonder that our industry has produced fewer and fewer career artists overrepparttar 109969 last fifteen years? That is also why all ofrepparttar 109970 major label artist rosters have continued to get smaller and smaller.

The most fascinating aspect of this particular process today, is how many artists and bands truly WANT NOTHING WHATSOEVER TO DO WITH MAJOR LABELS AT ALL! The illusion that a MAJOR LABEL CAN MAKE ALL OF THEIR DREAMS COME TRUE is over. So many artists today have seen too many acts duringrepparttar 109971 last 10 years break up, implode or simply get lost in a system that they truly had no business being a part of inrepparttar 109972 first place.

If major labels are to survive inrepparttar 109973 future, they are going to have to come out of denial aboutrepparttar 109974 world in which we live and completely re-invent themselves. They are going to have to start seeing their business as it truly is today - not how they would "like it to be" or "how it was," but how it actually is. As Werner Erhart so brilliantly said, "The Truth will set you free, but first it will really piss you off!"

Ritch Esra and Stephen Trumbull are publishers of the A&R Registry and and several other music industry directories and may be reached by phone at 818-995-7458 or online at http://www.musicregistry.com


Neverland Chronicle

Written by Gary Whittaker


Continued from page 1
Let's be honest,repparttar jury will decide his fate inrepparttar 109925 court of law. However,repparttar 109926 information that comes out of this trial and made available torepparttar 109927 public will hold him accountable to another jury: Public Opinion. Especially after O.J, I do not believe thatrepparttar 109928 American court system will allow for a repeat of another high-profile case to go against public opinion. Too much is at stake. America is at war to protect freedom and democracy, or so they so. The recent election shows that America is truly at war in order to push what they perceive are Christian values. If there is any chance that Michael is innocent, despite whatrepparttar 109929 public will believe to be evidence torepparttar 109930 contrary, you can bet what you want on some kind of interference, either forrepparttar 109931 verdict, or a subsequent secondary charge with a guarantee of jail time. Bottom line, Michael Jackson will be up against an opportunistic jury,repparttar 109932 mainstream media, and a sceptical public. I wish himrepparttar 109933 best of luck.



Gary Whittaker is the editor of T.E.N Magazine, a social and sports commentary webzine with balls! Check out more articles at http://www.tenwebzine.com


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