You are all probably wondering what all of this means. This is a lot of information to take in, I know. But where does all of it lead? Does this spell the end of music and the industry that once flourished as we know it? As I have continually stated throughout the tenure of our time here together, no the music industry is not on its way out and music is not going to disappear from the face of the earth. I believe what we have discussed thus far proves the contrary.
I am sure by now it is blatantly obvious that the majority of the industry's problems originate with the record labels. The issues can all be summed up in one sentence: the music industry is no longer about producing and releasing good quality tracks, it is about record label execs lining their pockets with as much money as possible. Musicians exist in a world where they are not judged by the quality of their music but by the amount of albums they can sell, because the more albums they sell, the more money they make their record label. At some point in time, greedy corporate figures took complete control over bands by manipulating the industry in such a way that musicians were moved to the bottom of the totem pole and basically told that the creations born of their mind and soul were not theirs. Some artists who have been around long enough to really be able to know for sure reason that it was sometime in the late 80s to early 90s around the mainstreaming of the CD and the inception of SoundScan, which is a story for another day that I just know you are going to love.
The question remains is what could possibly be done about any of this? Well the obvious solution is for record labels to wise up and get with the program. Their clients, the musicians, are their most valuable assets and they could certainly start treating them as such. Artists are sometimes mistreated and overworked to the point that they feel the need to do everything on their own. Also, the unflinching dependence on CDs is sealing the inevitable downfall of record labels.
What it really comes down to is this: the music business is changing with the times and the industry is in a period of transition. As we learn from the past, one media source always rises up to eclipse the previous one as technology progresses, and mp3s have risen up to eclipse the CD. Record labels live in denial though. They would stay with the CD and sacrifice talent for higher sales numbers instead of progressing along with society. It is this rift between record labels and reality that leads people to think that the music industry is failing. CD sales are lower than they have ever been so naturally we must prepare for music's demise. Music not only embraces progress but transcends time, how could it possibly fail? What me must prepare for is either an overhaul of record labels or the end of record labels as we know it, which if you think about it, may not be the worst thing that could happen.
Source(s):
Mellencamp, J. (2009, March 22). On my mind: the state of the music business. The Huffington Post.
Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/john-mellencamp/on-my-mind-the-state-of-t_b_177836.html
All industries are about the same thing now. Not about quality but about quantity. How much can you sell, no matter how bad it is. It is disheartening to see industries based around the arts stoop to these levels. This is why I hate pop music. It is called pop music because it is popular, and usually if it is very popular it is simple and unoriginal music. The video game industry is following in these footsteps with Modern Warfare 3. The game is just a remake of Modern Warfare 2 but with a few more guns and game modes. It lacks in creativeness and originality. It just appeals to as many people as possible. Sure this will make Activision a lot of money, but it creates the idea that games (and music) should not be creative or original but should just appeal to everyone so that everyone will spend their money on them. This is what America has come to.
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