Alright everyone, today I have a special treat for you all. I took the time to contact my uncle who lives up in Philadelphia (who we shall refer to as Ron from here on out) and ask him a few questions pertaining to the music industry and his take on everything that is going on at the present. Some of you might be wondering why him? Well not only did he grow up during the time of musical geniuses, he is also an audiophile and works as a DJ. He does not work for a record label per say, but he has ample experience in the realms of production and distribution as well as music marketing. I felt he could provide a unique perspective on the topic at hand, so I asked him a few questions to get a good idea of his range of thoughts. Enjoy!
Me: So let me just start off by asking you whether or not you purchase CDs anymore?
Ron: Absolutely. I love music and have always kept a fairly good-sized music catalog. I honestly prefer vinyl but I have tried to keep up with the times.
Me: Have you ever heard someone reason that the CD was created out of greed?
Ron: I have heard people say that. It is plausible to think that they would expressly want people to replace their record collections with smaller, better quality discs but I feel that it was just the natural progression of technology. Sound and the ways we use it are amazing and compact discs were just destined to be another notch in the evolution of music.
Me: Okay let's get down to it, you're a DJ so I assume you know a tad bit about the music creation process within the context of the music industry. What is it all about exactly?
Ron: I haven't done too much full-time work in the industry, I have more just worked as an overall sound engineer, but you are right in assuming that I have had a little experience in producing music. I've always found the whole process a bit daunting to tell you the truth. I'm a stickler for detail and what qualifies as producing music nowadays does not lend itself to its appreciation for attention to detail. When I output a sound I want to know that its going to sound good and I have thrown my hat in on some projects that completely threw creativity and passion to the wind and would've completely fallen apart if not for serious support from the guys upstairs. I regret nothing that I've worked on but I normally just work on my own projects.
Me: When you say serious support from the guys upstairs, you mean....?
Ron: The pieces we were working on were devoid of substance and proper technique and were so full of management changes and lack of time and structure that we almost dropped everything entirely and went about our merry ways. But the big guys in charge wanted the projects to happen so we followed them through to completion despite all the bugs.
Me: Sounds like you've had some bad, dare I say traumatic, experiences working directly with the industry.
Ron: Not particularly. Like I said, I regret nothing that I've worked on but I do have my preferences. I am not exactly a recording artist so my options are a little more diverse I guess you would say. In the end, my knack for attention to detail basically requires that I stick to my own devices.
Me: Why is it so important that you stick to your own devices?
Ron: Isn't it obvious? Working on my own projects with my own equipment at my own pace is just my lifestyle. It works for me.
Me: So what I'm getting is that you don't feel you fit in with goals and schedules of the industry?
Ron: Kind of what it comes down to if you think about. Its somewhat depressing because I love the products of the process so much, that is the great musical artists and tracks, and yet I don't fit in with the process because it is a process so fraught with rules and checklists. Its all kind of beyond me.
Me: So overall, what is your opinion of the business of making music?
Ron: All I will say is this because I feel that it sums it up nicely: that really depends on how you view and/or define the "business of making muisc."
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