That (Music) Business Will Soon Be Over
“What is called the music business today, however, is not the business of producing music. At some point it became the business of selling CDs in plastic cases, and that business will soon be over. But that’s not bad news for music, and it’s certainly not bad news for musicians. Indeed, with all the ways to reach an audience, there have never been more opportunities for artists.”
From David Byrne’s survival strategy for emerging artists – an incredibly detailed look at past present and possible future models for the music industry and recording artists which includes complimentary audio interviews.
I’ll still prefer to buy disc’s from my favorite bands. But it’s right, unsigned artist could and should choose modern techologies to create, distribute and enjoy music.
I think the trends are moving towards the 6th option on that page. Labels aren’t as necessary when a band can market themselves and sell their recordings online. As more music purchases are starting to be digital recordings online, there is less of an emphasis put on getting national distribution in stores and when a band can get thousands of fans from an mp3 on myspace or a video on youtube, the need for a huge marketing budget is no longer there. None-the-less, the music business is not dead although it is playing catch up right now and scrambling to figure out a business model that works.
-Jordan
http://futureofmusic.biz