Things are changing

Greetings and welcome.

In November of 2013. I will no longer be supporting this blog as I will move towards a full-scale online rebranding focused on my research and passion for music business marketing.  You can check out my new blog directly at my website which is:

www.jeremylarochelle.com

I will keep this blog active, as I feel there has been a lot of information shared for both drummers and musicians alike. Just remember, I will not be maintaining the new site. So please visit:

www.jeremylarochelle.com

I look forward to seeing you there!

Getting a cruise ship gig.

I get a lot of questions about what musicians need for a cruise ship gig. Well, luckily for you all I now work for an agency, Mike Moloney Entertainment,  that specializes in placing musicians and bands on cruise ships.  Over the past couple of weeks I have been putting together a series on the subject that walks you through the process of defining your talent, creating a great demo, how long it takes to land a gig at sea, filling out the paperwork, and then packing for your cruise ship performance job.  Here are the links to each article.

Part One: Defining your talent and branding yourself for cruise ship success:

http://cruiseshipmusicians.blogspot.com/2013/06/getting-ship-gig-part-one.html

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Part Two: Creating a great demo:

http://cruiseshipmusicians.blogspot.com/2013/07/performingoncruiseshipspart2.html

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Part Three: How long it takes to land a spot:

http://cruiseshipmusicians.blogspot.com/2013/07/whenwillIgetacruiseshipmusicjob.html

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Part Four: The cruise ship medical exam:

http://cruiseshipmusicians.blogspot.com/2013/07/cruiseshipusiciansmedicals.html

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Part Five: Packing for your cruise ship gig:

http://cruiseshipmusicians.blogspot.com/2013/08/packing-for-your-cruise-ship-gig.html


We plan on releasing more information at our blog Musical Ship Life to help aid those considering performing on cruise ships. So check back often.  If you are considering playing on a cruise ship I would love to see your demo.  Just fill out Mike Moloney Entertainment's Talent Questionnaire and we will review it.

More Social Media Leads with Creative Twitter Tag lines

As part of my job I analyze contract riders for major acts coming into venues we book. Some of these riders get long and tedious, but to promote a great show we have to painstakingly adhere to every requirement set-forth by the artist's management.

After looking over hundreds of these documents I can see why some promoters (not our amazing company) may miss a few items. And this is quite common and evident in the famous bowl of green M&M's clause, which was used as a litmus test by one smart manager.  He knew that if his group arrived in a greenroom and were welcomed by a big fat bowl of M&M's, all the other deal points were probably adhered too.

Back to my point.

Last week one of my co-workers was laughing as she read through one of those riders.  I had to ask her what was so funny, so she started to read me some of the passages. The manager had written the rider in the artist's voice with humorous quips such as "I am serious about this, it will really make me mad, so please don't do it" and "I know this sounds like it doesn't matter, but it is really important for me." My favorite "we need six loaders, not three and two friends, and don't lie and say you have six when you only have five because that's not cool."  Under food selections he gave choices such as peanut butter and jelly sandwiches "Meh", turkey sandwiches "eh", and grilled cheese sandwiches "wohoo!"

My point is because the manager took the time to write this usually boring document in a unique humorous light, we read through it. Not once, not twice, but many, many times.  The outcome, this artist will receive all the best deal points for sure from most of his promoters. 

So how does this apply to you artists who can't get a rider, much less a contract, much less a paying gig?

Well, let me tell you.

I get hundreds of people requesting to follow me on Twitter every month. Most of them are artists with the hopes that I can help break them into the industry. When I get a notification in my email that they have decided to follow me it includes their name and their Twitter tag line.

Man, you would be surprised at how many artists say, or claim, the same thing. "Award winning artist for X band", or "Music Producer, Artist, & Engineer", or my favorite "Free download at...please take your time to go to another website sign up and download it."

I will admit, my tag line "Agent with Mike Moloney Entertainment • B.S. Music Business Management • MBA in Marketing Candidate" is not any better.

But here's the thing I am aiming at a different demographic, so my tag line meets the objective I have put into my branding and marketing plan. Musicians need to think differently for a number of reasons, but I will give you a couple.

1. You are supposed to be creative, so sell me on your creativity right out of the gate. If you show me that you can be unique in a Twitter headline, chances are I will listen to your music as well.
2. There are far too many artists competing for a limited number of gatekeepers, who have limited amounts of time. You need to differentiate yourself and give them a reason to check out your profile.

Think about the contract rider I spoke about at the beginning of my post. Because the person chose to write it in a unique way it was given much more attention at a very busy office. Now think about this. Your Twitter tag line allows you to capture someones attention, but you have a limited amount of time to do it. If everybody else is claiming to be the best producer, the best artist, the greatest musician ever, what would happen if you claimed to be the "best sloppy Joe maker" or will give a free concert to support diabetes if you get so many followers.

In short. You have a small window of opportunity to grab your Twitter audiences' attention and motivate them to action. You are already creative, so do what your good at.

The thin line between music and religion

On July 3rd I had the opportunity to travel to Seattle to offer assistance for my company, Mike Moloney Entertainment, in producing the first show in Snoqualmie Casino's Summer Concert Series.

Let me tell you. If you have never been to Snoqualmie for an outdoor show, you are missing out. The 2,000 seat outdoor theater overlooks the beautiful Cascade mountains in a way only pictures can show.

 

For the inaugural 2013 concert we had a unique line-up. First on the bill was Eric Burdon and the Animals.  Burdon became famous for that small hit "House of the Rising Sun." At 72, Eric still knows how to rock and brought in the Woodstock generation of music lovers who were on their feet after every song.

The second half of the bill was held by Ziggy Marley.

I already know what your thinking.  How can a show like that work?  Aren't those two very different artists, with two completely different groups of fans?  

Well, let me tell you. It did.  And it was one of the greatest testaments to the power of great music that I have ever seen.

During Eric's show you could see youngsters in Bob Marley t's, clad in yellow, red, and green singing along. When the songs ended many were on their feet with the elder music statesmen beside them. But, that is something you would expect from the youth.  They are there for a good time, and alcohol certainly helps.

Then after a short change, Ziggy hit the stage, and to my surprise I watched as many of Eric's fans stayed.  But they didn't just stay. Within minutes of that Reggae drop on three many where up and dancing.

As I watched the crowd I witnessed people of all races and colors dancing. Some danced with people they never met. My eyes became fixated on a lady in her mid eighties. She was clad in red, white and blue for the holidays in one of the "high roller" boxes, and she was up and dancing through the whole show. She danced with the youngsters besides her, she danced with her family, by herself, and even pulled her husband up for a few numbers.  She was "into the reggae mon". 

And when it was time to close the show, Ziggy did it with absolute class. He performed his dad's tunes, which seemed to bring his fans, Eric Burdon's fans, and the spirit of his father into the cool mountain air.  And he left with a rousing applause.

As humans we always seem to be looking for something spiritual. Some find it in Jesus, others Buddha, and some Allah.  We are all looking to be connected. Connected to the earth, to the spirit world, and to each other.  On July 3rd I witnessed as music did just that.

iTunes Radio a BIG Plus for Musicians

Well its finally here.

For the past couple of years Apple has been teasing us with a music streaming service. To be honest we all knew it was coming, we just didn't know when, and what it was going to do differently.

They finally dropped the hammer on June 10, 2013 at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) where they showed off the user interface (UI), and then told us we would all have to wait until this fall before we could enjoy it.  You can read their press release on the event here.

And here I am writing about it fifteen days later. Not to on top of it Larochelle.

To be honest when I watched the announcement I wasn't shocked. Like most of us, I knew it was coming. No big deal I thought. Then as the genius of Apple soaked into my brain I realized what just happened.

They found a way to truly monetize streaming.  And that is huge news.

A month before Apple's announcement, the RIAA announced that streaming criteria would be added into their gold and platinum album tallies. For many this is no big deal, but for artists and those in the business of music it was huge. On one side it solidified the fact that streaming was here to stay, and as some will argue (myself included) probably become the main source of how consumers digest music.  The problem with this announcement is that it puts artists in a very awkward spot.

Streaming really doesn't pay. Go ahead Google it and see if artists are making serious money off of the fraction of a cent they get every time someone listens to their intellectual property on their phone or at work. Now the RIAA has solidified it as a true delivery method, which will increase its presence in the market. From here on we are only going to see streaming increase, and with that increase less people buying music.

There are many reasons people won't buy as much music, but one of the biggest is that services such as Pandora, Spotify, and MOG don't offer consumers ways to buy the album from their interfaces. Well some do, but it's not efficient, and the Internet consumer needs efficiency or else they just won't buy.

Apple steps in and solves that problem.  From their UI a consumer can purchase the track they are streaming and instantly add it to their library.

That's the competitive difference between Apple and the other streaming companies out there.

They understand that streaming can be a loss leader (at least it should be with what artists are making from this delivery system), and the moment a consumer is listening to a new track is a prime time to get them to drop $1.29 to own that tune. This is business marketing 101, and without a doubt Apple will reap some serious profits from a huge increase in sales from their iTunes store.

If you are an artist it is time to take note and adopt two simple rules. A.) stop bitching about streaming and get your music through an aggregator ASAP; B.) stop bitching about what Apple pays and get onto their service.  This is now the way music is consumed, and if you want fans you need to be where they will be shopping. You can try all your other ways. You can proposition them on Facebook and Twitter, you can send out Email blasts, you can play shows and sell CD's out of your van. None of these will be as efficient as what Apple is giving you.

They will let people listen to your music a number of ways, for free. And if your song is good enough, if it grabs their attention and encourages them to buy, Apple has given them the easiest way to do that. They can just charge their credit card that is attached to their iTunes account. It's like they aren't really spending money. All this happens without you having to do a thing, and it happens across the planet 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The bottom line. You are leaving money on the table if you don't. 

Getting a Cruise Ship Gig.

This week I would like to direct you towards part one in a series I have been writing for Mike Moloney Entertainment's blog.  It is a series on getting jobs on cruise ships.  So enjoy!

Check IT Out Here!

Drumming away the calories

About ten years ago I had visited my doctor for an annual check-up.  Being a guy that has always fought weight issues, he decided to perform a bunch of exams to see how bad my "obesity" was affecting my health. He ordered blood tests, checked my thyroid, blood pressure, heart. You name it, and he checked it to prove just how unhealthy I was.

I returned for a follow-up to hear his prognosis, which I am sure he was looking forward to relaying to me. He flipped through my tests, and with each page turn I watched more confusion hit his eyes.

"OK, Mr. Larochelle. You don't have a thyroid problem, and your blood pressure is perfect, in fact it's better than mine. What are you doing?"

"I drum."

"No that can't be it" He responded as he flipped to the next page "and your cholesterol is lower than mine. How can that be?"

"I'm telling you Doc. I drum an hour every day."

"No, drumming isn't exercise. It can't be you are sitting down" he replied.

"Have you ever drummed before?"

"No"

"Then you don't know how much you move, how much you sweat, how high your heart rate goes" I replied.

Then I showed him what it's like to drum. I started to tap my feat (both of them) and move from left to right as though I was jamming around the kit.

"Do that for an hour every single day and see how good you feel."

"Well, you keep on drumming, because it seems to be working."

Many non-drummers would never guess just how many calories we burn while we bang on the tubs. For giggles I have been wearing a heart rate monitor and calorie counter for my past week of in home practices.  At times my heart rate hit 160% of my resting rate and I burn around 400 calories per hour doing what I love. And a 2008 study by Dr.  Marcus Smith of Chichester University in England proved that I am not the only one.

Smith found that during a performance, [a drummer's] heart averages between 140 and 150 beats a minute, peaking at 190. Levels comparable to other top athletes. But unlike top athletes who compete at this level for an hour three times a week, he found touring drummers are required to perform at these levels for up to two hours every single night. His conclusion after studying drummers such as veteran tub basher Clem Burke of Blondie "a drummer's fitness level needs to be outstanding."

Check out the full article here.

Now, I am not saying you should ditch your regular work-out routines. In fact the more exercise we do in our lives the better chances we will have at a longer healthier existence. What I am saying, is that when combined with your regular exercise regimens, drumming can really help you continue to burn calories. It should also remind us that what we do is a sport and properly warming up, drinking lots of water, and stretching will make our time on the kit that much better and more enjoyable.


*Jeremy is not a doctor. He doesn't even play one on TV. All workouts should be discussed with your health care professional. Even if they don't realize drumming is exercise.

Musicians Stop Using Old School Marketing in a New World.

In his book "Marketing 2.0: Bridging the Gap between Seller and Buyer through Social Media Marketing", Bernie Borges contends that we are at a huge shift in the way we market.  The age old practice of disruption (television commercials, direct mail, cold calling) in which the marketer tries to disrupt the potential customer from what they are doing is being replaced by the ideal of customer engagement. A practice based heavily on the web, and especially social media.

The funny thing is the recording industry and most artists in particular are moving in the opposite direction.

Let me explain what I mean.  Before the recording industry's digital crash, most bands made their namesake by engaging potential consumers of their brand with their music. They got you to go to their concerts, seek them out on the radio, visit the local record shop in search of "their" media, and got you to where their T-shirt like a flag. In essence they were following the marketing concept of customer engagement, and were quite successful in the practice.

Then the change agent of digital technology was introduced. Suddenly anyone could get your music anywhere (for free), but more importantly anyone can record an album with little investment. The question then becomes "how can I market my material with little to no money?". Most take to social media, where it doesn't cost a penny to potentially reach millions. But the majority approach the new medium in a marketing 1.0 mentality. They try to interrupt you. 

Think about it for a second. How many of you get bombarded with artists and bands on Twitter, FaceBook, Linkedin, Tumblr, Instagram, begging us to go check out their page, buy their album, or go to a show?  Most of the time they do this "right out of the gate", they don't even attempt to get to know you, engage you, socialize with you. They just attempt to "interrupt" you and hope you will follow them.

I see this a lot, primarily because I work in the music business. Every day dozens of musicians send me their links, email, and try to connect with me on all of my marketing channels. Now I don't mind, as it is part of my job to find new talent, but the marketer in me is awestruck at how old school many of them are thinking. For example I will get an email from someone through LinkedIn promoting their band who hasn't even viewed my profile. They aren't trying to connect with me, find out what I could and couldn't offer them. Instead they are just trying to disrupt me in hopes that I will give them an opportunity.

Musicians today must realize that we live in a world dominated by a social atmosphere.  You need to adjust your mindset from "what can you do for me" to "what can I do for you" or better yet "what can we do together". In the 60's and 70's music proliferated because of this ideal. The thought of "what can we do together" helped musicians and their fans change the world. And in some way this helped launch the legacy careers of artists that are still touring and recording to this day.

Where in the World Is...?

I admit it. I have neglected my blog, but I have a valid reason. 

In the middle of March I received a call from my former cruise ship agent Mike Moloney, who was looking for someone to help out in his Las Vegas based entertainment company, Mike Moloney Entertainment. So in the process of interviewing with Mike, making another huge life decision, acting on it, moving across the country, and settling in to a new apartment with nothing more than a suitcase, computer, and electronic drum set I have missed out on my writing. But hopefully I am back.

I will admit that my drumming has had to take a back seat to my professional career. I still play, but only in my apartment on my electronic kit with the headphones on. And to be honest, I am all right with that.  For close to a decade I made a living performing, and thanks to the drums I have seen most of the world, met some interesting people, and played some damn good music.

For all of you who read my blog, you know that I regard playing the drums as a spiritual endeavor. Over the years that spirit has been pushed aside and compromised so I could make a living via my craft. Then one day, as I found myself engaged in the usual band politics, I decided that I wanted drumming to be fun again. And that enjoyment was found when I played my kit alone with the headphones on to any song I wanted. So I decided that to keep my passion for drumming, I would have to stop drumming so much.

Eventually I will join another band and go play some music, but for now I am enjoying enjoying drumming once again. No pressure, no compromise, just me playing with whomever I want, be it Miles, Jason Aldean, The Cars, or Taylor Swift. I still read my modern drummer, keep up on drumming news, and interact with my drumming brothers. So the blog shall continue, and hopefully with some great insight that includes my continued passion for drumming, my music business education, graduate studies in marketing, and what I will learn "in the trenches" at a true entrainment company.

Blog to you soon!

Great Drumming on Spotify

I decided that I wanted to pass along some great drumming tracks to my percussionist brethren.   Using Spotify, I have started to develop a list of great drummers and great drumming to share with all of you.

Here is the link to the playlist titled Great Drumming

This first iteration is quite bare and I will be updating it weekly and monthly as I find more great tracks to share with you. My goal isn't to find just the fastest or technically proficient drummers out there, but rather to build a mix of musicians who bring a variety of qualities to the table.

On the first list you will find:

Steve Gadd performing Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover

Buddy Rich performing his infamous West Side Story (Live)

Bernard Purdie with Aretha performing Chain of Fools

Jeff Porcaro performing that nasty groove on Rosanna

Joe Morello performing Take Five

Stewart Copeland performing Message in the Bottle

Tony Williams performing Agitation

And many, many, more.

I would love to hear your comments on who should be added to the list. Once again you can get to it here.

Keep Drumming. 

This Drummer's Album will Inspire You!

When I was accepted to Berklee College of Music way back in 1997, I was both excited and scared at the same time. Excited that I had "made it" into the world's best music school, and scared because I knew that I would be challenged musically beyond anything I had experienced before.

Luckily, my cousin was in his junior year of the institution's Music Production and Engineering program and could provide me with some advice on the Berklee experience. While visiting a local music store, yes they did have those back in the day, he found a CD, handed it to me, and stated "if you want to become a great drummer listen to this.

That CD was Burning for Buddy: A Tribute to the Music of Buddy Rich.

Now before you click out of my page because you are a metal drummer, a rock drummer, a country drummer, or some form of musician other than a jazz player, I want to share something about Burning for Buddy that may change your mind.

It was the production of Rush drummer Neil Peart. You heard me right, Neil "Freakin' Peart".

As it turns out Peart had taken part in the Buddy Rich Memorial Concert series, where he got the chance to swing with Buddy's original big band, but, according to Peart he couldn't cut the gig and wanted a second chance. So he contacted Rich's daughter, Cathy, and asked her about inviting the world's best drummers to play with the big band in a studio setting. This resulted in a killer line-up of the drumming world's best players, many of which, stepping out of their element to perform Buddy inspired tunes with a big band. This is the final line-up and proof that this album isn't just about jazz drummers.

1. "Dancing Men" by Simon Phillips
2. "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" by Dave Weckl
3. "Love for Sale" by Steve Gadd
4. "Beulah Witch"  by Matt Sorum
5. "Nutville" by Steve Smith
6. "Cotton Tail" by Neil Peart
7. "No Jive" by Manu Katche 
8. "Milestones" by Billy Cobham
9. "The Drum Also Waltzes, Pt. 1" by Max Roach
10. "Machine" by Rod Morgenstein
11. "Straight, No Chaser" by Kenny Aronoff
12. "Slow Funk" by Omar Hakim
13. "Shawnee"by Ed Shaughnessy
14. "Drumorello"  by Joe Morello
15. "The Drum Also Waltzes, Pt. 2" by Max Roach
16. "Lingo" by Bill Bruford
17. "Ya Gotta Try"  by Marvin “Smitty” Smith
18. "Pick Up the Pieces" by Steve Ferrone

Many of these drummers were far from the jazz idiom of music. Kenny Aronoff  was the studio go-to cat for such greats as John Mellencamp and Bob Seger; Marvin "Smitty" Smith was the drummer of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno; Steve Ferrone was the drummer for Chaka Kahn and Eric Clapton, and Matt Sorum was the hard hitting drummer for Guns n' Roses during their hugely popular Use Your Illusion I & II releases.

Check out this video where Neil Peart Talks about the quality selection of drummers and material Buddy helped craft for the album. 

This film was part of the "Making of Burning for Buddy" video collection that chronicled the making of the album with live performances of each drummer in the studio with the big band.  And if this album provides the inspiration for you that it did for me, it will be a welcomed addition to your library.  You can get it through Amazon.

Perhaps the greatest part of the video is when Neil Peart Talks about Billy Cobham.  Apparently all the other drummer spent months prepping their songs for the recording, when asked which tune he would perform, Cobham told Peart "whatever is left I will take", causing Neil to joke "OK, I guess Billy takes requests." Even more amazing is that after showing up at the studio and selecting his tune, the legend sight-read Miles Davis' Milestones in one take. 

This is just one of the amazing performances on this album and accompanying video. I encourage all the drummers out there to give this album a good listen.


You can stream this great album through Spotify, and download or buy a physical copy at Amazon. Sorry, it isn't available in the U.S. iTunes store.

And when you wear out Burning for Buddy Volume I, Peart and his band of percussionists gave the drumming community Volume II to check out, which is much more Jazzy. You can get that album only at Amazon.

The Risk Record Labels Take

Steven Knopper of Rolling Stone reported this past week that Lady Gaga will need to undergo hip surgery and will have to cancel the remainder of her Born This Way Ball tour. Gaga and her concert promoter, Live Nation, will have to refund close to $30 million in tickets, and due to doctors orders, most likely, will not see Gaga gross another $161.4 million like her 2012 world tromp.

You can read Knopper's full article here.

If anything, Gaga's tour cancellation proves the huge risk that record companies take on when they sign a new artist to their roster.  There has been a lot of negativity cast on the record companies introduction of the 360 deal, which allows them to take a percentage of the artist's entire revenue stream from record sales to touring, merchandising, and sponsorship income. Truth is, the record executives had to push for this new standard contract because musicians have moved away from selling tangible products such as CDs into offering a service to their fans.

For the record companies, artists, and their management a service based business provides a different set-of risk elements for the brand. The biggest in this instance is the concept of inseparability. Under this theory concert goers expect Lady Gaga and nobody else when they purchase a concert ticket, pay for parking, and buy a beer. And as we are witnessing with the current Gaga situation, once the brand must separate the artist from the equation there is no money to be made.

While I will not go on to justify record companies and the 360 deal, I will cut them some slack. Very few business models take on this level of risk and require the hefty investments they are willing to fork over. To get an artist "off the ground"  a record label will invest hundred of millions of dollars in crafting an album, promoting the artist and their music, establishing a brand presence online, in social media, and in the national market, and then fork over more money to establish a tour, merchandise, another album, etc.

That is a huge investment for any company, and while insurance will probably cover the losses for Gaga it often does not, leaving record companies hanging when their product, the artist, gets sick, injured, or goes AWOL.  I encourage all musicians out there to think about this when the time comes to sign that deal. It will help you respect where the label is coming from and provide you with a more educated bargaining position.

Make the most of an hour of practice.

Let's face it. As drummers, we rarely have the ability to practice for hours on end. So when we are afforded the opportunity to hit those skins, we have to make the most of it. Quite honestly, I would rather practice an hour a day for five to six days a week, than three hours every three days, but hey, that's just me.

So if you have an hour of practice time. How do you make the most of it and still enjoy what your doing?

Well, I found the answer lies in breaking apart your practice routine. This is how I roll (get the pun).


Module 1:
1 Hour of Available Practice (20 minute milestones):

First 20: play along to music that is outside your comfort range. I am a fan of using Spotify, MOG, Slacker, or any other Internet based radio station. I choose a channel, say Jazz, and play along.

Second 20: break out the study materials. You can work on your sight reading, Latin rhythms, independence, or anything else that "challenges" your skill set.

Final 20: free play. You should always have some free time in your practice routine. Again, I go to Spotify, MOG, Slacker, or any other Internet based radio station and jam along to the channel, playlist, tracks, or album of my choice.


Module 2:
1 Hour of Available Practice (more in depth study time):


First 15: play along to music that is outside your comfort range. Same rules as module one, but for only 15 minutes.

Middle 30: break out the study materials. Again, same as module one, but you will be devoting more time, about ten minutes, to more in depth rehearsal that challenges your skills.

Final 15: free play. Remember, you should always have some free time in your practice routine. Again I go to Spotify, MOG, Slacker, or any other Internet based radio station and jam along to the station of my choice.

Module 3:
1 Hour of Available Practice (10 minute style challenge):

This practice routine is designed to challenge your ability to play multiple styles. Again I use Spotify, MOG, Slacker, or any other Internet based radio station, and switch the station every ten minutes. For example: country for ten minutes, jazz for ten, rock for ten, pop for ten, funk for ten, and rap for ten. The goal is to move quickly between channels so you can get used to playing in any style "on the fly".

Feel free to use different modules different days of the week, or even make up your own. I find when you break apart your routine, you can accomplish much more in your practice time and really enjoy what you are doing.  So drum on and let me know how this works for you.

P.S. This works for any instrumentalist, by the way.

Daisy: Direct to (streaming) fans, but not marketed to them.

Two weeks ago Beats Electronics, the company led by Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre., announced they were starting their own music streaming service called Daisy that they will launch later this year. In a related move, Beats also made an undisclosed investment in Topspin, the online business that provides back-end digital services for musicians and labels to facilitate the direct to fan model. You can read the full article here from The LA Times.

This business play was recently the theme of serious discussion on this past week's Hypebot's Upward Spiral podcast (by the way if you are a serious musician, or serious about the music industry, you probably should be listening to this podcast). After listening to the show and reading up on the venture. Only one thought comes to mind.

You can seriously tell that the business side of the music industry is run by musicians, and that isn't necessarily a good thing.

 Let me shed some light on this statement.

One of the biggest problems with most bands, is they don't give a damn about the fan, the person who pays for tickets, music, and merch; who, ultimately, puts food on the table for the artist. If they are a cover band, they normally choose songs they want to play, not what the fan wants to hear, and then they complain that nobody is showing up at their gigs. If the band is an all original unit, it is even worse. Most of the time, these groups refuse to play covers and try to force-feed their fans their own (mostly shitty) material. Then, they too, wonder why nobody shows up at their shows.

Now, before I get a million emails from bands telling me they don't do that, I must say this isn't an absolute truth, but I will guarantee it is well north of 80% of the acts out there.

And now we have Beats, run by a musician, moving into the streaming world. And they put another musician, Trent Reznor, in charge as Chief Creative Officer of the new initiative, whatever that means. No offense to Trent, he is one talented guy, and the founder of the CwF=RtB (connect with fans = reason to buy) model, but will this business venture work out with a musician in charge?

I can already see the problem with Daisy. The whole premise behind Daisy, is that it will give fans the chance to buy merchandise, tickets, and downloads direct from the artist, while they stream their favorite tunes. This doesn't appear to be a need set-fort by fans (consumer led marketing), but rather bands and labels (business to business marketing).

So here we go again. We are going to give the world another streaming service with no value proposition for the fans, but for the artists. So what is going to happen? Chances are Joe Blow the music fan won't give a shit, but Jimmy and His Big Dream Band will try, forcing Joe to change from Spotify to Daisy so he will buy concert tickets, merchandise, and music. They will send Joe emails, Twitter feeds, FaceBook Statuses, anything short of aerial cloud writing, hoping to get Joe to switch over from Spotify or Pandora, listen to their music, and hopefully impulse buy tickets.

Does this really appeal to the fan? The person who is the end consumer of the music industry?

My prediction is Daisy will show up with a big splash. It will appeal to bands and record labels, but not to fans. The service will survive with probably the same amount of users as MOG, which is around 500,000, and that will be it. Fans of music will stick to Spotify, Pandora, and iHeart and those ventures will see increased revenue.

That isn't to say the direct to streaming fan model isn't a great idea. It is so great that eventually Spotify, Pandora, and all the other streaming services will adopt Daisy's model. This will kill Beat's new business units value proposition, but will be awesome for musicians and labels. So at least some good will come of this. And for that I say thanks to Iovine, Dre, and Reznor.

Spotify -VS- Mog

I have been using MOG for a little over a year, and really liked the service. I paid the $10 per month premium fee that allowed me to download as much music as my iPhone could hold and then play it back whenever I wanted, even without an Internet connection. From a financial standpoint, it just made more sense for me to drop $10 per month and get access to hundreds of albums as opposed to buying a single album at $10 or single tracks at $1.99 from iTunes. It's just a better way to explore new music.

Then I noticed that I was the only one on MOG. Many of my fellow employees and friends are on Spotify and had no idea that there was another streaming service out there similar to the market leader. So being a music industry professional I decided to switch over to Spotify and analyze the differences between the two. And here is what I've got so far.

The Similarities:

Both MOG and Spotify have the same amount of music, or fairly close. This is because many artists, labels, and managers use online aggregators to get their music to the market. So, if an album is on MOG, chances are it's on Spotify and vice versa.

They both have multiple tiered account options and are identical in price. In the MOG world you can pay $4.99 per month for unlimited music streaming from your computer and customized radio stations. For $9.99 per month you get all those options plus the ability to download music to your mobile devices to enjoy offline. And when you are on Spotify the options are the same and so are the monthly fees. From a business standpoint there are no competitive differentiations here.

Both services have radio features, customizable playlists, and Facebook integration.

The Differences (and they're not that huge):

MOG has a sexier user interface, especially on their mobile versions. They use less text and more icons to separate user options.

Spotify integrates your playlists across various platforms. As a MOG user, I always hated that my playlist on my computer didn't show up on my iPhone and my iPad. With Spotify, I was psyched to see my playlists update on all devices seamlessly.

MOG has a more customizable radio feature. With MOG you select the artist you want and then click on their "radio" button, from there you move a slider to select only that artist, similar artists, or varying mixes of both. This is much more fun than Spotify, who has you listen to songs and give them a thumbs up or down to customize the playlists.

This is what I have witnessed thus far.  I will continue to use Spotify for now and document the differences between the two services. Right now I am leaning towards Spotify. Even though MOG has a sexier user interface, sharing playlists between devices is huge for me.

2012: Physical Music Sales Aren't Dead, Country Rules, Adele is Still Queen, and UMG Dominates.

Well, it's that time of year again.

The time of year when most Americans are in the gym, at least for a month, because they all made the same New Year's resolution.

That time of year when you have your first heart attack because you haven't been in a gym for eleven months, or because you got that first credit card bill itemizing all of your holiday purchases and the interest you will be paying on them until next Christmas.

And it's that time of year when Nielsen Company & Billboard serve up their Music Industry Report, and we learn once again that physical sales are down, digital sales are up, and the music industry is still in turmoil.

Go ahead and read this year's report here.

Here is what this music business insider surmised after reading this year's report:

1. Physical albums are dying, but they aren't dead just yet.

Here's a big surprise physical album sales fell 12.8% in 2012 continuing the decline of tangible music transactions. But the funny part is that even though this category continues to decline at rapid numbers it still controls the market share. Physical sales were at 198 million units, and of that CD sales were at 193 million, while digital units were at 118 million.  So even though we all think physical music transactions are completely dead. They really aren't.


2. Country is king (or queen).

This isn't your granddaddy's country music anymore. Gone are twangy songs about loosing your dog, your trailer, or your wife. Today's country is closer to pop and classic rock with artists such as Jason Aldean and Taylor Swift boosting the entire genre to new sales heights.

Here's looking at Country's amazing numbers:

Total Album Sales: +4.2%
Digital Album Sales + 37.8%
Digital Track Sales + 12.8%
Taylor Swift: #2 for Top Selling Albums, Top Artists, Top Digital Albums, Top Physical Albums, #3 for Top Internet Albums, and #3 for Top Artist Airplay, and #1 for Top Streamed Artists.

3. Adele's success of 2011 was so massive it boiled over to 2012.

“Adele’s album, 21, is the first album ever to be the top seller of the year for two consecutive years."

Adele released 21 in 2011 and the album's success was so huge that it actually propelled it to top the 2012 sales charts. The new British mum took first place in Top Selling Artists, Albums, Digital Albums, Physical Albums, Internet Albums, and #2 in Top Artist Airplay.

4. The album continues to die.

In the digital world TEA stands for Track Equivalent Album. It takes ten tracks to make one full album. This helped push digital album sales up 14.10% for 2012, however when we factor in physical albums and true digital albums into the mix total album sales fell 4.4% for 2012.

5. Purchasing EMI payed off big for UMG.

With a controlling interest in EMI's assets UMG dominated the market share of the remaining major labels. They beat out their nearest competitor Sony Music Entertainment in all six categories between two and seven percent.