Much as i love music, the industry that provides the music pretty much sucks (so thinks i). So what suggestions do you have to improve things in the music biz, to make it better all the way around?


My first suggestion- lower cd prices. Cd's from brand new artists should be approx $6-7. No single disc domestic cd should exceed $9 after taxes.

Download stuff for free

DO NOT BUY ANYTHING EVER again...
the sooner the money is OUT of music making the sooner it will become about real music & not pretentious stylistic Horse umm.. Poop... Hobbyists creating & performing for the LOVE of music....
sound rediculous... ??
it was how computyer software (especially games) began..

Kinda "Hey look what I made!"

Dont forget the machines back then werent capable off running todays high end graphics stuff..
so they were primitive because they HAD to be..


Greed & money corrupt most everything they touch...
Its time to prove it...no???

On this issue Brucy and I are almost 100% in agreement.

Almost.

I'd hate to admit this, but I am in agreeance with what Brucy said.

Artistic integrity seems to be a thing of the past anymore. With your Britney Spearses and JLos and Vomitocious Boy Bands and Cookie Cutter like, angst filled wannabe grunge rockers, it seems like music just isn't very enjoyable anymore, and apparently it's all about the Benjamins. Really.
And the outrageous and stupid behavior these so called musicians exhibit only sell more albums, influence fashion in such a way that it totally makes me sick (this had better clear up before my kids are teenagers, okay?) and become richer off of influencing today's youth in the worst possible way...they don't deserve the oodles of cash and recognition that they get. They deserve to have their faces shoved in the bowls of an oozingly disgusting toilet that hasn't been scrubbed since the Great Depression...and flushed. Seriously, they all could use a swirly.

quote:

---

Originally posted by Voodoo Economics:
Download stuff for free

DO NOT BUY ANYTHING EVER again...
the sooner the money is OUT of music making the sooner it will become about real music & not pretentious stylistic Horse umm.. Poop... Hobbyists creating & performing for the LOVE of music....
sound rediculous... ??
it was how computyer software (especially games) began..

Kinda "Hey look what I made!"

Dont forget the machines back then werent capable off running todays high end graphics stuff..
so they were primitive because they HAD to be..


Greed & money corrupt most everything they touch...
Its time to prove it...no???

---

I agree that music should be available for download, but i believe there's gotta be a fee for the music, musicians gotta make a living too and be able to make a living as creative & performing musicians with the right to make a profit. If there's not a charge for downloads, then lower the cost of the cd's to half the price they are now or less. Just make sure the cd profits gets fairly divided- which may be the hardest part here to actualize. If there is a charge for certain dowloads or subscribing to a site for downloads or whatever, then lower the cd cost even more for those artists who charge. There's always gonna be a crowd (me among them) who want cd's & any & all bonuses that come with them, and there will always be someone to sell that to them. It's just making sure the seller is honest & doesn't take the big profits for themselves & selling at a reasonable price & not selling a cd of crap (dream on, eh?).

Take the greed outta music- i agree 1000%. Taking the money outta music won't end the greed- ending and changing the hold of the major and many minor labels on the money probably will. Artist communities such as Cd.baby.com have had an impact on many local & regional artists as well as groups & singers who just can't make the sales in a music world ruled by Clear Channel (they who have strangled radio with crap music & have a big say in the greedy rise of concert ticket prices). Who needs greedy record companies to manufacture & market cd's & artists when artists can do that themselves on the net via their own websites, through places like cd.baby & through hundreds of cool & kind indie labels that are all about real music (ie Not Lame Records, Double Crown Records, JAM Records, Bomp Records, SFTRI Records, Kill All Rock Stars Records, etc etc). Real music artists can band togather against the likes of Sony/BMG. Real music labels can get their product in online music shoppes and in real life indie record stores- to hell with walmart/kmart/target if they don't like that!

The thing that record companies maybe did well at one time was that some labels had good artists & repertoire reps who knew how to handle the artists & work with them. Maybe that was when the radio had a better & bigger impact on the music scene and music trends, before Clear Channel and MTV ruined real music on the radio (imo). Nowadays it seems there are far far too many one-hit wonders and flash-in-the-pan bands. Where are those good A&R reps- probably driven out cuz today's music industry seems to promote making a fast buck & not caring about the future of the artists. Why are there fewer new bands not breaking up after a couple years or so anymore? Why do so many cd's have so fewer good songs? And why is so much real music not being heard (and there is plenty plenty of real music out there for all tastes) and not being promoted while airheads & strip tease artists like Boobney Spears, Christina Aguamaleria, Hilary Duff Beer etc get all the attention & airplay? Sounds like payola & Clear Channel & cokeheads at Sony/BMG to me.

See, now I agree with a lot of what xc says, too.

Cheaper concert tickets. As in days of yore. No more Clear Channels or Ticketmasters running most the game. No more ridulous surcharges & fees & odd taxes tossed onto the ticket price. Can't corporate sponsership bring down ticket costs? Maybe more multi-artist festivals to bring prices down. Or maybe more of the cd profits should go towards promoting the artist in live shows. Not sure what ticket prices are like outside the US but $100 for a nosebleed seat at a Clapton show- no thanks.

Improve radio. Don't allow groups or corporations to own more than two radio stations in a 500 mile radius. Ha, that'd kill the evil Clear Channel overnight. No more playlists = no more payola. Why is radio using playlists when there are no more 45's, cassette singles or cd singles (or very few cd singles)? Why is Billboard even keeping track of times a song is played anymore? Allow dj's to play songs from all genres at anytime. Free form FM, like it was supposed to be. Not saying getting rid of format radio if ppl do not like hearing a variety of genres but they should offer the many genre mix free form style & let the hundreds & thousands of artists get airplay who never do. Any song can be number one if played over & over & over again. Radio's not about selling music anyway, it's about advertising. So if ppl hear a lot of good songs they like instead of a dozen or so, that should draw more ppl in & satisfy the advertisers. Ya think?