Two blog posts dropped into my inbox this week. One from Elliott Van Buskirk’s Wired blog and one from Gerd Leonhard on Digital Music News. Both posts had a similar headline [in fact it could be argued that Leonard's post was identical to Van Buskirk's which was posted 6 months earlier] – MP3 Blogs Could Be the Next Record Labels.
Here’s why I think that dog won’t hunt. First – music blogs by definition need to be independent and transparent. If they are to remain the frontline in filtering the best music that can be found and they are to be a ‘trusted source’ as I like to call them, then they can not make their beds alongside any record label nor should they make money selling music as Van Buskirk posits. They need to remain editorially pure, if they don’t their traffic along with their authenticity will dry up immediately.
Second – These writers seem to infer that the record label’s will stop being A&R sources. I doubt that will be the case. In the major label’s case there maybe an argument that their A&R activities will change as they are always on the look out for turning a quick buck. Classic A&R methods should never change – it’s about finding, filtering and developing over the long term, great bands and musicians. The independent labels thrive on this. In a phone call earlier this year with Megan Jasper at Sub Pop Records and over a few dinners in Portland with Portia Sabin and Maggie Vail from Kill Rock Stars, as well as over drinks with indie label owners at SXSW I have found that not only are these labels thriving but they have been having their best years ever in terms of sales. The bottom is dropping out of the major label system not the independent record label world. There’s also the argument that bands and artists don’t actually need a record label but that’s another post.
Van Buskirk’s post included five points that he thought would determine why music blogs would benefit by becoming record labels:
1. They have the audience.
2. Fans already think of them as tastemakers.
3. They have lots of experiencing in judging new music.
4. They can submit songs to digital distribution networks such as IODA, The Orchard, IRIS, Tunecore and so on, just like anyone else can.
5. Or, by selling music directly from the blog, they can collect a higher percentage of revenue than would be available through iTunes and other outlets.
It doesn’t wash. 1. Yes they do. 2. Maybe. 3. That’s a real stretch [judging is an odd word btw.] 4. Just as indie labels do today. 5. Ditto. Basically there’s nothing new here and the argument is very weak. It seems that both Van Buskirk and Leonhard are caught up in the buzz around blogs such as Perez Hilton’s and by the cash that’s changing hands for some blogs, cash that’s coming from major labels. The majors are in a panic and will clutch at any straw as a lifeline as their business continues to tank. Music blogs that wish to be taken seriously [and I hope that Pampelmoose is] should stay well away from the feeding frenzy. It will end in tears.
Taking a look at social networking and its influence might be a better way for these two to spend their time – Life On The Edge: Learning From Facebook. And also this from Dave Winer – Why I Say I’m A Blogger.
@ Dave I completely agree with your points. If anyone tries to create a blog surrounding its musical content to help boost sales and cut out the middle man, we will see them end quickly. I would love to see how those independents are making their money …is it directly from their sites, itunes, or are they actually selling more tangible copies than in years past along with the previously mentioned?
April 18th, 2008 at 10:44 am@Dave, cheers for pointing out what SHOULD be obvious to anybody who pays attention to music blogs and the industry for longer than five seconds–but sadly isn’t. I don’t know how these arguments work in the UK, but in America our memory is so stunted that the same old mistakes keep getting made over and over.
Distribution and promotion is the reason music blogs, in my mind, won’t ever become the new record labels. Digital downloads are great. Live shows are also great. It’s bad for bands to have only a single access point. The band who plays constantly but never leaves their geographic comfort zone gets killed in the end. An individual music blog is only one point of access for a band’s music. It’s the old rule of repetition…how many times can you see a band or a single turn up on a variety of music blogs before you get curious enough to click?
The day the major labels start setting up their own version of iTunes featuring the label’s entire catalog, ala carte with exclusive tracks and other perks is the day they start making money again. WarnerTunes, for example…or how about somebody with a lot of money wholesale buys up the rights for IRS, Zoo, Stiff, Factory Records, Chiswick, etc and open up a retro compilation digital label? Heh….KTEL Online for post-punkers.
April 18th, 2008 at 12:08 pmGood points. Gerd’s post makes no sense…”social nets are the new broadcasters”? I see where he is going with that, but it’s not constructive.
It is true, however, that many of the record label’s previous functions have been atomized (especially distribution…TuneCore, CDbaby, Amazon Advantage, Amazon FWS, Redeye, etc).
I will enjoy continuing to watch the disaggregation of all of this. What I like about the new landscape is that enables anyone to jump onto the value chain whereever they want/can add the most value.
I wrote an article on this on the TuneCore blog last week:
http://tunecore.typepad.com/tunecorner/2008/04/musical-freedom.html
Looking forward to picking up yer feed ;-)
Peace,
Ethan
April 18th, 2008 at 6:11 pmOnce there’s money involved, anything pure becomes corrupted. I blog to blog not to flog!
April 22nd, 2008 at 2:22 amCompanies like http://www.dittomusic.com will be more important as they handle the artists back office as well as distributing them, making them chart eligible.
December 18th, 2008 at 4:43 pmSites like CDbaby are more for bedroom artists just looking to get onto itunes.
in this economy…..the diy drum is beating louder than ever.
we are dealing with consumers making 50k + a year not spending a dime on extra stuff. crazy times.
December 19th, 2008 at 12:39 amThe Part of the Tunecore Business Model that Jeff, doesn’t tell you about.
While it is true that Tunecore offers a good service, I read that the FBI is going to start monitoring Tunecores accounting processes.
Why? Isn’t Tunecore a great service?
True on all accounts but why does a musician need to use tunecore to put their music on iTunes anyway. Tunecore doesn’t pay a fee to iTunes…or do they.
Tunecore pays a fee to iTunes, and other online stores to keep the littleman out. Therefore they can charge a fee. This seems innocent right. I’ts only a mere 9.00 per single and 35 to 50.00 per album. That’s where the 7 million in financing went. After doing the math and subtracting all the paypal transfer fees, I am wondering how Tunecore stays in the black. Aahh! The truth is revealed…Now…
This is how they do it..aside from there state of the art automated processes. First you sign up.. they don’t care what type of music you put on and they don’t even check to see if the said music is copyrighted. They do let you check the box saying you agree that selling music that you don’t have permission for is illegal. All goes well and believe it or not in less than 3 weeks all your music is in the stores…Wow!…
You then every 5 minutes, check all the online stores to see if you moved in chart position or sales rank. Then 45 days latter you receive your first 30 dollar royalty check. Wow you are really siked and pumped. Another 45 days goes by and now you receive a 300 dollar royalty check. Wow..
This keeps happening for the next few months till finally you are about to hit the $1000 dollar mark and you do.. You log into your account to initiate the paypal transfer. You type in your email..and wait for the next 24 hours to see your cash…but….2 days go by..6 days go by then 2 weeks go by and no money. You are pissed so you email support and no one answers you. There is no phone number but after calling and the 2 hrs of googleing you find the address of tunecore. You then call the attorney general. The attorney general, connects you to the better business bureau. You get the number.
You call and…Someone answer the phone right away…Wow. You think. They must be busy processing payments. They explain to the rep that you want your money in the kindess tone.. He put you on hold..and then a guy named Tai comes on the phone. He tells you that they aren’t going to pay you..because you don’t have permission to sell your songs that you wrote. And…if you want your money..you need to produce the licenses for your songs. Now you are confused because you wrote all the songs, and registered them with the copyright office. You are indeed pissed, but since you live in California and they are in New York, you can’t strangle them. You yell you scream, but they just laugh. You hang up. Not knowing what to do. You wrote those songs. How can they do this to you you wonder. You call back and try to remain calm. You tell them there must be some mistake. They laugh again and say if you have a problem than go get a lawyer.
You hang up, call and think to yourself, I am going to get me a lawyer.
You find who you think is a good lawyer and you are confident until he says that he charges $500 dollars and hour. Saddend you call around to find a lower priced lawyer but the fees keep getting higher and higher. YOu only made a little over $1000 dollars. If you hire a lawyer you will receive no money because of the fees they charge. You call Tunecore again..This time you keep getting tossed around. Finally you are transferred to a fellow named Peter. He seems like a good guy. You explain the situation to him.. he pulls up your account..He tells you that it is illegal for you to sell unlicensed music. Again you argue that it is your music and it is original. YOu ask for the anme and number of the person who says your are stealing music. He blows you off and says you will need an attorney to get that info. YOu think about the lawyers fees and now in your heart you know that you are fighting a losing battle.
You are so pissed by this time that you asked speak to the Boss. You are than transfered to the CFO, Gian…He says he ain’t gonna pay..You need a lawyer to get your money. You then in the calmest way tell him that it is yours music. And you tell him that you signed up at Tunecore so you want have to deal with lawyers. You thought they were on your side. He then laughs and says, “Buddy, Music isnt about you..It is all about Money and Lawyers.” Almost in tears and barely able to speak you threatened to sue them which is a lie.
He then yells “don’t call here again.” And don’t you threaten my staff. And slams the phone in your face.
****
This is a True story…And this happens to a lot of Tunecore customers.
Tunecore will only steal money from those who cannot afford a lawyer. They know you can’t sue because it is too expensive. A record company won’t sue them because of the lawyer fees as well. So who keeps the money. Tunecore!!! I am writing this to warn you about this practice. It doesn’t matter if you have licenses or not for your songs. If you samples someone, do a cover of a song, you are really not safe. Tunecore is trying lock down the independent artist sector and steal there money because they don’t have lawyers or money for them rather. Tunecore has done this to thousands…and made millions in this shady practice. It is a good service on the outside. But shady on the inside.
The Truth Exposed…
If this has happened to you or you feel your royalties are a bit low for your efforts, feel free to email me tlance28@yahoo.com
We independents are only strong together..We can file a class action law suit and at least get a court order to audit there books.
March 27th, 2009 at 11:57 pmHere’s a response from Jeff Price, TuneCore’s CEO, if you don’t mind a link pointing back to our blog, Pampelmoose:
http://blog.tunecore.com/2009/03/jeff-price-at-the-leadership-music-digital-summit-nashville.html#comments
Thanks!
–Peter
March 28th, 2009 at 6:58 pmpeter@tunecore.com
[...] http://www.pampelmoose.com/2008/04/music-blogs-will-not-be-the-new-record-labels [...]
July 23rd, 2009 at 11:58 amI’ve got nearly $500 in startup capital, but was hoping that since I’ve probably only have one or two chances with $500 to do things right, you’d all point me in the proper direction. Don’t get me wrong, that website is FULL of great information, but individual experience would be a fantastic supplement to the website info.
December 16th, 2009 at 7:27 pm