Managing the ART of Free Music

Recently, T-Pain released his free mix-tape Stoic, with 22 tracks of new music for his fans with features from artists such as Pitbull, Travie McCoy and others, which represents a strong return to the music scene for him.  What makes this return most notable, is that it comes by the way of a free mix-tape, which can be listened to in full on sites like HipHopDX or downloaded, for free from sites such as Livemixtapes.com.

Back in August, the topic of how digital media is impacting the music industry was covered in my post Music and the Digital Movement, and the discussion around how artists revenue is affected by utilizing digital distribution in favor of cd or album sales.  In follow up to this, the release of free music by well-known artists such as T-Pain brings the new movement into greater focus and causes us to examine how the artist can be benefit from this activity.  Obviously, there is no front-end revenue to be made, so why do it?

This topic was also covered one of my favorite sites, Music Think Tank, where the article Why You Should Give Your Music Away for Free, describes how the advent of digital music is devastating legacy and traditional record labels.  It explores services such as Spotify, my personal favorite, which provide an “all you can consume” for one subscription price model.  Not only does it allow users to access all of their favorite music and create playlists, which can actually consist of entire albums, they can also share their activity on Facebook with friends and share music.  Obviously, users are not going to continue to purchase individual CDs when they can gain unlimited access to music via this type of service.  For consumers this creates a winning solution, especially for proclaimed music lovers and for independent artists, it’s much easier to get music placed on these services.  The downside would be the payout is much less than the artist would make through pay-per services such as iTunes or Amazon, but this again confirms why artists must seek to be diverse in their revenue streams and not rely solely on music sales.  As we’ve also discussed, live performances and the merchandising that corresponds should not be underestimated in terms of relevant income. 

As the digital music landscape continues to progress and evolve, it will be increasingly more important for artists to re-think the traditional way of doing business and operate a bit outside of the box.  In a time when most consumers get their music either through subscription service or through pirated sources, why not just let the fans have the music they love for free.  Also, it can provide the artist an opportunity to test the market and see how their music is performing from a consumer perspective and utilize this knowledge to guide their future projects. 

Giving away music for free, while not profitable up front, can certainly provide artists greater insight into the tastes of their fans and overall consumers and help them make more strategic decisions for music products they plan to charge for. 

These are just my thoughts and I’m anxious to hear yours.  Until then, do you and creatively mind your business.

The ART of Protecting Your Brand

Several days ago, Nelly’s tour bus was delayed in Texas by a search for drugs by local officials.  While this report alone is disturbing because we really don’t believe the hype, but also because we have to question if everything is as the media reports it.  Once the story is told, whether it is right or wrong, how does the story impact the artists’ reputation?

Source:  www.growmap.com

According to an article at LATimes.com, there have been a number of well-known artists like Fiona Apple, Snoop Dogg and Willie Nelson, who have experienced similar issues in Sierra Blanca, Texas. Ironically, according to The Hollywood Reporter, this specific area is so heavily monitored because the goal is to prevent illegal aliens from crossing the boarder near El Paso. While Nelly was not arrested, the investigation revealed that someone close to him confessed to bringing the drugs onto the tour bus and sadly it was someone who Nelly later reported as someone who had been working on his team for a long time.  He indicated on Twitter that while he was sad about the outcome and the impact on this person’s life, that he was also extremely upset that someone close to him would cause him harm and jeopardize their safety.  It is understandable that this incident and the resulting negative press would be a cause for concern by the artist who up to this point, has not had a career troubled with legal issues.

Reading the reports of this reminded me of the important lessons we keep learning about building and protecting our brand.  First, by making sure we have the best product we can offer fans and supporters of our artistic endeavors, then securing good management and consulting so that we make good business decisions as it relates to our creative offerings.  Also important is our social media and marketing and making sure that we have control over the images and marketing that make it out into the universe.  Last, we have to examine a place that hits closer to home, as in Nelly’s situation.  As artists, it can be difficult as we make the transition from seedling artist, to developing even a local buzz, to analyze those closest to us.  Especially, if we elect to hire friends or family members to provide support to us in any professional capacity, we have to be certain that they can be a public extension of us without negative impact. 

As artists sometimes we might find it hard to make sure that the team we surround ourselves with is comprised of individuals we can trust and have our best interests at heart and are not trying to further their own careers with no concern for how we will be impacted.  It is imperative that we make sure to protect our brand, at all costs because it really is the outward representation of our most beautiful, creative, artistic selves.  And that is worth guarding with our lives. 

Those are my thoughts and I’d love to hear yours.  Until then, do you and creatively mind your business.

The ART of Merch – Merchandising in the Digital Age

Last week I was one of the fortunate who had an opportunity to be present for one of the eight highly anticipated and well publicized Jay-Z concerts at the new Barclays Center.  First, let me say the moment was truly historic and magical for everyone in attendance to know that we were in the middle of a once-in-a lifetime experience.  Of course, Jay Z has performed before and will perform again, but not like this.  So how would concertgoers commemorate the occasion and freeze this wonderful moment in time?  By purchasing as much merchandise as possible from the Barclay center merchandise store.  It was highly recommended that we make our purchases prior to the beginning of the show because waiting until after would result in extremely long lines and ultimately the worst fate of all, going home empty-handed.  It was interesting to me that for such a wonderfully architected, state of the art building, concertgoers were still expected to stand in line to secure the much-desired commemorative items marking this significant event.

Source:  www.merchdoneright.com

In this advanced digital age, why hasn’t the merchandise industry kept up?  If fans are able to obtain music and video content of their favorite artists from digital sources, we have to wonder why the merchandising segment has not advanced offerings and availability.  An article that I read recently regarding Modernizing the Merchandise Madness on Hybebot, suggests that artists expand merchandise distribution to include digital elements, which could not only improve fan experience, but also increase earning potential.  In the case of the Jay Z concert, imagine the possibility of being able to place an order using an iPhone or Android or other device available at the seats.  Additionally the article suggests that rather than taking the merchandise home from the venue, it could be delivered later to the concertgoers’ home.  In my case, that would have been ideal, because I don’t live in NY, so I had to travel home to Atlanta with my newly obtained swag.  There is also the possibility of packaging something tangible with a digital item as an option, which would help revolutionize the way the business currently views and handles merchandise. 

The article directs readers’ attention to a new company called Merluv.com that proposes that it can revolutionize the way artists distribute merchandise to their fans through the use of music streaming services, sites and applications.  With so much revenue to be gained in the merchandising market, it is one that cannot be neglected by artists, since it can make a significant difference in what an artist makes financially and how they reach out and make that connection with their fans.  When we have those special moments of connection with our favorite artists, we want a way to hold that moment in time.  It’s important to make sure its done in a way that makes the best of that moment.

These are just my thoughts, but I would really love to hear yours.  Until then do you and creatively mind your business.