Since about the turn of the millenium, there has been a huge sales slump in record sales. Sales keep getting worse and worse and it doesn't seem like the sales of records are going to rebound any time in the forseeable future. Mostly this seems to be because people can get music for free even if they do it illegally. So the big question in the music industry is how to monetize music now that people expect it to be free. Many like Bob Lefsetz say that when the record companies attack people for free downloading, they are only hurting themselves because the consumer has already made the decision that music should be free and record companies should be thinking of ways to monetize free music. Many in the music industry see record companies and physical products (CDs) completely dying out in the very near future. They predict that music could become a utility, like water where you pay a flat rate and get whatever you want. That's all well and good and it may well be true, which to me kind of sucks. But I have a question: does no one really value music anymore? Do you really think music is worth nothing? I personally love having CDs both because I feel like I'm supporting the artists I like (even if they don't get a lot of money from it, album sales figures can be a form of support) and because I feel like I own something tangible. When you download a file, do you really have anything? If your hard drive gets wiped out, all your files are gone, but if you have a CD it's easy to just rip it again. I mean if there are no more CDs then will there really be any incentive for artists to create good, artistic work, or will the market become even more throwaway, catchy single-driven than it is now? Albums are good because they are works of art. If all people make are files, what's the incentive to make something worthwhile? Integrity maybe. But the people who have integrity will be pushed aside by the people with the latest "Crank That" that comes out and people who have spent time and effort making real music will just be left with a bunch of debt and rage at a system that has rendered them obsolete. I'm not saying that there will be no way for good artists to exist without CDs, but I just don't know how they will do it. I'm sure someone will find a way. Hell, before the invention of the album, all people made were singles - and there were talented stars like Jimmie Rodgers, The Carte Family, Hank Williams, and Robert Johnson. But few of these were really ever huge stars and it was pop acts who dominated the charts as they always have. So I guess good music will just have to remain on the periphery, which is kind of sad because I wish everyone could enjoy good music, but if people don't want to I guess there's nothing I can do to stop them. Maybe the industry will find a way to go on without having records to sell, but as of now I'm not too excited about the prospects. To me there's no better feeling than going out and buying a new record and listening to it, but apparently I'm greatly in the minority with that opinion. What do you think about music? I have a poll to see what some people think. Leave comments if you want to tell me anything insightful.
If you value music, please buy records.
Oh and Kathryn, I was thinking about what you said about The Killers not being able to do justice to the Dire Straits "Romeo and Juliet," and I've realized it's a silly thing for you to have said. I think it's pretty easy to do justice to a Dire Straits song. Mark Knopfler is an amazing songwriter and guitarist and an interesting singer in his own way, but if you get someone who can really sing beautifully, they could do a lot of justice to that song. Brandon Flowers, however, kind of gets stuck trying to sing like Knopfler, so it's not amazing, but it's still great to listen to. It's not better than the original, but it's still really enjoyable.
Hugz 'n' kissiz,
Sean
3 comments:
I think it sucks that people don't want to pay for CDs, but I don't think it means people don't value music, or that buying files means music isn't worthwhile.
What you're suggesting is that the value in the music is tied to the album it's placed on, which is totally not the case. Before recording music was possible music had value, and after the era of recording music on CDs, records, cassettes, etc. music will have value.
Well I really did mean music as a physical product is what people don't value. I think that people value the actual music, or at least some people that don't value the product still value the music, but it's a slippery slope because if you're not willing to pay for music then it has less value to you than it does to someone who will pay for it. Maybe people like me who still pay for it are dumb, but there's no denying that I value music more than most people. So I'm kind of scared that maybe not valuing physical product could lead to music itself being worth less, because if music isn't making money as physical product it's only going to make money in other ways like on TV, ringtones, that kind of thing where having "good" music isn't as important as having catchy music. And although catchy music can be good, it doesn't have to be. So it's not worth investing extra money to make some thing catchy good, if all you need is something catchy. I realize that people that don't pay for music still value it, otherwise they wouldn't take the time to download it. I'm just saying it could have negative impacts. And I think good music will always be made, the question is, if there's no industry to support it, how many people are going to hear it? I think if people valued music more they'd still be willing to pay for it. And it's not like people value music less than they used to; it's just harder to turn that value into money, which hurts the industry as a whole. But I do agree that good music will always be there and be valued, the question is will people be able to make enough money making music to have a musical career? Probably, but it will be in completely different ways. Basically, the industry in flux and I'm just anxious to see where it goes. I'm sad to see physical product die because I think an album is a greater work of art than just a set of songs. But who knows, maybe something even better will come about...
I think you go about supporting the industry you want to work for the wrong way. Just stop buying all the records you possibly can. Trick them into wanting you.
See, I want to work for an oil company, but I can count the number of times I've bought gas for a car over the past 4 years on 2 hands. And hopefully oil will support me not only in my career, but also throughout grad school.
You just need to learn to play coy.
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