The Blog

What follows is nothing more than personal opinion.  I don’t claim to have all the answers, and I could be way off base in my assessment of the situation.  I normally don’t start an article off with those two statements, but I believe I’m about to tread in places that will strike a nerve with many who read this.

There is much talk these days about the odds being stacked against the independent musician.  Hell, I’ve been leading the charge on that front (or at least in the front vanguard).  Lately, the discussion seems to focus around two main areas of concern- Spotify and internet radio.  The first is viewed by many (including me) as the great evil of the music world.  The second is much more subtle in its affect on the industry, but merits just as much discussion.  However, there are many aspects of the industry to be looked holistically.  I’m going to take a stab at providing a high level view of these.

I thought it might be appropriate to look at the lifecycle of various aspects of the industry, as they pertain to artist success.  I’ll start with the perfect world of the artist and fan relationship.  If everything is working as designed, that relationship looks something like this:

This is the perfect relationship, where the fan supports the efforts of the musician to produce more music, which in turn causes the fan to purchase more music.  It is the perfect circle of life.  It is self-sustaining, and as long as the music remains of a high quality, this cycle can support the needs of the independent musician.

However, we don’t live in a perfect world.  Fans have a myriad of options available, with Spotify being the most obvious.  People do not have to purchase a physical copy, and rather can build their own version of a radio station, where they are in control of the content being broadcast (streamed).  As we all know, this is not a financially viable source of revenue for the artist, and our cycle looks much different with this method of music listening:

 

In my humble opinion, there is a place for Spotify in the equation, just not the current use.  Artists should look at Spotify as an advertising medium, much like radio.  Instead of making their entire catalog available, share just enough of their catalog to peak the interest of the average listener.  Rotate songs in and out of that limited rotation, in hopes of capturing someone’s attention enough to drive music purchase.  This is not the perfect solution, and it requires a complete rethinking of the way Spotify is used.  To those that (correctly) see no value in streaming services, it would be a tough pill to swallow. But, used correctly, Spotify can become an effective promotional tool.

Likewise, there is the ‘perfect’ cycle for the use of radio as an advertising and promotional tool that looks something like this:

 

Again, in a perfect world, this is how radio influences buying decisions and becomes a primary outlet for the discovery of new music by fans and listeners.  Radio, whether terrestrial or over the internet, is not the primary source of revenue, but rather used by the artist as an advertising tool to garner more sales.  Often times, broadcasters lose sight of this and try to become the sole point of contact between listener and music.  And while this may have been the case in the early days of radio, the artist is much more dependent on music sales in today’s environment. For some fans and listeners, radio will become their sole exposure to music, but the primary focus should be on the medium being used as the point of discovery.  A growing listener base is built on both the quality of programming and music, which benefits all involved.

Another area of the radio world that dilutes the ability of the medium to be an effective promotional tool is the large number of hobby internet radio stations popping up across the world.  In many cases, these stations are not properly paying their way.  Before I go any further, let me make one thing clear- there are precious few licensed internet radio stations that are going to provide any kind of revenue stream to an artist.  Proper licensing is not done to pad the pockets of musicians, but rather as a sign of respect to the artists.  Yes, there are poorly enforced legal implications, but the true test of a station is its willingness to play by the rules and pay its fair (however miniscule) share.  Yes, it can be horribly expensive on a personal level, but if we were to live in an environment of nothing but properly run internet stations, fan bases would increase for those stations, making them an even more viable promotional tool for the artist.

Internet promoters and influencers (like myself in a very small way) also have a responsibility to the artist to drive the sale of music, which looks something like this:

 

This is probably the subtlest of the lifecycles, as the promoter is simply making people aware of music, and if done right, has no skin in the game.  They are playing the role of ‘super fan’ and letting the world know about great music.  Done properly, the influencer is constantly providing ‘teaser’ content to their followers, and much like the radio stations, building their followers through quality content and frequent sharing.  It is easily the least apparent and glamorous part of the business (as I can personally attest), but the role of social media influencer can have great impact on the success of independent musicians.

Lastly, the role of live performance venues plays an important role in the success of indie artists:

 

Honestly, this is an overlooked part of the equation by anyone not tied to the industry.  Often, venues act as if they are doing the artist a favor by allowing them to play, while filling their cash registers with an abundance of food and liquor receipts.  Establishment owners do not recognize (or even care about) the huge financial burden carried by the artist to get to the point of being considered for booking. Many times, the amount paid does not even fall into the range of a fair minimum wage for all involved.  When this happens, the cycle starts to look strikingly familiar to the Spotify cycle:

 

So, there you have it.  One man’s view of the music industry.  I don’t expect to get unanimous praise for my thoughts, but I hope it gives you all something to think about.  There is a world out there that can truly support the independent musician.  It is up to us to determine if that circle of life is something we are willing to commit to.

Yes, I know, this has been a while in coming.  A few in the indie world knew this was coming, and I’ve written and rewritten it a dozen times.  Quite honestly, there is so much to be said on this subject that I briefly considered writing an entire book on the subject.  Instead, I’ll subject you to dribs and drabs over the next few months.  The root of the issue presented here is that the entire music industry needs to change.

The deeper I plunge into the world of independent music, the more I am astounded by the antiquated and absurd rules in place, touted as there to ‘protect’ the artists, when in fact they hinder the artists’ ability to successfully market their music.  The rules exist at many layers, but there are a few that deserve special mention.

The Publishing Rights Organizations.    Here in the United States, these would be ASCAP, BMI and Soundstream ,most notably.  Their stated purpose is to protect the rights of composers and musicians by requiring licensing for public performance or purchase.  On the surface, a very noble endeavor, but as you dig in deeper, you see that the terms of that licensing benefits neither the artist or the consumer.

To give a little history, ASCAP holds the record for the longest running antitrust consent decree in US history.  Dating back to the 1940’s, it sets in place guidelines that no longer pertain to the business as it is designed today.  Over that 70 years, royalties have fallen far behind the pace of inflation, having only been adjusted twice in the span of that time.  It is no wonder that artists receive nothing close to meaningful compensation for the broadcast of their music.

In addition, the PRO’s have put in place ridiculous rules that hinder those trying to showcase music.  BNI requires a station’s website to close when playing music over the internet.  I find it hard to understand how this affects the performance of music.  Is it their position that you cannot multitask while listening to music?  Internet stations are limited in the amount of time they may use and the quantity of music they may play over a period of time.  Internet stations may not take requests and play them immediately, according to the terms of the licensing in place with the PRO’s.  All of this, by the way, is not in place for terrestrial AM and FM stations.  Collusion?  Possibly.  Creation of an environment that creates competitive advantages for some?  More than likely.

And I have yet to talk about the disadvantage of the artist in these scenarios.  In previous articles, I’ve discussed the economics of having your music on services such as Spotify.  For most emerging musicians, the financial results are abysmal.  More on that later.  The proliferation of ‘free’ music has lined the pockets of advertisers and content providers, but done nothing to compensate artists appropriately.  And the PRO’s sit back silent on the subject, while collecting their fees.  Where is the advocacy for the artists they claim to protect?

In short, the PRO’s need to come into line with the 21^st century.  Just because technology allows for the free streaming of music does not make it right (use the movie industry as an example).  We have conditioned the American consumer to believe that access to music at no charge to them is an unalienable right.

The Music Streaming Services.  Here is where I really start losing my mind.  Services like Spotify and iTunes are creating another uncompetitive market, and doing so by throwing around the power of their scale.  Paying pennies on the dollar for downloaded music to the artist, they have created a pricing structure that is financially unfeasible for the artist, and unlikely to be duplicated by new players to the game.

Spotify and iTunes add nothing to the creative or entertainment process, as most radio does.  They are simply huge repositories of music, many times played for free by their customers.  Those they do charge typically pay $10 a month for unlimited music.  Do I need to remind anyone that $10 would not have covered the cost of a single album thirty years ago? And yet, because technology allows it, we have an environment where my cost per album can be a penny or two, depending on my listening habits.  I have access to an exhaustive library of music.  Artists are forced to list their music on these streamers because ‘everyone else does it.’  And for most, it is charity work.

Regardless of an artist’s wish to put their music out for free, iTunes still charges 99 cents for that download.  Let’s examine this for a minute.  The artist is willing to give away the music at no charge, but Apple still feels the need to exact a 100% profit from the consumer, at the same price as it would be if they were paying the artist.  However, ‘paying’ might be a little too strong, as the artist is lucky to get more than a couple of cents from that iTunes download.  The scale of economics is clearly not slanted to compensate the artist for their work, and totally structured for the benefit of the corporate machine.

Fortunately for those of us looking for great new music, the true musicians do not make money the primary concern, and continue to provide us with a vast wealth of incredible music.  However, their willingness to look the other way does not make it right.  The machine needs to change, or more accurately, the current machine needs to be dismantled and replaced with one that benefits both the artist and consumer.  One that allows for the ‘discovery’ of new music, and does so in an environment where the talented artist is able to flourish.  Unfortunately, that day may never come, unless we force the change.  More on that next time.

If nothing else, it’s time for a few updates.  I have been pretty much MIA for the last few weeks, both here and on social media.  I have been personally disappointed with myself for appearing to bail out on the musicians I have come to know and love, and it has frustrated me to no end to think that I was letting folks down.  As I announced almost a month ago, I joined the staff of Music Mafia Radio as an on-air ‘personality’.  It has been many, many years since I’ve been behind a microphone with the intent of entertaining people, and I’m still settling into my new role.  The most entertaining (and frustrating) aspect of this new adventure has been watching myself struggle a bit with the technology.  Entertaining, because technology is what I do, and the stupid mistakes I was making were enough to make me laugh.  Frustrating, because I have run into some technical issues that have impacted the quality of my shows.  The good news is that it all appears to be behind me (fingers crossed) and I can get back into the swing of things.  I took this on with the promise to myself that nothing else I was doing would suffer.  Unfortunately, things did suffer for a couple of weeks, but everything is back on track.  Be prepared for the renewed onslaught of social media posts.  I am back!!

I do need to take time and thank the staff of Music Mafia Radio for the awesome support they have provided me with.  Working with a group of people that I’ve never laid eyes on is something completely new to me, and they have been wonderful in dealing with my somewhat eclectic (okay, maybe not somewhat) personality.  Kim and Rose are doing incredible things with social media and the musicmafiaradio.net website.  And I would be lying if I didn’t admit to a deep admiration of Rick Landstrom.  In addition to being one of the most entertaining people on the internet, his passion and drive to not only take the station, but the entire indie music movement, to the next level is incredible to watch.  I knew going in they were passionate about indie music, but it has been amazing to see that passion behind the scenes in action.  It is a non-stop enthusiasm that is extremely contagious.  Now that I have all of my technical issues behind me, I can’t wait to be able to jump in and do my fair share!

And so, the adventure continues.  I am back out on the trail, looking for even more great music to discover, share, and persuade people to try out.  Now, I have the added pleasure of being able to play some of that great music for the entire world to hear, which brings me to my big ask of the musicians reading this.  Music Mafia Radio is always looking for the best of the best, and many of you reading this fall into that category.  The station currently runs on a ‘submission only’ basis- we only play the artists that have submitted their music.  If you’re interested, head over to musicmafiaradio.net and hit the “Contact” link for information on how to submit your music.  There are some of you I am dying to play on the air!!

Coz

Follow Cozmic Debris on Facebook and Twitter (@DebrisCozmic).  Be sure to tune in to Cozmic Debris every Tuesday and Thursday night at 8:00pm Eastern, exclusively on Music Mafia Radio.  Also, tune into Rick Landstrom every Monday, 8:00pm Eastern, to hear the results of the Musc Mafia Radio Top 30 LIstener’s poll.  Visit www.musicmafiaradio.net to hear the show and learn more about Music Mafia Radio. 

 

When I started on the musical adventure that is Cozmic Debris, I was ill prepared for what the journey would entail.  The time commitment is, at times, daunting and the very high expectations I’ve set for myself have frequently seemed unattainable.  However, the blessings have far outweighed the nuisances.  I’ve come to not only love the indie music scene, but I’ve made many connections that are blossoming into true friendships.  I’ve become obsessed with sharing every last bit of great music I can find, whether it be through social media or here on the blog.  In short, I’ve become a huge indie music addict!

For the last month or so, I hit one of those plateaus that are to be expected in an endeavor like this.  Growth occurs in spurts, and in between are flat periods of little or no growth.  Those times can be discouraging, and during a few of those periods in the past, I quite honestly found myself questioning my own effectiveness in doing the best possible job of bringing indie music to the forefront.  Obviously, I never threw in the towel, as I’m probably doing more at this point in time than any other point in this project.  I survived them all and grew stronger because of them.

This current time of flatness has taken on a much different form.  I’ve spent the time looking at what I’m currently doing and trying to figure out what I can add to the mix to take Cozmic Debris to the next level.  What could I do to bring even more visibility to the great and amazing talent that surrounds us?  All I had to do was reach out to one of those previously mentioned connections/friendships and ask a single question to find the answer, which leads to the announcement I have to make.

Earlier today, I officially joined the staff of Music Mafia Radio.  There’s still a lot of work to figure out exactly what that is going to look like, but we have it on a fast track to make it happen quickly.  I’ve committed to do some programming, and it only makes sense for me to help with their social media exposure (after all, that’s what I do).  I am excited beyond words at the opportunity, which is balanced by the anxiety and nerves associated with getting behind the microphone and doing live programming.  In my head, I know exactly what I want it to be, but the next week or so will be dedicated to shaking off more than a few years of rust.

For those not familiar with Music Mafia Radio, it is one of the most entertaining internet radio stations/podcasts out there that are exclusively indie, hosted on spreaker.com.  On top of that, the format includes all styles and genres of music, much like Cozmic Debris.  But most important to me is that the station has personality.  It is not one of those mindless automated playlist ‘stations’ that litter the internet, and it is not just someone simply announcing songs and then playing them (lather, rinse, repeat).  Instead, the approach of owner/personality Rick Landstrom is to recreate what I call the Golden Age of FM radio(1970-86), where the content between songs was as entertaining as the music itself.  However, the focus of every show is the music itself, and the support given to the artists in their catalog is a delight to watch.  They heavily promote artists, both on social media and their webpage musicmafiaradio.net.   The mainstays of their programming are their weekly Top 30 fan poll countdown and a series of artist interviews that allow musicians a great forum to discuss their music and give fans an insight into the world of the independent musician.  Both shows are wildly popular with fans and artists alike.

Broadcasting on Spreaker also gives them the unique ability to have an active group chat going on during their shows.  This chat provides yet another avenue for fans to interact with musicians, as it is common for both to be present on any given night.  I’ve personally witnessed artists planning collaborative works in the chat.  It adds an entirely new aspect to the ‘radio’ experience, one that is creating a true community of fans and artists.  And it is this sense of community, along with the pure entertainment value of the shows themselves, that made my decision to join the team a no-brainer.

Helping to grow the station is my number one priority.  Providing additional airtime throughout the week devoted to playing more indie artists is also right at the top of the list.  This is a pretty big jump for me, but it’s one leap of faith that I believe is an important next step in the evolution of Cozmic Debris.  Prayers that I don’t fall flat on my face are greatly appreciated.

I’ll share more details here as they become available.  Now it’s time to hit the studio and brush up just a little.  At least I don’t have to deal with splicing tape this time around!

For more information about Music Mafia Radio, visit musicmafiaradio.net.  The weekly Top 30 Countdown airs live Monday nights at 8:00pm Eastern Time on spreaker.com.