The State of the Current Music Industry: An Evolving Landscape
Introduction:
The music industry has witnessed monumental shifts in recent years, transforming itself into a dynamic and ever-changing landscape. With technological advancements and the rise of digital platforms, the way we discover, consume, and create music has been fundamentally altered. In this blog post, we will explore the current state of the music industry, highlighting both the opportunities and challenges that artists and stakeholders face today.
1. Streaming Revolution:
One of the most significant transformations in the music industry is the rise of streaming platforms. Services like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube have revolutionized the way we listen to music. Streaming has not only made music more accessible to consumers, but it has also created new revenue streams for artists. However, the shift from physical sales to streaming has also brought its own set of challenges, including fair compensation for artists and the impact on album sales and physical formats.
2. Independent Artists and the Democratization of Music:
The advent of digital platforms has democratized the music industry, allowing independent artists to have a global reach and directly engage with their audiences. Through social media, YouTube, and streaming platforms, talented artists can now build dedicated fan bases without relying on major record labels or traditional gatekeepers. This newfound accessibility has empowered artists to take creative control and navigate their careers on their own terms.
3. Industry Adaptation and the Power of Data:
To adapt to the digital era, record labels, managers, and industry professionals have become more data-driven. The ability to analyze consumer behavior and trends has become paramount in making informed decisions about signings, marketing strategies, and tour planning. Embracing data analytics helps stakeholders identify emerging artists, understand audience preferences, and tailor music recommendations, ultimately enhancing the listener's experience.
4. Decline of Physical Sales:
While physical sales still hold sentimental value for many, their decline is undeniable. The consumption habits of music lovers have shifted towards digital platforms and streaming. This decline has had both positive and negative effects on the industry. On one hand, it threatens brick-and-mortar retailers and album artwork and liner notes. On the other hand, it has encouraged artists to focus more on touring, merchandise sales, and innovative limited edition physical releases.
5. Copyright and Royalty Issues:
The digital age has posed challenges in terms of copyright infringement and fair distribution of royalties. Artists continue to fight for fair compensation, as streaming royalties often depend on a complex formula. Artists, songwriters, and producers are advocating for changes to ensure a more equitable financial landscape, where creators receive their fair share for their work.
Conclusion:
The music industry is experiencing a transformative phase, characterized by rapid technological changes, shifts in consumer behaviors, and opportunities for independent artists. It's a time of great possibility, but also one that demands adaptation and resilience. As consumers, we have endless musical choices at our fingertips, and artists have more agency and opportunities to reach their audiences than ever before. While challenges remain, the current state of the music industry offers exciting prospects for the future of music creation, distribution, and accessibility.
Final Speaker, Final Tweaks.
It’s not often you get to meet your idol!
When we asked our students for a list of their favorite bands, one band name appeared more than any other.... @piercetheveil !
Thank you @piercethevic for sharing your story and making it a memorable evening!
We are back! Rehearsing and Recording.
It’s great to to back! Only a couple weeks left of our inaugural program. Closing this one out with a bang!
SAME PROGRAM, NEW LOCATION!!!
We are so excited to announce that our program is back up and running! First day of class is Friday, March 12th at Queen Bee’s Art and Cultural Center. We can’t thank them enough for hosting us. Let’s go!!!!
Student Spotlight
Wishing everyone safety and health through these difficult times. We can’t wait to get back into the classroom to finish what we started.... until then, we’ll start of our #studentspotlight with our wonderful singer Jada!
Name: Jada Singelton
Age: 17
Instrument: Voice
Favorite Artists: Beyoncé , Kehlani , Jazmine Sullivan
Reason for joining MMI: I joined MMI to gain more knowledge of what it takes to be a great singer, what challenges that may occur during my singing career and I also wanted to try something new by being the only lead singer. I need help on performance , so this opportunity could give me more experience.
Happy Holidays
Wishing you and your families a safe and happy holiday season!
Class Postponed Until Further Notice
The safety of our student’s , staff, and their families is of the upmost importance to us at MMI. Unfortunately, due to the recent spike in Covid-19 cases and in compliance with the Governor Newsom’s orders, we have decided to postpone class until further notice. Thank you to all our amazing students for understanding. We will remain in touch and come back better than ever!
Live performance & Stage Presence
“No matter where life takes me, find me with a smile” - Mac Miller
Today in class we solidified the structure of our Hip-Hop track and began the preparing for our live performance! We are really coming together as a band and everyone is beginning to find their place.
We discussed everything from setting up equipment, tuning instruments and the essentials of stage presence.
Find what makes you unique and lean into it.
Take up lots of space
Cut the silence from your shows
Chose your outfit and look the part
Involve the crowd.
Break character…subtly.
Do your research.
Record your performances.
Understand what your audience is looking for.
Practice, practice, practice.
Referenced from Dylan Roth
Drive For Five
Welcome back!!!
Today is giving Tuesday and the launch of our fundraising campaign DRIVE FOR FIVE.
Class started with students and teachers chatting up about the mountains of food we ate on Thanksgiving. The band then hopped onto their instruments and brushed up on our original song “Fake Love”.
After a couple run through’s of the song, we moved into the studio to hear a beat from our production student, @preciouslandd. After a listen through, the students decided that his beat is the building block for the second song.
We spent the remainder of the day disassembling Precious’s session track by track and learned about production effects EQ, reverb and delay.
Thanksgiving Break
We are wishing all of our students, staff, and their families a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!!!!
Looking forward to seeing everyone next week.
Here’s a clip of our first guest speaker, Bonnie McIntosh speaking to out students back in week 2.
Reese Hilburn: Social Media Marketing and Branding
A HUGE THANK YOU to last night’s wildly talented guest speaker @theartofreese !!!!!
Reese is an extremely successful tattoo artists, social media coach and business owner. She began her professional career as an accountant, but at the age of 22, decided to leave corporate American and pursue a career in tattooing.
Reese spoke on the importance of following your passion, working hard, surrounding yourself with like minded people, and presented in depth ideas on how to grow a presence on social media!
After some Q & A with Reese, our students set up to perform our original song “Fake Love”. While students were setting up, our singer Jada recording her scratch vocal track to the recorded version of the song.
With song 1 solidified, it was time to check out some ideas that students had for song number two…..our Hip Hop track!
Recording and Production Techniques
We had a great class last night! The evening was spent the majority of class hashing out the chorus and finalizing the structure of our original song “Fake Love”.
The audio engineering students separated for the second half of the class to work on some production techniques with our Production teacher Scott Goldberg.
Below you can see our Program Director, Kevin Childs, talking our guitarists through the chords of “Fake Love”.
Looking forward to a special guest speaker this Thursday!
Bob Bradley: Public Relations and Licensing
Thursday night’s class was a memorable one, featuring author of the book ‘Public Relations for Musicians’ ... @mrbobbradley !!!
On top of his PR and Marketing work, Bob owns the publishing catalog Gas Can Music, which is a collection of hundreds of tracks in multiple genres including rock, indie and hip-hop. Since 2011, the music has been licensed across multiple channels in film, TV, video games and web platforms.
Bob spoke on the importance of networking, building relationships, engaging with your community, and keeping a positive image for your brand.
After Bob’s lesson, teachers and students finalized the structure for our first song. The structure we decided on is the most popular structure in pop music today……. Verse-Chorus-Verse-Chorus-Bridge-Chorus.
Bonnie McIntosh: Touring
What an evening last night! We were fortunate enough to hear from the very talented, very eloquent @bonstarr !!
Bonnie is a classically trained pianist turned touring keyboardist. She's achieved the pinnacle of success for any touring musician, playing alongside superstars such as Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, and Melanie Martinez at venues like Madison Square Garden, Staples Center, and Saturday Night Live.
Bonnie touched on the trials and tribulations of climbing the ranks in the music industry, being strong willed and persistent, and the importance of mental health.
Songwriting 101
In today’s class, we discussed songwriting and song structure. After looking into different genres, Student’s had a chance to pitch their own musical ideas and collectively came to a decision to move forward with one R&B song and a hip hip song.
Our singer, @jada_singz came in hot with a great melody in which we arranged some chords to fit. After passing through the verse a couple times we moved into the the recording studio where @squeedabeats broke down the tracks in one of his songs.
Parts of a Song
Intro
This is self-explanatory — the intro is the introduction to the song. And it’s one of the most important parts.
About 35% of listeners will skip a song within the first 30 seconds and nearly half of listeners skip a song before it’s over. That’s why your intro has to grab the listener’s ear and hold onto it.
Think of the intro as a first impression — a handshake and a hello. First impressions can stick for a long time and make or break a relationship.
Verse
Verses give the listener an idea of what the song is about. The lyrics should support the main idea (chorus) while also moving the song forward. This is where the bulk of your story telling takes place. The verse is your time to dip deep, get creative, and be smart with the words and melody that you chose.
Pre-Chorus
The pre-chorus (aka the lift) is kind of like a “get ready for it!” before the chorus. It can help build anticipation, either by increasing the volume or rhythm or by pulling back and creating tension with silence. It, like the chorus, may repeat the same melody or lyrics, often ending with an unresolved melody.
Chorus
The chorus should convey the main idea of the song with the most memorable melody of the song. It usually repeats itself melodically, musically, and/or lyrically — this method is sometimes called the hook, which some people use synonymously with chorus.
The chorus is what the listener is waiting for — it should be the best part of the song. If you don’t get the listener by the chorus, then you don’t get the listener at all.
Bridge
A bridge helps break up the repetitiveness of a song and add an element of surprise. It should present a new angle to the main idea. It’s kind of like a rogue verse with different chords, rhythm, and melody. Depending on your song, this is where some sort of resolution occurs in your story.
Break
A break is usually an instrumental break that allows for some breathing room. It can also help build anticipation and transition to a completely new part of the song or into another song.
Outro
Like the intro, an outro is self-explanatory — it’s the end of the song. It closes the song out, whether it’s with an instrumental part, a tag, or a brand new part.
Welcome to MMI
Day 1 of #mobilemusicinstitute is in the books! Release forms have been collected and are rolling! Today, students sat in a circle and answered two simple questions;
Who are you? Why are you here?
After some inspiring answers, we got on our instruments and played through a cover of “Sunflower” by @postmalone.
Students were given a homework assignment to show up on Thursday with any sort of musical idea.
Can’t wait to see what’s ahead! We have some very talented guest speakers coming to the MMI classroom next week.....stay tuned!
San Diego Orientation
Launching our first program in San Diego has been a challenge during these turbulent times, BUT WE DID IT!!!
Thanks to all the hard work of so many people and in conjunction with talented students from Hoover High School, our pilot program is off and running. We look forward to sharing the development of students through a video series as we make an impact in the music industry! Watch with us as we begin our journey.
