“Thanks
to the Internet, musicians and singers now have more control over their own
fates.”
The Internet has made such a drastic change within the world
as well as the Music Industry as we know it. Years ago the music industry had a
different scene. It relied on CD sales, The Charts and radio stations. People
even bought CDs and cassette tapes to parties then too. Today, all of that has
changed. The progress in technology has decreased the need of hard copies of
music in the music industry. The demand of digital mp3 moved the requirement to
own CDs out of the way.
Though satellite
and digital technology is rapidly growing, live radio shows on the air are
still important as they were in the 1950s. When it comes to news and vital
information listeners take heed to it in their vehicles. Now there is Internet
radio stations that give entertainment, such as Pandora, Spotify, iHeartRadio,
Radio Reverb, iTunes Radio and many more.
Social networking has brought a new element to the music industry as well. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Vimeo, YouTube, etc.; provided a platform for users to follow musicians and discover bands. YouTube has meant that consumers no longer have to rely on MTV or purchase a band’s video or DVD to their music videos. Streaming services like Spotify and Pandora give listeners access to any music from anywhere with a liable Internet connection.
Technology has given artists the advantage to take control
of their music careers now. With the accessibility to create beats, write
lyrics through a mobile app, produce a song, then record through a program that
is already installed into most computers today, artist should be successful. At
least aiming to be with the easy access to an in-home studio. Through unlimited access to social media
sites, it can be easy and fast to promote a musical project and allow fans to
enjoy the sounds of your band via online. There is absolutely no excuse, today.
References:
Retrieved March 6, 2015 from http://www.business2community.com/entertainment/technology-changed-music-industry-0905712
Alan, T. (2014, November 19). How Social Media and the
Internet Changed the Music
Industry. Retrieved March 8, 2015 from
Harrison, Laura. (2014, July 23). How has the Internet
Changed the Music Industry. Retrieved
March 7, 2015 from
Kanchwala, A. (2014, November 30). 5 Steps to build a rocking
digital marketing template. Image
retrieved March 8, 2015 from
Arnitris,
ReplyDeleteGreat post. It's so true, today there's no need for physical sales, but instead of artists complaining about it, which some are, some are also being really creative in the way they expose their content to people. With Spotify, RDIO, Beats, etc, and their "related artists" section, I personally have been exposed to some artists that I otherwise never would have. Same goes with the playlists that they have created. I feel that I listen to more music now than I did when these outlets weren't available.
In addition I recently became aware of a company called Rocketsongs.com where aspiring singers can license unused songs from some of today's top songwriters. It's equally beneficial for songwriters being able to sell songs that they weren't able to get pop stars to buy, so it's mutually beneficial and helps both parties out.
Technology, I personally believe has been a great thing for the entertainment industry. Yes many balk at it as it makes us all change our traditional thinking, but I think as an industry as a whole, it's the best way for us to move forward!
-Rocco