The Three-And-A-Half-Minute Song

Caught in a daze, I found myself staring at my computer screen at a large list of music titles from my “Indie Chillout” Spotify playlist when I had a keen observation. Song number one, length = 3:21, song two, length = 3:25, song three, length = 3:43, so on and so forth. A similarity among all the track titles, a majority of them ranging roughly from approximately 3 minutes and 15 seconds to 4 minutes and an average song length of all 100 tracks of 3 minutes and 50 seconds (a minimum length of 2:24 and a maximum length of 6:10). It isn’t just happenstance that this is around the average song length time for almost all major genres of music. In fact, there are several reasons why most songs fall within this time range as explained below.

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Anxiety And Depression - You Are Not Alone!

Working in the music business can make you depressed! That’s the conclusion of a recent online study in the UK with more than 2200 participants: musicians and people working in the music business. More than 70% of the participants recorded to have suffered from panic attacks or high levels of anxiety, almost as many people have recorded to have suffered from depression. Not many musicians dare to talk about it. Not many agents or managers either, by the way.

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Allmusicrating Has Launched Its First Music Rating System Called EARs©

“Music discovery services are now trying to suggest new bands and new music to listeners, but what is happening is that users are blasted with recommendations that are offering ‘more of the same” says Elias, the founder of EARs. “What we are trying to do is provide users with a service of making their own music selection’s, based on their own taste”.

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Master The Musician Side Hustle With These Income-Boosting Ideas

We could all use a little extra income. Musicians, if you’re searching for a way to supplement your income and expand your skill-set, look no further. You don’t have to sacrifice your dreams just so you can pay rent. Check out these four side hustle ideas and start earning more money today:

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The Next Right Song [Andrew Dubber]

For the past few months, on and off – more off than on, but with at least some degree of consistency – I’ve been working on my next book. So far, it’s pretty much just a collection of notes, thoughts, a few interviews with some interesting people and a draft chapter structure I’m reasonably pleased with. Nothing to write home about, though here I am – writing home.

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Secondary Ticketing: The Bane Of Live Music

by Juan Carlos Cardenas from Berklee’s Music Business Journal, thembj.org. 

Music Business Worldwide (MBW), a fellow publication, estimates that Mumford & Sons, the acclaimed British alternative-rock band, lost a minimum of three million dollars to the hands of scalpers and secondary ticketing sites in 2016. The figure could be half of that and still give pause for thought. As MBW suggests, moreover, it may well be that other prominent artists including Adele, Chance the Rapper, Radiohead, Iron Maiden, and The Pixies, are suffering a similar fate.

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7 Ways To Find A Manager

The manager is the most important person in your operation. Your manager is your teammate. Your partner. Your friend. The two of you (or six, depending on how many are in your band) are in it together. Us versus the world. The manager is the liaison between the artist and everybody else. The manager oversees everything from the recording process to the album release campaign to the tour routing, booking and performing to the social media management to the lead singer’s divorce. The manager handles the business, first and foremost. The best managers handle the business with creative finesse. To navigate the constantly evolving musical landscape, managers need truly creative minds. You don’t want a manager who is operating the same way this year as she was last year. Every day is new. Every day is different.

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Is It Time To Save Music?

In an article recently published by Paul Resnikoff, he wraps up the facts that detail all the problems that are killing the music business, the industry the artists, and eventually music as the form of art that we all love.

This is so depressing to read, yet so true, that the earlier we deal with, the better.
Paul’s article had me inspired to take action and write this in response.
We have to do our best to save music!

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Judicial Approval Of Contracts With Minors - A Necessity For Businesses (Record Business, Modeling Agencies & Tech Companies)

If a person or entity contracts with a minor they need to understsand the law. From managers to production companies to modeling agencies, and even technology start-ups, the predicament of employing or contracting with a party under the age of eighteen has become an increasing problem. The minor is not bound by the contract and may disaffirm the contract at any time during minority or within a reasonable time after reaching majority. Without a valid written agreement the employment is “at will” under the law of most States which means the minor can depart at any time. The dilemma created by a minor’s ability to disaffirm a contract is that it may seriously jeopardize the employer’s financial investment in the services of the minor whether it is the ongoing efforts of an agency to develop the career of a young talent or the technology company’s expectation that is owns the copyright in the code created by the teenage whiz kid it employs.

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Why The Streaming Business Model Is Broken

So reports are claiming more and more users are embracing the subscription streaming service. As a matter of fact, Spotify just passed the 40M milestone.
Should we actually celebrate? Is this good news for musicians, creators and all copyright holders? Or is this just a revenue growth for Daniel Ek and his fellow startups moguls?

So here’s the deal: streaming services are gaining more audience everyday, scoring more subscribers.

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Truth Bomb

What is the HARDEST part of the music business? #HardQuestions

I’ve been thinking a lot about how to make sharing information about the music business easier to follow, and easier to understand. And while I probably shouldn’t, because if an artist REALLY wants this, he or she will put in the necessary time and commitment to learn how to do this correctly. I mean, shit, I learned–I taught my damn self. I didn’t have a ‘me’ to make it easier.

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10 Things Artists Must Have To Succeed Today In The Music Business

There are many things an artist must have to succeed, and then there are a few things that will make life easier. Today, I am focusing on the necessities. We all know the music business is currently changing, but there have always been changes in the music industry. How we adapt to those changes determines our outlook and success. Perhaps I’m used to change because I’m from the rap world, which was new to music in the 1980s and rap just began making money for the labels heavily in the 1990s–so it’s a relatively new art form. Today, independent rap artists can build successful careers that feed themselves and their families without having to sign to a major record label. Here’s what is needed for that to happen, for rappers and for all artists and musicians looking to build a successful career:

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The Music Business Runs On Sushi - But Are You Doing It Right?

There are essentially three conversations going on in the music business today:

• Will streaming ever replace record sales?
• How can we get radio to make room for new artists?
• Where’s the best sushi in town?

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Who Killed The Creativity And Imagination?

In a generation that is hooked on video games, cells phones and laptops, it’s no wonder why we lack the creativity and the imagination of other generations. It starts from the time of being an infant to early childhood. The toys children play with leave nothing for the imagination to pick up on. Toys nowadays not only talk; they interact with children as well. Don’t get me wrong; I think this is great for children to build communication skills, however I believe that other toys should allow children to be creative and use their imagination. Creativity, imagination, and common sense are all skills that are becoming rare and hard to find.

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