Myths

NAPSTER WOULD KILL CREATION AND NO ONE WOULD MAKE MUSIC

Just the opposite has happened. With new tools for production and distribution that bring the cost of creating and getting your work out at close to zero it seems like everybody's got a song in them. More people are making more music than ever before, leaving the audience overwhelmed with productions.

MUSIC IS FREE

It just feels that way.

America's #1 music service, YouTube, pays rights holders, as does Spotify. Can we stop the mantra that music is free? Sure, piracy exists, but it always did. If you think kids are busy stealing instead of streaming you probably went to the Apple Store to stock up on the discontinued iPod.

MAJOR LABELS ARE DEAD

They're more powerful than they've been in a decade, because they have the relationships and cash to get their productions heard.

MICROSOFT IS AN INVINCIBLE MONOLITH THAT MUST BE STOPPED

It stopped itself by failing to innovate, by being eclipsed by others in the marketplace. This paradigm works in music as well as tech. Sure, people want to hear old tracks whereas they've got no desire to use old computers, but if you're not cutting something new and great on a regular basis you're fading in the rearview mirror.

TICKETMASTER IS THE ENEMY

Acts are the enemy. Because they won't go to all-in ticketing. Ticketmaster fees are promoter profit. As for getting all seats in the venue on the manifest...now that's a challenge.

STREAMED CONCERTS ARE THE NEXT FRONTIER

The Allman Brothers were pioneers, their revenue tanked. Turns out people want to be there. It's not so much about the sound as the experience.

TAPES/HARD DRIVES ARE ANATHEMA

ELO and Milli Vanilli were castigated, now everybody uses them.

LUCIAN GRAINGE CANNOT REPLACE DOUG MORRIS

Oh yes he can. Then again, Doug Morris single-handedly rejuvenated Sony Music. If only Doug knew something about tech.

TABLETS ARE FADING

They're just merging with phones. They are now the computing device of record. A large hand-held is many people's only device. If you don't have a mobile strategy, if your site doesn't render properly on a phablet (phone/tablet, get it?), you're losing ground. Don't forget, Facebook's stock burgeoned because they figured out mobile.

INSTITUTIONS ARE BIGGER THAN STARS

No, they're not. Nate Silver has credibility and gravitas. Anybody can write about data, that doesn't make them worth following. How come the "New York Times" knows it's about stars on the Opinion page, but not elsewhere in the paper?

THE LONG TAIL

It's out there, but no one is buying it.

THE APP ECONOMY

Turns out we're all gravitating to apps, it's inherent in the move to mobile, but everybody expects them to be free.

OBAMACARE WILL BRING DOWN THE PRESIDENT AND TURN EVERYBODY INTO A REPUBLICAN

When you lose the war, move on. The future is about new ideas, not hashing over the past. Turns out people wanted affordable health care and despite hiccups in the system, it's turning out just fine. You can argue with me, but you'd be proving the point.

IF YOU WORK HARD YOU WILL BECOME RICH

The rich start with huge advantages, in America we've got a self-perpetuating underclass.

MUSIC DRIVES THE CULTURE

We haven't had that spirit here since 1989. Tech drives the culture. But tech is not art. Art trumps business every time, but it requires true artists to accomplish this, trained people willing to color outside the lines.

NO ONE WILL PAY FOR RADIO

Sirius XM has nearly thirty million subscribers. If you don't, you're the one left out of the party. Being cheap has consequences.

YOU CAN COMPETE WITH HBO

There are a limited number of quality writers and producers. HBO gets first pick, that's where the talented want to go. Sure, there's overflow left for Showtime and Netflix, but not much.

FLATTENING DISTRIBUTION WOULD ALLOW PREVIOUSLY MARGINALIZED ARTISTS TO FLOURISH

Turns out there weren't a ton of unsung artists rejected by the major labels who did not get their chance. And now, more than ever, as a result of the Internet, quality can be found. Turns out there's just not that much quality out there.

TELEVISION COMPETITION SHOWS ARE RUINING THE MUSIC BUSINESS

Not a single star has been minted by "The Voice." "American Idol" has faded to near irrelevance. If you're focusing on the TV paradigm to explain your lack of traction and the vapid music of today, you're just wrong.

THE SPITZER AGREEMENT WOULD PAVE THE WAY FOR INDIES AT RADIO

Just the opposite has happened. Playlists are completely dominated by majors.

PUBLICITY EQUALS SUCCESS

We can ignore everything, and the more we're beaten over the head with something, the less likely we are to imbibe/check it out.


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