Tune in Saturday December 14th to Faction Talk, channel 103, at 4 PM East, 1 PM West.
If you miss the episode, you can hear it on demand on the SiriusXM app. Search: Lefsetz
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Friday, 13 December 2024
Ben Whishaw
Keira Knightley and Sarah Lancashire have bigger names.
But I can't take my eyes off of Ben Whishaw in "Black Doves."
Really, we wanted to watch "Silo," but that's week to week and isn't ending until the middle of January. Apple is fumbling here, because no one survives without the youth and the youngsters want it all and they want it NOW! Which is why they're on YouTube for streaming, and addicted to TikTok. To employ the old model is to abandon hope of snagging young people and their turbocharged word of mouth. Youngsters live online, and that's why their choices dominate in culture, that's why it's hard to break musical acts that appeal to oldsters. This won't last for long, as the boomers and Gen-X'ers die off. We thought the major labels were forever, but it turns out their power was based on an old construct, the domination of the few, and that's not how it works anymore. Even the news business doesn't get it. You may be following the lowering of salaries for TV news stars. When no one is watching, you can't pay exorbitant salaries. The money is online and this is anathema to oldsters, who believe the smartphone is the devil.
So we pulled up "Black Doves" because Karen and Jake raved. That's right, I didn't get turned on to the show by the media, everything is bottom up today as opposed to top down. There's an alternative network for news and information that far exceeds that of the mainstream. But since it can't be easily categorized and distilled, it's to a great degree ignored. That's what the mainstream does. If it doesn't understand something, assuming it's even aware of it, it pooh-poohs it.
Think about this. The older someone gets the harder it is for you to change their preconceptions. They'll tell you the new is trash. They don't want to re-evaluate their underpinnings. But to survive and win in today's society you must do this, everything you believe must be up for grabs. We live in a fluid society. As for politics... Now you understand why the general public has detached, now you understand why fewer people voted for Kamala than Joe. People no longer believe, they no longer have trust, in a world where RFK, Jr. wants to get rid of the polio vaccine. I mean you throw your arms up and get on with your life. Sure, there are true believers, but they are the minority, and the rest of us are sick of the tyranny of the minority so we've given up. Talk about a cynical society.
But it gets even worse. If I read one more story on the Taylor Swift Eras tour... This is what the mainstream does best, promote the already existing while it ignores the developing outside. And statistics mean less than soul. Swift waited until the tour was over to release the gross, an exact total of $2,077,618,725, as if art were sports and was quantifiable. Like when I put on a record I think of how much money the artist took in. Talk about getting so far from the garden.
What is there to believe in?
Netflix. Which knows you succeed today by diversifying your product portfolio so you can appeal to the entire public, which doesn't want to consume the same thing, the exact OPPOSITE of what the major labels are doing.
So don't tell me what happens in "Black Doves." We're only two episodes into the six total.
And somewhere along the line Keira Knightley aged. And I'm not referencing her looks, but the fact that she's now a woman not a kid, is pushing forty, and this begs the question...HOW OLD AM I???
And Keira is good.
And Sarah Lancashire is never bad. But she's more one note here, less the rounded role she played in "Happy Valley."
But Ben Whishaw?
HE'S SPECTACULAR!
I'm watching "Black Doves" and wondering where I know this guy from.
And when we turned off the TV last night I went to Wikipedia and saw he was in "The Hour," an English series about a current affairs TV show set in 1956. The tone, both in look and substance, was delicious. And not over the top like in U.S. productions.
And in "Black Doves"...
Whishaw's performance is subtle. Which draws you to him. You not only look at him, but into him, you contemplate what's in his brain. He can be quiet, thinking.
Whishaw looks kinda like a young Mick Jagger, as in you can't really decided if he's ugly or beautiful, maybe just a sexy beast.
And Whishaw as Sam... He's got this high hair and beard, he's scruffy, yet together.
His removed personality... You're never quite sure what he's thinking, what he's going to say. He's a bit of a mystery, which is intriguing, which draws you to him.
And Sam makes mistakes. Which is something the hero rarely does.
And he's torn by thoughts of a past love.
He's a hit man but he's human. Not an assassin with a heart of gold, but someone who's more than an automaton. There are emotions involved in killing.
Knightley and Lancashire are more two-dimensional. Whereas Whishaw is akin to a real person. You don't know anyone quite like this, but you want to. Quiet, with charisma, an inner strength, even though he's not a hunk.
I don't know how he does it. They call it acting. It's not just a pretty face, a model, who is now an actor.
And Whishaw has got a list of credits an arm's length long. He was even in "Fargo," but that's American TV, and I never warmed up to the show.
And I'd like to say "Black Doves" is of the quality of "The Bureau," which has now been remade as "The Agency" for those who can't handle foreign productions, but Whishaw is a cut above.
Ben Whishaw is a star.
A star is not someone who has to convince you of this. A star is someone whose power emanates from within. Today everybody is so busy selling, so busy batting us over the head with their achievements, saying LOOK AT ME, LOOK AT ME, that we've forgotten what stardom is.
Humphrey Bogart, that's a star.
And I'm going back all those years because that's when the formula was intact, when the public was truly intrigued.
And then movie stars were eclipsed by musicians and...
Now we know so much about these people but adore them so little.
It isn't easy to articulate why Ben Whishaw is so great. It's something you feel. And feeling is the essence of great art. We've abandoned that in search of attention and profits. Everybody wants to throw everything at the wall. Everything is massaged before it's promoted, the edges rubbed off for mass consumption, like the paint-by-numbers, made by committee songs purveyed by the majors that succeed less and less.
The public doesn't want them.
The public wants something more subtle, more meaningful.
Like Ben Whishaw.
But I can't take my eyes off of Ben Whishaw in "Black Doves."
Really, we wanted to watch "Silo," but that's week to week and isn't ending until the middle of January. Apple is fumbling here, because no one survives without the youth and the youngsters want it all and they want it NOW! Which is why they're on YouTube for streaming, and addicted to TikTok. To employ the old model is to abandon hope of snagging young people and their turbocharged word of mouth. Youngsters live online, and that's why their choices dominate in culture, that's why it's hard to break musical acts that appeal to oldsters. This won't last for long, as the boomers and Gen-X'ers die off. We thought the major labels were forever, but it turns out their power was based on an old construct, the domination of the few, and that's not how it works anymore. Even the news business doesn't get it. You may be following the lowering of salaries for TV news stars. When no one is watching, you can't pay exorbitant salaries. The money is online and this is anathema to oldsters, who believe the smartphone is the devil.
So we pulled up "Black Doves" because Karen and Jake raved. That's right, I didn't get turned on to the show by the media, everything is bottom up today as opposed to top down. There's an alternative network for news and information that far exceeds that of the mainstream. But since it can't be easily categorized and distilled, it's to a great degree ignored. That's what the mainstream does. If it doesn't understand something, assuming it's even aware of it, it pooh-poohs it.
Think about this. The older someone gets the harder it is for you to change their preconceptions. They'll tell you the new is trash. They don't want to re-evaluate their underpinnings. But to survive and win in today's society you must do this, everything you believe must be up for grabs. We live in a fluid society. As for politics... Now you understand why the general public has detached, now you understand why fewer people voted for Kamala than Joe. People no longer believe, they no longer have trust, in a world where RFK, Jr. wants to get rid of the polio vaccine. I mean you throw your arms up and get on with your life. Sure, there are true believers, but they are the minority, and the rest of us are sick of the tyranny of the minority so we've given up. Talk about a cynical society.
But it gets even worse. If I read one more story on the Taylor Swift Eras tour... This is what the mainstream does best, promote the already existing while it ignores the developing outside. And statistics mean less than soul. Swift waited until the tour was over to release the gross, an exact total of $2,077,618,725, as if art were sports and was quantifiable. Like when I put on a record I think of how much money the artist took in. Talk about getting so far from the garden.
What is there to believe in?
Netflix. Which knows you succeed today by diversifying your product portfolio so you can appeal to the entire public, which doesn't want to consume the same thing, the exact OPPOSITE of what the major labels are doing.
So don't tell me what happens in "Black Doves." We're only two episodes into the six total.
And somewhere along the line Keira Knightley aged. And I'm not referencing her looks, but the fact that she's now a woman not a kid, is pushing forty, and this begs the question...HOW OLD AM I???
And Keira is good.
And Sarah Lancashire is never bad. But she's more one note here, less the rounded role she played in "Happy Valley."
But Ben Whishaw?
HE'S SPECTACULAR!
I'm watching "Black Doves" and wondering where I know this guy from.
And when we turned off the TV last night I went to Wikipedia and saw he was in "The Hour," an English series about a current affairs TV show set in 1956. The tone, both in look and substance, was delicious. And not over the top like in U.S. productions.
And in "Black Doves"...
Whishaw's performance is subtle. Which draws you to him. You not only look at him, but into him, you contemplate what's in his brain. He can be quiet, thinking.
Whishaw looks kinda like a young Mick Jagger, as in you can't really decided if he's ugly or beautiful, maybe just a sexy beast.
And Whishaw as Sam... He's got this high hair and beard, he's scruffy, yet together.
His removed personality... You're never quite sure what he's thinking, what he's going to say. He's a bit of a mystery, which is intriguing, which draws you to him.
And Sam makes mistakes. Which is something the hero rarely does.
And he's torn by thoughts of a past love.
He's a hit man but he's human. Not an assassin with a heart of gold, but someone who's more than an automaton. There are emotions involved in killing.
Knightley and Lancashire are more two-dimensional. Whereas Whishaw is akin to a real person. You don't know anyone quite like this, but you want to. Quiet, with charisma, an inner strength, even though he's not a hunk.
I don't know how he does it. They call it acting. It's not just a pretty face, a model, who is now an actor.
And Whishaw has got a list of credits an arm's length long. He was even in "Fargo," but that's American TV, and I never warmed up to the show.
And I'd like to say "Black Doves" is of the quality of "The Bureau," which has now been remade as "The Agency" for those who can't handle foreign productions, but Whishaw is a cut above.
Ben Whishaw is a star.
A star is not someone who has to convince you of this. A star is someone whose power emanates from within. Today everybody is so busy selling, so busy batting us over the head with their achievements, saying LOOK AT ME, LOOK AT ME, that we've forgotten what stardom is.
Humphrey Bogart, that's a star.
And I'm going back all those years because that's when the formula was intact, when the public was truly intrigued.
And then movie stars were eclipsed by musicians and...
Now we know so much about these people but adore them so little.
It isn't easy to articulate why Ben Whishaw is so great. It's something you feel. And feeling is the essence of great art. We've abandoned that in search of attention and profits. Everybody wants to throw everything at the wall. Everything is massaged before it's promoted, the edges rubbed off for mass consumption, like the paint-by-numbers, made by committee songs purveyed by the majors that succeed less and less.
The public doesn't want them.
The public wants something more subtle, more meaningful.
Like Ben Whishaw.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Thursday, 12 December 2024
Jesse Kirshbaum-This Week's Podcast
Jesse Kirshbaum heads up the NUE Agency, which specializes in sponsorship. He reveals the details of these deals and more!
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jesse-kirshbaum/id1316200737?i=1000680126657
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6h1k3TTA0DMwcCK9BOvD0w?si=DtLKbFJBSSavbewIDFllBA
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/episode/jesse-kirshbaum-247631761/
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/3f13afc6-b7bf-4df8-a39c-1ab0f86a720e/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-jesse-kirshbaum
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/jesse-kirshbaum/id1316200737?i=1000680126657
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6h1k3TTA0DMwcCK9BOvD0w?si=DtLKbFJBSSavbewIDFllBA
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-30806836/episode/jesse-kirshbaum-247631761/
https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/3f13afc6-b7bf-4df8-a39c-1ab0f86a720e/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-jesse-kirshbaum
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Monday, 9 December 2024
Snapshot
Despite the hosannas at the end of Taylor Swift's Eras tour, the live business is going through a correction.
What exactly is the reason?
Well, let's talk about the less than superstar level, those playing rooms with a capacity less than 5,000.
The acts have toured too much. This is what I heard over and over in Aspen. There is fatigue on the part of the customer. The act keeps going back to the well, trying to make bucks, and the audience is now saying ENOUGH! Sometimes you have to let things lay fallow, i.e. stay off the road, or go where you haven't been before. To quote the cliché, how can we miss you when you never go away?
But before this downturn, we experienced the post-Covid boom. Not only did ticket prices go up, but so did costs. And not all the costs were fixed. You've got acts showing up with semis who never did before. Touring in buses when they used to travel in vans. All of this has contributed to the rising cost of tickets. Of course, certain fixed costs have gone up in price, it's more expensive to tour than ever before, but we are at a point where acts are going to have to go backward, reduce costs in order to lower ticket prices so people will come.
A club promoter told me it's hard to sell tickets when the big shows are launched months in advance. If someone just dropped a grand for two tickets to see a superstar... They might be tapped out. Or psychologically, they just can't spend another dollar. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. But let's never forget, it's the customer's money, the customer's choice. The business wants people to go out to small venues to see developing acts. That's how you build careers. But with so many options for their money and time, and with no insurance that this developing act is worth the price, many just don't go.
And at the club level... A promoter told me there are acts with agents that have never played a single live gig. But they do have an online following. The agents are scooping them up. And when they play live do people come? Sometimes yes and sometimes no. And, some of these new acts will show up with the aforementioned semi. Perspective can be way off.
So how do we fix the club business? Is it about taking money from the government or...maybe fans just don't want to go. Or maybe the paradigm must shift. Be reinvented. It's hard to get people to pay real dollars for that which is developing that they're not convinced is great. But it's even worse, the younger generations don't drink, so in order to make the economics work, the owner/promoter must charge a higher ticket price.
This is the new normal. No one likes to retreat. But it may be necessary.
Never mind the acts that successfully skip steps. Who open for a superstar and then can sell tickets themselves. Is this how we're going to develop and sell acts in the future or will there ultimately be fatigue? Open for Taylor Swift or Sabrina Carpenter and you're halfway there. You've been endorsed by the headliner and...
Does this work with men? Are women more passionate about music than men, does it speak to them in a different way?
I'm completely flummoxed by the success of Gracie Abrams. She's now booked an arena tour. She doesn't have the best voice and she doesn't have great lyrics but one thing is for sure, she's singing from the heart, and this is what the audience is reacting to. And, of course, she opened for Taylor Swift.
Meanwhile, the rockers purvey endless platitudes. Sure, the Active Rock acts have fans, but the word doesn't spread. Then again, does word of mouth work differently with men and women? Conversation is different, read Deborah Tannen's definitive work "You Just Don't Understand" for illumination. Women are about inclusion, men are about pecking order. Women want to bring you into the club, they treat you as equal, whereas men might want to put you down for not being as hip as they are. Men might feel proud they are fans of an act and might not want you to follow them, they might want the act for themselves.
Meanwhile, country is all about story, personal experience. Some done at the absolute lowest level, but that's the common denominator of country music. And this is what resonates with people today. Country music acts are just like you and me. But pop stars and rappers?
Used to be acts were built from the top down. Major labels invested and promoted. Primarily on radio, but also TV and print. Furthermore, indies couldn't play on this level.
Now it's the reverse. The public chooses which acts are successful. And are the public's choices different from those of the A&R people and labels of yore and today? The public is unpredictable. So many experts told us that Trump was a sideshow and Harris should have it in the bag. But what was going on on the street was something different.
The music business evolves. And when it repeats, it does so with a twist.
But if you have the chops, opening for a superstar hasn't meant this much since the heyday of Frank Barsalona.
Successful music has never been so unpredictable. And more stars are making more money than ever before. We've never had this many stadium and arena tours. But getting from nowhere to somewhere... That's complicated. Audience engagement is elusive, even the new music by stars flops instantly.
People wanted to go for the past few years.
But now they don't necessarily want to. Why?
This is the question of the day. You can wait for things to turn around, but they may never do so, and in the interim you'll miss opportunities.
Gaming the system can work, but less than ever before. No one has all the answers. We can only put our ear to the ground and gain information and pivot. Change isn't coming, it's already here! And those who recognize it and adjust will emerge victorious.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
What exactly is the reason?
Well, let's talk about the less than superstar level, those playing rooms with a capacity less than 5,000.
The acts have toured too much. This is what I heard over and over in Aspen. There is fatigue on the part of the customer. The act keeps going back to the well, trying to make bucks, and the audience is now saying ENOUGH! Sometimes you have to let things lay fallow, i.e. stay off the road, or go where you haven't been before. To quote the cliché, how can we miss you when you never go away?
But before this downturn, we experienced the post-Covid boom. Not only did ticket prices go up, but so did costs. And not all the costs were fixed. You've got acts showing up with semis who never did before. Touring in buses when they used to travel in vans. All of this has contributed to the rising cost of tickets. Of course, certain fixed costs have gone up in price, it's more expensive to tour than ever before, but we are at a point where acts are going to have to go backward, reduce costs in order to lower ticket prices so people will come.
A club promoter told me it's hard to sell tickets when the big shows are launched months in advance. If someone just dropped a grand for two tickets to see a superstar... They might be tapped out. Or psychologically, they just can't spend another dollar. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer. But let's never forget, it's the customer's money, the customer's choice. The business wants people to go out to small venues to see developing acts. That's how you build careers. But with so many options for their money and time, and with no insurance that this developing act is worth the price, many just don't go.
And at the club level... A promoter told me there are acts with agents that have never played a single live gig. But they do have an online following. The agents are scooping them up. And when they play live do people come? Sometimes yes and sometimes no. And, some of these new acts will show up with the aforementioned semi. Perspective can be way off.
So how do we fix the club business? Is it about taking money from the government or...maybe fans just don't want to go. Or maybe the paradigm must shift. Be reinvented. It's hard to get people to pay real dollars for that which is developing that they're not convinced is great. But it's even worse, the younger generations don't drink, so in order to make the economics work, the owner/promoter must charge a higher ticket price.
This is the new normal. No one likes to retreat. But it may be necessary.
Never mind the acts that successfully skip steps. Who open for a superstar and then can sell tickets themselves. Is this how we're going to develop and sell acts in the future or will there ultimately be fatigue? Open for Taylor Swift or Sabrina Carpenter and you're halfway there. You've been endorsed by the headliner and...
Does this work with men? Are women more passionate about music than men, does it speak to them in a different way?
I'm completely flummoxed by the success of Gracie Abrams. She's now booked an arena tour. She doesn't have the best voice and she doesn't have great lyrics but one thing is for sure, she's singing from the heart, and this is what the audience is reacting to. And, of course, she opened for Taylor Swift.
Meanwhile, the rockers purvey endless platitudes. Sure, the Active Rock acts have fans, but the word doesn't spread. Then again, does word of mouth work differently with men and women? Conversation is different, read Deborah Tannen's definitive work "You Just Don't Understand" for illumination. Women are about inclusion, men are about pecking order. Women want to bring you into the club, they treat you as equal, whereas men might want to put you down for not being as hip as they are. Men might feel proud they are fans of an act and might not want you to follow them, they might want the act for themselves.
Meanwhile, country is all about story, personal experience. Some done at the absolute lowest level, but that's the common denominator of country music. And this is what resonates with people today. Country music acts are just like you and me. But pop stars and rappers?
Used to be acts were built from the top down. Major labels invested and promoted. Primarily on radio, but also TV and print. Furthermore, indies couldn't play on this level.
Now it's the reverse. The public chooses which acts are successful. And are the public's choices different from those of the A&R people and labels of yore and today? The public is unpredictable. So many experts told us that Trump was a sideshow and Harris should have it in the bag. But what was going on on the street was something different.
The music business evolves. And when it repeats, it does so with a twist.
But if you have the chops, opening for a superstar hasn't meant this much since the heyday of Frank Barsalona.
Successful music has never been so unpredictable. And more stars are making more money than ever before. We've never had this many stadium and arena tours. But getting from nowhere to somewhere... That's complicated. Audience engagement is elusive, even the new music by stars flops instantly.
People wanted to go for the past few years.
But now they don't necessarily want to. Why?
This is the question of the day. You can wait for things to turn around, but they may never do so, and in the interim you'll miss opportunities.
Gaming the system can work, but less than ever before. No one has all the answers. We can only put our ear to the ground and gain information and pivot. Change isn't coming, it's already here! And those who recognize it and adjust will emerge victorious.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Sunday, 8 December 2024
Re-Michael Rapino Post
People can't read.
My inbox is inundated with people who believe I suggested someone shoot Michael Rapino.
I wrote:
"Will someone shoot Michael Rapino?"
Do you see the question mark at the end?
IT'S A QUESTION! Not a suggestion.
To be a suggestion it would need to be a statement. And said statement would not end with a question mark, never does.
This is why we can't have good things. This is why our country is so divided.
Anyone who reads my post and believes I suggest that Michael Rapino be shot is delusional.
In case you missed it, Brian Thompson, CEO of United Healthcare, was gunned down last week. And CEOs are freaking out.
Concomitantly, the public is expressing its anger online about their health care coverage, or lack thereof.
I'm going to point you to Zeynep Tufecki's opinion piece in today's "New York Times":
"The Rage and Glee That Followed a C.E.O.'s Killing Should Ring All Alarms"
Free link: https://t.ly/5nWiV
Within it Tufecki says:
"Politicians offering boilerplate condolences were eviscerated. Some responses came in the form of personal testimony. I don't condone murder, many started, before describing harrowing ordeals that health insurance companies had put them through."
You see the elected officials, those with a voice, are hewing to an old construct, playing by the rules. And the public is sick of this. And this is one reason Trump won, because you had all these coastal elites telling everybody how things were and they should just live as these elites told them to.
Also, and this is mentioned in my article, the official commenters and tastemakers are out of touch with the public. Which is online and stating its truth.
I read this piece and it had me asking the question whether anyone was pissed enough to kill someone in the music business.
That's a reasonable question in my book, but leftist policies tell us to constantly play nice, not get right down to the real nitty-gritty.
And this is another reason Trump won.
Howie Klein posted online that he found Kamala Harris "inauthentic."
Nate Silver posted today that he couldn't brand Kamala Harris, couldn't come up with a quick description:
https://t.ly/k5vUM
I've been saying what Klein and Harris said for months. And I've been EXCORIATED! I've got to drink the kool-aid, I've got to shut up, I'm hurting the Democrats' chances.
Hogwash. These people are out of touch, and can't see the forest for the trees.
I really wanted to let this be, I have a policy against commenting/explaining what I wrote, but the vitriol based on miscomprehension is out of hand.
If you want to unsubscribe, be my guest. But what is your point here, that I should change, conform to your constructs? This is what's wrong with America and even more the music business. Sheeple. Afraid to speak out. Or if they do, they're hucksters looking for attention with no substance underneath.
If you haven't heard people comment negatively about Rapino and Grainge's compensation, you're not in the business.
You think there are unbreakable rules. Taboos. Which is why you're not famous.
If I get one more e-mail from someone telling me how great their music is and the system is stacked against them... Talk about delusional.
And the agents all complain about the fees. But not because of the obfuscation, but because they want more of that money.
That's the music business. Conniving hustlers.
I know Michael Rapino, I can connect with him almost better than anybody in the music industry. Unlike so many, he's well-read and informed. That's how he triumphed in the first place, by reading every book in the Labatt library.
So when I'm with Rapino we can talk about subjects far outside the world of music.
I'm going to leave you with a comment from Richard Griffiths that I got in response to what I wrote.
But before I do that, I'm going to tell you that income inequality is a cancer on our society. And unaddressed, there will be unforeseen consequences.
I'm just pointing the lens at the music industry.
Go read Hitsdailydouble for information paid for by those written about.
Or "Billboard," which fills its site with drivel that is neither fish nor fowl. Is it for the business or the consumer? And analysis of subjects that no one has a need to have analyzed.
Sorry for asking the hard questions. Sorry for pointing out the resentment. Sorry for trying to be smart in a dumb industry.
This is coming off all angry... But I ain't gonna tone it down. Hate me all you want, stop reading me. Because if I'm influenced by you, if I'm afraid to offend, I'm done.
From: Richard Griffiths
Re: Michael Rapino
There's no smarter man in music business than Michael Rapino.
We've been on opposite sides our whole careers and anytime I've pushed the boat out he's found a way for us to come back to land!
If he wasn't there, there would be someone else. Not as smart.
He may be ahead of me, but I know if we are working a deal out, we will find a solution.
And that's before I tell you my wine story!
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
My inbox is inundated with people who believe I suggested someone shoot Michael Rapino.
I wrote:
"Will someone shoot Michael Rapino?"
Do you see the question mark at the end?
IT'S A QUESTION! Not a suggestion.
To be a suggestion it would need to be a statement. And said statement would not end with a question mark, never does.
This is why we can't have good things. This is why our country is so divided.
Anyone who reads my post and believes I suggest that Michael Rapino be shot is delusional.
In case you missed it, Brian Thompson, CEO of United Healthcare, was gunned down last week. And CEOs are freaking out.
Concomitantly, the public is expressing its anger online about their health care coverage, or lack thereof.
I'm going to point you to Zeynep Tufecki's opinion piece in today's "New York Times":
"The Rage and Glee That Followed a C.E.O.'s Killing Should Ring All Alarms"
Free link: https://t.ly/5nWiV
Within it Tufecki says:
"Politicians offering boilerplate condolences were eviscerated. Some responses came in the form of personal testimony. I don't condone murder, many started, before describing harrowing ordeals that health insurance companies had put them through."
You see the elected officials, those with a voice, are hewing to an old construct, playing by the rules. And the public is sick of this. And this is one reason Trump won, because you had all these coastal elites telling everybody how things were and they should just live as these elites told them to.
Also, and this is mentioned in my article, the official commenters and tastemakers are out of touch with the public. Which is online and stating its truth.
I read this piece and it had me asking the question whether anyone was pissed enough to kill someone in the music business.
That's a reasonable question in my book, but leftist policies tell us to constantly play nice, not get right down to the real nitty-gritty.
And this is another reason Trump won.
Howie Klein posted online that he found Kamala Harris "inauthentic."
Nate Silver posted today that he couldn't brand Kamala Harris, couldn't come up with a quick description:
https://t.ly/k5vUM
I've been saying what Klein and Harris said for months. And I've been EXCORIATED! I've got to drink the kool-aid, I've got to shut up, I'm hurting the Democrats' chances.
Hogwash. These people are out of touch, and can't see the forest for the trees.
I really wanted to let this be, I have a policy against commenting/explaining what I wrote, but the vitriol based on miscomprehension is out of hand.
If you want to unsubscribe, be my guest. But what is your point here, that I should change, conform to your constructs? This is what's wrong with America and even more the music business. Sheeple. Afraid to speak out. Or if they do, they're hucksters looking for attention with no substance underneath.
If you haven't heard people comment negatively about Rapino and Grainge's compensation, you're not in the business.
You think there are unbreakable rules. Taboos. Which is why you're not famous.
If I get one more e-mail from someone telling me how great their music is and the system is stacked against them... Talk about delusional.
And the agents all complain about the fees. But not because of the obfuscation, but because they want more of that money.
That's the music business. Conniving hustlers.
I know Michael Rapino, I can connect with him almost better than anybody in the music industry. Unlike so many, he's well-read and informed. That's how he triumphed in the first place, by reading every book in the Labatt library.
So when I'm with Rapino we can talk about subjects far outside the world of music.
I'm going to leave you with a comment from Richard Griffiths that I got in response to what I wrote.
But before I do that, I'm going to tell you that income inequality is a cancer on our society. And unaddressed, there will be unforeseen consequences.
I'm just pointing the lens at the music industry.
Go read Hitsdailydouble for information paid for by those written about.
Or "Billboard," which fills its site with drivel that is neither fish nor fowl. Is it for the business or the consumer? And analysis of subjects that no one has a need to have analyzed.
Sorry for asking the hard questions. Sorry for pointing out the resentment. Sorry for trying to be smart in a dumb industry.
This is coming off all angry... But I ain't gonna tone it down. Hate me all you want, stop reading me. Because if I'm influenced by you, if I'm afraid to offend, I'm done.
From: Richard Griffiths
Re: Michael Rapino
There's no smarter man in music business than Michael Rapino.
We've been on opposite sides our whole careers and anytime I've pushed the boat out he's found a way for us to come back to land!
If he wasn't there, there would be someone else. Not as smart.
He may be ahead of me, but I know if we are working a deal out, we will find a solution.
And that's before I tell you my wine story!
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Michael Rapino
Will someone shoot him?
I can't think of a more hated company than Ticketmaster. And if you look up Rapino's compensation...
Not that anyone died from being unable to get a concert ticket, but we have an entire nation of pissed-off customers.
And if Rapino were to die, it would be the acts Live Nation promotes that would be responsible. And the agents and managers who represent them.
The fees were developed as a way to create a pool of revenue that the acts couldn't commission. No fees, no profits, and every business needs to make profits to stay in business.
But what about the poor acts playing clubs, posting on Spotify to nearly zero acclaim. They've got to blame someone for their lack of financial success. And the target is on the back of Ticketmaster. The fees on a club show ticket can be as high as the face price. And both the acts and the customers are bitching about this. The acts believe they're entitled to get out of the van, get a bus or stay in hotels...and live at least a fraction of the life of superstars. Aren't they in the business too?
And fans quite rightly can't fathom the fact that fees are astronomical on smaller shows.
But the truth is just because you call yourself a musician does not mean you're entitled to be rich. No one complains in sports when they can't make it in the NBA or MLB. They have to face the fact that they're just not good enough, or have aged out. But in music!
And you can't say this because you're pissing on someone's dreams. What world do we live in where we need to support everyone who makes music? Where everyone who posts on Spotify is entitled to leave their day job?
But without these fees, there is no show. There are costs. Acts and customers are irrational. But this irrationality has a price.
Hatred of everyone on the business side of the equation.
We've got to to into all-in pricing to take the heat off of Rapino and Ticketmaster and Live Nation and AEG and every other ticketer and concert promoter. The public is boiling, how much more do you expect them to take?
But the public is irrational. Listeners believe they're entitled to a front row ticket at a cheap price and the acts do nothing to disabuse them of this notion.
And then there's Spotify... Daniel Ek may be more hated than Rapino. But Spotify is the most transparent company in the music business. You can literally go on the desktop app and see exactly how many streams a song has. But the story from the underclass is that Spotify is gaming the system. Stealing their dollars. And digital is not like physical, it's totally traceable, the data is there. Spotify pays nearly 70% out in royalties. You don't hear the big three record companies complaining about Spotify payments. And the irony is if you're a true indie, you're getting much more than the acts on the big labels, but the truth has no legs, you believe you're still being ripped-off.
Not that music is the sole offender here.
They call them "junk fees," but basically they're a complete rip-off, a way for hotels and others to make more money. Why can't they just give us one price? You check in, you don't use the pool, you don't use the spa, you were barely there but you've got to -pay a resort fee? THAT'S NUTS!
But not everybody stays at a hotel And not everybody is an artist on Spotify. But seemingly everybody is in the market for a concert ticket, which makes Michael Rapino Enemy #1 in the music business, if not America!
And then you've got the brain dead press that keeps saying Lucian Grainge is the most powerful person in the music business, even though those on the inside know that it is laughable. Universal makes beaucoup bucks on its catalog, records in some cases half a century old. The big three labels can barely break an act. The action is all in the indies. But those inured to the old system, the same press that missed Trump's second ascension, keeps focusing on records when in truth it's all about the road. Very few acts survive on record royalties. They make their living playing live, and Live Nation and others pay them almost all of the revenue, ergo the need for the fees! Live Nation's margins are incredibly low, Rapino and company are keeping nearly the entire community of artists alive, but we keep seeing tributes to Grainge, in the industry press as well as the mainstream press.
Never has the truth been so obfuscated.
Someone pays the price. But it's never the acts. The act that rode shotgun in your life, that kept you from committing suicide, it can't possibly be greedy. The act cares about you, but Ticketmaster? That's the ENEMY! Without Ticketmaster...
Even the government is delusional. It believes if you split Ticketmaster from Live Nation ticket prices will go down. Ain't that a laugh. Prices are set by DEMAND! And there's always another promoter lined up to pay the act if it doesn't make a deal with Live Nation.
I'm not saying Live Nation is squeaky clean.
And we can debate all day long whether Rapino's entitled to that compensation. He's selling art, and he's making more than most of the acts Live Nation promotes. Ditto on Lucian Grainge. The latter situation is especially ugly. The label deals are horrific compared to those of Live Nation. Essentially no one gets more than 50% of the net, and most get much less than that, never mind it's impossible to get an accurate accounting, and Grainge makes over a hundred million bucks for taking the company public?
I mean we can hate on Elon Musk all day long, but this guy changed the car market completely with Tesla, and then there's SpaceX and Starlink. He's an innovator, not a manager.
One thing you can say is that Rapino has made many business moves since he's been running the company. Purchased this, started divisions here... The last thing Grainge did was consolidate his labels, getting rid of Capitol. Universal Music is much closer to UnitedHealthcare than Live Nation.
So...
Maybe Rapino is safe.
But one thing is for sure, the public is beyond angry. And feels powerless.
Used to be the acts were leaders, beacons, their essence was their ability to speak power to the man. Today's acts? They're hiding behind Ticketmaster while they're playing privates and selling perfume and tchotchkes.
These CEOs can point to the fact that other business people make just as much, or more... But this explanation doesn't fly with the public, and most people are not that concerned what happens at Union Carbide.
The acts could go paperless, but then they risk not selling out.
Your beloved acts? They do not have clean hands.
Then again, almost no one in entertainment does, never mind in the Fortune 500.
But the average bloke doesn't have the opportunity to steal, to bend the law. They're working for a living before they're downsized.
Does Bruce Springsteen sing of this?
No, he sells his catalog for over half a billion dollars and tells us to vote for Kamala Harris and we're supposed to listen to what he says?
He's so far from the working man he doesn't have a clue what the plight of the working class is.
Nor do the Democratic brass, which is one reason Harris lost.
There's no amount of security that can prevent someone from being assassinated. The only way to be safe is to address the problem. And you start with the truth. The fees are all about the acts. And the acts keep wanting and in many cases getting more.
But all the blame is put on Ticketmaster.
And have you noticed all the hype about Taylor Swift has been about the revenue? Not the music. If you're a fan you don't care, but if you are not... You're Taylored out, you don't want to hear about it anymore. It's like you don't get an opinion. She's America's Sweetheart, accept it!
And the public connects on social media which everybody in power pooh-poohs.
The rich are getting richer and the poor are organized online.
How does this play out?
Expect change.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
I can't think of a more hated company than Ticketmaster. And if you look up Rapino's compensation...
Not that anyone died from being unable to get a concert ticket, but we have an entire nation of pissed-off customers.
And if Rapino were to die, it would be the acts Live Nation promotes that would be responsible. And the agents and managers who represent them.
The fees were developed as a way to create a pool of revenue that the acts couldn't commission. No fees, no profits, and every business needs to make profits to stay in business.
But what about the poor acts playing clubs, posting on Spotify to nearly zero acclaim. They've got to blame someone for their lack of financial success. And the target is on the back of Ticketmaster. The fees on a club show ticket can be as high as the face price. And both the acts and the customers are bitching about this. The acts believe they're entitled to get out of the van, get a bus or stay in hotels...and live at least a fraction of the life of superstars. Aren't they in the business too?
And fans quite rightly can't fathom the fact that fees are astronomical on smaller shows.
But the truth is just because you call yourself a musician does not mean you're entitled to be rich. No one complains in sports when they can't make it in the NBA or MLB. They have to face the fact that they're just not good enough, or have aged out. But in music!
And you can't say this because you're pissing on someone's dreams. What world do we live in where we need to support everyone who makes music? Where everyone who posts on Spotify is entitled to leave their day job?
But without these fees, there is no show. There are costs. Acts and customers are irrational. But this irrationality has a price.
Hatred of everyone on the business side of the equation.
We've got to to into all-in pricing to take the heat off of Rapino and Ticketmaster and Live Nation and AEG and every other ticketer and concert promoter. The public is boiling, how much more do you expect them to take?
But the public is irrational. Listeners believe they're entitled to a front row ticket at a cheap price and the acts do nothing to disabuse them of this notion.
And then there's Spotify... Daniel Ek may be more hated than Rapino. But Spotify is the most transparent company in the music business. You can literally go on the desktop app and see exactly how many streams a song has. But the story from the underclass is that Spotify is gaming the system. Stealing their dollars. And digital is not like physical, it's totally traceable, the data is there. Spotify pays nearly 70% out in royalties. You don't hear the big three record companies complaining about Spotify payments. And the irony is if you're a true indie, you're getting much more than the acts on the big labels, but the truth has no legs, you believe you're still being ripped-off.
Not that music is the sole offender here.
They call them "junk fees," but basically they're a complete rip-off, a way for hotels and others to make more money. Why can't they just give us one price? You check in, you don't use the pool, you don't use the spa, you were barely there but you've got to -pay a resort fee? THAT'S NUTS!
But not everybody stays at a hotel And not everybody is an artist on Spotify. But seemingly everybody is in the market for a concert ticket, which makes Michael Rapino Enemy #1 in the music business, if not America!
And then you've got the brain dead press that keeps saying Lucian Grainge is the most powerful person in the music business, even though those on the inside know that it is laughable. Universal makes beaucoup bucks on its catalog, records in some cases half a century old. The big three labels can barely break an act. The action is all in the indies. But those inured to the old system, the same press that missed Trump's second ascension, keeps focusing on records when in truth it's all about the road. Very few acts survive on record royalties. They make their living playing live, and Live Nation and others pay them almost all of the revenue, ergo the need for the fees! Live Nation's margins are incredibly low, Rapino and company are keeping nearly the entire community of artists alive, but we keep seeing tributes to Grainge, in the industry press as well as the mainstream press.
Never has the truth been so obfuscated.
Someone pays the price. But it's never the acts. The act that rode shotgun in your life, that kept you from committing suicide, it can't possibly be greedy. The act cares about you, but Ticketmaster? That's the ENEMY! Without Ticketmaster...
Even the government is delusional. It believes if you split Ticketmaster from Live Nation ticket prices will go down. Ain't that a laugh. Prices are set by DEMAND! And there's always another promoter lined up to pay the act if it doesn't make a deal with Live Nation.
I'm not saying Live Nation is squeaky clean.
And we can debate all day long whether Rapino's entitled to that compensation. He's selling art, and he's making more than most of the acts Live Nation promotes. Ditto on Lucian Grainge. The latter situation is especially ugly. The label deals are horrific compared to those of Live Nation. Essentially no one gets more than 50% of the net, and most get much less than that, never mind it's impossible to get an accurate accounting, and Grainge makes over a hundred million bucks for taking the company public?
I mean we can hate on Elon Musk all day long, but this guy changed the car market completely with Tesla, and then there's SpaceX and Starlink. He's an innovator, not a manager.
One thing you can say is that Rapino has made many business moves since he's been running the company. Purchased this, started divisions here... The last thing Grainge did was consolidate his labels, getting rid of Capitol. Universal Music is much closer to UnitedHealthcare than Live Nation.
So...
Maybe Rapino is safe.
But one thing is for sure, the public is beyond angry. And feels powerless.
Used to be the acts were leaders, beacons, their essence was their ability to speak power to the man. Today's acts? They're hiding behind Ticketmaster while they're playing privates and selling perfume and tchotchkes.
These CEOs can point to the fact that other business people make just as much, or more... But this explanation doesn't fly with the public, and most people are not that concerned what happens at Union Carbide.
The acts could go paperless, but then they risk not selling out.
Your beloved acts? They do not have clean hands.
Then again, almost no one in entertainment does, never mind in the Fortune 500.
But the average bloke doesn't have the opportunity to steal, to bend the law. They're working for a living before they're downsized.
Does Bruce Springsteen sing of this?
No, he sells his catalog for over half a billion dollars and tells us to vote for Kamala Harris and we're supposed to listen to what he says?
He's so far from the working man he doesn't have a clue what the plight of the working class is.
Nor do the Democratic brass, which is one reason Harris lost.
There's no amount of security that can prevent someone from being assassinated. The only way to be safe is to address the problem. And you start with the truth. The fees are all about the acts. And the acts keep wanting and in many cases getting more.
But all the blame is put on Ticketmaster.
And have you noticed all the hype about Taylor Swift has been about the revenue? Not the music. If you're a fan you don't care, but if you are not... You're Taylored out, you don't want to hear about it anymore. It's like you don't get an opinion. She's America's Sweetheart, accept it!
And the public connects on social media which everybody in power pooh-poohs.
The rich are getting richer and the poor are organized online.
How does this play out?
Expect change.
--
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
--
Listen to the podcast:
-iHeart: https://ihr.fm/2Gi5PFj
-Apple: https://apple.co/2ndmpvp
--
http://www.twitter.com/lefsetz
--
If you would like to subscribe to the LefsetzLetter,
http://www.lefsetz.com/lists/?p=subscribe&id=1
If you do not want to receive any more LefsetzLetters, http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=unsubscribe&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
To change your email address http://lefsetz.com/lists/?p=preferences&uid=0eecea7b60b461717065cbde887c8e25
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)