9 Depressing Spotify Stats

[ProfD]

Playing live is not an option in my area. It's damned slim pickin's for a copy band and there are absolutely zero options for original material.

In the old days, artists and musicians either established a music scene in their area becoming big fish in a small pond or they relocated to areas more conducive to music.

 

The internet has shrunk the globe in that folks no longer have to relocate in order to gig or get discovered.

 

The unchanged constant is that artists and musicians have find a way to build an audience and sell themselves.

 

Cover band music started out as original music that became popular. It had to start somewhere whether it was a garage, coffeehouse or bedroom studio.

 

One thing is certain...it's even harder for artists and musicians to establish themselves musically when they have more excuses for not getting things done and little or no hustle to make it happen.

[Docbop]

These days artists/groups going independent brings more revenue. What they make selling one CD at a gig or via website is WAY more than the streaming services. If I was still into that side of music I'd sell direct and use service like Distrokid, Bandcamp, etc.

[Mike Warren]

The unchanged constant is that artists and musicians have find a way to build an audience and sell themselves.

 

 

I've noticed that the musicians that do the best with the YouTube/Patreon model know how to sell themselves and have a personality beyond the music.

 

 

One thing is certain...it's even harder for artists and musicians to establish themselves musically when they have more excuses for not getting things done and little or no hustle to make it happen.

 

Indeed.

[GRollins]

Musicians with personality always do the best, regardless of the venue or format. Someone who goes on stage and stares at their shoes for the entire show isn't going to engage the audience nearly to the extent that someone who talks to the audience, makes eye contact, or tells a funny story can. That's not unique in any way to YouTube.

 

I was talking to a guy this past weekend about some guitars. He's splitting time between this area and Austin, TX. The splitting consists of getting his house here ready to sell so he can relocate to Austin. One of his reasons for moving is that there's close to zero music here. I know I'd like to move up to the Asheville, NC area: One-tenth the population/five times the music scene. Unbelievable difference. But there's this reality thing that my wife's job is here and the kids are locked into this area, etc. It's fine to talk about moving to someplace hotter in the abstract, but the realities of the matter tend to take precedence.

 

I just applied my Craig's List test--Asheville has roughly twice the musical instruments for sale (remember: ~1/10 the population) as the Columbia, SC CL does. Charlotte has vastly more, of course. Charleston is roughly the same, though they're smaller population-wise. Atlanta, like Charlotte, is huge by comparison. Etc. For some reason, central SC is a vacuum. I've been here 40 years and never been able to come up with a logical explanation why. In theory, the Internet should render that moot. In practice, it doesn't work that way.

 

The point about the returns of selling a single CD vs. revenue from streaming underscores what I've been saying. It's not a matter of "hustle," it's that the current streaming system doesn't work for the musician. You can get online and promote until you're blue in the face, but if no one is watching your channel you're just masturbating your ego in front of a camera. If you're getting one-gazillionth of a cent per download, there's no real difference between one download and ten thousand downloads--a nickel's worth of income per month isn't going to pay for the electricity you burned to make the music in the first place. You're spending more electricity posting your promotion than you'll make back. That's a pretty extreme mismatch in return on investment. Yes, the record companies have always made money off the artists--that's a trivial observation--but even a small artist got to buy a meal with their check, maybe even a used guitar or something. A nickel or even a (gasp!) dime per month just isn't a paying proposition (pun intended).

 

Yeah, I know, Covid doesn't help either, but that should recede into the background once enough people get vaccinated. However, if the online system worked problems like Covid would be irrelevant anyway.

 

Grey

[ProfD]

For some reason, central SC is a vacuum. I've been here 40 years and never been able to come up with a logical explanation why. In theory, the Internet should render that moot. In practice, it doesn't work that way.

 

That which appears to be a vacuum to one person looks like an opportunity to another. Again, it goes back to becoming a big fish in a small pond and hustle.

 

It would be easier to sell CDs and make $ building a fanbase in central SC than trying to build one on the internet.

 

As one example, the band R.E.M. hailed from Athens, GA. It was a college town rather than a music industry hub.

 

Either way, the real question is whether or not the music is good enough to sell locally or beyond.

 

Too many artists/musicians/bands believe that because they have "talent" that entitles them to a fanbase. False.

 

The game has already been lost if one expects to build a fanbase through little or no effort or some other form of osmosis.

 

There is defiintely no reason or incentive for a record company to sign an artist/musician/band with no fanbase which makes streaming revenue even more irrelevant.

 

I'll eventually let this thread go but the music business of which I probably know way too much has always been a favorite subject of mine.

[16251]

Interesting addition to this thread.

 

 

[Baldwin Funster]

Possible reasons why you never "made it" in the music business-

 

Your music is not good- or

Your business abilities are not good- or

You are very ugly- or

You have a repellent personality- or

You are unlucky- this one is clearly my problem and I'm guessing yours as well.

 

Are there more? Unwillingness to take chances maybe?

[woodtus]

There is defiintely no reason or incentive for a record company to sign an artist/musician/band with no fanbase

 

 

You should let Simon Cowell know this! It seems to me the opposite is true, that not very talented youngsters are taken on and turned into spice girls by media companies.

[nursers]

Possible reasons why you never "made it" in the music business-

 

Your music is not good- or

Your business abilities are not good- or

You are very ugly- or

You have a repellent personality- or

You are unlucky- this one is clearly my problem and I'm guessing yours as well.

 

Are there more? Unwillingness to take chances maybe?

 

All of the above for me but I'm still tryin'

[GRollins]

The "your music sucks" possibility probability was why I was saying that there is a need for people to curate the vast quantities of stuff that has been uploaded to date. I have no doubt that there's worthwhile music out there, but finding it is a vexing problem. YouTube's suggestion algorithm is an example of what's needed, but the fact that it's notorious for bad suggestions shows that AIs have a way to go before they're up to the task. Humans can still do the job better--at least for the time being.

 

And as for soi disant experts: My ex dragged me to a Christmas party years ago, sponsored by her boss. Not having much in common with her coworkers or their spouses, I was wandering about looking for a bookshelf to scan in order to get an X-ray of her boss's mentality. The search for books was in vain, which was an X-ray result of its own, in a manner of speaking. The boss, perhaps sensing that I was up to no good, apprehended me, saying, "You're an author, right? You need to come over here and meet so-and-so. You'll have so much to talk about!" The tone of her voice didn't bode well, but I didn't get much choice in the matter as she seized me by the collar and dragged me bodily across the room, feet skipping to retain my balance.

 

The guy in question sure looked the part: Sweater with patched elbows, unkempt hair, etc. I shrugged and said, "Hi. Boss-lady says you're an author. What do you write?" He launched into a description of his writing, but his monologue soon began to drift away from writing, trending more towards what a genius he was at the business end of things. That seemed a little odd, so thinking that perhaps he also dabbled in editing or agenting, I asked him a few questions to clarify. Well, no, he wasn't an editor or an agent, he was an author. Okay, fine, but...and before I could get in another word he started in, telling me how he had it all figured out. Er, okay, but...and he was off and running again, telling me he was an expert at the business, that he had a foolproof plan, and so forth.

 

By this point, I was getting the impression that maybe something was off, so I asked him where he'd been published. Nowhere, it turned out. All his stories were in the bottom of a drawer...but he knew everything about the industry and....

 

I told him I had to go to the bathroom and carefully avoided being in his proximity for the rest of the evening.

 

Grey