During my own time at Berklee, I took advantage of everything I could. As a piano player, I spent most of my time playing Hammond B3. While I didn’t plant on being the next John Medeski, I welcomed the opportunity to play an instrument I’d like never own on my own.
Here’s the rub: no one knows what to do, no one dares risk giving a definitive opinion, and everyone thinks that the major labels are out to get us. No, really. That’s what’s going on here. Gotta love the music industry!
Internet-only broadcasters will soon be on equal footing with their FM brethren. In order to be successful, the quality of what’s being broadcast on the Internet needs to equal or exceed what the big guys are coming up with. Here then, from my experience, 10 Commandments for successful Internet broadcasting…
So as Ian and I discussed the state of the industry, its cast of characters, and what kind of artists should be using Topspin (or Nimbit … or Bandcamp … or Audiolife … ), it all became re-enforced by what I saw on the tv last night: style over substance, instant over earned, easy over challenging.
Sometimes the best laid plans of musicians and men often go awry. As a music industry veteran (and still under 40 years old!), I’ve seen lots of artists and companies emerge with huge plans to revolutionize…
OK, maybe stripper isn’t exactly the right word. I think “dancer” is the preferred terminology. Either way, I spent a couple weeks in southern Florida, and the cast of characters I encountered were a unique bunch….
I use Facebook, MySpace, Last.fm, MOG, HypeMachine, LaLa, and a few other music discovery/listening sites. They’re all good for a whole bunch of different reasons. And I was rather surprised when, of all places, I got…
There are times when the obvious, simple answer is the best one. And as a big fan of the “a ha!” moment, this cartoon makes absolute, total perfect sense….
I just checked the “This Day in History” section of my local (online) newspaper. Two interesting birthdays today: Rodney Bingenheimer and Alan Freed. Both, in their own way, revolutionized radio; they made it into something bigger…
Here’s the thing. I’m not that old. I’m far from 40, and I continually decline the chance to dine anyplace offering an early bird special. I like to go places, do things, and I refuse to…
As I watch my partners and competitors engage in battles of marketing will, I’m amused by the way they turn the super strategic, high level actions into their own raison d’etre. The belief seems to be…
It was great taking a little breather for Thanksgiving. The day to day monotony of work and stress and daily life becomes wonderfully ameliorated (there’s a word…) simply by stepping back and relaxing. During this little…
In the wide, wide world of marketing, there’re all kinds of opinions being tossed around. And everyone is an expert. I’ve noticed that the folks with the least to say consistently spend the most time saying…
Sometimes I wonder if I read too much stuff. Quite often I’ll hear something cool, but it’s gone 5 minutes later. And instead I end up saying things like “I read somewhere that … ” or…
Last night I took a loft tour. Everyone living in a lovely loft community opened their doors to show off what they’ve done with their space. It was a lot of brick, a bit of granite,…
Odds are you didn’t read a newspaper this morning. In fact, newspaper readership is down roughly 20% this year alone. Daily circulation of American newspapers peaked in 1984 and dropped 13% to 55.2 million copies by…
A confession: I like random words. Somehow, as we take our daily conversation down to 140 character tweets and colorful abbreviations (wtf!) we lose track of the power and majesty of choosing the exact, right word….
Like many music industry types, I read the Lefsetz Letter. And again, like many, I often think old Bob is just a cranky, washed-up, old-school record label type guy. Case in point: he recently shredded a…
The inner-office debate over the value and potential cost of music continues to rage on. But in the course of discussion, one particular point seems to hold the key to the argument: when is a product…
So, previously I talked about respecting your users. In essence, the bombardment of advertising messages, and overall noise on the web is astounding. Again, while everything thinks they’re a genius, and entitled to share their musings…
There was a rather heated discussion yesterday between two individuals: 1. A brilliant marketing mind with years of experience in the music industry (me…) 2. A co-op student toiling partially under the whim and wisdom of…
Respectivize. What? Huh? I’m tired of incentivizing the userbase, and I’m beginning to think that it doesn’t work. Instead, it’s time to focus on respect rather than incentives. In the long run, respect goes a lot…
Reprinted from the New York Times – 10/11/09 Broken trust, men misbehaving, women trying to recover — these sound like themes pulled from a Carly Simon song. Maybe from all of Carly Simon’s songs. But this…
Last Friday, I had the extreme pleasure of being a dinner guest at Boston’s Oak Room. It’s a steakhouse in the classic tradition that fusses over every detail, serves the highest quality cuisine, and charges its…
Just days after my 21st birthday, I found out that I’d be starting an internship in radio. And along with learning a lot of outdated skills (does anyone broadcast/record/edit on 1/4 inch tape?), I learned one…
I’ve worked with multiple startups. They’re exciting, and the potential for growth, opportunity, and massive fame and fortune is always dangling right in front of you and (usually…) just out of reach. Success, therefore, becomes infinitely…
Reprinted from Managers might be forgiven for leaping at the smallest good news, but the phrase “slight recovery” jumps out of the latest revenue forecast for the U.S. commercial radio business. More immediately, the research…
The public is a fickle lover. One minute, it’s a blissful romance, and in the next you’re a loathed, lambasted lothario clamoring for acceptance from those who understand you. Alliteration aside, the public has the power…
Everyone reaches their own version of a breaking point. It’s the moment when the incalculable doom of your current situation demands you to do something. Divorce attorneys are experts at exploiting that point in marriages, and…
Today, for the first time ever, we have a guest post. It’s exciting, innovative, and much easier than writing my own post. Anyway … today’s guest blogger is web strategist Jeremiah Owyang. Smart guy, very smart guy…
A friend of mine writes a blog on his area of expertise. He writes a lot, and is (perhaps) better than I am in SEO and SMO practices. In fact, he’s making a pretty solid living…
Over the last few days, I’ve been wondering about what we say. Admittedly that’s a wide, open-ended type statement. But think about how you say what you say. Do you actually take the time to choose…
Judging from this week’s media hype, 9/09/09 is the next coming of the Beatles. The folks at Harmonix are releasing RockBand: Beatles Edition, and all things Beatle are flooding the market. I just got back from…
I was poking around on Craigslist this morning, and alongside a sweet deal on a Rhodes, I noticed that roughly 60% of the marketing job listings were for internships. None of which offered pay, temp-to-perm opportunities,…
I’ve been watching a few scenarios unfold from the sidelines. Without being directly involved, it’s fascinating to sit back and watch people tick. In particular, I’m amazed to see how people present themselves. Quite often, they…
Lots of folks will tell you how to do things. In fact, everyone probably prides themselves on being an expert on something. I’d rather spin things a little bit and tell you what NOT to do….
This is a column by Al Kooper for EQ Magazine back in 2001. I wanna start off by saying I chose the music business back in 1958 to express myself and to make a living. I’ve…
When I sit down with potential clients and companies, I almost never go in with a set agenda. It’s impossible to have a “one size fits all” style proposal or product. And I make a point,…
I just got off the phone with a recruiter. His client is looking for a Director of Marketing who understands SMO. His test, in determining whose candidacy deserves to move forward, is to simply ask them…
No less than 8 different people called to let me know that WBCN was going off the air. In a move calculated on a P&L sheet and nowhere else, one of Rock’s flagship stations (41 years…
Watch it all, but pay attention to the absolute hysteria at 3:44. Has anything in music been the same since? The clip is from “Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever.” Thought of as the greatest performance of…
Springsteen played Bonnaroo. McCartney played Coachella. Elton recorded a track with Timbaland. Somewhere, somehow the lines are becoming blurred. Speaking of McCartney, let’s not forget that Rockband – Beatles Edition comes out on 9/9/09. Can a…
Last night I trekked down to the Comcast Center to see Phish. Admittedly, I’m only a passing Phish phan, but the ticket was offered, seemed like phun, and off (oph?) I went. In my own defense,…
Growing up, I was a nice, Jewish boy. Hebrew School three days per week, youth group activities on the weekend, and a Bar Mitzvah that pulled out every stop. I had, no exaggeration, memorized the Erev…
A lot of folks rely on they. The mighty they seem to know everything about everything but manage to remain nameless. They say you should pee on a jellyfish sting to stop the pain and reduce…
The other day I watched a couple Berklee students perform an impressive cover of “Alone Again (Naturally)” by Gilbert O’Sullivan. Gilbert is essentially a 3-hit wonder (that’s 2 more than most!) from the early ’70s. “Alone…
A few years ago, I worked with a program director named Buzz Knight. Buzz and I never really saw eye to eye on much, but I was always impressed with the results his team managed to…
I spent nearly 2 weeks writing this post. At every turn, I questioned the wiseness, propriety, and basic common sense in putting forth these thoughts. But the more I read, DM’ed toward, or otherwise got pointed…
The other day, I made a slightly expensive purchase. For the princely sum of $202.74 (including a supposed “convenience” charge), I now have a seat to see Elton John and Billy Joel at Gillette Stadium on…
Back in ye olde days, I had a pretty sweet system. Bose speakers, Denon receiver and cd player, and the oh-so-pricey gold Monster Cables connecting everything together. I was a sophomore in high school, and I…