broken cool.

broken links - May 23, 2013

broken cool — Thu, 23 May 2013 07:45:11 -0400

Eyeing global appeal of local music (China Daily)

Daft Punk's 'Random Access Memories' Set for No. 1, 300,000-plus Debut (Billboard.biz)

Amazon & Book Publishers Just Made Music Industry Look Like Neanderthals (Hypebot)

Monte & Avery Lipman Deliver Commencement Speech At University Of Albany (FMQB)

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Music Conference: It Starts with the DJ Conference (Toronto) Feat. Kawan “KP” Prather

broken cool — Thu, 23 May 2013 07:35:56 -0400

John Legend, T.I. Outkast, Usher, TLC, P!nk, and Yelawolf are some of the artists whose careers have been orchestrated by famed music industry executive and producer Kawan “KP” Prather – Urban A&R at Atlantic Records who will join the 2013 It Starts With The DJ conference as the main keynote speaker. The conference will feature a power panel of Toronto’s best in the media relations business held in Toronto on June 8th, 2013.

Stylus Group Co-Founder David “Click” Cox shares, “It will be great to hear from an Atlanta influencer on how the scene has grown and was built. In relation to hearing his recommendations and outlook on the Toronto scene. His experience and involvement within the music industry is a big a deal.”

Held at the Jackman Hall - Art Gallery of Ontario (317 Dundas Street W.), the McCaul Street entrance will open at 12:30 pm, with tickets available for $10 CND at the door. The sixth annual It Starts With The DJ conference is a prelude to Stylus Spinfest Weekend taking place in the Fall 2013 involving three-days of celebratory events leading up to the big Stylus Awards show finale.

About the Conference

Round 1:

Breaking Ground into the Media World
1:00pm – 2:15pm
This interactive discussion will focus on the world of public relations and the importance of connecting directly with various media outlets. The panel will feature some of Toronto’s well respected publicists, bloggers, and diverse writers, who will explore their outlook on today’s industry and the inside scoop on how to engage the media. This segment will provide a forum to introduce musical artists to the steps in establishing the right PR strategy to build their profile. A few topics on the agenda include: The steps to approach various media types, what do writers care about, and what not to do to burn your bridges.

Round 2:

Keynote Interview with Kawan “KP” Prather, Senior VP of A&R Atlantic Records, CEO Ghet-O-Vision Entertainment

2:30pm – 3:45pm
Direct from Atlanta we sit down for a conversation with successful A&R Record Executive Kawan “KP” Prather. This unique keynote appearance will dive into his outlook on today’s urban music industry and offer an inside look to his entrepreneurship and business philosophy as he shares insights of his music career over the years and stories behind some of the industry’s most celebrated artists that he's worked with throughout the decades. Offering advice and motivation, along with the tools to inspire.

Round 3:

One on One – Creating Relationships

4:00pm – 5:00pm
Back by popular demand, we’re dedicating one hour to the importance of networking. Unfortunately, many musicians do not have relationships with key industry executives and this creates obstacles in receiving exposure. Participants have the opportunity to book in advance a five-minute session with up to three of our influential advisers of their choice, to receive feedback or advice on current projects. After the first five-minute session has completed, participants will proceed to the next scheduled session and continue until all sessions have been completed. One on One relationship building sessions can result in the best of outcomes for a chance to network in a more intimate setting, and open the door to properly strategize next career steps.

More Details: http://bit.ly/KhJ8Nf

The Signing of Paris Hilton: The Reason YMCMB is Winning

broken cool — Thu, 23 May 2013 07:24:41 -0400

This happened:

Welcome@ParisHilton to tha Family.RichgangRichgirl.YMCMB
— BIRDMAN (@BIRDMAN5STAR) May 22, 2013

YMCMB has signed socialite Paris Hilton who will deliver her new album, which will focus on House music, this summer. Weird, right? Well, not exactly. There is a trend here with YMCMB and a successful one at that.

No one is expecting Paris Hilton to deliver "Illmatic" here people....that's not the point. Birdman and his Cash Money cohorts have steadily capitalized on sounds, people and moments in Pop music. Don't believe me? Here is a label that garnered Kevin freaking Rudolf the following accolades:

- "Let It Rock" (4 million sales)

- "I Made It" (1 million+ sales)

- 3 BMI Pop Awards

And let's be honest, no one is ever going to mistake Kevin Rudolf for Pete Townshend.

Is it highly likely Paris Hilton will drop one album and never be heard from again on Cash Money? Absolutely. But given that Hilton has already mass marketed herself (in more ways that one) over the course of several years, Cash Money doesn't need to introduce her. All they need to do is throw Lil' Wayne, Nicki Minaj and a bunch of EDM artists and producers on the album and boom, an instant gimmicky hit...even if it is only good for one album cycle and club tour.

What I'm saying here definitely goes against my usual feelings on signing gimmicks or "one and done" artists, but you need to look at Young Money/Cash Money like a good sports team. They have surrounded themselves with true artists or skilled veterans of the game (Drake, Nicki Minaj, Lil' Wayne, DJ Khaled) much like a good sports team has its anchor players. And then, this allows the label to go and take chances or quick cash-ins (Paris Hilton, Limp Bizkit, Bow Wow, Mystikal) much like a sports team will sign a once successful player who just might have one last good season in them.

Is the signing of Paris Hilton everything that's wrong with the music business? Maybe. But you know that whole "business" part of the music business? Yeah, that's where the money is made.

broken links - May 22nd, 2013

broken cool — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:30:19 -0400

Sony Corp to Put Suggested Entertainment Spin-Off to its Board: Report (Billboard.biz)

BMG Concludes Acquisition Of Virgin Music And Famous UK Music Publishing Copyrights (Mi2N)

Radio Wars: Google 1, Apple 0 (MBT)

How Google Music, Spotify and other subscription services compare (LA Times)

Record Labels and the JOBS Act (Music Business Journal)

Speak On It: Free Music Doesn't Have To Mean Rushed Music

broken cool — Wed, 22 May 2013 07:14:43 -0400

Quality over quantity. Somewhere along the way, many in Hip-Hop forgot this mantra. As the tools available to artists have increased, the sheer amount of music available for free has gone through the roof. Some of this music doesn't even deserve to see the light of day while the rest of it, while listenable, suffers from the fast food MP3 world we live in now.

Take someone like Lil' B or Chief Keef or Rick Ross. While they have created an audience for their music (and in Keef's and Ross's case, an audience willing to pay for some of it), they have also over saturated peoples ears to the point where many of them can't tell quality material from the garbage. Yes, mixtapes/free albums are a beneficial way for someone like Rick Ross to create buzz around an impending official album release, but when that album comes out and is the same quality as the free album or mixtape, the consumer begins getting confused and ultimately (at some point) loses some or all interest.

Free music is a great promotional tool for artists, but I'm not of the school of thought that all music should free. In fact, I even think there is life left in CDs (I'll save that for another post). Give your fans free music. Much like sampling in a grocery store, they are going to need a taste before opening their wallet to spend money on your music...but take your time. I can't think of ANY recording artist I would want a mixtape or free album from every month or even every 3 months. The artist I'm working with, Connor Evans, spends months crafting his projects. His first album came out in May 2012, followed by an EP in November 2012 and his new album will be released in June 2013...and keep in mind he is a "new" artist. And even though he is trying to build an audience, he isn't jamming music down peoples throats every week. He has allowed for some organic growth and provided quality over quantity.

Want to separate yourself from the pack? Trying to standout from the thousands and thousands of other artists releases song after song, album after album, and mixtape after mixtape? Spend some time creating quality music, build a strong team, create a plan and then give it to the people. Do the people want more? Great, but don't give it to them right away. Build anticipation and don't be worried about them forgetting about you. If you are giving them quality, they will wait and anticipate.

Video: With Months to Live, Zach Turned To Music To Leave A Lasting Message

broken cool — Tue, 21 May 2013 15:34:38 -0400

Learn more about Zach's journey here.

From YouTube:

Zach's song, 'Clouds' is available on iTunes and other online music stores and that proceeds benefit the Zach Sobiech Research Fund of Children's Cancer Research Fund http://www.childrenscancer.org/zach

Zach Sobiech passed away May 20, 2013. Our hearts and prayers are with his family and friends. We are forever touched by his story. Thank you for sharing your life and music with us, Zach. You are dearly missed and loved.

broken links - May 21st, 2013

broken cool — Tue, 21 May 2013 07:44:40 -0400

Daft Punk’s ‘Random Access Memories’: A Timeline of the Global Teaser Campaign (Billboard.biz)

Midia digs deeper into freemium digital-music business models (Music Alley)

The Entire Music Publishing Industry Is Peeved At Sony For Delaying iRadio (Cult of Mac)

Taylor Swift Dominates Billboard Music Awards (FMQB)

Songkick Detour And The Middle Class Musician (Music Industry Blog)

The Billboard Music Awards Ratings Were Up 28%...But Did It Have Anything To Do With Music?

broken cool — Tue, 21 May 2013 07:38:10 -0400

Billboard Music Awards was the big winner on the weekend, pulling in an audience of 9.47 million, coming in at #1 in the coveted 18-49 demographic. And while the show was packed with superstar performances, one would think that the 28% viewership increase was spurred on my social media and the show's many "shareable" moments.

MIGUEL'S LEG DROP

This is still something else to watch:

Thankfully, the girl was ok but Miguel "adorning" the woman with his leg became an instant social media smash, hitting the Twitter trending topics and no doubt pushing some people to tune in to see what happened (or what would happen next). Miguel's leg drop has spawned countless memes, videos and even the Hulkster gave props:

MIGUELAMANIA at least he did it right brother. HH
— Hulk Hogan (@HulkHogan) May 20, 2013

Oh, and Lawler and JR call the drop:

BOOING THE BIEBS

Shout out to Jesus Christ. As Bieber accepted an award at Sunday's event, the crowd let him have it as boos rained down. Bieber then went on to talk about only being 19 and doing a really good job and sumthin, sumthin, sumthin. Justin Bieber being booed? On the Billboard Awards? What else could possibly happen at this show? This mentality is what USED to make the MTV Music Awards must-see television, where you didn't know what was going to happen next...but then, Yeezy interrupted T.Swizzle and the show became safe.

KID ROCK

Gotta love Kid Rock man. Following Selena Gomez and Chris Brown, Kid Rock asked the crowd to give props to people lip syncing over pre-recorded music. It was everything right and everything wrong about music at the same damn time. Sure, one of Kid Rock's biggest songs hijacks and duck tapes "Sweet Home Alabama" but the Kid has been pretty consistent in his stance against the music establishment. Yet another shareable moment.

NICKI MINAJ ALMOST SENDING LIL' WAYNE BACK TO THE HOSPITAL

The fun begins at 2:04:

If all else fails, sex sells and Nicki knows. During their performance at the Billboard Awards, the Barbz gave Weezy F. a lap dance live on-stage. A risky decision given Lil' Wayne has been recovering from a string of seizures. Wayne looked happy if not tentative in receiving the thunder...oh yeah, they performed a song too.

Dear MTV,

Here is your formula for the 2013 MTV Video Music Awards:

- Kanye West

- Cognac

- A microphone

- More cognac

All of this = ratings.

Lord Yeezus: How Kanye Buzzed the World with the Release of "New Slaves"

broken cool — Sat, 18 May 2013 21:40:45 -0400

Genius. That pretty much sums up the premiere of Kanye West's new video and single "New Slaves." Not only is the song one of Kanye's best ever, but the decision to premiere the video via projection at 66 locations around the world last night is sheer marketing perfection. Not only is it unique, but it's massively viral and instantly makes Kanye's new song an event rather than just a single.

This evening, Kanye serves as the musical guest on the season finale of 'SNL.' This, just a night after he literally sent the world into a frenzy by debuting his new video on the sides of landmarks and buildings:

Kanye's new album "Yeezus" drops June 18th...1 month from today. And amidst paparazzi run ins, rumours and Kardashians, Kanye has effectively made music the most important thing once again when it comes to Kanye West. The marketing behind "New Slaves" is proof Kanye West isn't average. In fact, it's further proof he's one of history's creative geniuses.

broken links - May 17th, 2013

broken cool — Fri, 17 May 2013 06:50:33 -0400

Billboard Music Awards Playlist and Collaborations Revealed (Billboard.biz)

Divergent Streams: Reflections and Explorations of the Modern Music Industry (Hypebot)

The Music Industry Gets Its Groove Back (TheStreet)

The Great Gatsby Gamble (Evening Standard)

Singer Kat Edmonson gets creative with financing her music (Reuters India)