The Negative Side of the Internet

In the past couple of weeks I have discussed the various contributions the internet has made to the music industry. These contributions have had varying effects such as: expansion through online shows and fragmentation through online content generated by the artists themselves. In the big picture these have been fairly positive consequences however, the internet has brought about somewhat negative effects to the music industry as well.

Has anyone noticed how more and more older bands have started touring again. I have personally attended a handful of festivals over the past 3 years and it seems that each one of these festivals was headlined by a band that had its heyday several decades ago. For example, In 2007, Bonnaroo (a major music and arts festival held in Tennessee) was headlined by the Police; a group that formed in the 1970’s and broke up sometime in the 1980’s. To continue, In 2009, Bonnaroo was headlined by Bruce Springsteen (who’s musical career can really be traced back to the sixties) and Phish, a group that formed in the early eighties. Lastly, there was the ACL lineup this year (2010) which featured headlining artists such as The Eagles (formed in the early seventies) and Phish as well. Now, just to clarify, these bands are exceptional and I enjoyed all of these shows to the utmost extent but; some part of me is asking what is luring such distinguished and aged artists back into the spotlight? Perhaps it is nostalgia, these artists and bands were once the top acts in the world and they desire to attain that success once again. This is definitely possible and, to some extent, it probably contributed to the resurgence of all of these bands but, it seems that there are too many bands coming back for this to be the sole factor. 

After doing some research on the topic, I’ve found that the other reason, perhaps the main one, for these bands coming back is their money. With the proliferation of the internet, big-name bands are just not making as much money as they used to. As stated in the article “Why are all these bands touring again?” from the Dallas Morning News, ‘We’ve moved away from the notion that the release of a recording is an event.’ Basically, album releases have lost quite a bit of significance in the digital era. With online services such as iTunes, people can just pick and choose which songs they want off of a CD without necessarily buying the whole thing. This new method of distributing artists’ songs is convenient for the consumer, and even small bands trying to get their name out there, but, it comes a quite a price to the big-name bands trying to generate revenue. Such a price that these bands are being forced back out into the touring world where they can hopefully revive their old fan bases and convince them to purchase tickets to their shows. This has worked quite well for bands such as the ones mentioned above but, it has to be tiring traveling the nation again stirring up profits instead of just hanging out and letting the album sales do all the work.

                Therefore, despite all the positives that the internet has given to the music world, know that it has contributed some negative side-effects as well. Small artists and the consumer aren’t doing a great deal of complaining because the internet has ultimately helped serve them, however, big-name bands have taken an even bigger hit and, their whole dynamic might be heading for a change.

Read More:
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/ent/stories/DN-reunions_0422gl.ART.State.Bulldog.432ec8c.html

How the Internet has Fragmented Music

                Last week I discussed how the internet has added yet another contribution to the ever-changing music industry. The internet has begun introducing live online shows for the pleasure of any viewer who, for whatever reason, cannot make it out to a performance. This is a brilliant addition to the industry, like most others the internet has provided, but how will it affect the overall world of music. This week I would like to delve a little deeper into the history of music and explore what magnitude of change has been brought about by the proliferation of internet-based music.

                The 1960’s serves as a good base for this rundown because this decade marks a time when music became mainstream and, popular to people of all classes. The sixties were characterized by big-name bands, such as the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, who produced albums and performed live shows across several nations. This is a similar pattern to what artists today are accomplishing but there is one major difference; how these bands made it to the top. In the sixties, the process of becoming a big-name artist was highly selective. Knowing somebody inside the industry was almost a must because getting your music heard was very difficult. If you were lucky enough to get in with the industry, you would then have to create and perform songs that were tailored to the mainstream tastes of the big radio companies. Generating radio play translated into developing a loyal following of fans that would in turn, provide support for the ban. This was not the simplest of tasks and it could easily explain why there was only a handful of standout bands in that era which, seemed to be everybody’s favorite.

                Now, in the 21^st century, the nature of the game has changed quite a bit. Artists are still producing albums and performing live shows as they did in the past however, the process of constructing a solid fan base has transformed significantly. It is safe to say that the radio is no longer a decisive factor in whether or not an artist is going to be big or not. I mean who really turns on the FM radio these days to hear the biggest and the best bands? Rather, the internet has swept in and has basically become the medium most focused on by artists trying to get their name out there. Producing music through sites such as MySpace or YouTube, followed by social-networking efforts to connect with fans, has really become a platform for starting a successful music career. Not every major artist right now started this way but a majority of them still use this recipe to help move their careers along. Either way, what the internet has done is provide a self-serving method of becoming a successful artist with a loyal following. This impact of the internet is not only felt by aspiring artist but, also by listeners who wish to enjoy varying types of music. Thanks to the plethora of music-based websites, almost any genre can be heard at any given time. This has fragmented the broad audience of music listeners who can now pick and choose exactly what they want to listen to and not just go along with what a radio decides to play.

                This separation of a once united fan base may be the end of big-bands such as the Beatles. With everyone being capable of picking exactly which genre, and band, they wish to listen to, the chances of two random people having the same favorite artist is becoming increasingly unlikely. The internet has provided a way for users to get precisely what they desire but, it may have caused an end to the national phenomena’s we all used to be accustomed to.  

Read more:

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1900054,00.html