Record to Rendered

Currently listening to: Kill Hannah – New York City Speed

It is no secret that the music industry is in a state of renovation. Digital media is hindering physical album sales with distributors and offering fans an option of a 99 cent song as opposed to the past offerings of “the entire album or nothing.” This demise of our beloved system leaves modern day players urgently trying to come up with this decade’s next successful business model.

The downfall began in 1999 when teenager Shawn Fanning created the free music downloading site, Napster. With any and all music at the fingertips of the internet-savvy world, minds were infused with the idea that music was no longer a monetary industry, but rather a prerogative that was owed to the public.

We have seen the collapse of Napster, the rise of Limewire, the increase of computer viruses and finally, the invention of iTunes. However with free streaming sites such as Ruckus, MySpace and Pandora, iTunes sales are still not able to compete with the value that was once derived from physical album sales. In fact, though 750 million CDs were distributed in 2005 (a 30% decrease), only about 6% of a typical artists’ fan base ever see a physical copy of the album.

Where the majority of album sales were once coming from the 13 to 18 year old demographic, this is now the target market for music pirating. Adults 36 years and older account for 45% of album sales, and also happen to hold the expendable money to fund live concerts and tours. Ten percent of this older demographic has recently reported to have spent less money on physical CDs, the fact they like less music available to blame. So what is a middle aged, working class music aficionado to do on their drive to and from work? Listen to the radio. What is played on the radio? Whatever band has the record label with the most money or the better contacts.

Last year, the well-renowned band Hawthorne Heights booked a show at The Metro in Chicago. With a world-wide fan base and the biggest independent record label in the country, Victory Records, on their side, one would think the show would be packed wall-to-wall with teenagers belting out lyrics to their favorite songs. This was not the case. A week before the show, The Metro had to pull the plug on the performance because of lack of ticket sales. This was not due to poor work on the label’s behalf, nor was it because Hawthorne Heights’ fan base lacked mass; what it lacked was an older demographic. Hawthorne Heights did not fit with the new-rock play list of radio standards alongside cookie-cutter bands such as Staind and Hinder, therefore 30-somethings had no idea who they were, let alone thought to spend some of that dispensable money they have on a show to see the band.

With physical album sales and radio demographics changing, so does the structure of the business. While it is understood that radio is operated by advertising revenue and record labels, it is also understood that without a successful music industry, the radio operation would have nothing but talk radio to rely on. Perhaps it is time to change the position of a record label’s radio promotion position from begging radio personalities to play label hits, to doing the radio station a favor by sending out new hits.

If the model continues as is, there will be only a handful of popular bands that also generate revenue from record sales and touring. This is not enough to sustain the industry we are used to. There will always be well-liked independent bands, but just because teenagers enjoy the music does not mean they have the means or the intentions of throwing any money their way. This music needs to be aired on the radio where older demographics who do have the means and possibly the willingness to spend money will hear it. Radio play can not be based off of the size of the record label any longer; it must have fair opportunity for all bands, focused less on the label and more on the quality of music.

With a wider variety on the airwaves, the 30-somethings benefit by hearing better music, and will in turn throw money to the music industry pool, which will benefit artists and labels alike. What do you think, would this help the music scene?