Concord Music Group, targets adult audience and strong career oreinted catalogues
Concord Music Group, whose beginnings started as a small jazz label from Concord, CA in 1972 is now an indie record label powerhouse with 160 employees and boasting over $100 million dollars of revenue per year. Thier success can be attributed to two strong elements in Concord’s business plan, targeting an older audience and focusing on building a catalog with career artists.
Concord focuses on the adult audience which will be more inclined to pay for a CD and interested in timeless music rather than hottest pop sensation. In the article from the New York Times it says, ” According to the NPD Group, a market research firm, people 50 and older buy 16 percent of all albums and singles but buy 28 percent of all the physical music sold”. This is beneficial to Concord who relies on album sales for a good portion of its revenue.
The company’s strength also comes from its past catalog. Whereas a major label will have only a few of the artists that will make a majority of the money for the company, Concords gets strong steady sales throughout its catalog. By focusing on career artists and “timeless and authentic” music , dedicated music lovers that want to learn more about the artist will be more inclined to buy an album and hopefully the rest of that artists catalog rather than a single. Concord has recently acquired Rounder Records and signed a distribution deal for Paul McCartney Post-Beatles catalog this April . Strong acquisitions and dealslike these and 2004’s acquisition of Fantasy Records (included the Stax Records Catalog) have given the Catalog a diversified and strong catalog which doesn’t rely on current short-term tastes but time tested ones. This shows to be successful as the company is reporting growing digital album sales rather than singles.
By focusing on these two strengths Concord has been able to thrive in a harsh business climate where labels a folding everyday especially independents. A focus on quality music and long term music sales rather than quantity and short term music sales has given the company an advantage against the major labels. Concord’s approach should be looked at because it creates a sustainable business and revenue model rather than a erratic one with large up and down swings in revenue over a short period of time.
Check out the article here
Festival Humor
As everyone is preparing for their summer concert experiences, please take some time to read the following theory on music festivals: http://www.collegehumor.com/article:1804557
Author Chase Mitchell comedically outlines what to expect and how to prepare for summer concerts in his recent article, “Every Summer Festival You’ve Ever Been To.”
Honestly….just read it. Hilarious. True. Clever.
Through the use of images, Mitchell outlines the “title” of such festivals, the lineup, what to bring and what people will end up bringing, main attractions, map of campgrounds, and general faqs.
Enjoy! 
Mobile Apps the next step for concert promoters?
As the summer festival season is beginning, music lovers of all ages are traveling thousands of miles across the country to see their favorite bands play for quick, hot, and steamy 30-minute outdoor sets. But amidst the hundreds of bands that play over a 3-day festival how will you know when and where to find your favorite band? It would be horrible to travel long distances and pay heavy concert ticket prices to find out your favorite band played at an earlier time the day before. Well my friends, I have good news!
It first began with a college-grad by the name of Alex Rude who had enough spare time on his hands after graduation to create an iPhone APP for the Van’s Warped Tour. After being approved by Apple to sell the APP in the iTune’s store, the Warped Tour crew quickly found Rude and hired him (rather than suing for using the Warped trademark) and now has him working on APP’s for the tour’s brother and sister tours, the Mayham Fest and Country Throwdown. Rude’s Warped APP has been downloaded by over 30,000 users, showing that fans are looking for a more organized, convienent way to enjoy their favorite summer festivals.
The use of multi-media applications within music festivals is becoming a new outlet for festival organizers to connect with fans. Beyond the schedule aspect of the apps there are facebook pages, twitter updates, and accessible interactive band bios all integrated into the digital portitions of summer music festivals. Attending a concert today goes much further than arriving, watching the performance, and leaving. Photo contests are a vibratant part of the post-marketing strategies of monsters like Lollapalooza and Bonaroo. New media is changing traditional concert promotions.
For further reading check out http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6470CO20100508
The Music Industry Can Save Nashville
Last weekend Nashville found itself under water in one of the worst floods the city has seen in history. A 36-hour rainstorm promised an instant doom to one of the largest music cities in the United States, and even in the world. Greats like Johnny Cash to newbies like Taylor Swift call Nashville home, and even pop-punk acts like Paramore found their surrounding hometown of Franklin drowned in the waters.
“The Opryland Hotel is closed until further notice; the Grand Ole Opry has moved its concerts until the flood damage can be fixed (the Ryman Auditiorium, home of the original Grand Ole Opry, was untouched). LP Field, home of the Tennessee Titans and site of the annual CMA Music Fest, had up to six feet of water and six inches in the locker rooms.
The Country Music Hall of Fame received over 5 feet of water in the basement, but the permanent collections on the second & third floors were safe from harm.
Rehearsal and storage space Soundcheck Nashville received extensive damage, and is just now allowing clients to claim and move their equipment, including tons of touring and vintage gear that was ruined by the waters. According to CMT‘s Jay Frank, “Everything there is a total loss, completely soaked—instruments, equipment, road gear, everything.” This excellent New York Times article goes into greater detail about the losses the musicians have suffered.
A lot of label and publishing offices were displaced due to access issues, CMT employees had to work in remote spaces or from home all week, and many local businesses gave their employees this past Friday off to volunteer time to relief efforts. The entire town is in the process of pulling drywall and carpet out of their homes, and getting insurance assessments (if any—Nashville’s not exactly known as a flood zone), for damaged houses and flooded vehicles.”
But there is a way to help to rebuild the city that has given hope and life to the country music scene. Country music fan or not, the music industry is a small place and one where we should always be there for our fellow musicians and businessmen alike. Read the rest of this entry »
Taking inspiration from a diverse background of musics, William Benjamin Bensussen better known by his musical alter ego, The Gaslamp Killer is set to take over the hearts and minds of the Chicago music scene, playing at local electronic hotspot and heavy bass venue, Smart Bar on May 13th. Playing along side local Djs, Caural, K-Kruz, Dj Solo and Chris Widman, for a heavy hitting lineup sure to cause a stir.
Its a rare thing, to catch a glimpse of an artist that pulls something from everything, however, if there was a good example of one, The Gaslamp Killer would be it. Hard to place in a specific genre, The Gaslamp Killer can have a track that has fast, heavy electro synths, indian inspired guitar and vocals, on top of Hip Hop laden vocals and horns, all in one song, which makes it clear to see how broad and diverse his influences truly are. Growing up and taking inspiration from the likes of Jimmi Hendrix, Dr Dre, and DJ Shadow to name just a few, he has the ability to create a diverse enough sound to be extremely unique, while simultaneously having an almost child like experience from earlier, more epic records in music history.
Fast paced, epic, slow, and harmonic are just some of the feelings radiating from a single diverse and ambient track of Gaslamp’s, that will sure to get you not only inspired, but energized by something unique and truly one off. May 13th is sure to bring with it an array of styles from not only The Gaslamp Killer, but from the Chicago DJ’s that always bring the party and get you excited for what is to come. It takes an army to carry a genre, it only takes one to start one, and this is the goal for The Gaslamp Killer and for what is sure to come.
For your own good, and the good of your musical tastes, be sure to check out The Gaslamp Killer on MySpace and at his show at local hot spot, Smart Bar Chicago on May 13th.
MySpace.com/TheGaslampKiller
MySpace.com/DJSoloIsAwesome
MySpace.com/Caural
MySpace.com/ KKruz
& Smart Bar Chicago Resident DJ, Chris Widman
Story by, Chris Hemstreet
AEMMP RELEASE: Big Science Skyscraper Sound EP due out May 25th
It’s official: Big Science will release its sophomore EP, Skyscraper Sound, June 29th on AEMMP Records. This is why you should care:
Besides the fact that Skyscraper Sound is a masterfully self-produced effort by some of the hardest working, nicest musicians you’ll ever meet… and besides the fact that it is a great follow-up to their phenomenal self-released ‘09 debut, Coast of Nowhere… The EP is also the first to be released on the newly revamped AEMMP Records at Columbia College!
AEMMP has been working closely with the band ever since they appeared on our IMA Award Winning Chompilation last May. Signed in the fall, Big Science went to work all winter, pouring over literally hundreds of songs to pick and rework their best material for the band’s first label release (see portions of the actual list below). The resulting Skyscraper Sound is a remarkable work of sophisticated modern rock with new wave roots.
And now the forbidden fruit must be tasted! To celebrate, Big Science and AEMMP are throwing a party at Subterranean on Saturday, May 22nd. Big Science will also be appearing at Columbia College’s annual Manifest Urban Arts Festival at 3PM on May 14th.
Come out to both shows and help AEMMP celebrate the release of this incredible EP!
It’s Called The Music Business
Well looky at what we have here. Our former professor David Lewis David T. Lewis has contributed a new web exclusive on Alternative Press, outlining his 5 steps for music industry success. His trademark wit and excellent advice is inherent throughout, so take a look at the article.
That is, if you can get your eyes off the subtle 5-oclock-shadow, the perfectly angled military cap, and those driven eyes (looking the other direction). I’m sure I’ve seen this press photo somewhere before… well anyways, check out the full article here.
Lala, Lala, Hey Hey Hey, Goodbye!
That’s right, Apple has announced today, May 1st, that as of May 31, Lala music service will be no longer available (never say fired). All your Lala purchases will be converted to iTunes Store credit and made available for you as well, so Apple’s got your back.
At first word of hearing Apple’s purchase of Lala, I’d figured they’d utilize their streaming services as a model for the iTunes Store and allow users to listen to their iTunes library anywhere with wifi, 3g capability. Maybe I’m right? We’ll soon figure it out, as with the launch of the new OS for the iPad lurking in the Fall, maybe it’s time for multitasking with an “iTunes” accessible device.
Also, iPhones wouldn’t be left out either, granted they run on the same OS as the iPad. My guess is Apple is cooking up the next generation of iTunes which models that of Lala (free streaming of any song ONCE, then with the opportunity to purchase web versions for streaming for $.10 or the digital download for $.99)
Can’t wait!
AEMMP Records To Hold Hip-Hop Showcase at Subterranean
In the midst of a search for Chicago’s hottest new emcee, AEMMP Records will be hosting its first ever Hip-Hop showcase. The event will take place on Wednesday, May 5th, from 9PM – 1AM at the popular Wicker Park Club, Subterranean. AEMMP hopes to use the showcase to feature and support several rising Chicago artists including Rockie Fresh, Big Homie Doe, Darnell Williams, and JDP. AEMMP is also proud to have DJ RTC from Rubyhornet.com on turntables for the night. The show is accessible and affordable at only $7 for those who are 17+
So come support AEMMP Hip-Hop!
All Rappers Want to Sing…
This is a theory that I firmly believe in. As a producer/emcee/songwriter myself, I constantly have melodies in my head and you can often find me singing around my apartment. For rappers, lyrics come easy. Rappers like Notorious B.I.G., Jay Z, and Lil Wayne are known for coming up with whole songs without writing anything down. So you combine the skill of coming up with melodies and to improvise lyrics off the cuff, you have the right combination needed to write good songs.
In the 90s and for much of this decade a rapper that attempted to seriously sing was considered “soft.” In urban music culture singing was associated with R&B not hip-hop. However, the new breed of rappers have embraced a more melodic approach to their lyrics. Led by megastar newcomers Drake and KiD CuDi, the modern day emcee can be heard using melodic raps throughout entire songs, or better yet singing entire R&B like songs. Some say that this style of rap isn’t real hip-hop, and some say it’s hip-hop evolving.
I think T-Pain’s harsh use of the auto-tune plug-in inspired the increased popularity of this type of rap style. Dayton, Ohio native, Roger Troutman, originated the vocoder auto-tune style, however T-Pain popularized it again for the millennial generation. Soon after T-Pain’s string of hits and his debut album entitled Rappa Ternt Sanga, many artists wanted to use his sound in hopes of duplicating his success. This resulted in many of the songs found on the Billboard charts containing vocals with auto-tune. Lil Wayne is often credited as the first rapper to commercially use auto-tune. His song “Lollipop” featured auto-tune throughout the whole song, and eventually became Lil Wayne’s first #1 hit of his career. Kanye West eventually gravitated to the auto-tune plug in, and created a whole album (808 and Heartbreaks) singing in auto-tune.
Although many rappers still recruit an R&B stud to croon out a hook for their next hit, many rappers have cut their expenses and are taking on the singing duties themselves. Some still use auto-tune, however, some are starting to forgo the auto-tune and rely on their own singing ability, or maybe not singing ability, but their ability to hold a note. This style has opened up many creative lanes for emcees to jump into, and it has encouraged emcees to do less of “traditional rapping” if you will. But whose to say that this is a good or bad thing for hip hop when we’re seeing hip hop reach heights that music critics never would of imagined at the beginning of its era. I don’t mind the new melodic style of rap as much as I mind the content of the music being produced by these artists. Some have meaningful songs about real issues or songs that are just cleverly written, and some just fail to add any originality to their content.
I feel like we’ll see this trend continue on and grow in popularity. I can also see this style evolving into a sub-genre of hip-hop. This could potentially help the genre maintain its relevance in the industry. However, critics may say that it is no longer hip-hop and has crossed over too much to have any association. How do you think this style will evolve?