"For people of the college-aged generation, sharing music is part of our way of life. We've been burning mix CD's for each other since middle school, utilizing Web sites such as Pandora and Hypem to discover new artists and yes, illegally downloading music via peer-to-peer programs."
"Artists need to accept the changing attitudes of our generation towards music, and support music sharing and discovery rather than stigmatizing it.
Don't worry; we will still go to your concerts, we will still listen to the radio and we may even help spread your name around while we're at it."
Comment:
"Patrik
posted 11/23/10 @ 5:55 PM CST
But where does this leave the songwriters? The arrangers? The producers? The engineers? The mastering guy? The remix artists? Recorded music is made by an army of people, many of whom NO ONE is going to pay to see live.
Recording an album, or even just a song, is an arduous process. It's not easy. It's not as simple as standing in front of a mic and performing. Most bands break up during the recording of an album. Far more break up in that process than they do on tour, which is a hell unto itself. That should tell you something about how much work, effort, tears, and heartache go into recording... and it also costs some money, too.
The problem with the idea of musicians focusing on live events is that it confuses the thing that people really want. What they want is recorded music, or else what good is the iPod, or the mp3 format? Most (yes, truly, MOST) people do NOT enjoy live shows. They don't enjoy bars, they don't enjoy the loudness, they don't enjoy being gouged for every amenity... but they still love music. They still want to listen to it on their own. These are the people who will suffer the most in the predicted future."
