If and independent artist can make a truly ear catching song and promote themselves successfully via Internet (save over head costs), they have a shot. Take for example the hit song 'Soldier Boy'. Although I am not a fan, the fifteen year old rapper/producer created the song in his home studio and posted it on MySpace, Face Book, You Tube, and SoundClick. The rest is history. Technology has truly changed the game and given the underdog a shot. People must learn how to take advantage of these opportunities. One hint is do not attempt what has already been done. You must find the next new method and be the first.
The window of opportunity has also opened for female producers everywhere. With technology changing marketing strategies, female producers no longer have to adhere to the standards of the male dominated industry. No longer to they have to go through male dominated management companies, A&R's, record executives. Alicia Keys had to wait for about six years before Arista put her on the shelf. It worked, Clive Davis is a genius, but still the upcoming female producers have other options.
A prime example of this new generation of technology Internet based female producers is Jamille Luney. Her name is growing in popularity across the globe. Through word of mouth she has landed remix opportunities with Nas and Alicia Keys. I'm sure Ms. Keys probably gave Ms. Luney some advice, female producer to female producer. However, Jamille has an advantage Ms. Keys does not. In addition to having to parents as lawyers, Ms. Luney is not constrained by the normal precepts of the music industry. She was not sculpted or created by a corporate record label or artists development team. That being said, she has a lot of creative freedom and is not held captive by 'work for fire' clauses or terms and conditions of recording contracts. However, she does suffer from one disadvantage. Her fan base and popularity is solely at this time determined by the music listeners and the public. Alicia Keys is in the music network, so they will opt to promote her first. Nobody wants to offend record industry giant Clive Davis. So you better play Alicia before Jamille.
This won't last for long. Clive is suffering along with the rest of the music industry. He recently had to let go of Taylor Hicks, Ruben Studdard, and their discussing terminating Fantasia's contract as well. Sales are down, what else can he do. He has to turn to more popular acts like Alicia, Justin, and Outcast that can produce. BUT IT DOES NOT STOP THE DOWNLOADING! Young kids all want ipods, they live on their computers, cell phones, and to make matters worse, all cell phones will come with mp3 players within the next five years.
Big industry names may get more airplay and mass marketing. However, their popularity puts them at the top of the list for being downloaded illegally. " I like that new Alicia Keys song 'No One'. I'm gonna download it for free!" This happens everyday. "I like that 'No One' Remix by that new producer Jamille Luney. The only place I can find it is on her website though. Guess I'll have to buy it. That's okay $.99 isn't bad. I don't feel like calling my friends to see if one of them has it and I don't feel like waiting for them to email or instant message it to me. I've gotta get to Amy's sweet 16 party!"
The above statement is an over exaggerated example and Jamille's remix is not for resale, but that is the mindset of these young children. It's hard for us to imagine. We did not grow up with Internet and computers in almost every household. However, today's children are tomorrow's consumers. They want things fast and quick. Since they can access everything with a few key strokes on a computer, patience has gone out the window. They're not going to waste time trying to get a ride to a CD store to buy Alicia Keys, they're going to download her. They're not going to waste time trying to find Jamille's songs for free or wait for their friends to send a copy. They'll pay the $.99, they may even shell out $1.00 if the song is really hot!
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