My blog today isn't by me. It is taken from the http://www.Lefsetz.com newsletter.
Everybody should subscribe to Bob Lefsetz's free newsletter. He has been doing it since analog days and is regarded as one of the most upstanding industry analysts around.
So, today there was a posting about a complaint from Jeff Beck's Manager about the merchandise deal at a certain venue, and the following is the response from the person in charge of the venue and who initiated the contract signed by Mr. Beck's manager.
It gives you an inside look on how live performance venues deal with selling merchandise. READ IT!!
----------------------------------------------
"We were having a beautiful day at Wolf Trap today, June 7. The weather was mid-70s with little to no humidity, a rarity for the Washington, DC area. We had pre-sold over 5,500 tickets to our Jeff Beck performance with our fingers still crossed for a sellout. The road crew was charming. It was a beautiful day.
And then Harvey Goldsmith walked off the bus.
The back-story: Our offer for the Jeff Beck performance was accepted on December 18, 2009. The first deal point was our merch rate. It's 35% and we sell. We received the contract on February 25; the fully executed arrived on May 14. Clearly outlined was our merch rate.
It's mentioned as a deal point in every offer sheet, on every contract, and in every advance. It is not a surprise. It is also a favored nations, non-negotiable rate. If you don't like it, you may choose not to sell. I've been here 13 years and this was the merch rate long before I started in 1998. Wolf Trap has been operating for 40 years and hosted thousands of concerts and productions. As a non-profit, any penny we make on a rock show, or on merchandise, is turned into education programs for all ages.
In those 13 years, I have never encountered a bigger ass than Harvey Goldsmith.
As a promoter, Harvey of all people should know that when the deal is done, its done. He doesn't get to walk into the venue and start renegotiating the contract. He certainly shouldn't do it at the top of his lungs as he chose to do. He shouldn't scream for 20 minutes and then come back for another 10 minute round later.
I'm the promoter rep. I'm here to make sure your Artist and my patrons are taken care of. I didn't make your deal- the deal that YOU accepted 6 months ago- I'm here to fulfill our contractual end of the deal. I do a hell of a job of it, too.
Screaming at me? What's the point?
Harvey isn't likely to have this problem ever again. And it's not that our merch rate is going to change, it's that he will not be welcome in our building again due to his extraordinarily unprofessional conduct and communication.
There are major issues ailing the music industry. Attacking one another and whining and complaining- not going to solve these issues. Bitching about it via blog- not going to fix the problem.
Communicating with professionalism and common courtesy is a good start.
Attached please find his own Artist's CD cover that he ripped up and threw at me during our "discussion."
I've got close to 6,000 patrons outside. I'm going to go enjoy the show."
Barbara Parker
Director, Operations & Artistic Initiatives
Program and Production
Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
1645 Trap Road
Vienna, VA 22182
Monday, June 7, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Songwriting and the Music Marketplace: A Study Guide
If you write your own songs or compositions and want more from them because you think they have value, then you need to approach the business of songs as if you were researching how to build your house. You need to take it THAT seriously. So, below is a list of topics you should know about, and after you have studied what the music marketplace is like, then you should be able to DO some things with the information you are armed with. So, here is a challenge: read through the two sections below and take up the challenge I am giving you to learn all you can about songwriting and the music marketplace.
Topics To Be Studied On Your Own
1. The components of a song: Verse, chorus, bridges.+ elements of melody and
rhythm
2. What makes one song commercial, and another not?
3. Copyright registration basics: The ‘rights’ inherent in a song, and how to
protect your songs
4. Types of income available from songs: Performance, Sales of Product,
Sheet Music, Synchronization, Downloading, Streaming, and Song Licensing
5. Study the 2 most common sources of income from songs
a. Performance Royalties: The function of ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC
b. Mechanical Royalties: The Harry Fox Agency
6. Music Publishers: Definition of their job, and how to setup your own
Publishing company
7. Shopping for deals: The right and wrong way to find uses for songs
8. Songwriting partnerships: How to find the perfect songwriting partner
9. Lawyers and songwriting contracts: Learning how to read a publishing and
record label contract
10. Putting it all together: Writing a plan of action to sell your songs
When you have studied the above issues, you should then be able to do the following:
You should be able to:
• define the parts of a song
• describe what makes a song commercial
• register your songs for copyright protection, and describe the ‘rights’
inherent in a song
• Describe the many potential sources of income from a song
• Define what a performance right is, and what a mechanical right is, as well
as know who pays them to whom
• Describe what a music publisher does, an/or how to start your own music
publishing company
Topics To Be Studied On Your Own
1. The components of a song: Verse, chorus, bridges.+ elements of melody and
rhythm
2. What makes one song commercial, and another not?
3. Copyright registration basics: The ‘rights’ inherent in a song, and how to
protect your songs
4. Types of income available from songs: Performance, Sales of Product,
Sheet Music, Synchronization, Downloading, Streaming, and Song Licensing
5. Study the 2 most common sources of income from songs
a. Performance Royalties: The function of ASCAP, BMI, and SESAC
b. Mechanical Royalties: The Harry Fox Agency
6. Music Publishers: Definition of their job, and how to setup your own
Publishing company
7. Shopping for deals: The right and wrong way to find uses for songs
8. Songwriting partnerships: How to find the perfect songwriting partner
9. Lawyers and songwriting contracts: Learning how to read a publishing and
record label contract
10. Putting it all together: Writing a plan of action to sell your songs
When you have studied the above issues, you should then be able to do the following:
You should be able to:
• define the parts of a song
• describe what makes a song commercial
• register your songs for copyright protection, and describe the ‘rights’
inherent in a song
• Describe the many potential sources of income from a song
• Define what a performance right is, and what a mechanical right is, as well
as know who pays them to whom
• Describe what a music publisher does, an/or how to start your own music
publishing company
Thursday, May 27, 2010
My Favorite Tom Silverman Quote
Tom Silverman of Tommy Boy Records and the New Music Seminar fame said the following at a workshop he held one time. I took down his words because what he said really affected me and has stayed with me over the years...and it is really quite prophetic in it's own way.
I hope you enjoy it...I suggest you read it slowly, and more than once, until it sinks in.
"For the first 10 years I was in this business I thought I was in the record business, but then a few years later I realized I wasn’t in the record business, I was in the ‘lifestyle’ business.
I had to provide my consumer base with what they needed that they weren’t getting anywhere else. So I had to identify not what they had, but what they didn’t have.
This is much more difficult to identify than what people have. Everything is created from nothing. So really the art is to be able to look at nothing, and create something out of it.
The reason why independent labels are growing is that Independent labels are down in the low places, so they can see nothing.
it’s easy to see something, but it’s very difficult to see nothing, and all the good stuff is found in nothing.
The independent labels are going to whip the majors because the majors can only see something, and once they see it they buy it.
They can’t create it, because the majors can’t see nothing.
Nothing is a great thing to aspire to. I aspire to nothing, and it’s really great...I recommend it.”
Tom Silverman
I hope you enjoy it...I suggest you read it slowly, and more than once, until it sinks in.
"For the first 10 years I was in this business I thought I was in the record business, but then a few years later I realized I wasn’t in the record business, I was in the ‘lifestyle’ business.
I had to provide my consumer base with what they needed that they weren’t getting anywhere else. So I had to identify not what they had, but what they didn’t have.
This is much more difficult to identify than what people have. Everything is created from nothing. So really the art is to be able to look at nothing, and create something out of it.
The reason why independent labels are growing is that Independent labels are down in the low places, so they can see nothing.
it’s easy to see something, but it’s very difficult to see nothing, and all the good stuff is found in nothing.
The independent labels are going to whip the majors because the majors can only see something, and once they see it they buy it.
They can’t create it, because the majors can’t see nothing.
Nothing is a great thing to aspire to. I aspire to nothing, and it’s really great...I recommend it.”
Tom Silverman
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
What is a Band Agreement and Why You Need One
A band agreement (sometimes called a partnership agreement) is proof-on-paper that there’s a commitment within your group to deal with the everyday realities of being a professional musical act.
How many times have you heard the phrase “money changes everything”? Well, it’s true, and it’s one of the main reasons that you want to sit down with your fellow band members and work out on paper how you’re going to deal with the successes or failures that come your way BEFORE you start making money as a band or musical group. When money enters the picture, I can assure you that does indeed change everything.
No one wants to admit that they're ever going to be problems within a group of musicians. But, believe me personality problems, or business differences, or career goal conflicts within a group happen.
Why rock the boat by bringing up band agreements? Some bands go on for years without a written band agreement and live to regret it.
But hey, if you feel you don’t need a band agreement, OK, forget about it. Leave everything to an unspoken agreement, to a sense of fairness, to chance. As you read the summary of typical band agreement issues below, say to yourself after reading each point, “Well, that won’t be a problem in my group.” Perhaps if you chant this enough, you can conjure up a musical genie who will protect you from the jealousies, egos, and money problems that cause band breakups and lawsuits.
Should you decide you’re not immune from these problems, save yourself some attorney fees by discussing these issues beforehand. Write notes on how you’ll handle these issues—before you sit down to have a legal agreement drawn up by an entertainment law attorney (at a cost of approximately $150 an hour). These are the typical issues that should be discussed and resolved in a band agreement.
What form of business will the band take?
You can be a sole proprietorship, a partnership, or a limited liability corporation. It’s beyond our discussion here to get into the specifics of each, but do some research and make an appropriate choice. If you start making money with your music, you better realize you are a business. The IRS and other state and local agencies might just be interested in having you pay some taxes like any other responsible citizen. Besides, choosing the right business form is just the right thing to do. You did say you wanted to make money with your music, right? Well, act like a business and choose a suitable business form.
Who owns the copyrights to your songs? Who is/are the songwriter(s)?
Suffice it to say, there are as many possible answers to this question as there are members in a group. You have to take heed and resolve this issue. The real money in this business will come from the successful exploitation of the copyrights to your songs. Music publishing is a huge issue and there are many good books on the topic. If you want harmony within in your group, then agree on who writes all the songs and come up with a fair system to divide up the songwriting royalties. If you do not do this, when any kind of success comes along you’ll be in deep doo-doo about the split of those songwriting royalties with your fellow band-mates.
Share of profit and loss considerations
You will have to define how the money (profit or loss) is divided. All band members could be equal partners and divide the profit or loss equally. You could also distribute the profit or debit the loss based upon the percentage owned (i.e. in case you’re doing business as a corporation, with each person owning a certain percentage).
How do you make group decisions? How will you vote on band issues?
You have a couple choices; unanimous or majority rules. If you’re “All for one and one for all,” then choose the Three Musketeers way of voting. All decisions must be made unanimously, with no dissenting votes. If the democratic system is more attractive to you, then agree to a majority vote; the dissenting members of your group will get to hold a grudge and pout for the next month. (Guess which voting mechanism I’m inclined toward? Well, the subject today is commitment isn’t it? What kind of commitment is there when contention exists within a group?)
Who owns the name of your group? Or, what about leaving members?
Never thought of that one, huh? Well, you’d better. There have been hundreds, if not thousands of lawsuits by members of groups who split up and then fought over which members could continue to use the band’s name. This could be resolved in a band meeting, after a regular rehearsal is over, rather than in a court of law. Consider the following options:
• No one can use the name if the group breaks up, regardless of how many in the band are still performing together.
• A majority of the group members performing together can use the name. For example, if there are seven people in a group that breaks up, then four of them together can use the name.
• Only the lead singer, (name), can use the name, regardless of who he/she is performing with.
• Only (name), the songwriter who founded the group and thought of the name, can use the name, regardless of who he/she is performing with.
• (Name of songwriter who founded the group and thought of the name) and (name of lead singer) can use the name as long as they perform together, but if they don’t, no one else can use it.
• If the band doesn’t do anything, most likely the band name will be treated the same way as any other business partnership asset—meaning that any of the partners has the nonexclusive right to use it.
How will you fire someone who isn’t carrying their load?
What is meant by “carrying your load” in your band? If a band member is showing up late for rehearsals, missing rehearsals with lame excuses, missing or showing up late for sound checks and live gigs, how will you and the other band members deal with that? I suggest you agree to rules for acting like professional musicians. When a rule is broken, your band will have a policy to deal with it. What kind of vote do you use to fire somebody? Choose between majority rules and unanimous.
Ex-members and money—who gets what?
What happens after members are fired or quit? One option: they keep their percentage of money that comes in for past work done with the group. Or, they don’t keep their percentage for past work.
Money issues: band member investments and/or loans to the band.
Let’s say that someone in your band has more money than the other members. They’re the generous type, you know, they say things like “Don’t worry about the $200, we’re in this together. Some day you’ll have money when I don’t—it will all work out.” Right. Until there are some hard feelings, or the generous donor has some expenses and could really use that dough now. Many unpleasant scenarios can happen when money is spent without a clear understanding of how, or if, it is to be repaid. If you have a sugar daddy in your group, discuss in your written band agreement how your business form will deal with that issue.
Spending money and hiring other business professionals
What kind of vote does it take to approve spending money for the group? What kind of vote do you use to hire a lawyer, agent, or manager, to bring in a new musician? Again, the two basic options are majority or unanimous.
Who does what?
If it’s true that musicians often fail in their careers because of a lack of commitment from their fellow musicians, then I find it particularly important for each band member to be responsible for a specific business task. If, for example, someone takes on booking the shows, other members can split the work of getting posters designed, printed, and put up. There are plenty of tasks: getting bills paid, finding rehearsal spaces, sending out press releases. If you’re making a recording, someone will be setting up recording sessions and planning for manufacturing, promoting, marketing and selling the CDs. Until a band has established itself as a viable money-making entity—one that is attractive to labels, management companies, booking agencies, publishers, and merchandise companies—somebody has to take on all the jobs of being a real band. And that somebody is everybody in your group.
Amendment of the Band Agreement
What kind of vote does it take to change the terms of the band agreement?
There are more issues that should be included in a band agreement. I recommend a book called Music Law: How To Run Your Band’s Business by Richard Stim. He gives you a template for an actual agreement plus an in-depth discussion of band agreements, legal issues and reasons why a band agreement is so important.
There you have it. Deal with these issues or they’ll come back and bite you.
How many times have you heard the phrase “money changes everything”? Well, it’s true, and it’s one of the main reasons that you want to sit down with your fellow band members and work out on paper how you’re going to deal with the successes or failures that come your way BEFORE you start making money as a band or musical group. When money enters the picture, I can assure you that does indeed change everything.
No one wants to admit that they're ever going to be problems within a group of musicians. But, believe me personality problems, or business differences, or career goal conflicts within a group happen.
Why rock the boat by bringing up band agreements? Some bands go on for years without a written band agreement and live to regret it.
But hey, if you feel you don’t need a band agreement, OK, forget about it. Leave everything to an unspoken agreement, to a sense of fairness, to chance. As you read the summary of typical band agreement issues below, say to yourself after reading each point, “Well, that won’t be a problem in my group.” Perhaps if you chant this enough, you can conjure up a musical genie who will protect you from the jealousies, egos, and money problems that cause band breakups and lawsuits.
Should you decide you’re not immune from these problems, save yourself some attorney fees by discussing these issues beforehand. Write notes on how you’ll handle these issues—before you sit down to have a legal agreement drawn up by an entertainment law attorney (at a cost of approximately $150 an hour). These are the typical issues that should be discussed and resolved in a band agreement.
What form of business will the band take?
You can be a sole proprietorship, a partnership, or a limited liability corporation. It’s beyond our discussion here to get into the specifics of each, but do some research and make an appropriate choice. If you start making money with your music, you better realize you are a business. The IRS and other state and local agencies might just be interested in having you pay some taxes like any other responsible citizen. Besides, choosing the right business form is just the right thing to do. You did say you wanted to make money with your music, right? Well, act like a business and choose a suitable business form.
Who owns the copyrights to your songs? Who is/are the songwriter(s)?
Suffice it to say, there are as many possible answers to this question as there are members in a group. You have to take heed and resolve this issue. The real money in this business will come from the successful exploitation of the copyrights to your songs. Music publishing is a huge issue and there are many good books on the topic. If you want harmony within in your group, then agree on who writes all the songs and come up with a fair system to divide up the songwriting royalties. If you do not do this, when any kind of success comes along you’ll be in deep doo-doo about the split of those songwriting royalties with your fellow band-mates.
Share of profit and loss considerations
You will have to define how the money (profit or loss) is divided. All band members could be equal partners and divide the profit or loss equally. You could also distribute the profit or debit the loss based upon the percentage owned (i.e. in case you’re doing business as a corporation, with each person owning a certain percentage).
How do you make group decisions? How will you vote on band issues?
You have a couple choices; unanimous or majority rules. If you’re “All for one and one for all,” then choose the Three Musketeers way of voting. All decisions must be made unanimously, with no dissenting votes. If the democratic system is more attractive to you, then agree to a majority vote; the dissenting members of your group will get to hold a grudge and pout for the next month. (Guess which voting mechanism I’m inclined toward? Well, the subject today is commitment isn’t it? What kind of commitment is there when contention exists within a group?)
Who owns the name of your group? Or, what about leaving members?
Never thought of that one, huh? Well, you’d better. There have been hundreds, if not thousands of lawsuits by members of groups who split up and then fought over which members could continue to use the band’s name. This could be resolved in a band meeting, after a regular rehearsal is over, rather than in a court of law. Consider the following options:
• No one can use the name if the group breaks up, regardless of how many in the band are still performing together.
• A majority of the group members performing together can use the name. For example, if there are seven people in a group that breaks up, then four of them together can use the name.
• Only the lead singer, (name), can use the name, regardless of who he/she is performing with.
• Only (name), the songwriter who founded the group and thought of the name, can use the name, regardless of who he/she is performing with.
• (Name of songwriter who founded the group and thought of the name) and (name of lead singer) can use the name as long as they perform together, but if they don’t, no one else can use it.
• If the band doesn’t do anything, most likely the band name will be treated the same way as any other business partnership asset—meaning that any of the partners has the nonexclusive right to use it.
How will you fire someone who isn’t carrying their load?
What is meant by “carrying your load” in your band? If a band member is showing up late for rehearsals, missing rehearsals with lame excuses, missing or showing up late for sound checks and live gigs, how will you and the other band members deal with that? I suggest you agree to rules for acting like professional musicians. When a rule is broken, your band will have a policy to deal with it. What kind of vote do you use to fire somebody? Choose between majority rules and unanimous.
Ex-members and money—who gets what?
What happens after members are fired or quit? One option: they keep their percentage of money that comes in for past work done with the group. Or, they don’t keep their percentage for past work.
Money issues: band member investments and/or loans to the band.
Let’s say that someone in your band has more money than the other members. They’re the generous type, you know, they say things like “Don’t worry about the $200, we’re in this together. Some day you’ll have money when I don’t—it will all work out.” Right. Until there are some hard feelings, or the generous donor has some expenses and could really use that dough now. Many unpleasant scenarios can happen when money is spent without a clear understanding of how, or if, it is to be repaid. If you have a sugar daddy in your group, discuss in your written band agreement how your business form will deal with that issue.
Spending money and hiring other business professionals
What kind of vote does it take to approve spending money for the group? What kind of vote do you use to hire a lawyer, agent, or manager, to bring in a new musician? Again, the two basic options are majority or unanimous.
Who does what?
If it’s true that musicians often fail in their careers because of a lack of commitment from their fellow musicians, then I find it particularly important for each band member to be responsible for a specific business task. If, for example, someone takes on booking the shows, other members can split the work of getting posters designed, printed, and put up. There are plenty of tasks: getting bills paid, finding rehearsal spaces, sending out press releases. If you’re making a recording, someone will be setting up recording sessions and planning for manufacturing, promoting, marketing and selling the CDs. Until a band has established itself as a viable money-making entity—one that is attractive to labels, management companies, booking agencies, publishers, and merchandise companies—somebody has to take on all the jobs of being a real band. And that somebody is everybody in your group.
Amendment of the Band Agreement
What kind of vote does it take to change the terms of the band agreement?
There are more issues that should be included in a band agreement. I recommend a book called Music Law: How To Run Your Band’s Business by Richard Stim. He gives you a template for an actual agreement plus an in-depth discussion of band agreements, legal issues and reasons why a band agreement is so important.
There you have it. Deal with these issues or they’ll come back and bite you.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Feedback on Unpaid Royalties and the Saturated Music Marketplace
If you have been in the music business as long as I have then hearing the news last week that the history of the music business is one of NOT paying artists their royalties is not anything new to you. I heard from some old friends in the business, and they put an interesting spin on the state of things today, as opposed to the 'old days'.
"A great subject for you to teach I would assume....I've always been interested in the business side of rock & roll...and to hear this story again for the 100th time, it seems that it is no secret that musicians make money from just about everything EXCEPT record sales...touring...merchandise (only since 1980 )...publishing & endorsements, and most important of all...airplay!
if I was a hot new band looking for a record contract, I would sign up with the biggest record company in the world as long as everything else outside of the sales/distribution is MINE !....Prince is doing very well with his business plan...Pink Floyd & Zeppelin are cash cows because of airplay royalties....the record companies rip every band off & bands have to hire expensive lawyers to look thru their crooked books....which costs big $$$....sort of takes the fun out of being a musician if you have to worry about being ripped off to death...don't you think ?...
I remember Springsteen just confused as hell when he heard that U2 GAVE their new song 'Vertigo' to Apple for FREE...the hottest single from the biggest band in the world from the forthcoming release...for FREE....what U2 got in exchange was what?....6 months of TV advertising for the new Apple product using 'Vertigo' as the music bed !....bloody brilliant !....I'm not telling you anything you don't know, but I find it interesting to see how smart bands can get what they want."
From Peter Stupar: Photograper extraordinaire and former A&M Promo Rep
And this feedback on the "saturated music marketplace" due to too many new releases:
"Honestly, Chris, I think the crux of the problem is that there is SO MUCH music out there because anyone can record and put their album on iTunes these days, but most of what's being released will never create True Fans. The music isn't good enough.
True Fans are always True Fans and will always buy your music.
But 90% of what's being put out there is mediocre at best or just doesn't stir the soul.
I hear so much music, all day long in my job. How much do I really care about? Not much. It's just pretty noise. If you want me to buy your music, you need to create something better than pretty noise.
I really need to write that article, "Why Should I Buy Your Music?" One of these days when I have time. A lot of Indie's won't like it, because I'm basically going to tell them that most of them just aren't good enough to merit my money. But it's the truth."
from Musician extraordinaire and founder of MusicBizAcademy.com - David Nevue
"A great subject for you to teach I would assume....I've always been interested in the business side of rock & roll...and to hear this story again for the 100th time, it seems that it is no secret that musicians make money from just about everything EXCEPT record sales...touring...merchandise (only since 1980 )...publishing & endorsements, and most important of all...airplay!
if I was a hot new band looking for a record contract, I would sign up with the biggest record company in the world as long as everything else outside of the sales/distribution is MINE !....Prince is doing very well with his business plan...Pink Floyd & Zeppelin are cash cows because of airplay royalties....the record companies rip every band off & bands have to hire expensive lawyers to look thru their crooked books....which costs big $$$....sort of takes the fun out of being a musician if you have to worry about being ripped off to death...don't you think ?...
I remember Springsteen just confused as hell when he heard that U2 GAVE their new song 'Vertigo' to Apple for FREE...the hottest single from the biggest band in the world from the forthcoming release...for FREE....what U2 got in exchange was what?....6 months of TV advertising for the new Apple product using 'Vertigo' as the music bed !....bloody brilliant !....I'm not telling you anything you don't know, but I find it interesting to see how smart bands can get what they want."
From Peter Stupar: Photograper extraordinaire and former A&M Promo Rep
And this feedback on the "saturated music marketplace" due to too many new releases:
"Honestly, Chris, I think the crux of the problem is that there is SO MUCH music out there because anyone can record and put their album on iTunes these days, but most of what's being released will never create True Fans. The music isn't good enough.
True Fans are always True Fans and will always buy your music.
But 90% of what's being put out there is mediocre at best or just doesn't stir the soul.
I hear so much music, all day long in my job. How much do I really care about? Not much. It's just pretty noise. If you want me to buy your music, you need to create something better than pretty noise.
I really need to write that article, "Why Should I Buy Your Music?" One of these days when I have time. A lot of Indie's won't like it, because I'm basically going to tell them that most of them just aren't good enough to merit my money. But it's the truth."
from Musician extraordinaire and founder of MusicBizAcademy.com - David Nevue
Monday, May 17, 2010
What Is Going On With Soundscan's New Release Data?
Perhaps I am overreacting to the following news, but something doesn't make sense to me.
Today, a report from the current NARM convention stated that there were 98,000 new releases that came out in 2009. I have Twittered and Facebooked my reactions to this today as well.
"What?" I said to myself..."What happened to Soundscan's earlier figure of 134,000 new releases coming out in 2009?"
I have been keeping track of the number of new releases coming out each year for a decade now...always relying on the Soundscan reports for the data I share with you in my website articles and on this blog.
I have startling figures that show in 2000 their were approximately 28,000 new releases put out in that calendar year (major label releases and Independent label releases combine. As the decade has unfolded we can see a rise in new releases year by year, culminating in 2009 with Soundcan's report that new releases in 2009 were approximately 134,000!
This is important data to know about!
Here is a direct quote for you from the recent SXSW conference:
"Rich Bengloff, who leads the American Assn. of Independent Music, dropped some updated industry stats that he said were courtesy of Nielsen SoundScan. Ten years ago, 28,000 full-length albums were released. That number swelled to 134,000 in 2009. More stark, of the 103,000 albums released in 2008, only about 6,000 sold more than 1,000 copies."
Well, Rich knows of what he speaks. He is in charge of the Association of Independent Music, for crying out loud. And he thinks having the correct data is important for his members to know, so what is going on?
Indie labels, artist, and bands,(as I often have stated) need to know what the competition out there is like. So what happened to the approximately 36,000 missing releases from Soundscan's initial reports earlier this year?
You may say "Chris, get a life...being so specific about how many new releases come out each year is not that big a deal" Well, your wrong! It is a big deal!
What if your record was not counted in the true number of releases? What if you did better than others? Wouldn't you like to be included accurately in the stats of new releases and how many copies your record sold?
I won't go on much more, but somebody is lying to us or misleading us.
So,if you have access to the correct Soundscan data on new releases for 2009 I sure would appreciate hearing from you.
You can email anytime at Chris@Knab.com.
By the way, IF the true figure IS 98,000 and not 134,000 new releases in 2009 than we have some REAL NEWS here, because in 2008 Soundscan reported that 103,000 new releases came out. So, if the number of new releases is going DOWN after a DECADE of new releases going up every year for the last 10 years....THAT is BIG news!
I will do what I can to research further any facts about these figures!
Stay tuned!
Today, a report from the current NARM convention stated that there were 98,000 new releases that came out in 2009. I have Twittered and Facebooked my reactions to this today as well.
"What?" I said to myself..."What happened to Soundscan's earlier figure of 134,000 new releases coming out in 2009?"
I have been keeping track of the number of new releases coming out each year for a decade now...always relying on the Soundscan reports for the data I share with you in my website articles and on this blog.
I have startling figures that show in 2000 their were approximately 28,000 new releases put out in that calendar year (major label releases and Independent label releases combine. As the decade has unfolded we can see a rise in new releases year by year, culminating in 2009 with Soundcan's report that new releases in 2009 were approximately 134,000!
This is important data to know about!
Here is a direct quote for you from the recent SXSW conference:
"Rich Bengloff, who leads the American Assn. of Independent Music, dropped some updated industry stats that he said were courtesy of Nielsen SoundScan. Ten years ago, 28,000 full-length albums were released. That number swelled to 134,000 in 2009. More stark, of the 103,000 albums released in 2008, only about 6,000 sold more than 1,000 copies."
Well, Rich knows of what he speaks. He is in charge of the Association of Independent Music, for crying out loud. And he thinks having the correct data is important for his members to know, so what is going on?
Indie labels, artist, and bands,(as I often have stated) need to know what the competition out there is like. So what happened to the approximately 36,000 missing releases from Soundscan's initial reports earlier this year?
You may say "Chris, get a life...being so specific about how many new releases come out each year is not that big a deal" Well, your wrong! It is a big deal!
What if your record was not counted in the true number of releases? What if you did better than others? Wouldn't you like to be included accurately in the stats of new releases and how many copies your record sold?
I won't go on much more, but somebody is lying to us or misleading us.
So,if you have access to the correct Soundscan data on new releases for 2009 I sure would appreciate hearing from you.
You can email anytime at Chris@Knab.com.
By the way, IF the true figure IS 98,000 and not 134,000 new releases in 2009 than we have some REAL NEWS here, because in 2008 Soundscan reported that 103,000 new releases came out. So, if the number of new releases is going DOWN after a DECADE of new releases going up every year for the last 10 years....THAT is BIG news!
I will do what I can to research further any facts about these figures!
Stay tuned!
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