Democratizing Music
Music has always been meant to be enjoyed and to satisfy, or perculate, emotion. Yet, most of us nowadays only get the opportunity to actually experience a small percentage of the music that’s available out there. This is mainly due to the commercialization of music and media. At one time the record biz was about being so passionate about an artist’s music that an ‘exec’ MUST get it out to the public. Somewhere along the line it became about making more money. I mean, there’s nothing wrong with running a quality business, right? But the keyword is “quality”. To squeeze the most amount of money from music trends, record companies began giving the public generic versions of more-of-the-same, instead of something daring and new; the main reason why music continues to evolve in the first place. If it weren’t for the occasional maverick, break-out artist, who knows what we would STILL be listening to? But this strategy seemed to work well for everyone involved. The record labels continued to release bubblegum music, major radio/tv stations broadcast this music and the public listens because it’s the only thing available. In turn, it’s only the same artists you can find in the chain record stores.
Up until just recently, this is how musicians and other industry professionals operated. If a talented musician wanted to play in the big leagues, they had to be signed (and loved) by a major record label. Sometimes, with some luck on their side and an independent record label backing them, a new act will be able to break-through into the mainstream and mix it up. But, for the most part, either artists already had that same commercial, radio-friendly sound or they were going to be forced to play that sound. A musician could still make a decent living playing to the beat of his own drum; however it was(and still is) a grueling climb with no guarantees of success.
Growing-up, I always wished there was a way that we the people could vote/choose the music we ACTUALLY want to hear on the radio or MTV. I even began my college years studying radio broadcasting, thinking I would be able to choose the music I could play over the air and share new bands I discovered with the listening public. Unfortunately, that’s very rarely the case. Most radio playlists are prearranged before the DJ ever sees it. I always wondered what would happen if anyone could start their own radio station and play whatever music they wanted.
At that time, to start your own radio station would be extremely expensive or probably illegal. Of course, those were the days before the Internet was a household necessity, and before the technology to choose was available. All that has changed, though! Never before have we had the power to choose and share what we like; music or otherwise. That’s why when we were developing PLUGOLA, it was important to devise an algorithm that gives all new indie musicians a fair shot at being heard while letting music fans decide who will be popular. Fans have the option to support and share their favorite artist in a legal, controlled environment. A combination of members’ commenting, rating, plays and downloads ranks artists in their general genres without any corporate influence. This is what discovering new music should have always been all about!
Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society published a paper where it predicted that, “by 2010, 25 percent of online music store transactions will be driven directly from consumer-to-consumer taste-sharing applications, such as playlist publishing and ranking tools built into online music stores or external sites with links to stores.”
With technology growing as fast as it is, I see those numbers only increasing over time. This is the future of discovery; democratizing music.
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Jan14
