An Artist Perspective - Adam Levine

Rollingstones.com has published interviews with some of the top artists out there today. They broke down how different artists feel about what is going on, and their thoughts on what is going to happen in the industry. Here are some excerpts from those interviews:

(source: www.rollingstone.com)

This Day in History - January 20

Today the song "Judy in Disguise (with Glasses)" by John Fred & His Playboy Band topped the charts and stayed there for 2 weeks. (1968)

Today the song "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" by Michael Bolton topped the charts and stayed there for 3 weeks. (1990)


(Source: datadragon.com)

Tips -Be true to who you are, and what you are trying to say.

If you have a vision, and a purpose, do not sway from who you are, and what message you are trying to portray. The people that make it big let you know who they are in their lyrics. Be who you are unique, exciting, special, provocative, fascinating, original, inventive, and interesting. The people, who stand out and are themselves, are the ones that truly make it.

U2, Jay-Z, Swizz Beatz Team For Haiti Charity Song

U2, Jay-Z, Swizz Beats are among the latest celebrities to come together in an effort to raise money for Haiti following the devastating earthquake that struck a week ago. The three are joining forces for an as-yet-untitled Beatz-produced charity song that is expected to be sold on iTunes.

"Last night we wrote a song ... Bono got a call from a producer, Swizz. He and Jay-Z wanted to do something for Haiti," U2's The Edge said on Saturday (Jan. 16) on the Dave Fanning radio show on 2FM. "So, Bono came up with the phrase on the phone, and last night we were here, we wrote a song - finished, recorded, and sent it back to them. So, that might be the next thing you hear from us!"

Swizz Beatz also confirmed the collaboration, posting on his official Twitter page over the weekend: "Me, Bono, Hova have something to say about Haiti. Stay tuned. I told you I was working on something amazing for Haiti. They need us!"

RECORD LABELS NOW WANT ALL OF YOUR MONEY!!!

360 deals are contracts that allow a record label to receive a percentage of the earnings from ALL of a band's activities instead of just record sales. Under 360 deals, also called "multiple rights deals," record labels may get a percentage of things that were previously off limits to them, like:




Concert revenue

Merchandise sales

Endorsement deals

Ringtones

In exchange for getting a bigger cut from the artists they represent, the labels say they will commit to promoting the artist for a longer period of time and will actively try and develop new opportunities for them. In essence, the label will function as a pseudo-manager and look after the artist's entire career rather than only focusing on selling records.



360 deals are controversial for a lot of reasons. First of all, they're often seen a cynical money grab by labels that are facing dwindling sales and high overhead. The charge is that labels have survived a long time without these kinds of deals, so it would seem that they're suffering from a failure to manage their businesses and react appropriately to the changing industry - asking the bands to foot the bill hardly seems fair. Other people object to the whole "band branding" notion that makes 360 deals so potentially profitable for labels. A great example is The Pussycat Dolls. Sure, the branding has been a huge success - but where exactly does the music fit into the picture?

This Day in Music History - January 17th

Today the song "I Write the Songs" by Barry Manilow topped the charts and stayed there for 

a week. (1976)

Today the song "Shake You Down" by Gregory Abbott topped the charts and stayed there for 

a week. (1987)

Today the song "Truly, Madly, Deeply" by Savage Garden topped the charts and stayed there for 

2 weeks. (1998)

(source: datadragon.com)

An Artist Perspective - Gerard Way

Rollingstones.com has published interviews with some of the top artists out there today. They broke down how different artists feel about what is going on, and their thoughts on what is going to happen in the industry. Here are some excerpts from those interviews:

(source:www.rollingstones.com)