The following comes from Tyler Hayes, a music enthusiast and owner of indie-focused site Liisten.  He’s hit a digital wall.  “I’d like to think I was optimistic rather than naive, but call it what you will.  Digital music, in its raw form of audio files, was supposed to liberate artists from the shackles of onerous […]

The music world just had a ‘moment,’ and it was brought to you by Amanda Palmer. Which almost guarantees a huge increase in artist pitches, music projects, and other music-themed Kickstarter ideas ahead.  Which, in turn, almost guarantees an influx of Kickstarter failures ahead.

From the major label perspective, getting a hit typically requires two things: (1) lots of money (ie, radio play), and (2) the perfectly-receptive mass audience.  Simple game, right?  Well, it turns out the results of this alchemy can now be decoded months in advance, by monitoring early reactions across interactive platforms.   Like Shazam, the now-saturated […]

1. You won’t be mentally prepared to deal with all of the fame, fortune, and international attention. You will crash and burn. Remember what happened to Susan Boyle?   2. You won’t be well-rehearsed or experienced enough and your performance won’t be ready for overnight global attention. Remember what happened to Ashlee Simpson on Saturday Night Live? […]