SALES ARE DEAD

The fact that news outlets trumpet them is testimony to their ignorance, not the stats’ relevance. It’s almost like it’s the year 2000 all over again, when the public knew what was going on but the media did not. Something is happening here and you don’t know what it is, do you, Mr. Jones? Bob Dylan famously sang that about a “Time” reporter, but at this point it’s the acts that are ignorant. They continue to believe in old paradigms that are now history. Tchotchkes generate revenue. It’s called merch. Your CD/vinyl is a souvenir, see it that way.

KATE BUSH

If she’d put out a new album, the hype would already be history. But whether consciously or unconsciously, by doing dozens of live shows she’s keeping her story alive, and in today’s world it’s all about making the story last.

Forget the ridiculous hype about multiple albums flowing back into the chart after the gigs began. Those sales are anemic and irrelevant. Today it’s all about whether anybody is listening to your music. By generating heat, Kate Bush has not only reignited the passionate, she’s caused those previously not in the know to pay attention. And hopefully they’ll check her material out. The barrier to streaming entry is very low, it’s just a click away, just a click away, and your goal is to get someone to make that click and hopefully become infected.

BUDWEISER MADE IN AMERICA IN L.A.

Its only reason to exist is cash. The lineup made no sense, the site had no shade and once you actually put the sponsor in the name you’re no different from Playboy Jazz, and everything involved in that is fading. Boobies are free on the Internet, the festival is small and irrelevant, and jazz is something believers trumpet and everyone else ignores.

RELEASE

We know whether your album is good in a day, if not an hour. We anticipate the work of the superstars, the rest of the acts are just grist for the mill. Unfortunately, everything is equally hyped and therefore almost all of it is ignored. In other words, just because the newspaper writes about your new album, that does not mean anybody will listen to it. You’re now your own hypester. Your biggest asset is your mailing list, yes, e-mail still counts. You want to know who your fans are and how to reach them and you shouldn’t worry whether the media covers your release at all, that’s old school thinking, purely twentieth century, when music was scarce and buying an album was an expensive proposition that you pondered a long time.

HITS

When there’s too much noise, you up your game. You now have to shoot for the stratosphere or play to the niches, there is no middle class. And if you’re shooting for the stratosphere you’ve got to be perfect. Which is why the labels employ Max Martin, because he’s got experience and can do it better than anyone. Don’t lament the game, understand it. Know that you won’t have a hit unless it’s as catchy as Max’s work. Good is not good enough.

COUNTRY IS THE NEW ROCK

If you think rock is dead, you haven’t listened to country music, which may feature a banjo or a fiddle, but really sounds like nothing so much as Skynyrd and the rest of the seventies icons. But it’s not totally retro. There are electronic elements and rap and it’s all very exciting. Country is taking over America, it’s not just a red state thing.

THE HIGHWAY

Is the tribal drum of country music. It’s America’s radio station. It’s where chances are taken and acts are broken. This is the biggest story in radio today. Forget Pandora, one program director has taken over a whole format by focusing on the future, not the past. It’s an amazing tale. One of risk-taking and audience consolidation. Clear Channel fans the flames of the media, but it’s the Highway that is the blueprint for tomorrow. We used to go to radio to discover. Radio used to be a community. The Highway provides both. It’s positively twenty first century. We gravitate to one winner. All we need is someone to grab the reins and pull ahead!

And you thought Sirius XM was irrelevant.

ACTIONS HAVE CONSEQUENCES

What were we doing in Iraq a decade ago anyway? Saddam Hussein may have been a dictator, but he kept the peace. Yup, Bush and Cheney destabilized the region and we continue to pay the price. And we can debate politics all day long but my point is just because you apologized, just because you went to rehab, that does not mean people don’t remember. You’re building your rep every day. People remember they were tricked, they were spammed, that you took the expedient route, that you sold out to a sponsor. What looks like a blip on the radar screen today could haunt you forevermore. Go by your heart, not your wallet. If your heart steers you wrong, we’ll forgive you.

AT&T UNLIMITED DATA

No it’s not. Hit 5 gigs and they’ll throttle you. Furthermore, Sprint’s 4G sucks and T-Mobile’s got little coverage. So the truth is if you want high speed data everywhere you’ve got to pay, through the nose. It sucks, but it’s the truth.

AMAZON

Could be killed by Alibaba, eBay’s threatened too. Amazon may look like Engulf and Devour but the truth is the tide is turning on the company. It’s just not consumer friendly. Who cares if your package comes on time if it’s going to hollow out the world with only Jeff Bezos benefiting. Remember when Microsoft was the behemoth? Nothing is forever, never forget that.

MISTAKES ARE NOT TERMINAL

Facebook had a flawed mobile strategy and then it scrapped it and is now triumphing in the sphere. Don’t dig your hole deeper, pivot!

FAST COMPANY

Buy a subscription. Today. It’s about smart people doing smart things. The writing may not quite be at the level of the “New Yorker,” but there’s no self-satisfied attitude. This is what the music business used to be like. The people profiled in “Fast Company” have big dreams, they want to change the world, and unlike the teen dweebs, they’re neither delusional nor uneducated. Hell, Tory Burch graduated from Penn. Same as it ever was.

PREVIEW ISSUES

How publications sell advertising.

NIKKI STINK

Nikke Finke is the new Mike Ovitz. Powerful and hated she has now gotten her comeuppance. You may not know what I’m talking about, but Google is your friend, and if you’re under thirty you may not know who Mike Ovitz is either. You can’t criticize people for being fat when you are. You can’t be anonymous yet use the Internet to spill your bile. We’re all in it together these days. Yup, you may fly private but you depend on us to be the wind beneath your wings, and we can stop blowing at any time. Really.