Tune in Saturday March 9th to Faction Talk, channel 103, at 4 PM East, 1 PM West.

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I normally don’t watch it. But I was on my iPad just as it was beginning and watched the video on the “Wall Street Journal” app while I skimmed the Apple News.

And I was impressed. With what Biden was saying, as well as his sense of humor.

But then he was heckled by Marjorie Taylor Greene.

Now in light of Trump, commentators have reached back in history, to the 1800s, to point out similar craziness.

I wasn’t alive back then, and neither was Biden. And I lived through the sixties, and I protested, but my parents taught me how to behave, how to have respect, or to not show up at all. Everyone has their turn, let the other speak and then you’ll get your chance. But if you keep shouting out while another person speaks it devolves into chaos, and the people watching the shenanigans wonder where you’re coming from, who you are, what your motivation is.

I guess I was taught to respect if not politicians, at least the government.

If you grew up in the early sixties you would too.

America was the can-do nation. If it was made in Japan it was junk. China was perceived to be a backwater. And the only enemy was Khrushchev and the Soviet Union. We had to go up against Yuri Gagarin and Vostok 1. Does anybody even know who he is today? The first man in space. Turned out the Russians weren’t so backward after all. And JFK promised to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade and by gosh, he did! Well, we did, he was cut down back in ’63, an event every boomer remembers vividly.

Now the chaos of the sixties evolved into the somnambulance of the seventies and then when taxes were lowered in the eighties, all the boomers switched sides, stopped being concerned with their brother and focused only on themselves. And as opposed to admitting this, they fought back, saying they deserved their success and their accoutrements.

And then the internet came along and blew apart everything. Suddenly not only did everybody have an opinion, but they could express it. And to whatever degree our nation was cohesive…it was blown to smithereens. We don’t listen to the same music, we don’t watch the same television shows, we don’t even read/see the same news.

But the aged boomers still in power deny this change, because it would make them obsolete. In truth, the world is nearly incomprehensible. No one can know everything, nothing close. There’s always some sideshow that is ignored and then becomes the main show. It’s niches on steroids, but those are hard to quantify, and everybody loves a chart, everybody loves rankings, so we have ratings/lists in every domain but they eschew the reality of the situation, which is it might be number one but not only have many people never heard of it, they don’t care that they’re out of the loop.

So how are we supposed to bring the nation together, when it is separated into so many parts?

Even worse, there are winners and losers. And the winners live in a rarefied air the hoi polloi are not privileged to experience. And just because Elon Musk bought Twitter that does not mean he’s an expert on every subject he pontificates about. Free speech? This guy doesn’t even know what it is! Nor do many of our nation’s citizens, because of the piss-poor education they’ve received. It used to be a badge of honor to be educated, to work hard and move up the ladder, but in the past decade or so the script has flipped, you’re a chump, the enemy if you’ve worked hard and made it.

And the workers became Republicans and so many corporate titans are now Democrats. It’s nearly unfathomable.

So why watch the State of the Union, it doesn’t really matter. It’s mostly promises and pats on the back.

But in truth, Biden has been a great President.

I scratch my head when my Republican brethren speak of the “Biden Crime Family.” I mean hate Biden, hate what he’s done, but if you’re looking for criminals… No one is totally clean, but come on.

But Biden has focused on the good of us all.

And that’s too much for many, they’re just concerned with the good for them, what they want.

But Biden was doing a good job tonight. Illustrating the differences between him and the other guy.

But as the speech wore on… It was hard not to see him as old. Stiff.

I’m not saying unintelligent, inexperienced, I’m just saying old, which he is.

They’ve got to stop trying to convince us he’s young and spry. They’ve got to start selling Biden as an elder statesman, a wise man you want to go to for advice.

Only the young think they know everything. Their elders know how much they don’t know, which is an asset, they’ve seen so much and know how the pieces fit together. That’s Biden’s advantage, that’s the secret sauce.

He’s obviously the candidate, barring a health issue or an accident, and he’s given up on Bidenomics, which got almost no traction. But he’s got to run on more than the other guy is evil.

Biden is one of the most experienced Presidents we’ve ever had. And that means something. You may not listen to your parents, but I know I’m constantly stunned when oldsters in the music business drop wisdom, explain how things really work. It’s all about seeing the landscape.

Biden sees the landscape. But the longer you put him in front of people he reminds you of nothing so much as an old actor getting an honorary Oscar at the Academy Awards. You know, someone who touched your heart decades earlier, who you remember as a young person and are now stunned to see is old. Their speech is halting…

So, if Biden is running on personality, charisma, he’s toast. If he ever had those elements, he’s lost them or no longer knows how to evidence them.

Your grandparents don’t try to convince you that they’re young and hip, your equal. They’re selling something different, experience. They’ve seen so much, they know how to soothe you, take care of situations.

So…

You can’t watch the TV analysis. Talking heads taking sides. They don’t speak to the people, actually Biden did a better job tonight than they did.

And most people are not paying attention.

And most people don’t know how much the government does for them.

And everybody hates paying taxes, but that’s what makes our nation run.

It’s pure math, addition and subtraction. You keep taking away and taking away… Hell, right now you can’t search tweets on Twitter/X. And that’s because Elon fired everybody. It’s a creaky system now.

And America was going in the wrong direction, but now…

Oh come on, we’re fighting climate change, we’re eliminating hobbling student debt (and if you’re against that, you’re selfish, own it) and so many of the big issues are obscured by the little. Like Ukraine needs money. And Palestinians are being slaughtered, but how do we make Israelis safe?

It’s complicated. And Biden has been there and done that.

But he was never on a network TV show, he’s not a clothes horse. And none of this used to matter, but now image is everything.

Along with perception.

Perception is Biden is old and senile. He proved tonight he is not senile, but he certainly is old.

But chances are you’ve already made up your mind. You know who you’re going to vote for and nothing is gonna change that. But we’re all going to be subjected to endless analysis for months and months.

Which is why you didn’t tune in tonight to begin with. It’s a waste of time, and if I wasn’t ultimately eating dinner I’d agree with you.

Furthermore, who are these people in Congress? Not the ones in “My Weekly Reader.” They lie, they’re worried about themselves first and foremost and they think being a lawmaker is a team sport.

Which is why they’ve lost respect, and don’t even realize it.

Lawyers have never recovered from Watergate.

And politicians have lost their esteemed perch over the past two decades and are ignorantly languishing in the muck.

So I wish Biden wasn’t the candidate. The dude is damn old, and every time you say he’s not it makes me believe you’re deaf and blind. I mean come on, can’t you see?

Does that mean he can’t be President?

No.

But it does put up obstacles in running for President.

He shouldn’t engage Trump, no one ever wins that battle, Trump eats up all the air, like a schoolboy bully.

But if we just focus on Biden’s wisdom and experience…

You want the doctor who’s been practicing for decades to do your operation, not the one who’s got a fresh license.

Can we get right down to the real nitty gritty?

President is a job. Plain and simple. Would you hire a bloviating self-aggrandizing relatively inexperienced person to run your family’s business?

I’m sure you wouldn’t. Even if the person could be in the news every day. You want someone focused on the work.

Think about that and decide who to vote for.

One of the last true rock stars.

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/chris-robinson/id1316200737?i=1000648322804

https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/9ff4fb19-54d4-41ae-ae7a-8a6f8d3dafa8/episodes/0544aaaa-b77a-445a-aa13-c5bc41ac8859/the-bob-lefsetz-podcast-chris-robinson

“A New Publisher Promises Authors ‘the Lion’s Share of the Profit’ – Authors Equity is tiny but has big industry names behind it. Its founders hope their profit-sharing approach and experience will entice authors.”

Free link: https://shorturl.at/cfwHK

Musical artists don’t know how good they have it. After all, they could be AUTHORS!

Talk about an antiquated industry. One thing I love about the music business is it’s down and dirty, ultimately it’s all about the cash, either you can generate it or you can’t, where you went to school doesn’t matter.

But just having a job in the publishing industry is status enough. It’s a rinky-dink industry kept small because of the backward thinking of the big publishing companies, who believe book promotion is reviews and author tours, that’s how James Patterson established a juggernaut, he employed his background in advertising to promote his genre books, and it worked! But kind of like lawyers in the past, advertising is seen as dirty, commerce is seen as dirty in the publishing world.

But they’ve got it locked up, because they control distribution.

This is something that people refuse to understand, how distribution trumps content every day of the week. Because no matter how good it is, if you can’t buy it, if it’s not readily available, you’re screwed.

So, the book publishers went on a crusade to save the physical book, cheered on by the Luddites who believe screens are anathema. But it had nothing to do with the physical book, it had everything to do with distribution, they didn’t want to lose control, like the record labels.

Yes, physical distribution is a barrier that’s hard to climb if you’re an independent. You can’t even get your book in the store, unlike with Spotify there’s not an unlimited amount of space. And, if you do get your book in the store, and it does sell, good luck getting paid. Retailers pay big accounts first, because they need new product from them. Whereas an indie author with only one book… Why pay ’em? They’re not going to have another book for YEARS!

This is how it used to work in physical retail in music. The majors kept the indies down. Ditto with radio. You had to be aligned with a major label to play, to get your record in stores, to get paid.

But not anymore.

Anyone can get their music on streaming outlets for a de minimis cost. But rather than see the opportunity, ungrateful artists keep complaining. They want the major label advances of yore, when the truth is in the past, in the pre-internet era, they wouldn’t be able to get a deal.

Now in the book business, everybody can distribute digitally, it’s a level playing field. But physically? Get outta here.

So these experienced people have now established a new company that flips the switch. Instead of advances, you get paid on what you sell. What a concept! One that musical artists will not accept. Low Spotify payments? That just means that no one is listening! Furthermore, you have so many other avenues of revenue, did you read that article in yesterday’s “Wall Street Journal” about music in video games?

“Why Musicians Are Doubling Down on an Unlikely Venue to Reach New Listeners – Musicians are releasing new songs in videogames, in some cases before anywhere else. ‘We’re trying to meet fans where fans are at.’”

Free link: https://tinyurl.com/ysxcnnnh

It’s not the twentieth century music business anymore. As a matter of fact, it’s less about worldwide domination than cobbling together a number of revenue streams, many enabled by technology.

It’s not like the major labels don’t know the power of video games, it’s just that there are more opportunities for indies than ever before, and all people can do is complain, especially about streaming rates. Look at it this way, even if you had a record deal back when and your record was in stores, that didn’t mean anybody heard it, they had to buy it to listen to it (or hear it via tight radio playlists).

But unlike so many entrepreneurs in music, in it for the money, taking cash from the wannabes who will never make it, Authors Equity is starting at the top. If you’ve got a proven track record, why should you pay for the major publishers’ losses? They can’t pay you more, because your profits are covering all the stiff books!

But the internet allows you to go it alone. Well, not so much in books, because of that pesky physical retail. And Authors Equity is only going to put out a few books a year.

Writers who make deals with Authors Equity believe in themselves. They don’t need no stinking advance. Some musical acts have done this in the past, forgone advances for higher royalty rates, but record labels are legendary for creative accounting, so some sophisticated managers wanted all the money up front. (Also, this is a good time to note that so many of the legendary artists of yore never ever went into royalties. There’s this fiction that in the past everybody with a record deal was making a great deal of money. Wrong.)

So if writers and readers were smart, they’d embrace digital publishing, it would level the playing field. But the publishers have snookered the readers into thinking that they’re on their side in the anti-digital war when nothing could be further from the truth. They just don’t want to lose control of distribution!

Now music is an evanescent business. There’s no assurance of longevity. And you may want to bet on yourself, but the infrastructure, the managers and lawyers, don’t want you to. Because they don’t want to take the risk, of never getting paid, never mind eventually.

Will this continue?

Probably. Because despite all acts testifying how great they are, they don’t really believe it, which is why they want that major label cash and help.

This is flawed thinking, The major label is not your friend. Unless you’re temporarily making money for them. You can do it by yourself. But you have to give up the fake dreams, that everybody wants to listen to your music and you’re going to be a zillionaire.

You’re an entrepreneur. Every dollar you take now cuts into your back end. Which is why you should be lean and mean, and truly believe in yourself. Create your own audience. Hell, the major labels don’t even do that anymore, they used to start acts from scratch, now you have to prove to them you have an audience before they’ll sign you, and your music must be in very specific, narrow genres.

Now someone could come along and do what Authors Equity has done. Low overhead, big payments, but… The question is how many zeros are involved? The grosses in music far exceed those in book publishing, and no one starts a business unless there’s a huge profit opportunity.

Well, in music anyway, not in publishing.

And the truth is the major labels and major publishers’ real power is their catalogs and backlists. Reliable income with little cost that streaming outlets/retailers need to be in business.

But those services the major label theoretically provides?

You can hire them yourself these days. Radio promotion, publicity, playlisting. That’s what they’re doing at Authors Equity, to keep the overhead low.

But everybody in music is swinging for the fences, when in truth almost no one is in the stadium. It’s all sandlot ball these days. But ignorant artists have bought a passé dream to their disadvantage.

Let’s be clear. Almost no one can have a successful music career and almost no one can have a successful publishing career. Giving up your day job? Buying a house and car? That’s not most. And so many famous authors teach for steady income.

No, only a very few are rich. But just like with sports, everybody coming up believes they can fill the few slots available. And while they’re at it they keep complaining about the system.

How many people in the music business do I know who started off as musicians? They woke up and realized they weren’t good enough, they couldn’t earn a living, and they switched over to the business side. Today some of them would be struggling on, believing a mass of people care, when they don’t.

So the message to musicians is you can distribute your music online as equally as a major. You can promote it online for free. This is FANTASTIC!

But everybody’s a Debbie Downer. They need an explanation why they’re not rich. The system must be stacked against them, right?

It’s never been stacked less. If you’re great, and if you believe in yourself, you can build a business in music. You don’t even need a major label. That’s an antiquated paradigm.

But it’s nearly impossible to convince artists.

Just like it’s nearly impossible to convince writers that digital books are to their benefit. Costs are eliminated. Prices can be kept down. Your book can be available to all. You can even get paid!

But everybody’s too afraid to march into the future.

And therefore they’re ripe for disruption, by Daniel Ek or Jeff Bezos or…Authors Equity.

Furthermore, Spotify is now publishing audiobooks. Nature abhors a vacuum, and Daniel Ek is filling it. I mean when you listen it’s all digital, why would you need traditional brick and mortar? Why would you even need a major publisher?

That’s the question.