Would you pay a dollar to evidence you were at Lady GaGa’s gig at the Cutting Room?<\/p>\n
Hell, I didn’t even know she performed at the Cutting Room.\u00c2\u00a0 I had to read the "New York" profile\u00c2\u00a0 to find that out.<\/p>\n
\nGrowing Up Gaga<\/a><\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\nMusic has forever been about hipsterism.\u00c2\u00a0 Knowing who’s good and bad and being there first.\u00c2\u00a0 Everyone says they were at Woodstock, but how many have the original three disc vinyl set on Cotillion?\u00c2\u00a0 How many bought that set just to belong?<\/p>\n
Belonging.\u00c2\u00a0 Where you are on the social ladder.\u00c2\u00a0 These have been key elements in society forever.\u00c2\u00a0 Why not codify them, why not charge people to evidence how hip they are?<\/p>\n
For the last ten years, the music industry has been repeating the mantra that people must pay for music.\u00c2\u00a0 What if this is the problem. What if music SHOULD be free?<\/p>\n
Huh?<\/p>\n
Think about this…<\/p>\n
Or let me make it simple, ever notice that you can get a mobile handset for free?<\/p>\n
You want to get people in the game.\u00c2\u00a0 And then charge them to PLAY the game.<\/p>\n
Have you been following the stories about FarmVille?\u00c2\u00a0 And Mafia World and Zoo World?<\/p>\n
I’d never even heard of the latter two until recently, but I do know that selling virtual goods to the players of these games is now a billion dollar business.\u00c2\u00a0 According to "BusinessWeek", one Nita Flores pays $20 a month for cat outfits and a stable for her horses in FarmVille.\u00c2\u00a0 And let me make this clear, none of this really exists.\u00c2\u00a0 Nada.<\/p>\n
As music has become free, those who used to be in control, the major labels, are releasing fewer and fewer projects, targeted to an ever smaller number of gatekeepers and listeners.\u00c2\u00a0 This would be like Comcast deciding they were only going to sell three channels, whereas the real money’s in the other four hundred fifty outlets.<\/p>\n
And the touring business has become about charging more and more for an ever-decreasing number of stars.\u00c2\u00a0 How is this a recipe for a healthy business?<\/p>\n
In other words, how do we get the public interested in more acts and going to more shows.<\/p>\n
Maybe we have to make discovering music a game.\u00c2\u00a0 That you have to pay to play and get status for winning.\u00c2\u00a0 You really saw that band at the Whisky?\u00c2\u00a0 Prove it!\u00c2\u00a0 Go to my Facebook page, you can see the badge I bought when I went to the show!\u00c2\u00a0 Yup, the ticket might be $15 online, but for an extra buck you get the icon, showing you attended.\u00c2\u00a0 You say you’ve seen hundreds of shows? Where are the icons on your page?\u00c2\u00a0 You’re lying!\u00c2\u00a0 Now you’re motivated to pay for the badge, just to maintain your honor.<\/p>\n
When did you discover GaGa?\u00c2\u00a0 When did you discover the next big thing?\u00c2\u00a0 If you could buy a badge demonstrating your first listen, that would be worth something to you.<\/p>\n
And let’s say, at the end of every year, every act gave a free show for the fans who were there first.\u00c2\u00a0 Make it a week-long event in Vegas, a national affair.\u00c2\u00a0 Hell, I’m going to see Justin Bieber, I’m sitting in the first row, and you can’t even buy a ticket!<\/p>\n
All of the foregoing requires a change in mind-set by labels and concert promoters.\u00c2\u00a0 Suddenly, they truly have to be in bed with their customers, they just can’t be paying them lip service, they must be seen as being on the same team.\u00c2\u00a0 No one wants to play with the enemy.<\/p>\n
And once you get more people involved, you make more money, even if you lower the price dramatically.<\/p>\n
Maybe it’s even like virtual pets, if you don’t log in every day, you lose your status.\u00c2\u00a0 Meanwhile, purveyors market to you every time you log on.<\/p>\n
Virtual goods are not a fad.\u00c2\u00a0 This is not Second Life.\u00c2\u00a0 Just check in with the gaming industry.\u00c2\u00a0 Giving away now to sell later is the new paradigm.\u00c2\u00a0 It makes no sense to old wavers, who believe you’ve got to pay first, then again, isn’t Facebook free?<\/p>\n
Let’s not muddy the waters.\u00c2\u00a0 Let’s just say the music business needs a complete rethink.\u00c2\u00a0 The goal is to get everybody involved, everybody paying a little to participate.\u00c2\u00a0 The end result is we get more people wanting to play music, because there’s more money in it, and practicing harder, working harder to create something fantastic, to win.\u00c2\u00a0 I mean come on, who’s going into music now? Those not smart enough to code?\u00c2\u00a0 College students making obtuse music before they go to graduate school?\u00c2\u00a0 Snookis who only want to be famous?<\/p>\n
We’ve got to add a layer of structure.\u00c2\u00a0 That radio and major labels once did, but no longer do.<\/p>\n
Entrepreneurs have focused on licensing the music itself, which has been problematic since Napster.\u00c2\u00a0 Avoid that.\u00c2\u00a0 Create value in the EXPERIENCE!\u00c2\u00a0 Rights holders will play.\u00c2\u00a0 And so will the public.<\/p>\n
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