I recently watched the documentary, Money for Nothing. After watching this documentary I have realized that independence is being threatened by a shrinking number of record companies, the centralization of radio ownership and play lists, and the increasing integration of popular music into the broader advertising and commercial aspects of the market. Also, this documentary has opened my eyes to perceive the music industry as a world that maximises profit. As long as the numbers increase and the media is happy its a win win situation.

Furthermore, live music was once threatened by records, recorded music felt threatened by recordable cassette tapes, now it's MP3s and illegally downloaded music that has taken over how people consume music. When Napster exploded into the media spotlight in 2000 with lawsuits from musicians such as Metallica, people began to realize how the Internet has changed music forever. Suddenly, with the advent of Napster and other programs like it, music could be shared and swapped between fans like never before. Listeners and consumers had taken control of their musical tastes and were stealing the business away from the corporations who once dominated the music industry for decades. The main idea that record industry realized was that it needed to adjust to the new market and embrace how the Internet has changed music and not fight it. The record industry realized that fans no longer wanted to be limited to buy an entire album for a single song, and so most albums were broken down into their constituent songs and made available for individual download. Personally, I agree with this argument, for instance, I wanted the Adele CD but realized I can down load a couple of her hits for free instead of buying the entire CD. The future of music seems tied to the future of digital distribution of media. As high speed Internet has become increasingly prevalent, many musicians have realized they can record and produce their own music on relatively inexpensive hardware and music programs.

 

Commercialized radios are well known for over playing popular songs repeatedly. In the same manner, radio stations have no variety for their stations. Granted I only listen to the radio for a short segment of a time; however, I am constantly hearing the same song every hour and it gets very annoying.  I do believe the radio kills record business because stations continue to play the hottest single over and over until it is sicken by the viewer. Personally, I know there are some songs on the radio when are played I have to turn the station because the song is over played. Word to the wise: this is not creative nor is it interesting and is losing viewers slowly.

Lastly, advertising is the secrete/hidden key to give artists more exposure to their views, followers, listeners, and fans, surely, than MTV. Have you noticed any familiar tunes popping up in commercials? Advertisers have been borrowing popular tunes to plug their products for years but lately it seems like every commercial has a recognizable tune. Advertisers do this to make you think of their product. If the tune is catchy, it gets stuck in your head and if the commercial does the trick you will think of their product when you hear the song. Music always had accessory roles: a soundtrack, a jingle, a branding statement, a mating call. It is well known that popular music is used to sell well-known product. The advertising industry has a dominating effect on breaking music and exposing it to a whole new audience. However, this can be a negative effect because people might relate a particular song to a child hood memory and when the advertising industry attaches it to a product, that memory is ruined. All in all, the market will do whatever it takes to increase its sales. I think popular music and advertising make a beneficial partnership.