Is the internet good for musicians and the music industry? Well, that depends on who you ask. Some longtime musicians (cough, cough, Prince, John Mellencamp, cough, cough) think that internet is a disaster for musicians and the industry - even though in Prince's case, he has quite successfully used the internet in the past and even won an award for his innovative use of the net.
In the other corner, you'll find the internet evangelists who believe that keyboard, website and social networking followers are all you really need these days to become a music sensation.
So, who is right? Well, what if they both are? Maybe the truth about the internet and the music industry is somewhere in the middle. Maybe the net isn't going to kill the music biz, but maybe it's not going to save it, either. Could it be? Consider these five reasons musicians should fear the internet - and five reasons they should love it - and decide for yourself.
1. Fear It: Overcrowding
I'm a music lover, and I believe anyone who feels the urge to make music should make music. I believe anyone who feels the urge to share that music they make should share it. A song that doesn't necessarily rock my world could mean everything to someone else. That is part of the beauty of music.
But I'm also an econ grad and a bit of a numbers realist. I don't know whether the internethas inspired more people to make music, but I do know it has made it significantly easier to share it. Pre-internet, sharing your music - whether that meant seeking a record deal, putting your music on consignment at the local record shop or what have you - took a lot more leg work than it does to upload your vid to YouTube or put your music on every music sharing site around. That legwork tended to dissuade some of the less serious folks, and, well, ugly though it may be, in practical terms, that wasn't entirely a bad thing.
In other words, on the internet, your hidden gem just got a lot more hidden because it is competing for space with SO MUCH MUSIC. Yes, even the long since abandoned page created by that one guy who posted one song three years ago on a whim is still competing with your music. You've got to find a way to get around that.
2. Love It: Easy Entry
Ah, see, the flip side of the overcrowding problem. The easy access to music sharing channels online might encourage a musical traffic jam, but it also gives you easy entry to the "music marketplace," if you will. In the olden days, when I used to do things like write on paper, breaking into traditional music promotion and distribution channels was oh-so-difficult.
3. Fear It: The Friend to Fan Conversion Factor
You've got 20,000 followers on Twitter, 12,000 Facebook friends, 8,000 MySpace friends - and 20 people at your show and a single only your mom bought. Huh?
Well, in reality, it is A LOT easier to get people to connect with you on social networking sites than to actually make them into real fans who come to your shows and buy your music. Your social networking stats might be impressive, but those digital numbers don't always translate into the proverbial bums-on-seats. Why? Any number of reasons. Some of your followers/friends might have such a large pool of social networking connections that they're really not effectively connecting with anyone. Many of your connections might be in the same position as you - using social networking as a promotional tool rather than a discovery tool. There could be a ton of other reasons -some manageable and some completely out of your control. The most important thing to remember is that social networking seldom works as a marketing tool if it is launched in bubble.
Why should you fear the notion of social networking not necessarily bringing in legions of "sticky" fans? Because it can be a tremendous time sucker, and because a lot of musicians are under the impression that it really IS all they need. It's not.
4. Love It: Cutting Out The Middle Man
It's no secret that buying direct from a manufacturer is a good way to save a buck, since there is no pesky store in the middle adding their mark-up. If you ARE the manufacturer, that deal works out pretty good for you, too. You set your prices as you wish and pocket the cash from all the sales.
As a musician, the internet makes it easy for you to be that direct selling manufacturer. Although the largest internet music retailers really are middle men stores of sorts, you can conceivably sell product directly to your fans online on a scale that you just can't in the non-virtual world. The internet is (well, can be) good for your margins, which makes it easier for you to make a living selling your music.
5. Fear It: One Side of The Story
Here is something that probably comes as no surprise to you - on the internet, the conversation about the future of the music industry is dominated by people who embrace technology. Well, nothing wrong with that on the surface, except when love of technology becomes blind, deaf and dumb. Man, the speed with which some of the music biz voices online will trounce on any musician who voices anything from concern to disdain about any technology is something to behold. In the face of all reason, people writing about the music industry online will pithily dismiss the opinions, suggestions and concerns of people who have decades of experience making a living in music - something the writers mocking these musicians often lack. I thought this was supposed to be a more supportive environment for musicians - but it often seems like that only applies to musicians who tow the party line.
What that means to you when you turn to the internet looking for advice about your music career or to build a plan for promoting your music is that it can be difficult to dig through the buzz words and talking points to find objective information and advice that helps you make appropriate decisions for YOU.
A simple life lesson for us all is to remember that if someone has been doing something we want to do successfully for 20 years or more, their opinions and concerns might just hold a few nuggets worth considering, even if we don't necessarily agree with them across the board. The internet has a way of reducing long-term music careers into, "man, you're so old, no one buys your records anymore - zing!" which kind of distracts from our ability to get realistic about the challenges - and solutions - available to this industry.
6. Love It: Free Advice
Another "on the other hand" moment here...but if you can dig past all of the "hee, hee, hee, so and so is so old they don't even like the internet" stuff online, you can find a treasure trove of free, actionable advice to help you run your own music career and make solid decisions about building a sustainable living in the music industry - the kind of advice you once would have had to pay for, surrender some of your rights for, or just never get at all in the past. Some of the smartest people I know - people I learn from everyday - are giving it away online.
How can you spot this good stuff? Look for the people who aren't afraid to say, "I don't know" when they don't know something, who can disagree respectfully, and who aren't afraid to tell you that there really is no black and white formula for music biz success.
7. Fear It: Putting a Price on It
You can do a lot of tremendously cool things for your music online. You can interact with your fans, make and share music videos on the cheap and set up countless profiles with the goal of promoting your music, landing gigs and much more.
All very cool, but there is a certain "for what?" factor involved that often gets lost in the shuffle. In other words, without a solid plan, you could end up investing in a lot of things online that might be very cool but that amount to nothing tangible. So, awesome, you have tons of followers on Twitter...and now what are you going to do with them? So you made a cool music video - how are you going to get the people who watch it to actually spend money on you as an artist? Be realistic here. Some may say that no one wants to buy your recorded music anymore and that the only thing you can really monetize is live music. Well, honestly, if you can't convince someone go through the effort to pony up 99 cents to buy your new single online, what makes you think you can convince those same people to get up off the couch on a cold, dark night, wander out to the club and pay a coverage charge plus drinking money?
And plus - here's something that doesn't often get mentioned in this whole "live music is the only way to make money" thing - touring is EXPENSIVE. Like, prohibitively expensive in many cases. But that's a story for another time.
Even if you get a thousand retweets and ten thousand video views, you will make a cool, sweet nothing from that - and like it or not, to make a living at music, you have to make money from your music. The best way to do THAT online - to convert online buzz into money in your pocket - is not a clear as you may think.
8. Love It: Anything Goes
The value of the kooky idea is an often underestimated tool in the music industry. From Stiff Records selling thousands of copies of their silent album The Wit and Wisdom of Ronald Reagan to the indie label that bribed its manufacturer with frequent peanut butter and jelly sandwich deliveries, thinking way, way outside the box has long been the best way for musicians/music businesses with shoestring budgets to compete with the big boys.
Thanks to the net boom, executing your crazy-but-hey-it-just-might-work idea is a lot easier and maybe lot less financially risky, and it is a lot more likely to earn you attention. What might have been a cool story for your local fans can now be repeated around the world in a heartbeat if someone online likes you enough to talk about it.
In other words, what we have now is a music environment in which it is a lot easier to go, "well, it may work - just try it" - and the bonus is that that applies to both DIY/indie artists and major label signings. That means (potentially) a more creative industry for us all.
9. Fear It: You CAN versus You WILL
There are some amazing tools on the internet to accomplish really great things for your music career. But that is what they are - they are TOOLS. When you a buy a hammer, it doesn't then just walk into your house and hang your pictures for you. You have to pick it up and use it, and you've got to use it right. Otherwise, it's just a stick with a piece of weird metal on the end.
It is the same way with online tools. Sure, you CAN reach out to countless promoters with your EPK. Sure you CAN tap into the great promo opportunities provided by your online distributor. Sure you CAN collect all of these analytics about your fans and their behavior and turn it into a primo marketing campaign.
But WILL you?
That is the thing you need to get honest about before you kick back and think that any of the great resources online can make your music career take off. Many musicians use them to great effect - and many, many more don't - or they do for awhile and then they don't and then they do and they...well, you get the picture. There is a tendency for industry commentary to big-up the POTENTIAL online tools offer musicians without emphasizing the application of that potential. As a musician, it can be easy to come up with some unrealistic ideas about how much work and planning is involved in actually taking full advantage of these tools.
In other words - forget about what you CAN do. Get real about what you WILL do, and work from there.
10. Love It: Oh, But You Can
Can versus Will - sure, it's a problem. But the very fact that you CAN - now, that is a beautiful thing.
With hefty doses of hard work, realism, creativity, commitment and the ability to drive through the hype to find your own best road to the kind of music career you want, then there is a world of opportunity at your fingertips. Your offline work - playing shows, writing music, practicing, and so on - that stuff is of the utmost importance. It starts and ends with a good song, so never underestimate the value of spending time away from the computer. Once you have that song, though - the internet gives you ways to distribute and promote it on a scale that was once unattainable for an independent musician. Revel in it.
