If you trust anyone, trust us
Posted Tue 6 May 2008 6:34PM BST by in a-CMU-blog
So, there was a survey published recently by a PR agency called Endelman that said that only 31% of music fans "trusted the music industry". I'm not completely sure what that means, but Endelman tell me that the music business' trustworthiness is in decline - 47% said they trusted the industry a year ago.
Of course serious music fans have always been a little bit cynical regarding this thing called the "music industry" - the record labels and managers and agents and lawyers who hide behind the artists you're all familiar with and, if some people are to be believed, do their best to screw those artists financially and artistically.
Some of that cynicism is justified, and presumably the major record companies' behaviour in the digital music domain is the main reason music fans have become increasingly cynical towards the industry in recent years. The record companies were certainly slow to adapt to the internet and all the opportunities it provides, and suing your customers and encrypting your music with technology that makes it difficult (sometimes dangerous and on occasion impossible) to use definitely falls into the realm of ‘pretty stupid'.
But before we all start throwing stones at everyone who works in the good old music industry, how about a few sentences in their defence? Here at CMU we work with thousands of people who work in music and can confirm most of them are actually passionate music fans, many working on a modest salary because they genuinely love the music created by the artists they work with. And, while its true A&R executives and record producers can interfere with an artist's music to make it more commercial, there are many brilliant albums which are only so because of the involvement of a clever A&R or an imaginative producer.
So, you're right not to trust the music industry, but really you should trust them. Which is no help at all I realise. But that's where CMU comes in. We are the most popular daily news service in the UK music business - and that's because we know the industry inside out, but aren't afraid to get a little bitchy when we think people in it are doing something a little stupid. Like suing their customers or destroying their digital music with irritating DRM. So, if you're one of the 69% of music fans who don't trust the industry, well trust us and our new Yahoo! Blog thing, and we'll let you know what's what.
Of course serious music fans have always been a little bit cynical regarding this thing called the "music industry" - the record labels and managers and agents and lawyers who hide behind the artists you're all familiar with and, if some people are to be believed, do their best to screw those artists financially and artistically.
Some of that cynicism is justified, and presumably the major record companies' behaviour in the digital music domain is the main reason music fans have become increasingly cynical towards the industry in recent years. The record companies were certainly slow to adapt to the internet and all the opportunities it provides, and suing your customers and encrypting your music with technology that makes it difficult (sometimes dangerous and on occasion impossible) to use definitely falls into the realm of ‘pretty stupid'.
But before we all start throwing stones at everyone who works in the good old music industry, how about a few sentences in their defence? Here at CMU we work with thousands of people who work in music and can confirm most of them are actually passionate music fans, many working on a modest salary because they genuinely love the music created by the artists they work with. And, while its true A&R executives and record producers can interfere with an artist's music to make it more commercial, there are many brilliant albums which are only so because of the involvement of a clever A&R or an imaginative producer.
So, you're right not to trust the music industry, but really you should trust them. Which is no help at all I realise. But that's where CMU comes in. We are the most popular daily news service in the UK music business - and that's because we know the industry inside out, but aren't afraid to get a little bitchy when we think people in it are doing something a little stupid. Like suing their customers or destroying their digital music with irritating DRM. So, if you're one of the 69% of music fans who don't trust the industry, well trust us and our new Yahoo! Blog thing, and we'll let you know what's what.