Music is the Soundtrack to our Lives

Posted by: Grayson Brulte

Music is the Soundtrack to our lives, and the old model is dead! Record Labels need to wake up and realize that if they do not give the consumer what they want, they are going to steal it. Consumers do not want to steal music; the labels force them to.

In the days before the original Napster, consumers were forced purchase what the labels put out every week. That all changed in 1999 when the back catalog became convenient and easy to access. Consumers jumped at the opportunity and the P2P revolution started.

If the labels were smart, they would have looked at this as an opportunity to move away from the CD and embrace digital revolution. But they did not; they tried a shock and awe campaign that failed miserably. It was one of the worst decisions every made in an industry that has made a lot of mistakes over the years.

When will the industry wake up and realize that they must give the consumer what they want?

Consumers want the following:
1. Ease of use and convenient purchasing options.
2. The ability to transfer the music they purchased to any device they own.
3. Good Music.

A&R is not dead, the labels just decided to fire everyone in an attempt to streamline the companies. Hopefully Rick Rubin will be able to turn my old home, Sony BMG around when he takes over Columbia as Co-Chairman.

Hopefully the labels will learn from the mistakes of the past and embrace the digital revolution while reflecting on the mistakes of the past.

You must learn from your mistakes, otherwise you are doomed to repeat them.

Will 2007 be the tipping point?