Here’s a little something to go with your Saturday morning coffee. Billy Bragg wrote an article which appeared in the online edition of the New York Times today.

Essentially he argues that songwriters and musicians who upload their music to social networking sites, or anywhere on the Internet for that matter, add value to these websites and therefore the artists should be compensated with some sort of royalty. The music on these sites helps the companies who own them to attract advertisers and also increases the value of the websites making them more attractive to investors.

After all, when a site like Bebo sells for $850 million, you have to wonder, as Billy Bragg does, shouldn’t the artists whose music has contributed to the value of this sale receive some compensation?

I like Doug Burr because stylistically his music expands my “listening comfort zone”. Although he is based out of the Lone Star State, (as if you couldn’t tell from the flag in the background above) he separates himself from the body of twang-ish music coming out of places like Austin these days (not that there isn’t a ton of great music in Austin).

There are certainly folk/country elements to his music, but Burr has a way of setting a mood with his songs that sets him apart from more traditional singer/songwriters. The songs are simple, but the layered production adds depth and interesting and unpredictable moments. Like I said, a little bit different from what I usually listen to, but it’s definitely growing on me.

You can get a free mp3 of “In the Garden,” a song off of his new album “On Promenade” at Spune, a label/artist development/promotion company. I think giving away a free single from new releases, or at least allowing potential fans/customers to listen to full tracks is absolutely necessary. Sure, lots of artists are doing it these days, but still not enough have embraced this strategy. I applaud Doug for being with the times.

Now if only the other Doug, (Doug Morris, Universal Music Group CEO) could get with the times. It is scary how music industry executives think: or don’t think.

Doug’s MySpace: www.myspace.com/dougburr

Doug’s Website: www.dougburr.com

Photo Credit: Kate Mackley

Will Hoge’s name has been floating around my head for a while now, and after listening to his new album I’m kicking myself for not going straight to the record store the instant I heard his name, probably over a year ago.

So if you’re like me, and you’ve heard of (or never heard of, now you have) Will Hoge but haven’t taken the time to get acquainted with his tunes, stop reading this and go to his MySpace page right now! You will have a chance to stream his ENTIRE new album “Draw the Curtains” from start to finish.

The fact that you can preview the entire album before laying down the cash and committing the music to shelf, I mean hard drive space is fantastic. This is the way it should be, and more artists/record labels should take note. People have been making the argument for a while now that you can test-drive cars, computers, clothes, and even chicken sandwiches before you buy them (yes those little toothpick samples count). So why not music?

Alright…back to Will Hoge! He wraps a whole lotta soul, a little blues, a touch of country, and pure passion into his tunes. And in my book, that’s a recipe for great rock music. My words here certainly don’t do him justice, so I suggest checking him out yourself…the sooner the better.

You can get a free mp3 of “Dirty Little War,” one of the tracks from the newest album at Will’s website.

Here are a few of my favorites from the new album: “The Highway’s Home,” “Silver or Gold,” “Midnight Parade,” “Dirty Little War.”

Will’s MySpace: www.myspace.com/willhoge

Will’s Website: www.willhoge.com

Photo Credit: Will Byington

Every day I come across tons of great music. Some of it is brand new to the world, some of it is stuff that the cool kids have been listening to before it was even written, and sometimes I come across something that was released decades ago that I completely forgot about.

So what is a music lover to do with all of these musical gems that have been scrunched into ones and zeros? I thought I would expand my scope here a bit. Up until this point, I have pretty much stuck with talk about the music industry in general.

At least once a week from now on, I am going to try and feature some music that I’ve discovered or re-discovered that I can’t live without. This will be music that I truly believe in and that I think is worth your time too.

That’s right, I’m going to venture into the vast world of the mp3 blog, legally of course. I’ll continue to give my take on music industry issues and developments, but this is an addition that I am excited about and can’t wait to see what happens with it. Stay tuned…

I discovered this brand new site and thought I would pass it along. It looks like it could develop into a great resource for musicians as well as those working in the music industry. Knowthemusicbiz.com was just launched this past Tuesday, and while there doesn’t seem to be a ton of activity at the moment (it is brand new after all), I think this is a great idea and has the potential to be really helpful and informative.

Here is a little spiel from their about page:

KnowTheMuiscBiz.com is an online community for emerging artists, musicians and music executives. KTMB members can find, exchange and contribute valuable information about the business of music plus get advice and insight from industry thought leaders. Our goal is to help music professionals navigate the rapidly changing industry and technology options available to build a sustainable career.

Not only is it free to join, but the site is also interactive. Users of the site can contribute and share their experiences and insight about different aspects of the modern and changing music industry. I hope people take advantage of Knowthemusicbiz.com and realize its full potential.

A couple of weeks ago when I wrote about the music industry possibly being defined too narrowly, I talked a little bit about the new contracts that artists are signing with record labels. These contracts are called 360 deals because instead of a traditional record contract, where record labels make money from the sale of recorded music, these new contracts also demand a percentage of an artists touring, merchandise, licensing, and other sources of revenue. Record labels want a percentage of the whole pie so to speak, rather than just a slice.

An article in yesterday’s New York Times will surely add to the discussion as to whether it is in an artist’s best interest to sign one of these 360 deals. While the labels claim that these new deals will allow them to concentrate on developing an artist’s career, I am not buying into it.

These 360 deals have less to do with developing an artist’s career, and more to do with trying to tap into the areas of the music industry that are still profitable. The record companies are more concerned with their own survival than the artists on the other side of these 360 deals.

Record labels claim that they will be able to devote more resources to artists under these new contracts. This seems unlikely. Do you realize how many people have been laid off by the major record labels in the last five to seven years? Thousands. So they probably aren’t devoting human resources to these artists. I suppose the record labels can still “give” these acts money, and under these 360 deals, the lump sum an artist receives is supposed to be bigger than traditional advances.

But wait, record labels don’t give artists money. That $200,000 the label “gave” you is an advance against future earnings. The artist is $200,000 in debt to the record company. Basically, the artist is in the same position he/she/they would have been in with a traditional recording contract, but now the artist has surrendered a percentage of their touring, merchandise, and who knows what else.

And why are record companies suddenly so concerned about developing an artist’s career over the long run? They haven’t cared about career development for years. Maybe they have realized that the only way to ensure longevity in the music business is to focus on artist development.

Despite what they say, I still don’t think that major record labels will be able to focus on developing an artist’s career. As long as major record labels have to answer to share holders or the private equity groups that own them, they will be more focused on survival and the bottom line. The days of a pretty face behind a microphone backed by an enormous media campaign to sell records are over. Music fans are more sophisticated now and are harder to fool. I hope artists are savvy enough to stay away from these 360 deals, and brave enough to pursue their careers without the prospect of a major record label.

I came across this earlier today and thought some of you might want to check it out. If you are at all interested in legal issues related to music and creativity in general, take twenty minutes and absorb. Lessig also has some great observations about popular culture that are worth exploring.

Lawrence Lessig is a Professor at Stanford Law School and I would give just about anything to be a fly on the wall in his lectures. I think the “Larry Lessig” you see in the video is a mistake. I’ve always “known” him as Lawrence. He is also the chair of the Creative Commons project. What do you think about some of his ideas? Whether or not you fully agree with what he has to say, this is a New York Strip as far as food for thought goes.

I was fortunate to be able to see two Josh Ritter shows in Nashville this past Friday. That’s right, two shows in one night! If you enjoy good songwriting and a contemporary approach to “folk-rock,” and haven’t already heard of Josh Ritter, then I would recommend checking him out. He has been getting a lot of national attention lately and Friday night showed why.

He played a short set by himself at Grimey’s, and for those of you not in the Nashville area, Grimey’s is one of the coolest record stores I have ever been to. The store was packed and Josh seemed genuinely happy to be playing to his devoted fans. Afterwards, we rushed over to wait in line at the Exit In for the main event, where Josh and his band played one of the best shows I have seen in a long time.

Every once in a while I go to a show and I’m reminded (not that I ever forget) why I love music so much. Not only did he sound great, but Josh was charismatic, told stories, thoroughly enjoyed himself, and actually interacted with the audience. I know, audience interaction should be a no-brainer right? But I’ve been to shows where the artist just stands on the stage, puts in their 75 minute contractual obligation and basically just goes through the motions. Josh seemed to truly appreciate the fans who support him.

And not to distract further from the live music (which was really the best part of the show), but Josh also had some really unique merch available as well. In addition to the usual t-shirt/CD/poster fair, he was selling songbooks with chords and lyrics as well as stationary with phrases from different songs on each piece. I haven’t seen either of these items sold at any artist’s show before. I especially liked the song book, which would make a great gift for musicians (hint, hint, for any family and friends reading).

After the show I was thinking about what a great time I had and came to the following conclusion: no matter what the future has in store for the music business, there will always be a place for talented artists like Josh Ritter who 1) write their own songs, 2) play their own instruments, 3) play great in the studio and on the live stage, 4) respect and appreciate their fans, and 5) work hard. Take a look at Josh’s current fall tour schedule to see how busy he and the band are on the road.