You are currently browsing the monthly archive for April, 2008.
Teen Magazine has a feature on Adam Gregory this month:
“Meet Adam Gregory, a 22-year-old country crooner who’s our pick for the next big thing! We just love his new single, “Crazy Days,” and thought you guys would get a kick out of “meeting” him. So, without further ado…….”
Go here to check out the complete Teen interview with Adam.
Peter Cooper blogs about how mobile devices are hurting music in a way you might not have thought about:
When people talk about the things that are allegedly “killing” music, they usually go on about vocal tuning technology, the demise of physical product, too many cookie cutter acts, etc. Here’s what’s really killing music, though: cell phones.
In Nashville, the problem goes beyond the dunderheads who “forget” to turn off their ringers and wind up interrupting poignant, compelling or otherwise groovy moments with some kind of seemed-clever-at-the-time ring tone. The problem here extends to people who turn their ringers off but who glance at their Blackberry devices every two minutes and actually type email during performances. To all around, this sends the message, “Whatever the performer is doing is not worthy of my attention.” At a regular club show, this is irritating as all get out. At one of the “showcases” where a performer is presumably auditioning for a record contract or publishing contact, it’s heartbreaking.
Check out the rest of this article on Tennessean.com HERE.
Paul Resnikoff in Los Angeles writes about how different platforms are converging and will become nearly indistinguishable from one another and how that will change the patterns of licensing. Check it out at Digital Music News.
ANDY ELLIOTT
PD Citadel KJJY/KHKI Des Moines, IA
Marital Status: Married
Children: 3 girls Darby 13, Libby 10, Ava 1 (pictured)
Previous stations you have been with: KIOA in Des Moines (Oldies) and KOKZ in Waterloo (Hot AC)
Years in biz: 17
How long have you lived in Des Moines and worked at 92.5 KJJY & 97.3 The Hawk? I was born and raised in Des Moines and have worked for KJJY since 1992. I took over KHKI 3 years ago.
What is your favorite thing to do in Des Moines? I love to golf and we also have one of the nicest Triple A ballparks in the country so I like to catch a game with a brat and beer now and then.
What are the unique challenges of programming two country stations in the Des Moines market? The hardest part is making sure each station has it’s own identity.
If money and time were no object, what would you most like to do? Become a professional poker player.
What are your favorite web sites and blogs? I enjoy You Tube and CBS Sportsline during football season ( Go Pack ). I suppose your blog will become a favorite of mine too.
What is the most ridiculous thing about the music business? All of the over thinking that goes on. A hit is a hit and a stiff is a stiff. No amount of spin can change that in the long run.
Do you ever play local or regional country acts? If so, do you have a success story? We have a local guy here named Jason Brown. He’s a great guy with an unbelievable fan base. He’s also been able to find some very strong songs. He’s been a nice little secret for us over the last couple years and I hope the secret gets out because he’s a very deserving artist.
What advice would you give someone wanting to get into the music business? Take care of your fans. They don’t care about the politics of the music business. They care about feeling a connection with you and believing that you know how valuable they are to you.
How important is it for a station to be local for their specific market? Outside of the music, it’s the most important thing. You have the chance to give them something that no one else can.
You and the stations have a great reputation of being aggressive and playing new music. How do you make sure that strategy (which I completely agree with by the way) works to the stations advantage? I’m in a unique situation where I have two stations. I’m able to be extremely aggressive on one station and then gage reaction to determine what’s working before we commit to the other station.
Could Eddie Hatfield run for mayor of Des Moines and win? Only if they would let him govern from his recliner at home. You could bet there would be great food at all the council meetings.
Being a fellow Green Bay fan, how do you think the team will perform with Aaron Rodgers at the helm? It all depends on his durability. If he can stay healthy, I think we’ll be back in the playoffs. If he is injury prone…I’m blaming you.
Thanks Andy!!
This musical video features David Ford performing every part of his debut single “Go To Hell” in one take. Using multiple layers, loops and some coffee, it’s impressive to watch.
I’d like to see the ratio and breakdown of recently successful acts from record labels. A comparison of brand new artists that no one has heard of to artists that have been lifted off one of the following: American Idol, Nashville Star, Dancing With The Stars, MySpace, from another format, through Muzik Mafia, or from independent labels.
Where are the new star acts that can say they were actually scouted and discovered by a major label? Like when an A&R rep would be on the road and hear the buzz about an incredible artist, who they went to see, and then brought to Nashville to showcase and sign?
Yes, it still happens on occasion, but it seems so rare and sometimes more accidental than anything else.
Has allowing television, the Internet, publishers, and indie labels do the ground work for them made most major labels complacent or has the business of finding acts changed?
Sure social networks and YouTube has made discovery easier and more cost effective, but I have to think there is plenty of pure amazing talent out there that didn’t audition for a television show and doesn’t have the time or means to market themselves full time on the Internet.
Let’s find them. For all of our sake.
A feature on the Leadership Music Digital Summit can be found in The Tennessean. It’s based on what I thought was one of the weaker panels of the day, “Can I Really Ditch A Record Label?”. The title of the panel was interesting and the potential was great, but it ended up being mostly about the positive aspects of major labels and not about how an artist can truly succeed without one (which I thought was the point of the panel). Read the article here.
Music Row magazine also has a write up about the same panel here.
The opening night gala for the 2008 Nashville Film Festival recently took place. The red carpet walk included Emerson Drive, William H. Macy, Jessi Alexander, Carter’s Chord, Wild Bill, and other notable guests for the debut night featured film “The Deal”.
One of the more interesting panel discussions of the Leadership Music Digital Summit yesterday was “Digital Retail: What’s The Future?”
On the issue of the future of CD product, UMG Nashville EVP Sales, Marketing & New Media Ben Kline said, “I can’t imagine CD’s ever going away. I can’t imagine Wal-Mart and Target not selling hard product. It’s the ones (retailers) in the middle that will be hurt. I don’t think you’ll be able to walk into a mall and purchase a CD.” Kline went on to comment, ”We still can’t afford to be in the singles business” when asked about the current state of selling digital singles and why labels are not being more singles driven.
One of the major discussions prevailing was how to grow digital sales as CD sales fall. Each panelist had their own ideas including:
- Better devices
- Ubiquitousness
- Multiple product offerings in one bundle
- Player compatibility and coordination between platforms
- Exceed experience of music ownership with consumers
- Stop narrow focusing on subscription based models
On the subject of future business models within retail, the industry vets responded with:
- Ben Kline: “Demand price models (where price is equal to the demand of the music). Not every song should be .99 cents.”
- EMI CMG VP Sales & Marketing Mark Adkinson added, ”Steve Jobs can’t run our business for us or he will run it right into the ground. He wants to sell devices, not music.” Mark also stressed the need for pervasive distribution within the music industry.
Leadership Music Digital Summit is going on today in Nashville. The keynote was delivered by the CEO of iLike, Ali Partovi, who mentioned that it was the first keynote he has given.
With all of the questions, concerns and potential regarding the future of music technology, Ali made a point to say, “What I’m most excited about is the discovery and promotion of music”.
Ali compared traditional broadcast media with new media:
**Traditional media is “untargeted, focused only on hits & singles, while album development suffers”.
**Digital media is “personalized, social, syndicated, targeted and enables artists to pursue their dreams.”
Partovi went on to say that digital media “could replace or solve the problems of traditional broadcasting”.
More highlights from the Digital Summit will be posted this week.
WGNE & Emerson Drive Team Up For Charity
RENDA BROADCASTING Country WGNE (99.9 GATOR COUNTRY)/JACKSONVILLE is partnering with MIDAS RECORDS group EMERSON DRIVE to help the kids at ST. JUDE CHILDREN’S RESEARCH HOSPITAL.
The boys recorded a special acoustic version of the LIFEHOUSE song “You and Me,” recently; it’s available exclusively for download at www.999gatorcountry.com for a $1 donation to ST. JUDE.
Click here to hear a sample of the song and here to download.
Tim Jones
Program Director - Citadel WGKX Memphis
Previous employment:
-
KBQI/KSYU Albuquerque PD
-
Clear Channel HD Format Lab PD
-
WDDD Marion-Carbondale, IL PD
-
KEZS Cape Girardeau, MO PD
-
KDXY/KDEZ Jonesboro, AR PD
-
WYCQ Nashville, TN On-Air
-
KFIN/KIYS Jonesboro, AR Evening Personality
Years in biz: 18
What do you miss about Albuquerque? The golf courses, my cousin Mark and various friends, the dry weather and the Sandia mountains.
What is your favorite restaurant in Memphis? Hands down… always will be the world famous Rendezvous.
What are the unique challenges of programming in the Memphis market? Memphis is a great market to program in but just like Albuquerque I find myself in an ethnic battle for the top spot. This is not only challenging but often frustrating.
Are you currently utilizing, or planning to utilize: podcasts, video, texting or other digital technology in your programming and promotions? If so, in what way? We are doing some podcasts and video. The texting is on the horizon for us as well. I am excited about the future of technology hence why I have an Iphone. I love it.
What is the most pressing problem radio faces today? How do you think it should be resolved? Shrinking budgets and audience. I believe you have to put money in to make money. I am very fortunate that Citadel still believes in this as well. I am very blessed to be in this company. As far as audience goes, people’s tastes change, we have to change with them and give them what they want or they will go somewhere else.
What can record labels and artists do to better serve you and your station? I think country does a great job. You will not find rock or pop artists doing what country will. We are very lucky.
If money and time were no object, what would you most like to do? Travel around the world on my time schedule with no cell phone and on my own personal jet with my best friends and family in tow.
I’ve never known a time where Rita did not work the front desk. How long has she been there now? 14 years and counting, she rocks.
What are your favorite web sites and blogs? I am a Perez Hilton/TMZ addict. I also check out NY times, All Access, Ebay, Mediabase and Yahoo daily. Crazy thing is my search engine is GOOGLE but my home page is Yahoo. I know, doesn’t make sense to me either.
What is the most ridiculous thing about the music business? That could turn into a novel. Do you really want me to go there?
Do you ever play local or regional country acts? If so, do you have a success story? I am a fan of a local guy here: The Brad Kessler Band. This kid has something. We’ve spun him here and there and he always opens for us when we need him.
What advice would you give someone wanting to get into the music business? This too could be another novel. Main point would be …be careful who you are getting into business with. Personally, I think some of the old blood in Nashville needs to move on because they are way behind times. Sorry, that was my inside voice.
How important is it for a station to be local for their specific market? That’s the thing that keeps us close to the listener…no matter what anyone tells you…this is the key!
THANKS TIM!
Flight of the Conchords. They are brilliantly funny. Où est le bibliothèque?
A couple of Lefsetz gems this week:
“The major labels have lost their luster. By wanting to reside in the twentieth century, by playing by old rules. By wanting instant success, instant riches, at a high price to the consumer. But that era is never coming back.
Today we’re closing the door on the twentieth century. Today we’re drawing a line in the sand, that acts last, not executives. The future of this business will be based on artistry. The music will come before commerce. It has to. The old tricks of scarcity and publicity used to drive the old moguls’ priorities no longer work in the new world. There will be a new set of moguls. Who know this. No one from the old world has evidenced an ability to adapt.”
and this………
“Madonna may have made a deal with LiveNation, but that does not mean she’s the ubiquitous cultural icon she once was. No one can be. There’s no center and too much choice. We watched those shows on network television in the sixties because we had no choice. As soon as we had options, we abandoned the networks for cable. And now some are abandoning the box completely for the Web.
It’s kind of funny to see Madonna trying so hard. And that’s what she’s doing. Rather than kicking back and figuring out how to play in the new world, she’s just ramping it up old style. Add on the glitz, add on the glamour… Like someone under forty who wasn’t around the first time through is even going to give a shit. Like kids are going with their buddies to see her at overinflated prices because of the new hit. Nah, if they go to the show at all it will be with their parents, as nostalgia.
Give Radiohead and Trent Reznor props. They’re living in the now. Madonna is living in the twentieth century. It’s as if Michael Jordan assembled a superstar team of young ‘uns to go for an NBA championship… It would be creepy. And just looking at Madonna is creepy. Wasn’t she the one with the air conditioned teeth and the chubby thighs? Wasn’t she the one with the sassy mouth, but the body of the girl next door? Wasn’t she attractive because she was playing dress-up? Wasn’t she Susan in that movie? Wasn’t that truly her own screen success? When she was an underdog, someone who didn’t fit in, as opposed to a superstar giving dictation?
But this isn’t solely about Madonna. It’s about Jay-Z. It’s about anybody who sold millions of albums under the old paradigm. You just can’t do it anymore. You just can’t get enough eyeballs. You’re a niche product, no matter how hard you flog yourself.
I was sitting in a restaurant in Toronto. And I put forth the question, have you heard the new Madonna track?
Karen, one of Canada’s foremost music journalists, on the trail of everything new and trendy, said no.
Tanya, an exec at EMI Music Publishing, said no.
Felice said no.
And I said no too.
But according to the chart, the Madonna track was number one.
I guess the chart doesn’t mean much anymore.”
The Mother Church of country music, The Ryman Auditorium, in downtown Nashville. Original home of the Grand Ol’ Opry. So many photos of this historical building have been taken, it is difficult to show it in a unique way. This is my attempt.
Radio Ink recently released the findings of a phone survey of 1,004 U.S. adults. Among the findings the survey showed that 53 percent of listeners said they stick with a station through commercial breaks, 35 percent change the station, and 8 percent turn off the radio. And those who change the station tend to do it quickly: Seventy-seven percent of those who tune away do it within 30 seconds after commercials begin. I‘ve seen other surveys where the numbers for losing listeners during commercial breaks are even higher.
Personally, I will punch out of a station that is playing a really bad spot, especially if the ad is poorly voiced by the owner of the company (hello Tom Shane?). I’ll also find another station if an advertisement is loud and annoying or if there are more than three or four 60 second spots back to back. Production and content of the commercial really does matter.
When I was in radio we had a full time production person and that’s all they did. Not many of those anymore with budget cuts and staff members wearing multiple hats and spreading themselves thin.
In thinking about the future, how much longer can the current advertising spot system last? Is there a better way to set up advertising and partnerships to better utilize time, money, positioning and ratings? Especially with the current battle that has emerged with other entertainment options (some of them commerical free).
The only time I find myself sticking around is if the spot is delivered with personality by the DJ or talk show host. If it is done live with improvisation, all the better. Give me authenticity and creativeness. If a host can pull that off, it is not only entertaining, but the represented company is better served. However, this can backfire when the host is delivering too many live spots and they suddenly become recorded “live” reads. Which leads us back to annoying.
An even better scenario for advertisers is the shorter and focused spots that are live or that “sponsor” an entire half hour or other segment of time. You know the type….”This half hour brought to you by insert company here…..”
Am I the only one that thinks something different should emerge in the way ads are produced, presented and scheduled? Maybe an entirely new and innovative type of advertising revenue stream will emerge through podcasting, texting, or social networking? There has to be a better way.
It will take a bold radio company to step out and set a new course.
Tempted to throw away that old promo copy from a label? UMG says that sort of action is “unauthorized distribution” and therefore illegal. Read the details here.
So what happens when a radio station gives a promotion CD away and the winner turns around and sells it at a garage sale or tosses it in the trash? Could the contest winner be sued as well?
Goodwill and Salvation Army better watch their backs!
This is so 1990’s.
From emarketer.com:
A January 2008 Arbitron-Edison Media Research study found that an estimated 33 million Americans had listened to online radio in the past week.
This represents 13% of the US population ages 12 and older, and is an increase over the previous year when 11% of the population (29 million) had listened to online radio in the past week.
Podcasting use is also rising and now reaches 18% of the US population, up from 13% a year ago. An estimated 23 million, or 9% of Americans had listened to a podcast in the past month.
“Traditional radio and Internet-only radio must realize that they are now part of an even broader world of online information and entertainment options and respond accordingly,” said Pierre Bouvard, president of sales and marketing at Arbitron.
“Advertisers who want to go where the trends are pointing need to be more involved with the new forms of audio media as they continue to expand,” Mr. Bouvard said.
With the Summer Olympics fast approaching, you can watch the world compete for gold and hear National Anthems from around the globe. Impress your family and friends by brushing up on your anthems here.
.
50 Cent and Universal Music Group are being sued for promoting the “gangsta lifestyle”. Read about it here.
That got me thinking about what lifestyle country music is promoting. Who could sue us? Soccer moms? Former 70’s rock fans? The state of Texas?
See comments and please feel free to add your own.
Debut of the Adam Gregory video for “Crazy Days”. Directed by Wes Edwards. Check out more information on his web site www.adamgregory.com.
Directed by Wes Edwards
How would you feel about a music site that organizes music according to your moods? What would be your thoughts about a destination where you can legally download MP3’s based on emotions?
Guitarati is conducting this grand sonically visual experience by assigning colors to music.
It is certainly unique and outside the box, but will it resonate?
Midas Records/No Strings Attached recording artist Adam Gregory is making his U.S. debut with the release of “Crazy Days.” The single was co-written by Adam, Lee Brice, Kyle Jacobs and Joe Leathers and was co-produced by Keith Follese and Brad Allen.
Though he’s just 22 years old, Adam Gregory draws on more than a decade’s worth of writing and performing experience for his upcoming debut album on Midas.
Growing up in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, Adam’s musical journey began when he wrote his first composition at age 12 and was signed to a record deal with Sony Canada. After recording his debut album, he launched into life as a road warrior opening shows for the likes of Alan Jackson, Keith Urban and Lonestar. Adam scored several top ten hits on Canada’s country charts throughout his teens, gaining a loyal following with the release of three studio albums.
Now in Nashville, Adam looks forward to bringing his music to the U.S. market. He is currently on a series of radio tours promoting the single release and looking forward to continued touring in support of the upcoming album.
I love maps. Especially very old maps. I’ve always found them facinating and have acquired several antique maps for the “study” room at the house. For this reason I love the blog Strange Maps. This particular post about Arizona and New Mexico is particularly interesting: “The Civil War and the Death of Horizontalism”
A rare earthquake in Texas occured today, six miles from Falls City and 45 miles from San Antonio. Anyone in the area feel it?
Emerson Drive, Southwest Airlines and the Nashville Film Festival are teaming up and giving away a trip to Las Vegas and the ACM Awards. Love music? Into film? Dig Southwest? Well then here’s the lowdown:
A short Businessweek.com article on labels trying to play catch up with digital opportunties and the latest music partnership with MySpace. Click this to check it out.
Amy and I went to a party for our good friends Mitch and Sarah who are getting married later this month. It was at the home of their friends David Thoener and Tamera Petrash. David is a highly regarded sound engineer, mixer and producer. I knew that he worked on the Santana project and won a Grammy in 2000 for “Smooth”. Cool. Great song.
So we went to their home and it was a nice group of friends and new people we hadn’t met before. After engaging in some wine and cake, Amy and I decided to go explore the house since it had a nice variety of art and music industry awards.
In David’s office I noticed a wall full of gold and platinum albums (yes, the door was open). I couldn’t help but to check them out. I still remember how much I wanted one of those back before moving to Nashville and it finally happened in 1994 with The Mavericks. Such an amazing memory that lead to more “awards” over the years. I’m very proud to have played a part in so many artists careers and music and the plaques are nice reminders of that. Over time though, they just aren’t that important to me anymore, but I still love to look at them when they are displayed at other people’s homes or businesses. Especially the blasts from the past.
The first plaque on David’s wall to catch my eye was the J. Geils Band “Freeze Frame”. Wow! That was one of my favorite records in high school. Then I noticed Billy Squier “Emotions In Motion”. No way! Another fantastic album. Then a quick scan of the rest: Heart, Sammy Hagar, Meat Loaf, AC/DC, Aeorosmith, KISS, Triumph, Bon Jovi, The Fixx, Billy Joel, The Hooters, ELO, Def Leppard and many others. It was everything I listened to in my youth. The Rock utopia of the 70’s and early to mid 80’s.
Amy said I was standing there with my mouth open just staring. It was like the soundtrack of my high school years before my eyes as the songs on those albums created flash points in time. A memory of listening to J. Geils “Centerfold” on a beat up radio while riding to school on the bus. Or camping out for Billy Squier tickets that went on sale Saturday morning right after the Sammy Hagar concert ended on Friday night. When “Pyromania” came out and rocked my world. Seeing Bon Jovi open up for the unmasked KISS. Turning it up to 10 when the cannons fired on AC/DC’s “For Those About To Rock”.
As I continued to be amazed at the wall, David walked into the room and proceeded to tell stories about how he recorded the cannons on the AC/DC track. What Bon Jovi was like back in the day before he exploded. Working with Mutt Lange, Gene Simmons, Santana, David Bowie, Def Leppard, ELO, and John Mellencamp on albums and in the studio. The history of my rock and roll years. The songs and artists that influenced my taste in music. David was in the mix. Literally!
David, according to his bio, started his career in 1974 as an assistant engineer at the Record Plant in New York City. He learned his craft working on such seminal albums as Aerosmith “Toys In The Attic,” Bruce Springsteen “Born To Run,” David Bowie “Young Americans,” John Lennon “Walls and Bridges,” Electric Light Orchestra “Face The Music” and Richie Blackmore “Rainbow Rising.”
He began engineering and mixing records in 1976, and since then has enjoyed a thirty year run of hit records including classic records for AC/DC (”For Those About To Rock”) , John Mellencamp (including “Little Pink Houses”), John Waite (including the smash “Missing You”), J. Geils Band (all of their hits), Matchbox 20 and many others.
He has worked on countless Country and Contemporary Christian projects as well. If you’d like to check out his complete discography with dates please go here.
Just when you think you can’t be awed any longer in Music City, there is always a surprise waiting to happen. That’s one of the reasons I love this town and the incredibly creative and down to earth people in it.
I am on a mission now to have David guest blog.
An integration of CBS Radio’s webstreams into Last.FM is underway and includes all formats. This follows last month’s announcement of AOL and CBS Radio joining together for sharing content. Last.FM CEO Felix Miller hopes it will lead to more collaboration.
This type of integration and partnership is essential for the long term relevancy of terrestrial radio. There is still much to do, but it is a step in the right direction.
Wanna hear it? Go to their myspace site and click on it.
You can also go here to check out the lyrics.
Batter up!!
