musicians?

[EveOfDarkness]

Im a musician and im pretty confident in my music, if only because many people have told me they really like it and see it doing good in the future. I myself am pretty happy with the way its turning out but i know it can be so much better also. Success for me would be reaching many people, both in the Christian and Secular realm with the music that i make and hopefully see many people turn their lives to Christ as a result. I know a lot of people wont, but i hope then they at least enjoy the music if nothing else.

And being able to LIVE off being in this band alone moneywise wouldnt be so bad either

(and before any of you clever ones decide to bash me for my beliefs just remember everyone is free to believe what they want. I don't shove my beliefs down anyone's throat because of just that. All i want to do is share my beliefs to whoever will listen through doing what i do best, music

now lets not start this into a religious debate and keep the thread going)

 

[Koi]

i respect it, and good luck with it

 

[rrjii2000]

I have been a practicing musician for about 15 years, but only serious for about 3. I have had a few classes on the Music business at Berklee, and while I more or less understand it, the Music Industry is an untamable monster that grows daily. Now before I start in on my theory, I want to say this applies mostly to Pop and Rap...ect (the more popular genres). Metal and Rock are usually a little friendlier, and the listener is usually a lover of music. Why else would we listen to such complex arrangements?

The problem is 80% of the new music introduced is Total Shit! uke: This makes people hesitant when it comes to making a purchase, and at $20 a pop!! Who can blame them, this is why downloading is so popular today. But this creates a viscous circle, illegal downloading makes record companies loose money and thus raise the selling price, the raised price makes downloading even more popular.


Another concept to think about is what I call the "Noobifacation" of music. Just for clarification the word "noob" is a slang term commonly used in the video game industry to describe someone who just killed your ass!
No, really it means you’re new and usually lacking in skills, and with today’s technology these “noobs” are everywhere. Sequencers are easier that ever to use, and sample based recording is out of control. This ease of production attracts people who can't play any instruments, making it a skill-less venture. While this is great for them, it puts more pressure on us as professional musicians to create memorable material. It also leads to a greater market saturation (more songs available worldwide). This covers us in a vast pool of music, making all of our hard work just another ripple in the inexorable pond.

So you ask if I will succeed? Well it’s going to be a bloody war to say the least. There is just too much music available today, which makes peoples tastes quite specific. This makes how you market your music very important. My current CD “Autumn” is being marketed more toward the easy listening genre. This has been surprisingly effective so far. But no matter how hard you try, you are never as successful as you had hoped. We all have huge hopes and dreams of really succeeding with our music. But achieving success in today’s market is no easy task.





Rob

 

[FRUGiHOYi]

This makes people hesitant when it comes to making a purchase, and at $20 a pop!! Who can blame them, this is why downloading is so popular today. But this creates a viscous circle, illegal downloading makes record companies loose money and thus raise the selling price, the raised price makes downloading even more popular

I disagree with that. With the advent of music downloading, CD prices seem to have gone down. That makes sense too because the lower price is an incentive for people to actually buy the CD instead of downloading it. In fact, I don't see any CDs for $20 anywhere. They are usually between $9 and $16, depending where you buy.

 

[Seance]

illegal downloading makes record companies loose money

disagreed, as even though I haven't brushed up on the issue/topic in some time, in the past there's only been evidence to the contrary

an interesting article: http://www.mp3newswire.net/stories/2000/radiohead.html

 

[Slayer101]

I've been playing guitar for about a year now, I never had any lessons. My stepdad taught me a few chords and stuff like that but I had to figure the rest out on my own. I can play very few songs all the way through. I haven't tried to write any of my own material yet. But I feel very comfortable about what I can play.

 

[Opethian666]

I wouldn't say illegal downloading causes record companies to lose money, since a lot of people, like me, use it to be able to explore and test music before actually buying the cds. I'd say it's even a good thing, since it would be logical that this causes a downfall of the more popular artists' sales, and a boost of the less popular artists' sales, since it allows for people to expand their musical knowledge, finding those bands that would normally only sell records if people pick up their album by chance in a store. Hell, if it weren't for the internet/file sharing, I probably wouldn't have been an Opeth fan right now and still listening to generic thrash/heavy metal.

 

[rrjii2000]

I wouldn't say illegal downloading causes record companies to lose money, since a lot of people, like me, use it to be able to explore and test music before actually buying the cds. I'd say it's even a good thing, since it would be logical that this causes a downfall of the more popular artists' sales, and a boost of the less popular artists' sales, since it allows for people to expand their musical knowledge, finding those bands that would normally only sell records if people pick up their album by chance in a store. Hell, if it weren't for the internet/file sharing, I probably wouldn't have been an Opeth fan right now and still listening to generic thrash/heavy metal.

Good Point

 

[Scourge of Malice]

I wouldn't say illegal downloading causes record companies to lose money, since a lot of people, like me, use it to be able to explore and test music before actually buying the cds. I'd say it's even a good thing, since it would be logical that this causes a downfall of the more popular artists' sales, and a boost of the less popular artists' sales, since it allows for people to expand their musical knowledge, finding those bands that would normally only sell records if people pick up their album by chance in a store. Hell, if it weren't for the internet/file sharing, I probably wouldn't have been an Opeth fan right now and still listening to generic thrash/heavy metal.

I think it depends on the style of music really. It seems that fans of more underground genres (ie most people on these forums) are more loyal to the bands they listen to as they know they don't make that much money in general and can make more of a difference buy purchasing their albums, where most of the people I know that listen to more "mainstream" music tend to download albums and burn then and never pay a penny for the music. But I guess those mainstream artists sell thousands or even millions of albums so maybe I'm completely wrong... but it seems that mainstream record companies are barely phased by downloading... i dunno, haha

 

[SethCohen]

i play guitar, a black guitar, a black acoustic guitar, a black acoustic martin guitar. yes!

 

[metal_wrath]

Haha, I have been playing guitar for 1 year and I can play 'When' including the solo.

 

[all_sins_undone]

wow, welcome to normality

 

[Opethian666]

I wonder if metal_wrath will ever post anything he recorded. If he's anything like I imagine he is, his playing will resemble Kerry King's average solo in Slayer.

 

[all_sins_undone]

lmao

 

[NFU]

i dont doubt metal wrath has some metal chops.

i just think he would look at you like a lost puppy if you asked him to play a blues lick, or a jazz progression of any kind, etc.

 

[arzachel]

I wonder if metal_wrath will ever post anything he recorded. If he's anything like I imagine he is, his playing will resemble Kerry King's ear raping solos in Slayer.

fixed

 

[Keith!]

Haha, I have been playing guitar for 1 year and I can play 'When' including the solo.

Being able to play it and being able to play it well are two different things... idiot.

 

[dishcloth]

I'm a musician. I guess I'll feel successful when people enjoy listening to the music I create. If people are continually asking me to make more music, I guess I must be on the right track.

 

[Endar]

I am a musician, I like the music I make so I'm self confident, and... success ?.. I couldn't care less.

 

[metal_wrath]

Being able to play it and being able to play it well are two different things... idiot.