Monthly Archives: April 2012

Music Industry News: Analysis of the 2012 IFPI Music Industry Report

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The IFPI (International Federation of the Phonographic Industry) represents the recording industry worldwide and is a not for profit members organisation registered in Switzerland. It operates a Secretariat currently based in London and has regional offices in Brussels, Hong Kong and Miami In. January 2012, they released their annual report on the music industry. You can read the report here.

Here is what I feel are the most important pieces of information from the report for struggling artists.

  • VEVO is a platform used by the recording industry to distribute music videos to fans; it’s also what generates revenues through advertising and brand sponsorships. In 2011, VEVO delivered more than US$100 million in royalties to rights holders of the music/videos (Maybe not the creators themselves, but the labels that represent them) .It’s primary goal is to ensure the music audience is valued by advertisers.
  • Digital music is now broadly segmented into two main consumption models – “ownership” and “access”. Ownership would be iTunes or digital downloads and subscription would be access to unlimited music for a premium price, much like cable TV. Internet Service providers and cell phone companies are attempting to make subscription to unlimited music apart of the smart phone service experience.
  • Digital was once mistakenly feared to be the killer of the album. Now digital album volume sales have grown steadily in recent years, with US and UK digital album sales in 2011 up by 19 and 27 per cent respectively. This would be for Top 40 artists backed by the recording industry’s marketing dollars and does not reflect independent artists.
  • Consumer demand for an artist’s body of work remains strong in the digital world especially as price competition is often fierce and storage on computers and devices is less of an issue.
  • Several factors explain the strength of demand for digital albums: strong marketing campaigns, premium offerings that provide additional content and consumer habits.

Artist Title Sales (millions)

Bruno Mars Just The Way You Are  (12.5)

Bruno Mars Grenade (10.2)

LMFAO Party Rock Anthem (9.7)

Jennifer Lopez On The Floor (8.4)

Adele Rolling in the Deep  (8.2)

Lady Gaga Born This Way  (8.2)

Pitbull ft. Ne-Yo, Afrojack & Nayer Give Me Everything  (8.2)

Black Eyed Peas The Time (Dirty Bit)  (7.3)

Maroon 5 Moves Like Jagger (7.0)

Bruno Mars The Lazy Song (6.5)

My take on the indstry after reading the report:
I feel that the music industry is still controlled by the major labels that founded the business around music. For the struggling artist, the idea of pushing a million records is still far from reality. Platforms like VEVO and subscription/ownership services are still heavily influenced by the recording industry’s position as the main supplier of music and not the artists themselves.

Unless you are represented by a label, you cannot be on VEVO, as for iTunes and other services and without the big push of label marketing dollars and excellent branding strategies, you are stuck becoming apart of the noise of independent artists everywhere looking to compete against the large conglomerates for a “piece of the cake” so to speak from the consumers.

With the labels still in control of the mainstream channels of exposure for artists they represent, the barriers for the struggling artist to connect their music with an audience is exceedingly difficult.

Tough roads ahead! But I’m optimistic that people will begin to search for artists that deviate away from major labels as everything is sounding the same. The only competitive advantage one has against the label, is their creative ability to be different, this will be the edge for the struggling artist to connect with an audience. Different is what people will want, eventually.

- Daniel Ram

How to be a Music Producer: The Industry’s Secret Weapon – Max Martin and his Production Process

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Max Martin is considered to be the most important thing to happen to Swedish/American pop music, since, well, since ever really.
In the late 90’s, Max Martin pretty much owned a significant portion of radio air time, simply because majority of the songs being played were produced by him.

From Britney Spears, to the Spice Girls, Backstreet to Nysnc, all the way to artists like Pink and Kelly Clarkson, Usher and Avril Lavine, Max Martin has crafted and produced chart topping hit, after chart topping hit. He is the music industry’s ’go to’ guy.

Ace of Bass pays tribute to Max Martin who was responsible for producing their career topping single, “All that she wants”. The story goes, that their demo tape (yes tape) was stuck in the cassette deck of his car and it was the only thing he could listen to for months straight, he finally got sick of their demo and brought them into the studio and the rest was history.

Here are the top 5 philosophical quotes from the legendary Max Martin on what makes his music production a testament to time itself:

1.      I feel that I only have one chance, just one chance to make them like the song, and that chance is within the first 5 seconds of the song. Actually if you listen to my music, often times, the first 5 seconds of the song, IS the song.

2.      The whole piano thing (Da-Dun Dun) in the beginning of Britney’s – “Hit me baby” IS the entire song, and I was betting that if people liked the opening of that song, then they would like the rest of the song; that if they heard it before they listened to it, they would enjoy it even more.

3.      I do not consider myself a poet, I just write what I feel sounds good with an ear of what is going on at that time in the world. Relevance is an important factor of making timeless music.

4.      Writing a song could take as short as 5 mins, the basic idea anyhow, but the whole work around it, you wouldn’t believe it! If  it takes an entire month to mix a track for Britney’s record, it will take an entire month of listening to that same record, that’s what it takes. It has to be perfect.

5.      Max Martin studied Abba, who in turn, studied every pop act in their time and anyone proceeding. Find out who your influences are, and understand who and what influences them. The growth and development of music is all about continuity. Pharrell often quotes that one of his beats is really his own rendition of the song “Another one bites the dust”.

Videos: Most Recent Releases by Max Martin’s Shop

Music Review: DJ MV Moves his Set to Italia!

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Originally from Montreal, DJ MV has rocked crowds in Vancouver with his DJ sets, he now intends to shake-up Italy’s nightlife scene with an even more impressive DJ set.

My good buddy DJ MV has been in Vancouver since early 2000′s, originally part of the Dream Team of DJ’s in Montreal, he ventured into Canuck town (Vancouver) to swing crowds with his skillful selection of music and his extensive technical skills in blending different genres of music live into a dance floor mix.

While many DJs nowadays use the Pioneer CDJs and other digital software/hardware, DJ MV still stands by his tradition in using vinyl as well as a Serato set-up. I strongly believe that his ability to blend mixes so well has to do with his tradition of using vinyl as opposed to all these ‘one-button’ digital DJ stations.

To DJ MV, the feel of the music is the most important aspect of any DJ’s performance. His belief is that you cannot feel the music by looking at a digital rendering of the music as a waveform, you need to touch the record! To DJ MV, mixing music is more than just playing music, it’s all about the performance you give to the crowd, and unless you can mix a dance floor hit while interacting with the crowd, you’re not giving them the full experience of hearing your set.

Recently coming off a Canada wide tour with Swollen Members and Sweatshop Union, DJ MV is going to be leading new grounds in Italy with an even deeper selection of music and DJ blends that will have Venice (Which he is an hour away from!) storming to the dance floor.

Looking forward to hearing more about his experience in Italy in the future!

Follow DJ MV on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/djmv7600

Video:

-Daniel Ram (DanielBeats)

E-mail: info@danielbeats.com
Fbook: http://www.facebook.com/DanielRamBeats
Twitt: http://www.twitter.com/RealDanielBeats
Scloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/DanielRamBeats

How to be a Music Producer: Top 5 Technical Quotes from Legendary Producers

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Top 5: Technical Quotes from Legendary Producers

Along with the philosophical mindset needed to become a good music producer, there is the technical aspect of knowing how to approach making a hit record.

A lot of times, it’s not what you should do, but what you shouldn’t do, or better yet, eliminate from your technical practice has a music producer.

Here are the Top 5 Technical Quotes:

1. I try to stay away from VSTS and complicated software synths, first because I’m too stupid to understand how to use all the million buttons, second, because everyone can get those sounds. I tend to use a lot of out board gear, like old keyboards, because it’s way easier and not everyone has those sounds. – Benny Blanco

2. Sometimes, instead of building a track piece by piece, it’s more productive to build the entire song around one particular sound that plays through the majority of the song. The other sounds you add should be used to fill out the other frequencies and make it sound more full. – Danja (On how he produced We Taking Over)

3. It’s not how well you can play an instrument, but the way the instrument sounds when it’s played. That is the key to making interesting and memorable records. Mic the piano differently, or use instruments that ppl would never use. Weird sounds are popular records – Daniel Ram (DanielBeats)

4. What is the most important thing in my setup? It would have to be my external hardrive that is almost full of all my drum sounds. – Benny Blanco

5. Master all the equipment you use. That’s the key. – Pharrell

6. *Bonus* There are all these VSTS out there that claim they emulate some old synth. But if you’re too young or don’t even know the sounds these VSTS are suppose to sound like when trying to emulate of an old keyboard, what is the point? Stick to stuff you know and know it well. – Chad Hugo (The Neptunes)

- Daniel Ram

E-mail: danieldram@gmail.com
Fbook: http://www.facebook.com/DanielRamBeats
Twitt: http://www.twitter.com/RealDanielBeats
Scloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/DanielRamBeats

How to be a Music Producer: Top 10 Quotes on the Philosophy of a Music Producer

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 How to be a Music Producer: The Philosophy of a Music Producer:

Beyond the technical know how and the ability to work your way around a studio, there is the art of knowing how organize yourself philosophically in order to achieve the results of producing a great record.

Many up and coming producers are so caught up with trying to make a hit record that they forget that producing a great record first starts with a clear, organized and dedicated mindset

Creating a hit record first starts with approaching your profession just like an athlete approaches theirs. You gotta know the game, and then, you gotta know your game. Not everybody can be a Michael Jordan, and not everybody can be a Timbaland, and with good reason. A hit record first starts mentally, you gotta believe you CAN produce a hit record, second, in the case of Michael Jordan, you gotta know what you’re gonna do when you have the ball, as a music producer, you gotta know how you’re gonna use all your gear, your artists, musicians and yourself to make a great record.

Written below are a collection of philosophical quotes from legendary producers within the industry that may shed light on their ‘game’ and how they navigate the industry to release hit record after hit record.

Top 10 philosophical Quotes from Legendary Music Producers

  1. Producing music isn’t a battle, it’s a mindset, the mindset to release the best record possible. – Timbaland
  2. You want to work with people who understand the sacrifice and dedication it takes to be good at what you do. Work with people who already have a built-in fan base. When I decided to work with Wiz Khalifa, he was already pushing 500,000 mixtape CDs and performing to 3,000 people per show, this was before he even had a top40 single. – Benny Blanco
  3. Don’t work with people’s large ego, only because this gets in the way of the possibility of creating a creatively incredible project. – Benny Blanco.
    (Ludracris was reluctant to record on my beat, because it was so different and I was working with all these different artists, it wasn’t ‘hood’, but his manager talked him into recording it and we released “Money Maker”. – Pharrell Williams)
  4. Don’t bother working with anyone who isn’t working their ass off to become dope on their own. – Benny Blanco
  5. Forget about the money or compensation, it will come, think about releasing a great record that people will really enjoy. - Timbaland
  6. Respect and be willing to work with anyone who makes a contribution to the art form of music, but be sure that they themselves understand what their contribution is. – Benny Blanco
  7. Set the trend, don’t follow it. – Quincy Jones
  8. For every one hour of recording, have two hours of laughter in the studio – Quincy Jones
  9. Therei s so much technology out there, that you can easily become overwhelmed by millions of buttons and the infinite possibilities the best technology or setups can provide. Instead, get yourself a small set up that cannot accomodate you fully. Your goal should be to master every tool you have to the point that you wish it could offer more, THAT’S when you can upgrade by adding more to your setup – Pharell Williams
  10. Don’t stop, keep going and keep doing what you’re doing. Nobody was looking at Floyd Maywether until he had a promo team, but the guy was knocking heads long before anyone cared to look - Timbaland (on being the underdog).

-Daniel Ram

E-mail: danieldram@gmail.com
Fbook: http://www.facebook.com/DanielRamBeats
Twitt: http://www.twitter.com/RealDanielBeats
Scloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/DanielRamBeats

ADVICE FROM QUINCY JONES: THE FIVE LAWS OF PRODUCING MUSIC

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HowToBeAMusicProducerQuincy Jones is responsible for producing the music industry’s most coveted musical albums and soundtracks.
From Michael Jackson’s Thriller, to the soundtrack to Austin Powers, his talent in sound is astounding.

Recognized as a living legend in the industry, he is trusted for his ability to push the envelope and set the trend rather than follow it.

Quincy Jones has a philosophy about producing music, that it should be more fun than stressful, that a hit track is one that moves you around the world and that opening your mind and killing the ego is essential when recording any album.

Quincy Jones shared the following five laws of music production with aspiring producers in the industry.

  1. Learn to read your music fast, just like you read the morning newspaper.
  2. Always have 2 hours of laughter for every 1 hour of recording in the studio.
  3. Music is about contrast. For every low part or vocal, there should be a high part or vocal. Determine the contrast.
  4. A hit song, any hit song , will touch you. That is how you know you have one.
  5. Your address book is your biggest and most important tool as a music producer

The Fifth Law is the Most Important:
As a music producer, your job is to produce a record that the labels like and that can artistically meet the demands of the current market. Music is not an individual experience, at least, before the iPods and Beats By Dre’s came along, it was an inclusive experience. As a music producer, it’s your job to meet as many guitarists, pianists, vocalists and engineers as possible and keep in touch with them, because you never know when you might need to call Van Halen to come by to the studio and lay down a wicked guitar riff that only Van Halen can play, that blew the speakers and caught them on fire for Michael Jackson’s album – No, that is not an exaggeration, the speakers really did catch on fire and the record went straight to number one!

- Daniel Ram (Daniel Beats)

E-mail: danieldram@gmail.com
Fbook: http://facebook.com/DanielRamBeats
Twitt: https://twitter.com/#!/RealDanielBeats
SCloud: http://soundcloud.com/danielrambeats

How to be a Music Producer: The Art of Goal Setting and Making Music

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When Quincy Jones produced Michael Jackson’s Thriller, he had literally 8 weeks to finish the project. Not only was the project supposed to be completed and ready for distribution by the label, it had to redefine the genre of pop.

How is it possible to complete an entire album, let alone, a revolutionary album within an 8 week deadline? It has to do with goal setting.

Much like anything else in life that has to do with achieving or attaining a level of success, goals need to be set and they gotta get done.

In my experience, I’ve struggled with trying complete albums, remixes and sometimes even beats. It never really occured to me to actually write down what I wanted to complete while in the studio, I just start making a beat.

What often happens is, the will beat sound good but in your mind, it has no direction or vision, so you end up changing synths, melodies, drums and it turns out to be a completely different track from where you started, the result can be a frustrated experience. This is because there is a lack of focus on what you’re trying to create and why you’re creating it. It like driving your car and not knowing where to go.

Nowadays, my beats are completed in hours instead of days, tracks for albums are more specific in their intent, everything has deadlines and remixes are given specific genres and techniques that are designed for where the track will be listened to.

Next time, before you hit the studio, follow these simple rules and your music will never suffer from frustration/paralysis:

  1. Before walking into the studio, decide what you want to focus on. Making a beat, a recording, chopping up samples or creating drum patterns.
  2. Write a reasonable deadline that it must be completed at. You’ll be amazed at how giving yourself a date to complete the project will dramatically increase the speed at which the project is finished.
  3. Be specific with the intent of what you’re creating and why. What is the music being used for? Who’s going to listen to it. These types of questions narrow down the sounds you’ll want to use so it suits the environment at which it will be played.
  4. Once a goal is completed, check it off. The action of actually crossing an item off the list is rewarding and even if no one will be able to listen to your music for a while (distribution issues) you’ll still feel that the effort was worth the work.
  5. Lather, rinse and repeat :)