This interview is incredibly interesting. He’s clearly very in tune to music and the way it reaches out. Fran Ashcroft produced for bands i’ve never heard of and The Gorillaz.
Interviewer: The record business is suffering alot from people downloading
Fran: Well that’s what they say! It’s true lots of people download stuff because they can. Lot’s of people used to tape music from the radio because they could. Do you know anybody who kept all the cassette tapes that they taped off the radio in the 70s? I don’t. And the same will be true of downloads, you delete them after a bit….what happens is the stuff that you like and you enjoy and that you would actually put your money down for is the stuff you want to…keep.
I think we’re going to see a big divide between…Top 40 music and everything else. On the one hand, Top 40 stuff will remain in the kind of position it is now with the same kind of money being put behind it…The other 98% of music that’s out there will be able to be marketed to its own particular niche.
EXACTLY!!! I completely agree.
When artists wake up to the fact that if they sold 50,000 albums with a record label, they have a listener base of 50,000 they can draw on. Then what’s the point in having the record label when you can sell it to your fans directly.
I agree though I believe it’s happening now with artists declining to sign with big labels and going Indie or making their own lane to distribute their music. It’s reminds me of a quote from The Office:
“Michael: No, we don’t actually cut the paper. That’s a good question. The paper is sent to us cut, and dyed, from a paper manufacturer, and then we sell it to a business for more than we paid for it.
Abby: That’s not fair. [the rest of the kids agree]
Michael: Yes it is, well, w-w–you need someone in the middle to facilitate…
Jake: You’re just a middleman.
Michael: I’m not just a middle… man…
Melissa: Wait, why doesn’t the saw mill just sell paper directly to people?
Michael: You are describing Office Depot, and they’re kind of running us out of business.
Dwight: We have better service than they do!”
Watch artists come to see this and cut out the middle man.
It’s a question of using the most appropriate tools for the work you’re supposed to be doing.
Autotune anyone? It’s about having tools to your trade and using which ones are appropriate for what you’re going for. It’s NOT about one artist telling the rest of the virtuosic populace that a certain tool is “dead” or out. Let the artist decide for themselves.
this needs to be spread around so more people see the FAKENESS that the Grammy’s have become!!
THE SINGLE most important performance of the night…they effed up the sound (yes they broadcasted it this way). in addition to that, whoever was the light technician that choreographed this was not real impressive to me…pretty obnoxious actually.
this performance was really beautiful and seemed to be a good dot of the “i” on the decade. i am just so completely fed up with the grammy’s. they are stuck in a broad “everyone likes what we think is pop” mindset. they are run by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences which “is a U.S. organization of musicians, producers, recording engineers and other recording professionals dedicated to improving the quality of life and cultural condition for music and its makers.” which sort of makes sense to me as far as the voting…but what about who sets up the performances, and the presentation, and the production, and writing of the show?? they obviously spend more time on certain pop acts opposed to others. also, the indie music scene is rapidly growing (especially with younger people…the ones who care about “pop music”) and i suspect will soon reach the point where it is competing on an even ground with the majors. will the academy continue to ignore us as they do now?…that would be a major mistake imo if they do.
just some things to think about…
In the realm of hip-hop, Lupe Fiasco suggested Mos Def had the best album of the year (he’s up for two Grammys, including Best Rap Album) and that Drake should be up for Best New Artist (he only received a nod for Best Rap Solo Performance).
“I think he’s deserving of it,” Lupe said of Drake. “As many accolades as he can accumulate, pre-album, is a phenomenal task. I think that should be rewarded. He has the potential to do great things — not good or mediocre, but great things.”
I just wanted to post this up for those of you who respect Lupe but maybe don’t know about or aren’t ready for Drake. That’s right…that’s what i’ve been saying…not good or mediocre things for music and for hip hop…but GREAT things. watch out.
Also i like how highly Lupe talks about Mos.
mixtape daily interview video with Lupe after the jump…
I’m so excited about this…super collab between James Mercer (from The Shins) and Danger Mouse (from Gnarls Barkley and producer of The Grey Album). This is seriously one of the greatest combinations i’ve dreamed would never happen. The album is due to come out March 9, 2010. Be ready for a storm. Broken Bells wiki
Here’s the first single “The High Road” (download after the jump)…
This is an interview touching on why he (as a white canadian dude) is embraced by the Hip Hop community, is a clear part of the new [urban folk™] (haha) movement (like KiD CuDi, Wale, Drake, Slaughterhouse…etc.), and has a successful alternative mixtape.
I just want to say it first here and now…in the next few years, you will see the mixtape (free ep, free album, samples/remixing other peoples songs projects) embraced by other musics not centralized to Hip Hop!! Watch.
If you don’t know about Colin Munroe you definitely need to download his mixtape… Colin Munroe is the Unsung Hero mixtape (2008)
It features Drake, Wale, Black Milk, Mickey Factz, even Bob Dylan (remix…it’s INCREDIBLE!!!)
Based on the 2 or 3 tracks i’ve heard from this cat…he’s my new favorite (coming up) rapper…
Here’s a video from the interview with Angela Yee where he spits to “On Top Of The World”, which is the song he tried to get to Jay-Z for American Gangster. It’s worth a watch! Because too many people deny music based on the fact that most of it is terrible…this is bananas!!!!!
Here’s the vid from the same interview where he is denied by Jay and his entourage. Pretty inspiring actually imo.
if you haven’t heard any of his music…here’s the song “Lights Please” which I think is what eventually got him on with Jay-Z.
wow! you might remember Gil Scott Heron from alot of old spoken word type records in the 70s. he was sort of one of the reasons rapping happened, at least on record. this new cut from him sounds like a blues lyric form set to some super hard music. very very nice…
this is definitely in my top 3 freshest hip hop songs of 09. a video of Jay performing it live with Mos Def and Diddy and the song on youtube if you haven’t heard it, after the jump. jay electronica – exhibit c (iTunes)
tell me that cover isn’t fresh as a produce section!! actually do, because it is. this song goes so hard.
this is just interesting story telling from someone i respect about other people i respect. pretty dope he got his name from Large Pro just freestyling over his beat ha.
this is a pretty fresh indie band i just discovered through the Guilt By Association Vol. 2 project in which they covered “Africa” by Toto. i feel like the video tells the story pretty well with not too much performance shots and not too much “couple” shots. the video is for a project called 99DollarMusicVideos.com…i think they accomplished it better than any one else i’ve seen on the site.
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