When you think saxophone player, the name Kenny G probably comes to mind; but for rock legends it’s Clarence Clemons, also known as the “Big Man” by Springsteen fans for generations of stellar saxophone blowing. According to numerous reports and blowing up the “Twitter-verse,” the “Big Man” with the big horn has passed away at 69.
Spin Magazine tweeted:
And through the immense response like Coba Stella’s tweet “@SPINmagazine RIP Clarence Clemons. Music saves the soul, and you played a part in that,” and Michael Welch (@MichaelWelchAct) noting in 140 characters, “RIP to The Big Man, Clarence Clemons. If Bruce is The Boss, Clarence was Senior VP of E Street,” Clemons will be greatly missed in the rock world.
Rolling Stone Magazine (@RollingStone) shared a tweet with Bruce Springsteen’s response to the loss of his bandmate:
According to the article in Spin Magazine, Clemons passed from complications from a stroke he had suffered last weekend. Bruce Springsteen told Rolling Stone Magazine, “His loss is immeasurable and we are honored and thankful to have known him and had the opportunity to stand beside him for nearly forty years.”
Clemons was recently featured in Lady Gaga’s new song and video “Edge of Glory” that was released “a few days before Clemons’ actual death—but after he suffered the severe stroke which eventually killed him,” as reported by Spinner.com (@Spinner). In a tweet from a Lady Gaga representative (@hausofjay), during Gaga’s 2011 Much Music Video Award winning speech, Gaga said, “I'd like to dedicate this award to my grandfather, who's in heaven right now with Clarence. I'm on the edge with both of you.”
Although Twitter was able to provide us with instant news on the death of Clarence Clemons, it seems as though his memory will live on forever.
More on Clarence Clemons and other real-time music news can be found here, with reports of Clemons’ death reported by Rolling Stone Magazine (@RollingStone), Spin Magazine (@SPINmagazine) and Spinner.com (@Spinner).
In the age of social media one of the best ways to gain exposure on any venture is through the means of social networking sites like, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and YouTube. But what’s the best way for you to make a name for yourself in the Music Industry—start with YouTube, and better yet, cover songs that already have a following.
--
Needless to say, it’s becoming more difficult to make it in the music industry. Every generation’s passing sparks more talent, more musical diversity, and more competition. One great way to stand apart from the ‘old-school’ way in getting noticed is to utilize the many tools provided by the age of technology, and in this case YouTube is a safe bet.
According to Rodney Ho for Radio and TV Talk, YouTube has become the source for the rebirth of the music video. It has created a forum for unsigned artists to highlight their talents to the 410 million unique visitors in the United States and 1.4 billion worldwide visitors according to Google Ad Planner.
Ho points out that YouTube is responsible for making the careers of prominent artists like teen sensation Justin Bieber and OK Go, who’s 2006 treadmill video for Here It Goes Again “Was not only a successful video, but it made their career” as stated by Jay Frank, senior vice president for CMT’s music strategy. And what better way to get noticed than featuring videos of yourself or your band playing songs with major popular appeal.
Boyce Avenue is a band made up of three brothers that coined a YouTube following by doing just that. They have covered songs from the likings of Katy Perry, Bruno Mars and The Black Eyed Peas, all of which have very successful music careers and mass followings on every social network. As seen on their YouTube channel, Boyce Avenue posted 52 videos of popular cover songs before introducing the world to their original songs. The following chart displays YouTube views for four of their cover songs and four of their original songs:
As seen in the chart the total views for Boyce Avenues cover songs is over 12 million views which makes up for about 67 percent of their total views compared to their 5 million original song views. Since starting their YouTube channel in 2008 and utilizing the power of cover songs, Boyce Avenue has signed to 3 Piece Records and embarked on multiple tours in the US and abroad.
Furthermore, at home talents have been recognized by their cover song videos by the artists that originally composed the track. Paramore’s newest track Monster has brought forth many cover versions, one of which was posted on Haley Williams’ blog (ran by Williams herself) which led many viewers to Drew Tabor’s YouTube channel that has received 28 thousand views in one week compared to her original track Not My Life that has acquired 14 thousand views in six months time.
Haley Williams from Paramore posted Drew Tabor's cover of Monster on her Tumblr Blog
There are no guarantees when it comes to the music industry. Popular music is always changing with each generations passing. What can be said about the possibilities in “average Joe’s” making it in the music industry is utilizing powerful tools in social media like YouTube to showcase your talents can prove successful. Even further, showcasing your talents in recreating songs that already have a following poses as a strong foundation for a successful music career.
Today is June 12th… doesn’t seem like anything special, right? Well, unless is shares some personal significance in your life, like a birthday or friends birthday. Anyhow, as I don’t have a birthday today [or any friends or family with this birthday for that matter], today is still a very special day.
Why, do you ask [assuming you might have asked]? Four years ago today, Paramore released their second studio album—RIOT!
personally, this wasn’t my favorite album of theirs [although Let the Flames Begin and That’s What You Get are a couple of my favorite Paramore tracks], but this album really showcased the talent and unique quality to Paramore, hands down. Crushcrushcrush and Misery Business can take a lot of credit for getting Paramore on the scene. As a matter of fact, I remember seeing the video for Misery Business on MTV [yeah, surprising right, MTV was playing a music video, but I think it was one of those absurdly late night ‘we ran out of reality show reruns’ events] and thinking to myself, “YES! Paramore has made a name for themselves.”
See I was one of those kids that picked up All We Know is Falling out of curiosity to a rock back with a tiny girl vocalist and immediately fell in love with the raw guitars, heavy bass, and incredible vocal ability of a 16-year-old girl no bigger than 5’1”. Pressure became the anthem on my early college years and I can’t really recall when the CD wasn’t in the player of my car.
That my friends, is precisely why RIOT! is an album worth celebration. Whether it is your favorite album of theirs or not, I think it is the album that took this college anthem band to the next level. It highlighted their incredible ability from a young bunch of kids hailing from the humble upbringings of Tennessee straight to the lime-light. And whether you are one of those “they sold out” on the music [see Green Day arguments] I would like you to read some of their interviews, watch their video blogs, and see them live—you’ll change your mind, I can guarantee it.
Single artwork for Monster
remaining 3 members Left-Right:
Taylor York, Haley Williams, Jeremy Davis
Left: Zac Farro Right: Josh Farro
Original members left in 2010
I Love Paramore! I’m sure you could tell that by now… But it’s far more than just loving their music or dreaming to live the life of a girl that get’s to tour with rad dudes, headbang on the regular, acceptably tattooed, doc marten, ripped jeans wearin' kinda life. I love Paramore for making great music, for NEVER forgetting to thank their fans for getting them there, and for overcoming what could have been a bands greatest fall [losing two original members]. Instead, Paramore came back even stronger [seriously, listen to Monster it’s AMAZING] and thanks their fans even more for sticking by them… But why wouldn’t we stick by them? They’re worth it.
I highlight this rant about my love for Paramore with my favorite video of theirs because it’s seriously a video that highlights what they stand for—playing music and hanging with friends.
Paramore - That's What You Get (Official Video)
Pain make your way to me, to me // And I'll always be just so (so) inviting // If I ever start to think straight // This heart will start a riot in me // Let's start, start, hey!
Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. and Live Nation Inc. officially joined forces in 2009; yet, are still raising concerns to live entertainment goers over ticket fees that seem contrary to initial promises of lower ticket prices with the merge.
--
For many years, Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. has landed at the top of concert ticket Google searches, not to mention controlling the majority of all live entertainment ticket sales over the past 10 years. Live Nation Inc. was it’s only direct competitor until the merge in 2009 that made claims to “expand live entertainment options to audiences throughout the world,” according to chairman of Ticketmaster Entertainment, Barry Diller, which in a sense, wasn’t untrue. The merge of Ticketmaster Entertainment Inc. and Live Nation Inc. to create Live Nation Entertainment broadened the possibilities of live entertainment worldwide; yet, it also raised concerns over who the direct beneficiaries actually are—the consumers in search of a great live show at a reasonable cost, or Live Nation Entertainment through deceptive ticket fees.
Ticketmaster Entertainment has been to court on numerous occasions over ticket prices, most notably Pearl Jam’s claim against the ticket mogul in June of 1994. Pearl Jam’s case included the claim that, “many of Pearl Jam's most loyal fans are teenagers who do not have the money to pay the $50 or more that is often charged today for tickets to a popular concert.” Going on to explain that, “although, given our popularity, we could undoubtedly continue to sell-out our concerts with ticket prices at that premium level, we have made a conscious decision that we do not want to put the price of our concerts out of the reach of many of our fans.” Pearl Jam went on to hold a live performance for their fans in Indio, California, not under the jurisdiction of Ticketmaster Entertainment, that later coined the idea for the Coachella Music and Arts Festival.
Below is a shot of the fee breakdown from Ticketmaster.com to give an insight from the seller's standpoint:
Contrary to Ticketmaster's "anatomy of a ticket purchase," in October of 2010, Live Nation Entertainment was hit with another class-action lawsuit for it’s deceptive fees. According to AOL reports, The lawsuit out of California was filed in 2003 and in 2010 gained national class-action status challenging Ticketmaster’s “Order Processing Fee” and other fee’s affiliated with purchasing tickets through the Ticketmaster interface. Many defendants have come forward claiming various fee’s tacked onto ticket purchases, including Curt Schlesinger, who was charged $19.50 for a UPS fee for ticket delivery when the actual UPS rate was only $16.35, declaring an extra $3.15 pocketed by Ticketmaster. Furthermore, the Ticketmaster site makes no statement within its fee descriptions of how UPS delivery fees are accessed, deeming the fee deceptive to consumers.
In January of 2011, Ticketmaster settled on the class-action lawsuit and is set to award many previous ticket purchasers with reimbursements via standard mail. The settlement may also issue consumers with discounts for future ticket purchases. However, numerous fees are still attributed to ticket purchases through Live Nation Entertainment (both the Ticketmaster Inc. and Live Nation Inc. interfaces) and are subject to additional claims. As of May 2011, Ticketmaster fees have enraged consumers raising the bar to upwards of $19 in processing and handling fees according to Daniel Bates.
By the looks of it, live entertainment will always come at an extra cost. The choice remains in the hands of the consumer and whether they are willing to pay the extra fee for live entertainment.
Album sales and Billboard top 100 lists don't seem to take into account the artistry behind the music, whether it be writing the lyrics themselves, composing the music with instruments or producing music with a purpose grander than breaking a sweat on the dance floor--Popular music has lost it's purpose!
--
This weeks Hot 100 on the Billboard Charts consists of Adele's Rolling in the Deep at number one, followed by the creative wits of Katy Perry with E.T. at number two; and then it all gets questionable to say the least, with Pitbull’s Give Me Everything at number three and a stream of auto-tuned, synthesized, instrument and good lyric lacking “club favorites” including my favorite, ever so talented (heavy on the sarcasm), Britney Spears with Till the World Ends.
The Hot 100 on the Billboard Charts ranks 3-7 week of June 4th, 2011
Bruno Mars being the only artist to play an instrument
This top-ten list, amongst many others in the industry, genuinely makes me question the current state of our cultures musical interests and the ranking systems that conjure up such absurd top-ten lists. The popularity of music is a never-ending argument on what “good music” really is, but I think it’s time for us to really question the talent of the artists getting the bulk of the spotlight.
First, I’d like to note the headline-hogging characteristic of the show Glee, that has accumulated a myriad of fans, not to mention raking in the cash on iTunes. ABC News notes, "Glee's popularity has also sent it straight to the top of the music charts -- the three cast albums are dominating Apple's iTunes album sales." Granted the original artists see some of the proceeds and the show has had a career boosting impact on such artists as Hey Monday and Gwyneth Paltrow, yet the glory remains in the hands of actors that can sing but don’t actually write or compose any of the music. The show may be funny and some of the tracks may be worth a listen, but for them to outsell the original musicians take on their own song seems downright absurd.
vs. Candles by the cast of Glee Candles by Hey Monday (Original version)
Glee vs. Hey Monday, you be the judge of the better version!
Secondly, I’d like to propose a battle of the rap stars. In 2011, who would you say has the biggest name in hip-hop music? If I were to answer that question, the first name that comes to mind is Drake. Granted, after taking a listen through his entire collection there are intermittent quality tracks; on the other hand, none of those tracks have made him any money. Again we are faced with the debate that popular music isn’t derived from the quality of the song—quality being good lyrics (preferably written by the artist) that serve some sort of thought provoking purpose…not just something that rings well through the streets of Vegas.
Drake’s first solo album Thank Me Later debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and sold nearly 500,000 copies its first week; yet it received an average of 75 out of 100 by Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating from mainstream critics. A 75 rating declares a generally positive review and could be considered “not too shabby” when you look at Drake’s overwhelming sales numbers; However, Lupe Fiasco’s debut album Food & Liquor received an average of 83 by Metacritic, and was universally acclaimed for its “lyrical prowess,” according to Chris Nixon with The Union Tribune. Nixon goes on to note that Lupe Fiasco’s appeal is from his lyrical content, even dubbing Food & Liquor as a “modern prayer.” That being said, Food & Liquor only debuted at number 14 on the Billboard 200, compared to Drake’s top spot, and sold a mere 81,000 copies.
Don’t get me wrong, I like to “get down” at the club just as much as the next, But record sales and top-ten lists seem to be forgetting to tally in the actual artistic talent of the musician. What happened to the times when artists like The Beatles hogged the Billboard Charts, not Britney and her fellow puppets of the music industry?
With American Idol’s season 10 finale just around the bend, we must wonder if the numbers add up in proclaiming the true talent in American vocalists.
--
Year after year controversy spans the headlines with the closing of each American Idol season. Are the competition winners actually the best of the bunch, or are their chances for "Idol" victory higher based on their hometown, age and gender?
According to Kevin Downey with MSNBC, American Idol has developed a Southern accent proven strong when Arkansas’ Kris Allen ousted the season favorite and California native Adam Lambert, in season 8. Downey notes, “Six of the eight “Idol” winners have been from the South, including Kelly Clarkson (Texas) and Carrie Underwood (Oklahoma).”
American Idol Statistics Infographic (www.infographicsshowcase.com)
Only Jordin Sparks (AZ) and Lee DeWyze (IL) aren't from the South
The most controversial departure in this year’s season 10 of American Idol has proven to be forth runner up James Durbin from Santa Cruz, California, that Reuters declared “as a sure bet for going all the way to the finals, [but] got the least number of votes despite universal praise from the judges during the week of inspirational songs.” Did Durbin’s departure weigh on the fact that we’ve seen 15 California native finalists but not a single victor to the “Idol” thrown?
Idol Infographic by College Life
Powered by www.classesandcareers.com
Furthermore, Idol success seems to be greatly defined by the younger generation. According to College Life, one third of American Idol Finalists are in their early 20’s, with the youngest winner Jordin Sparks, who was 17 at the time, and the current finalists being Scotty McCreery who’s 17 from Garner, North Carolina and Lauren Alaina who’s 16 from Rossville, Georgia. Is it a coincidence that the season 10 finale is a head-to-head battle between a southern belle (Alaina) and a Southern gentleman (McCreery) who are also two of the youngest in this year’s competition?
According to the Los Angeles Times, the predominance of male success over the years has even moved Idol producers to reevaluate the voting system to accommodate the heavy female viewership that tends to vote more for male contestants. Randy Jackson, the only original judge still standing, stated “there’s a lot of young girls and young women voting…They really vote more for guys than girls,” even going on to predict two guys in the finale. Although Jackson’s prediction wasn’t exactly spot on with Lauren Alaina in the final, she and fellow female contestant Haley Reinhart, were the only two girls left standing since early April with the departure of judge favorite Pia Toscano. Also the American Idol finale that raked in the most votes nation wide was the dual of the David’s—David Cook versus David Archuletta, that combined for a total of 97,500,000 votes according to College Life.
Idol Infograph by College Life
6 of 10 finalists shown are male
Overall, as an American Idol viewer, it’s safe to assume the winner will be a boy, aged late teens or early 20’s and most likely from the South. The odds seem to be in Scotty McCreey’s favor this coming Wednesday on Fox, but either way these stats may shed light on premature departures of names like Chris Daughtry (27), Adam Lambert (California) and Jennifer Hudson (female), who all turned out more successful than their fellow Idol contestants that took the crown.
Front man Ben Gibbard's battle with alcoholism kept Death Cab for Cutie out of the studio, but they're back with a sober vocalist and a more positive album: Codes and Keys.
--
Three years ago was the last time we heard the artistry of Death Cab for Cutie with their second major label album and sixth LP release, Narrow Stairs. So where has the band been since the album that hit number one on the Billboard 200?
Lead singer and creative mastermind of Death Cab for Cutie, Ben Gibbard has since battled and kicked an alcoholism problem. According to an interview with SPIN magazine, Gibbard’s alcohol abuse was largely due to the writing process for Death Cab’s “darkest and most muscular in the band’s discography,” as reviewed by Pitchfork. Gibbard explains, “Writing is such a solitary act. You spend hours alone, only with your thoughts, and you torture yourself. It's a tendency of many writers to temper the self-destructive act of writing with other self-destructive acts. I certainly was one of those people for a long time." According to the interview with SPIN, a weekend in Big Sur, California brought Gibbard’s to the realization that he had fallen to deep in his alcoholism and said, “I have lost my ability to control this.”
Further explained in the Interview, since the weekend in Big Sur, Gibbard’s has picked himself out of the darkness, coining long distance running and his marriage to Zooey Deschanel as “a positive act [that] helps to balance the negative act of being a writer.”
According to the interview with SPIN, getting sober has shown through Gibbard’s more positive writing for Death Cab for Cutie's next album Codes and Keys to release May 31, 2011. Death Cab debuted the album to a home state crowd in Seattle, Washington. The Seattle Times reviewed the hastily arranged and sold out show as a solid two-hour set with few technical difficulties, “but no one cared, because Death Cab is back with new music to love.”
Codes and Keys, as reviewed by SPIN magazine, is jam packed with a newfound confidence and “eager-beaver optimism.” Gibbard’s describes it as the album about having finally escaped “a maze of a thousand rainy days,” and sings of his new bride, Zooey Deschanel as inspiring the lyrics “oh, how I feel alive.”
The Huffington Post gives a glimpse of Death Cab’s video for “Home Is A Fire” off of Codes and Keys, where Death Cab collaborated with street artist Shepard Fairly—“The outcome is a manifest to the natural link between art and music.”
Don't forget to grab a copy of Codes and Keys out May 31st, and check out Death Cab for Cutie this summer in a city near you.
