[warmowski]

$0.02 inbound:

Record labels are a way for a small number of core persons or single person to gamble with money on choices made (at least partially) out of musical taste. This definition won't change, and hasn't. So labels won't go away.

Of course there are very, very few final, bottom-line things that can be said about the music business, fewer every passing year. Digital distro and unpaid copies are changing behaviors, but (thakfully, from my perspective) persons who are actually curious about music and therefore really love it - still go to stores and don't need to be prompted to do that. For everyone else there's the diminished experience of mp3s.

The most important developments to me are in software that links unpopular music with popular music in various ways. Myspace is one of these for sure, but only by accident, as I'l mention later. The best at this is Pandora, I think. These tools really do broaden exposure of both the listener and the musician in a very elegant way. Tools like these will be here forever.

One thing I believe has been true since the dawn of recorded music is no less true now: most recorded music that changes hands - purchased, copied, whatever - is exchanged not actually on the basis of decisions made by the receiver that concern musical content. What makes most people choose music isnt what the music is, it's how the music fits into their life, their lifestyle, their identity. Myspace I think tends to support this summary and surface asssociation with music, laying it over the real activity, which is socilaization. One day I might figure out how to prove this, but I sure believe it.

I'm one of few people who won't add a Myspace friend request if I don't really like the music of the requesting person. As a "content" guy, it drives my decisions and I seem to be in the minority. The question is, am I suddenly in the minority or was I always in the minority? Does Myspace and digital distro in a wider sense create a big audience of superficially associated people or does it serve those people who were always and will always be there?

-r