Britney
The music industry is severely fragmenting, due largely to Internet distribution and other technological advances. There are exponentially more choices available to music fans than ever before. In fact, there will soon be too many for the average fan to chose from.
Too many choices? How could that possibly be bad for music fans? The establishment says, "Sure there's more music, but none of it's any good! Every crappy garage band has an album. So what?" This attitude is bullshit. It is the lazy man's complaint that the expanded all-you-can-eat gourmet buffet table is too long. Yes, there's tons more junk snacks, but there's also more gourmet food in there that you've never tried.
It's myopic and selfish to think that some music "deserves" to be heard and some doesn't, as the old music industry preached. The listening public is conditioned to being told what they like. But the wall has come down, and music fans are becoming overwhelmed with new choices. The old-school gatekeepers have been too slow to realize this. The new plurality of music requires the listener to actively LISTEN for what they like instead of just HEARING what they are told to like. This means there is an increasing need for people willing to guide others through the expanded choices, without dictating choice.
The first radio station Disc Jockeys were the original music editors: "Check this tune out, I like it." That got wiped out by big business, while college and public radio kept the tradition alive underground. Now the Internet brings it back, better than ever and much more accessible. Plus, now there is interactivity: "So, tell me what tunes you like... OK, if you like that, check this one out..."
The new music Community must understand this shift. The old music Industry is no longer useful
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