As a tribute to the great new music of 2008, I’ve listed the top 10 songs of 2008 in no particular order:
1. Jay-Z and T.I. feat. Kanye West and Lil Wayne, “S.L.U. (Swagga Like Us)”

2. Coldplay, “Viva la Vida”

3. Usher f/ Young Jeezy, “Love in this Club”

4. Estelle feat. Kanye West, “American Boy”

5. T.I. feat. Rihanna, “Live Your Life”

6. Kings of Leon, “Sex on Fire”
7. MGMT, “Kids”

8. Duffy, “Distant Dreamer”

9. Jonas Brothers, “Lovebug”

10. Lil Wayne, “A Milli”

Category: Music | 1 Comment »

Tags: top songs

Interesting news — Major music companies were reportedly considering plans to launch a video site that would compete with YouTube.

The Financial Times recently reported that the plans under consideration are modeled after Hulu, the video site owned by NBC Universal and News Corp., which is the paper’s parent company. Hulu users watch TV shows after a short advertisement.
The news comes after videos from Warner Music were pulled from the site when it couldn’t come to terms on a new contract with Google. The three other big music owners in talks with Google are EMI, Sony and Universal. They now receive a fee each time one of their videos is watched on YouTube, but Google reportedly is pushing to reduce that fee and offer more of the ad revenue associated with the videos.

The Times reported that music companies are discussing a variety of plans, including a partnership with Hulu, creating a premium service on YouTube or creating a standalone venture.

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Tags: Hulu, music videos, NBC Universal, Warner Music, YouTube

We’ve heard it before, but may I remind you again – music is good for your health. I recently read an article posted online restating this well-known fact.

Some takeaways:

• Slower music — to the contrary — can decrease the arousal and adversely affect an individual muscular performance.

• Rhythmic music seemed to improve large movement patterns with individuals with orthopedic and neuromuscular disorders.

• While actual measurable performance was not improved by music, subjects reported that they felt their performance was better with the music. This could be a perceived effect. The subjects perceive the physical activity to be more enjoyable with music than without. They will then associate physical activity as a pleasurable experience.

• Music may remind an individual of a pleasurable memory, thus putting them in a positive state for physical activity. If an individual associates with a pleasurable experience, they will be able to endure greater discomfort or go harder during the work out.

So… lesson learned: Play on. Rock on

Category: Music | 2 Comments »

Tags: health, mind, Music

In my recent article, “How To Blow-up Your Band On An Artist’s Budget,” I briefly touched on how social networks can help artists boost their careers. I wanted to expand on that…

I can’t stress the importance the role of social networking plays in your music career. Whether you think it’s a waste of time, too much time or have never heard of Facebook or MySpace (if that’s the case, where have you been all these years??)… social networking is CRUCIAL to the success of your music career.

Basically, if you’re a singer, songwriter, musician, manager, agent… you need to be on every social network you can. And that means going beyond the MySpaces and Facebooks of the online networking world. There are millions of people that don’t use MySpace or Facebook but are on other networks, and they should all be considered your potential fans.

So if you haven’t done so already, be sure to check out and get plugged into these social networking sites:

• Hi5 – www.hi5.com
• Twitter – www.twitter.com
• MySpace – www.myspace.com
• Facebook – www.facebook.com
• Bebo – www.bebo.com
• ReverbNation – www.reverbnation.com
• OurStage – www.ourstage.com
• Friendster – www.friendster.com
• Buzznet – www.buzznet.com

Also another thing to consider is what audience you’d want to reach out to. For instance, Bebo caters to users in the UK – and indie music is hot in the UK. If your general audience is into Heavy Metal, then Hollywoodmusictv would be the way to go, etc.

But don’t stop there. Adding new content to your website and social networking profiles on a daily basis is essential in your career. Your fans are going to be visiting your page daily, so be sure to post upcoming gigs, new activities, photos, songs, blogs, etc.

Just remember: an easy – and CHEAP – way to market your music is through social networking sites. You can’t go wrong.

Category: Business, Music | 1 Comment »

Tags: facebook, myspace, profile page, retail distribution, social networks, stores, twitter

The Telegraph predicts what the new year will hold for the world of technology, of which social networking made the list:

“If 2007 was the year of Facebook, then 2008 was surely the year of Twitter, the microblogging service that prompts users to write messages in 140 characters or fewer. Once the preserve of nerds, Twitter soon broke into the mainstream, and is used by everyone from President-Elect Barack Obama to national wit Stephen Fry and even troubled pop star Britney Spears. … What users will be hoping for this year is great inter-operability between social-networking platforms. Many web users have Facebook, MySpace and Twitter profiles, and use services such as FriendFeed to aggregate their social feeds and pull everything into a single, usable interface. Expect projects such as Facebook Connect, which allows users to share their information with third-party member websites, and OpenSocial, which allows applications to work across multiple platforms, to really come into their own…”

Read this Wall Street Journal article about how one indie artist grew his fan base and eventually landed a record deal just by using social networks and the internet: Justin Vernon.

Lastly, I leave you a few interesting statistics on social media and music, taken from a recent research survey by Strategy Eye and MIDEM:

• 100% of our respondents see social networks as an important channel for promotion and marketing (over 85% said “very important”)
• Over 80% see value in social networks as a direct retail outlet
• 58% said that there was more value in choosing a mainstream social network, 42% said that music-focused communities offered more value. The jury is still out.
• Artist-branded channels came out top (76% rated them very effective), significantly higher than label-branded channels.
• Social network site operators are expected to benefit most, by quite a margin! (81% saying they will see a major benefit). As for the rest – in descending order – artists, online retailers and labels are expected to see some financial benefit. (read more)

Category: Business | No Comments »

Tags: facebook, myspace, predictions for 2009, social media strategy, Social Networking, twitter

What is a Music Widget?

A music widget is a small piece of programming for music that you would put into the HTML template of your blog or Webpage. This allows people to play music on their site. However, not all music widgets function in the same way. Some play a single track while others play multiple tracks. Some display the titles of songs that are currently playing while others allow you to play music found on other sites. Some allow you to post photos alongside your music, or offer your fans to vote and comment on a song. There are even music widgets that allow you to upload your own song to your own “playlist” in which your fans are able to listen to.

Depending on what kind of music widget you are looking for, the best way to find out is to simply try them out. In my opinion, the best kind of music widget should allow you to upload your music, allow your fans to listen and rate/comment on each track, allow them to purchase tracks/albums, and if they are your own songs, provide a program that would allow you to earn money from the direct sale.

How Do I Install a Widget?

Installing a widget is a fairly simple task. Most widgets will have install instructions. If not, it’s usually just a matter of copying the widget code and installing into your HTML code. Remember, you’ll need to put it into the code exactly where you want it displayed.

Category: Technology | 2 Comments »

Tags: e-commerce widgets, music technology, music widgets, mypsace widgets, widgets that sell

According to a recent LA Times article, annual sales of digital songs will exceed 1 billion downloads this year – a first for the music industry.

This means two things:

1. Just as predicted, music is going digital. Consumers are buying more songs online than through physical retail outlets.
2. And because of that, your online presence is critical to the success of your band (or as we’ve been saying, your BRAND).

The article further states that a “recent Forrester Research report projects that disc sales will continue to fall by an annual rate of 8% a year over the next five years.” Although at first glance this statement may look disheartening, this is great news for online music distribution companies and for you because the decline is disproportionately from major label artists. In fact, many would argue that online, independent CD sales have actually increased in recent years because of artist services companies such as Audiolife.

Category: Business | No Comments »

Tags: consumer habits, consumer purchasing, digital downloads, digital music, industry record

I recently read the following Coolfer blog discussing the decline in music sales. The blog highlights the “passive nature of music buyers” which completely resonates with what we are finding in the industry. As an avid music listener/buyer, I find that when I try to purchase songs on my favorite band’s website or MySpace page, I’m usually directed to other sites. And by the time I’ve clicked on the second or third link, I’ve lost interest. This inconvenient experience makes it difficult for folks to find what they were initially set on looking for, which in turn, decreases the likelihood to purchase something. As a result, the music industry as a whole suffers – the artist, the labels and the fans.

With the changing tides of the industry, it is critical for professionals (whether a songwriter, a music promoter, a CD distributor or a fan) to utilize the power of online social networking. Music is going digital (and has been!) whether we like it or not. And the integration of social networks to consumer purchasing opens the floodgates of opportunities for artists and music companies alike. What is essential is a seamless experience of selling music to consumers. This way, it benefits the artist, and ultimately, the fan.

Category: Business | No Comments »

Tags: buying experience, buying music, impulse buying, music sales, myspace music, social media distribution

Hey all,

As my first official blog entry on Audiolife, I wanted to welcome everyone to our site. My hope is that this may serve as a useful medium to provide you with knowledgeable information about the music business. I’ll be covering topics that relate to music marketing, industry news and anything and everything ranging from CD distribution, merchandising, to selling ringtones, etc. … basically the tools you need to help launch your music career.

Thanks for visiting!

Category: Business | 2 Comments »