TJR: Links

Read/Learn about the music industry

SONY SETTLES PAYOLA INVESTIGATION: Sony admits to accepting payola for music airplay. They only get penalized 10 million wich is nothing compared to how much they have spent ramming mediocre music down our throats.
Payola Shocker: J-Lo Hits, Others Were 'Bought' by Sony: More payola scandle info. Yes JLO's hits are all bought and paid for. As if it wasn't obvious!
Clear Channel Communications Announces Resolution Of Internal "Pay For Play" Investigation: Clear Channel Admits to accepting payola but says they will change their ways
Senator Introduces Payola Bill: THE FIGHT CONTINUES:
A leading lawmaker long critical of the negative fallout of radio consolidation introduced legislation today (Nov. 18) that seeks to close the loopholes on payola-like practices
Sony BMG recalls copy-protected CDs: Sony does it again. First a 10 million dollar slap on the wrist for payola....Now they have to recall all those CDs with copy protection because they creating security risks for individual computers.
The State of Texas sues Sony Music: That's what you get when you try to infect your customers computers with spyware!
Is Justin Timberlake a Product of Cumulative Advantage?: A great article on why some songs become popular while other songs do not.
Interview with CD baby founder Derek Sivers: Baby Love
The hippie-capitalist wisdom of CD Baby founder Derek Sivers - Derek talks about life for artists before CD Baby and after CD Baby.
FCC's Adelstein Calls For Payola Investigation Evidence: A follow up to the Sony Payola article......Let's keep our fingers crossed.
Frontline interviews David Crosby: Read Frontline's interview with David Crosby. In this revealing interview Singer Songwriter David Crosby talks with a shocking frankness about the the current state of the music industry.
We're gonna make you a star: Today, if you want to make it in rock, you won't get far without building your own brand. Just ask Keane, who hired a consultant before they'd even made a record. But are the UK's finest stylists really capable of successfully turning Alexis Petridis, journalist, into Alexis Petridis, cool and credible singer-songwriter?
The Problem with Music: Nirvana producer Steve Albini discusses the reality of signing with a major label
10 Big Myths About Copyrigts explained: Seperate the the myths and facts about copyrights
Killing Music by Don Henley: A great article by "Eagles" Drummer and solo artist Don Henley explaining the Systemic nature of the music industrys downfall.
Pay for Play: Why does radio suck? Because most stations play only the songs the record companies pay them to. And things are going to get worse.
Bono: Legends wouldn't stand a chance today: U2 star Bono is convinced the acts that have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame wouldn't stand a chance of survival in today's music business.
American Idol By Bob Lefsetz: Unique insight into the current culture of the music industry. A must read!
Together in electric dreams: A computer program is changing the face of the music business by allowing record labels to predict a hit at the click of a mouse. Is this the death of pop as we know it, asks Jo Tatchell, or a new hope for unsigned bands everywhere?
Paid 'ads' for song plays revive payola memories: A new way that record lables are manipulating radio charts.
Is Suing Your Customers a Good Idea?: If the RIAA lawsuit campaign is not working, what can the music
industry do about P2P? More and more observers are coming to the
same conclusion - the music industry needs to give up its dreams
of controlling distribution in favor of collecting fair
compensation.
The Long Tail: Forget squeezing millions from a few megahits at the top of the charts. The future of entertainment is in the millions of niche markets at the shallow end of the bitstream.
Lip-Synching Has Always Been The Standard: According to Ashlee Simpson's Father Lyp Sycnhing is the standard in the music industry...Read this article and tell your friends .....But don't support this!
Money behind No. 1 hits raises crucial eyebrows: Speculation flew that Reba McEntire's label, MCA Records, got to
No. 1 through "paid spins" - buying advertising time on radio and
then playing a song during it - to raise the total number of
spins a song gets on radio. It's perfectly legal as long as the
sponsorship is disclosed. Long live payola!
EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD": JUST ASK CLEAR CHANNEL: Take a tour around downtown Minneapolis, and at various points
you're going to come across something related to Clear Channel
Communications. Flip on your car radio, and you'll probably tune
in one of seven radio stations it owns. That billboard on Third
Street and Park Avenue by the Metrodome? That's owned by Clear
Channel, along with most of the other billboards scattered around
the metro area. Here, Minneapolis serves as a model for what’s
happening all over the country.