The Music Business in 2011: Licensing to Take Over?

Posted by Dexter Bryant Jr. on Oct 13, 2009 in General, General | Comments

I recently participated in a very interesting discussion about the future of the music industry on a LinkedIn.com forum (props to Ja War for kick-starting the discussion). Below I share with you some of my ideas about the future of the music business.

The record deal that rapper Drake landed with Cash Money/Young Money/Universal is a great example of the seismic shift happening in the music industry. In his deal Drake retains the publishing rights to his songs and only pays 25% of his music sales to his labels as a “distribution fee.”

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A Recap of the Oh-So Controversial MTV VMA’s

Posted by Dexter Bryant Jr. on Sep 15, 2009 in General | Comments

The 2009 MTV Video Music Awards are all the buzz right now. In case you missed it (or want to briefly re-live it) here’s a recap of what happened at this year’s VMAs:

Lady GaGa shows up to the VMAs with her date for the evening: Kermit the frog. [Outrageous Lady GaGa ensemble #1]

Madonna opens up the festivities with a moving speech and tribute to the late great Michael Jackson.

A parade of fantastic dancers re-enact some of Michael Jackson’s most memorable video moments and execute MJ’s signature dance moves with pizzazz.

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How to Apply Word of Mouth Marketing to Your Music Career

Posted by Dexter Bryant Jr. on Sep 3, 2009 in Marketing | Comments

After reading the Word of Mouth Manual: Vol. II by Dave Balter, I have some interesting marketing ideas to share with you.

Home business owners need cost effective ways to market their products and services. Word of mouth is particularly effective in persuading customers to buy, much more so than advertising and other traditional marketing methods. Word of mouth marketing harnesses the power of word of mouth to produce powerful market dialogue for businesses.

If you had a group of passionate brand evangelists who are not on your payroll promoting your products, what could be a more cost effective marketing solution than that?

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Social Networking with Arkells & the “Ballad of Hugo Chavez”

Posted by Dexter Bryant Jr. on Aug 25, 2009 in Music | Comments

Never heard of Akells?

You’re not alone. This groovy group was brought to my attention by Crazed Hits, which featured the band as an A&R pick.

“Ballad of Hugo Chavez” – Arkells

Agreed. And I would like to add that Arkells is a fantastic A&R pick. This band is definitely onto something special and it is only a matter of time before the record labels come a-knockin’.

Arkells may have a weird-sounding name but their mix of  indie rock and soul is divine. They sound like Kings of Leon crossed with the Beatles and Elton John. And they’re from Canada.

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What’s Holding Trey Songz Back from Superstar Status?

Posted by Dexter Bryant Jr. on Aug 18, 2009 in Music | Comments

I think Trey Songz has limitless potential. He has the look, he has the voice, and his star power is immense. One of the things holding him back is that lately he hasn’t come out with a truly great record on par with his first single “Just gotta make it.” That song gave you a piece of Trey’s soul and unfortunately his latest single “I Need a Girl” just isn’t on the same level. I don’t like that the lead melody is played on a fake guitar either. It’s a nice melody but the fake guitar just annoys me.

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