An Open Letter to the Record Industry
Dear Record Industry,
Hey there. You don't know me, but I'm a pretty big fan of yours. Let me rephrase that, you didn't know me, that is, until last week. I think you know who I am now, and you know what? Whatever. It's cool. Let me introduce myself... my name is Justin Peterson, and I've been a huge supporter of yours since the age of 11. It's true!
My first tape, yes, a cassette tape, was 'Achtung Baby' by U2. It was great, but I'm sure you already know that. I played 'One' at least two times every night before I had to go to bed.
My first CD, when your industry lumbered into the not-as-of-then-titled Digital Age of music, was 'Gish' by the Smashing Pumpkins. It could have also been Nirvana. I don't remember. It was 1991-ish. Again, I was young. I think both of those bands did pretty good for your business... But who's counting?
I look fondly back on my days in middle school, sitting by the radio at night, waiting for my favorite song to come on so I could press 'record' on my boom-box. Sometimes we would call into the radio station and request songs, back when radio stations had real DJ's and could pay what they wanted... all good things come to an end though, I suppose.
It was fun making mix-tapes of all the new singles and trading them with friends in school. Getting to hear a new band I didn't know about, and then waiting later that day so maybe the DJ would mention when the album was coming out. See, back then, we didn't have the internet to go and look up new bands and find out album release dates... we just sat by the radio, or read a copy of Rolling Stone in 7-11 during the summer before getting kicked out back into the summer sun.
Those were the days.
Things are easier now, or at least, were. Napster came out of nowhere! It was amazing, being able to download a song, or maybe a whole album that you didn't have... but that rarely happened, since we were all on 36k modems.
And then that jerk from Metallica ruined it all for us. He's a jerk. I don't like him. Complaining to you and to our Government that the music fans were taking money away from him. The nerve! Why should he be cheated out of a few more million dollars? When you're rich, you can never have enough money, and when people steal from you, man, you get pissed off. Like I said, he's a bitch. Oh, what? I didn't mention he was a bitch?
Well he is. Still is, too. And a jerk. And a pansy. You saw the movie, you know what I'm talking about.
And then, Recording Industry, you got all righteous on us! Why, people were sharing music, turning kids on to a whole mess of bands they had never heard of. Mom's, Dad's, brothers, sisters, everyone was trading music. It was a great time! No one was getting hurt.
So, what did you do? You turned on the fans. You didn't just slap a few hands, oh no. You starting SUING! How very American of you! And everyone was a target!
The 12 year old girl with three Britney Spears songs? SUED!
The 62 year old man with some Dean Martin? SUED!
The 17 year old kid with a Metallica album downloaded? SUED! AND SUED AGAIN!
Now, listen... I get it. No, really, I do. The black and white version of the issue is simple. Music was stolen, people broke the law, they got into trouble. It's not that insane. If you steal a beer from Circle K, well, you get into trouble too.
But there's a grey area here too, and Big Business and the Government aren't too fond of the grey area. They frown upon it. Because things aren't simple in the grey area.
You, R.I (do you mind if I call you that?), wonder why... Why is the industry going down? Why can't we turn a buck? Why why why?
Your reason? Online illegal downloading. SURE! Why not? It's an easy target, kids are getting cd's for free and not buying them anymore, so go ahead... point the finger at them. This must be the reason why things are bad. So sue them! Take away their money! Good idea... this will show them that they should buy albums.
Oh, but wait. They don't have money anymore, because you took it from them. And you also took their love of music (I'm sure it was in the court papers somewhere that you 'had to').
But... what if? What if it's NOT illegal downloading that's causing your industry to slid, R.I? What if it's something else? And what could it be? You know, we are American's after all. And after awhile, American's do one thing REALLY great... we learn the truth about things.
Take George W Bush for example. He's your friend, right? Well, more than half this country thought he was great! They even re-elected him. But, they soon realized, just like the rest of us knew, that he is and was and will always be a giant ass-clown. It's true. It said so in Wikipedia.
Take Oil and Gas for another example. Most of us, even way back in the 70's, knew that this was a bad road to be on, and something had to be done. Well, most of America can see the light now, but, you know, we're American's, it took a little long, and now we must pay the price, literally. But it's okay, because eventually things will work out... or we'll all just die. Either way, someone wins.
And now look at the Music Industry.
For the longest time, we had one choice... if we heard a song on the radio, we bought the cd. Even if it was the only good track on the album, we had no other choice. SURE, we could buy singles, but those cost 10 bucks for a song, and for a few more dollars, we could get the whole album. There is bound to be another good track or two on there... right? No, really... right?
Then came Napster. Bearshare. Limewire. Kazaa.
If we got lucky, we might be able to download a few tracks from an upcoming album before it was to be released in stores... see what the artist had to offer.
You know what we found out?
Most albums are filled with pure shit. (This fact is also on Wikipedia).
Now, instead of paying the 18.99 (On Sale, no less!) at FYE for the new DMX album, we could just download the single and the remix of the single for free, save our money, and take out lady-friend out to Arby's for a nice dinner.
The American Buying Public FINALLY got smart. They stopped buying into your shit.
Sucks, I know, but again... we are American. It's our way!
And now you're all pissy, R.I. Record sales are down down down. Single sales? Why, those are on the up and up! iTunes is making you a boat-load of cash! People are actually buying those one or two songs an album, instead of downloading them. Good for you, you're big business wheels might actually be turning!
But you're still upset with people downloading music. And now it's worse, because these things called 'Music Blogs' are just popping up everywhere. And even WORSE yet, they're giving away few tracks from up and coming new artists, underground acts that you have no hand in (it's very Punk of them), and on an occasion or two, some new tracks from a major label release... like, oh, I don't know... Pearl Jam.
This upsets you. However, I'm at a loss as to why. I mean, these people are doing a good job at hyping albums and bands before they come out. Don't you pay people to do that? Aren't they called A&R men? What are they doing these days?
So, because this upsets you, something has to be done.
Why, I have a good idea! Let's sue some more! Theaten! Bully! Sue!
AGAIN, why are you scared of these Music Bloggers? THEY'RE DOING THE JOB OF AN A&R MAN FOR FREE!!
FREE!!!!!
You're bleeding money, why not save some?
But again, this is all in the grey area. You don't see too clearly into this area. You can't tell the difference between the guy who's giving away the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album for free on his blog and the guy who's giving fans 2 tracks (and one of those is on the radio, for free!) and hyping the album and telling people to buy it the day it comes out.
You just can't tell them apart. Maybe you need glasses.
I agree that giving away an unreleased album isn't fair. It only encourages a person NOT to buy the album at dirt cheap prices Tuesday at Best Buy.
But you know what, R.I? That person who downloaded the album and didn't buy it on Tuesday? He wasn't going to buy it ANYWAY, ever. So no skin off your back really.
However, what about the girl who downloaded the two tracks from Such-and-Such music blog? Well, she only has 2 songs. She might not have ever liked the RHCP, and those two tracks might not have changed her mind. In which case, still no skin off your nose.
...oh, but, what if... what if she downloaded the two sample tracks, and said "Hey, you know what? I'll give that album a chance!"
What of her now?
Without the sample tracks, she wasn't buying anyway. But she liked what she heard, and for 10 bucks at Target, she decides to pick it up Tuesday.
Looks like it's a win-win situation!
... what's that? Oh, what about the person who downloads the album early? Yes, what about them?
Well, in most cases, not all, but some, that person who goes out of his or her way to download a leaked album PROBABLY likes that band. They probably are a huge music fan, one who buys cd's every Tuesday. In fact, they're such a huge music fan, they just can't WAIT the two months left until said album comes out... they need it NOW.
That person will buy the album they downloaded for free each and every time.
Yes, they will actually buy the album!
Now, I don't want to upset you, but this last Tuesday, I, myself, bought 4 albums that I had previously downloaded months in advance. I didn't need to, really, because I had them on my iPod, but since I'm such a music fan, I like to support the indie music stores and the artists.
Don't be mad. :(
I guess what I'm trying to say is this...
You need to stop putting out shitty albums. You need to stop telling us what's cool, and paying off MTV and VH1 and shoving bands and artists that YOU know are crap down out throats. We're tired of it. And it shows, right?
Once you do this, maybe you'll see an upswing. Bring up quality, you bring up quantity sold. It's pretty simple. My sister knows that. She's 5.
And stop just calling everyone who's ever downloaded a song, or an album, for free, a criminal. We're not.
Mosy of us... we're music fans. And we love music. And we want everyone to be as excitied as we are about music. Don't make us hate you, or hate music, because you can't afford to piss off too many more of us. We're all you have.
And you're all we have.
I need to go, I'll write you back soon, I promise.
Yours Truly,
Justin Peterson
Music fan
Hey there. You don't know me, but I'm a pretty big fan of yours. Let me rephrase that, you didn't know me, that is, until last week. I think you know who I am now, and you know what? Whatever. It's cool. Let me introduce myself... my name is Justin Peterson, and I've been a huge supporter of yours since the age of 11. It's true!
My first tape, yes, a cassette tape, was 'Achtung Baby' by U2. It was great, but I'm sure you already know that. I played 'One' at least two times every night before I had to go to bed.
My first CD, when your industry lumbered into the not-as-of-then-titled Digital Age of music, was 'Gish' by the Smashing Pumpkins. It could have also been Nirvana. I don't remember. It was 1991-ish. Again, I was young. I think both of those bands did pretty good for your business... But who's counting?
I look fondly back on my days in middle school, sitting by the radio at night, waiting for my favorite song to come on so I could press 'record' on my boom-box. Sometimes we would call into the radio station and request songs, back when radio stations had real DJ's and could pay what they wanted... all good things come to an end though, I suppose.
It was fun making mix-tapes of all the new singles and trading them with friends in school. Getting to hear a new band I didn't know about, and then waiting later that day so maybe the DJ would mention when the album was coming out. See, back then, we didn't have the internet to go and look up new bands and find out album release dates... we just sat by the radio, or read a copy of Rolling Stone in 7-11 during the summer before getting kicked out back into the summer sun.
Those were the days.
Things are easier now, or at least, were. Napster came out of nowhere! It was amazing, being able to download a song, or maybe a whole album that you didn't have... but that rarely happened, since we were all on 36k modems.
And then that jerk from Metallica ruined it all for us. He's a jerk. I don't like him. Complaining to you and to our Government that the music fans were taking money away from him. The nerve! Why should he be cheated out of a few more million dollars? When you're rich, you can never have enough money, and when people steal from you, man, you get pissed off. Like I said, he's a bitch. Oh, what? I didn't mention he was a bitch?
Well he is. Still is, too. And a jerk. And a pansy. You saw the movie, you know what I'm talking about.
And then, Recording Industry, you got all righteous on us! Why, people were sharing music, turning kids on to a whole mess of bands they had never heard of. Mom's, Dad's, brothers, sisters, everyone was trading music. It was a great time! No one was getting hurt.
So, what did you do? You turned on the fans. You didn't just slap a few hands, oh no. You starting SUING! How very American of you! And everyone was a target!
The 12 year old girl with three Britney Spears songs? SUED!
The 62 year old man with some Dean Martin? SUED!
The 17 year old kid with a Metallica album downloaded? SUED! AND SUED AGAIN!
Now, listen... I get it. No, really, I do. The black and white version of the issue is simple. Music was stolen, people broke the law, they got into trouble. It's not that insane. If you steal a beer from Circle K, well, you get into trouble too.
But there's a grey area here too, and Big Business and the Government aren't too fond of the grey area. They frown upon it. Because things aren't simple in the grey area.
You, R.I (do you mind if I call you that?), wonder why... Why is the industry going down? Why can't we turn a buck? Why why why?
Your reason? Online illegal downloading. SURE! Why not? It's an easy target, kids are getting cd's for free and not buying them anymore, so go ahead... point the finger at them. This must be the reason why things are bad. So sue them! Take away their money! Good idea... this will show them that they should buy albums.
Oh, but wait. They don't have money anymore, because you took it from them. And you also took their love of music (I'm sure it was in the court papers somewhere that you 'had to').
But... what if? What if it's NOT illegal downloading that's causing your industry to slid, R.I? What if it's something else? And what could it be? You know, we are American's after all. And after awhile, American's do one thing REALLY great... we learn the truth about things.
Take George W Bush for example. He's your friend, right? Well, more than half this country thought he was great! They even re-elected him. But, they soon realized, just like the rest of us knew, that he is and was and will always be a giant ass-clown. It's true. It said so in Wikipedia.
Take Oil and Gas for another example. Most of us, even way back in the 70's, knew that this was a bad road to be on, and something had to be done. Well, most of America can see the light now, but, you know, we're American's, it took a little long, and now we must pay the price, literally. But it's okay, because eventually things will work out... or we'll all just die. Either way, someone wins.
And now look at the Music Industry.
For the longest time, we had one choice... if we heard a song on the radio, we bought the cd. Even if it was the only good track on the album, we had no other choice. SURE, we could buy singles, but those cost 10 bucks for a song, and for a few more dollars, we could get the whole album. There is bound to be another good track or two on there... right? No, really... right?
Then came Napster. Bearshare. Limewire. Kazaa.
If we got lucky, we might be able to download a few tracks from an upcoming album before it was to be released in stores... see what the artist had to offer.
You know what we found out?
Most albums are filled with pure shit. (This fact is also on Wikipedia).
Now, instead of paying the 18.99 (On Sale, no less!) at FYE for the new DMX album, we could just download the single and the remix of the single for free, save our money, and take out lady-friend out to Arby's for a nice dinner.
The American Buying Public FINALLY got smart. They stopped buying into your shit.
Sucks, I know, but again... we are American. It's our way!
And now you're all pissy, R.I. Record sales are down down down. Single sales? Why, those are on the up and up! iTunes is making you a boat-load of cash! People are actually buying those one or two songs an album, instead of downloading them. Good for you, you're big business wheels might actually be turning!
But you're still upset with people downloading music. And now it's worse, because these things called 'Music Blogs' are just popping up everywhere. And even WORSE yet, they're giving away few tracks from up and coming new artists, underground acts that you have no hand in (it's very Punk of them), and on an occasion or two, some new tracks from a major label release... like, oh, I don't know... Pearl Jam.
This upsets you. However, I'm at a loss as to why. I mean, these people are doing a good job at hyping albums and bands before they come out. Don't you pay people to do that? Aren't they called A&R men? What are they doing these days?
So, because this upsets you, something has to be done.
Why, I have a good idea! Let's sue some more! Theaten! Bully! Sue!
AGAIN, why are you scared of these Music Bloggers? THEY'RE DOING THE JOB OF AN A&R MAN FOR FREE!!
FREE!!!!!
You're bleeding money, why not save some?
But again, this is all in the grey area. You don't see too clearly into this area. You can't tell the difference between the guy who's giving away the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album for free on his blog and the guy who's giving fans 2 tracks (and one of those is on the radio, for free!) and hyping the album and telling people to buy it the day it comes out.
You just can't tell them apart. Maybe you need glasses.
I agree that giving away an unreleased album isn't fair. It only encourages a person NOT to buy the album at dirt cheap prices Tuesday at Best Buy.
But you know what, R.I? That person who downloaded the album and didn't buy it on Tuesday? He wasn't going to buy it ANYWAY, ever. So no skin off your back really.
However, what about the girl who downloaded the two tracks from Such-and-Such music blog? Well, she only has 2 songs. She might not have ever liked the RHCP, and those two tracks might not have changed her mind. In which case, still no skin off your nose.
...oh, but, what if... what if she downloaded the two sample tracks, and said "Hey, you know what? I'll give that album a chance!"
What of her now?
Without the sample tracks, she wasn't buying anyway. But she liked what she heard, and for 10 bucks at Target, she decides to pick it up Tuesday.
Looks like it's a win-win situation!
... what's that? Oh, what about the person who downloads the album early? Yes, what about them?
Well, in most cases, not all, but some, that person who goes out of his or her way to download a leaked album PROBABLY likes that band. They probably are a huge music fan, one who buys cd's every Tuesday. In fact, they're such a huge music fan, they just can't WAIT the two months left until said album comes out... they need it NOW.
That person will buy the album they downloaded for free each and every time.
Yes, they will actually buy the album!
Now, I don't want to upset you, but this last Tuesday, I, myself, bought 4 albums that I had previously downloaded months in advance. I didn't need to, really, because I had them on my iPod, but since I'm such a music fan, I like to support the indie music stores and the artists.
Don't be mad. :(
I guess what I'm trying to say is this...
You need to stop putting out shitty albums. You need to stop telling us what's cool, and paying off MTV and VH1 and shoving bands and artists that YOU know are crap down out throats. We're tired of it. And it shows, right?
Once you do this, maybe you'll see an upswing. Bring up quality, you bring up quantity sold. It's pretty simple. My sister knows that. She's 5.
And stop just calling everyone who's ever downloaded a song, or an album, for free, a criminal. We're not.
Mosy of us... we're music fans. And we love music. And we want everyone to be as excitied as we are about music. Don't make us hate you, or hate music, because you can't afford to piss off too many more of us. We're all you have.
And you're all we have.
I need to go, I'll write you back soon, I promise.
Yours Truly,
Justin Peterson
Music fan
posted by
Justin at
8:54 PM
