Opportunities in the Music Business

When it comes to being an artist the biggest thing that can push your career is opportunities. The fundamentals behind anything you do, you have to know the history in order to know where things are going. When physical sales were at an all time high, companies like Napster came and shifted the whole approach as to how we listen to music. A couple years later everybody could download music from their iPod. Not too long after the iPod, Spotify went global with it’s company. The point is that the opportunities for artists back then were less tedious than other eras. Getting vinyl cut was way more tedious than uploading your mp3 to the internet. Sometimes I replay this in my head when I reflect on my path as an artist. Figuring out your way in the music industry is a long game of understanding your connections and doing your homework. In music business class, I was able to understand the value of being able to use technology advancements to my advantage. Playlist curation, digital marketing for a fraction of a price, and hash tags to identify with a community is really something to appreciate. Utilizing algorithms to trigger a specific audience of where you want to be. Also with the rise of digital streaming platforms, offers different tools as well. Bandcamp has helped me deal with the need of being able to sell digital downloads. It doesn’t add too many features, it's straightforward and allows me to use the same principles of technology to brand myself.

Music business for artists will look really different a decade from now considering how much data and information artists have to choose from. Also the adoption from other industries to incorporate music in their industry is going to cause more of a change. Roblox for an example is one of the few companies that understands the impact of how music can generate sales. Roblox has a wide reach on the age demographic, reaching from kids to young adults up to 18.

A demographic that the music industry could benefit from. As Roblox understands this they’re coming up with ways to bring the two together. The platform has said that they want to use “embed music in all the natural places across the platform”. Even to the point of licensing music for the use of games. This could create a great exposure for artists that are trying to get music out there to even a bigger audience. It doesn't stop at games either; Sweetwater Sound is offering better alternatives to creating a quality studio. As a college student that tries to pursue music on a professional level, it helps me alot. I am able to set up payment plans to get my favorite gear no matter the price. Not only receiving gear for a reasonable price but I am also able to talk to real professionals on what type of equipment suits me best.

With all this in mind it shows that the control of success in the music industry is being more evenly distributed to everybody but ultimately in the favor of the artist. Whether it be technology, a digital streaming platform, or even a new social media outlet it all works out as tools for the artist. With this music business class and all this information I consumed and understood, this makes me think that the future of the music industry is going more in the hands of the everyday artist with the proper information being presented.