ANALOG hit maker turned DIGITAL King Singa
April 2, 2008
Diana King aka King Singa is a Jamaican Reggae Soul Music icon. The voice, the sex appeal, the hits are all unforgettable, even within the context of how the Internet has transformed the music industry, Read more
Music Lessons….The global music industry..disrupted
March 1, 2008
I read Seth Godin, marketing guru at least 3 times a week. He recently wrote this post on the global music business. Since I live in the Caribbean and Reggae and Soca music is invented here, I think our music industry could stand to take a whiff of this.
MUSIC Lessons
Things you can learn from the music business (as it falls apart)
The first rule is so important, it’s rule 0:
0. The new thing is never as good as the old thing, at least right now.
Soon, the new thing will be better than the old thing will be. But if you wait until then, it’s going to be too late. Feel free to wax nostalgic about the old thing, but don’t fool yourself into believing it’s going to be here forever. It won’t.
1. Past performance is no guarantee of future success
Every single industry changes and, eventually, fades. Just because you made money doing something a certain way yesterday, there’s no reason to believe you’ll succeed at it tomorrow.
The music business had a spectacular run alongside the baby boomers. Starting with the Beatles and Dylan, they just kept minting money. The co-incidence of expanding purchasing power of teens along with the birth of rock, the invention of the transistor and changing social mores meant a long, long growth curve.
As a result, the music business built huge systems. They created top-heavy organizations, dedicated superstores, a loss-leader touring industry, extraordinarily high profit margins, MTV and more. It was a well-greased system, but the key question: why did it deserve to last forever? It didn’t. Yours doesn’t either. More
DancehallSpace- Social Networking for dancehall reggae fans
February 25, 2008
Reggae Month has a few days left and Dancehallspace.com has launched to give dancehallreggae fans globally a place to meet and network with others who share a passion for Dancehall reggae music and lifestyle. It has the usual social networking features such as photo sharing, music, videos and blogs.
Music in the digital age only = digital distribution?
February 25, 2008
by David Mullings
I ask this question because I was recently invited to present at the Global Reggae Conference in Jamaica at UWI Mona on a panel about marketing music on the internet. My presentation focused on using the tools of the web such as SEO, SEM, why a website is important and the opportunities with social media. One of my fellow panelists was Christopher Edmonds from Rebelmix (this was my third panel in 12 months with him) and he focused on digital distribution and the opportunities there.
The Reggae Academy had a separate set of panels two days later and their panel on music in the digital age only had presenters from digital distribution companies, not a single presenter relating to online marketing! The panelists made sure to point out that they only put music in stores but it still needs to be promoted.
I realized that the organizers obviously equate “digital age” to merely “digital downloads” and do not include online marketing and it was a loss for the attendees, especially when compared to the UWI conference. I hope that next time people in the Caribbean seek to educate others about the digital age and how they can benefit from it, they most certainly would make sure to include at least one panelist who can speak to online marketing tools.
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IZATRINI launches Facebook Music App
February 18, 2008
IZATRINI.net - A Trinidadian online community launched it’s Facebook Music Player - so anyone can sign on to listen to Parang, Soca, Chutney and Reggae. We love this development and this flow of Facbeook apps from the Caribbbean.
See other stories
Jamaican Jokes, the Caribbean’s First Facebook
JamaicanSayings Another Facebook App Goes Live
Credit crunch presents major opportunity for Peer-2-Peer Lenders
February 8, 2008
by David Mullings
BusinessWeek has recently run a number of articles pointing out that credit card companies in the USA have been increasing interest rates and lowering credit limits, some in dramatic fashion - imagine going from an $13,000 limit to a $2,000 limit. (See articles: Over The Limit and A Credit Card You Want To Toss).
The last few years have seen the rise of peer-2-peer lending sites like Prosper.com and Lendingclub.com which allow users to borrow from other people at rates usually lower than banks or lend their money and get higher returns than savings accounts. One of the investors in Prosper is the Omidyar Network which was founded by Pierre Omidyar, founder of eBay.
As the credit crunch reduces the access to capital for the general population and makes the remaining capital more expensive by raising interest rates, peer-2-peer lending could finally become mainstream. Timing plays a big role in the success of a venture and the window of opportunity is now open for this market. Cash-strapped people will be seeking to maximize the return on their savings while also seeking out cheaper ways to consolidate debt and make ends meet.
The popularity of HYIPs clearly indicates that there is a large number of people who want better returns on their money and this provides one of the safest ways to become a bank and reap the rewards that they do.
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Mike’s Music Web
February 8, 2008
By Mike
Musicians still flocking MySpace, other soc-net sites
Facebook and the many offshoots may have acquired more cachet, but Fox-owned MySpace remains a popular - and growing option for musicians looking to drum up interest in projects and build fan base. Air Jamaica jazz & Blues fest debutant Ryan Shaw has an appealing Myspace (www.myspace.com/thisisryanshaw) with samples of his original R&B country fusion, while up and coming Jamaican singer Don Gibbs is drawing attention to his cover of Don’t Worry, Be Happy and others on his page (www.myspace.com/bluevista). Meanwhile, other music-specific social networks are popping up. Social networking news site Mashable ( mashable.com) lists among its top 12 music sites: flotones, MOG, lastfm, Jam Now, Musocity, Sonific and iJigg. Facebook, for its part, is reported to be working on a music site for a May launch.
Jazz & Blues goes ‘U-Tube’
JazzVision is the first video-sharing site dedicated solely to Jazz videos and Blues videos. Signing up is free, and you can put as many Jazz videos and Blues videos as you would like from classic jazz videos to jazz comedy videos, jazz lessons, jazz video epks, and whatever your imagination comes up with! We welcome your feedback and suggestions, as we continue to finesse and build JazzVision to be your 1st destination for Jazz videos on the web
tv.jazzcorner.com
RebelMix ‘Fires up Chalice’
April 1, 2008 will see the 28th anniversary of what some consider Jamaica’s greatest pop/reggae band ever formed. Chalice, which was conceptualised in 1979 began on April 1, 1980 in the Gibraltar Hills of St. Mary and was at the time comprised of talented musicians of diverse social and musical backgrounds. Chalice will celebrate this anniversary with the release of their greatest hits, entitled At Their Best, through Rebelmix, the Caribbean’s first and leading full-service digital distribution company.
Chalice has had an incredible career, opening for notable U.S. acts such as The Commodores, The Spinners, Eddie Kendricks and The Four Tops. The band has also had a slew of hits including “I Still Love You”, which stayed seven weeks at number one, and “Good To Be There”, which broke the Jamaican top ten; both songs were from their 1981 debut album Blasted. Chalice followed up Blasted with several other critically acclaimed works including Standard Procedure, Stand Up and Crossfire, which was released in Jamaica only and featured the hit “Revival Time”.
In 1990 Chalice released their sixth album, Si Mi Ya. This album was voted album of the year by the Jamaican Music Awards Committee and the single “Dance Hall Monic” is still being heralded as a masterpiece of ingenuity and creativity.
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Bob Marley Music booms globally today
February 6, 2008
Happy Birthday Bob! The life and legacy of the Reggae King, music legend and cultural phenonemal is being celebrated today globally. From India to Brazil, in such places as Germany, Italy, London and Japan will pause to reflect and party to the music of the Hon Robert Nesta Marley. If you want to build your own vibe online click over to bobmarley.com. If you’re a new convert to reggae music and it’s younger assertive brother Dancehall, check out the sites where reggae music is happening online. Read the story here
VP Records launches online music store planetgreggae.com plus an affiliate programme.
February 1, 2008
VP Records, dubbed the world’s leading reggae record company, has launched planetreggae.com, an online music store selling MP3s, music videos and ringtones. Along with it an affiliate programme, which allows anyone to set up, a co-branded planetreggae.com store and make 10% on each item sale.
The online music store will have VP Records digital reggae music catalogue including music from Channel One, Joe Gibbs, Penthouse Productions, Techniques, Dynamic Recordings and King Jammy to name a few. It sells single track for US$.99,full album downloads for US$9.99 and videos for US$1.99, ring tone prices though yet not finalized are likely to be sold for US$1.99.
Additionally, the planetreggae online music store will accept Paypal and all major credit card and debit cards (Visa and Mastercard). If you sign on as an affiliate, you will receive monthly statements but will be paid your money quarterly to coincide with artist royalty payments.
VP Records, headed Chris Chin and Randy Chin, was in the news this week when the company made an offer to buy Greensleeves Records & Publishing from Zest Group plc, subject to the approval of Zest’s shareholders. If the sale is approved, then VP Records will inherit a catalogue comprising some of the most notable albums of the genre, from Elephant Man to Yellowman and hit songs recorded by such acts as Rihanna, Sean Paul and Shaggy. Greensleeves is said to have a comprehensive reggae back catalogue of 400 albums and 900 singles, dating from the 1980s.
Riddimz.com - an online directory of reggae dancehall music riddims goes live
January 31, 2008
Riddimz.com an online directory of reggae dancehall music riddims is live and offers track listings and information about the best new and old dancehall riddims, sorted alphabetically and by year of release. The site does it not only for the love of the music but it’s also about commerce-you can listen to reggae music online, as well as buy and download the albums of your favourite reggae riddims, if you like what you hear.
