24 5 / 2012
Facebook’s IPO: What Does it Mean for Musicians? | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/KjMRJC on May 22, 2012 at 03:42PMFor over a week now, Facebook’s messy IPO has dominated the business page headlines. A question that rarely gets asked in all this kerfuffle: what impact will this IPO have on musicians? As key influencers and creators of one of the most sharable and valuable types of content, musicians have been crucial players in the rise of social media platforms. But are they benefiting?
17 5 / 2012
Dear NOLA: A Concert for New Orleans returns May 24 | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/Jz9FbR on May 17, 2012 at 12:07PMWe couldn’t be more excited to be returning once more to New Orleans for a special evening of music called “Dear NOLA: A Concert for New Orleans” – at Blue Nile on Thursday, May 24 at 9pm.
14 5 / 2012
You’re the Yuan That I Want: Music Licensing Deals and Currencies in Emerging Markets | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/JYJKWg on May 14, 2012 at 03:53PMThis is a guest blog post by Caz McChrystal, artist attorney and Assistant Professor of Business Law at University of Wisconsin, Stevens Point.
11 5 / 2012
Village People Singer Scores a Win for Termination Rights — For Now… | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/KRgfoE on May 10, 2012 at 05:57PMBig news for anyone who’s been following the termination of transfer issue: a California judge has ruled in favor of Victor Willis, original singer of the Village People, in his battle with the publishing companies that administer rights for the Village People’s catalog. Last year, Willis had filed to terminate rights to his share of “YMCA” and thirty-two other songs that he co-wrote, and publishers responded by claiming he lacked legal standing to do so without having his co-authors on board. Judge Barry Ted Moskovitz disagreed, writing:
10 5 / 2012
Does Radio Matter? | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/LrMm0j on May 08, 2012 at 02:26PM[Photo: ”Radio Transmission towers” by FastLizard4 via Flickr, Creative Commons Attribution]
For decades, commercial radio airplay was considered the silver bullet for success: a form of promotion with sufficient power and reach to generate significant record sales, while also accruing royalties (for songwriters and publishers) and massively raising an artist’s profile.
08 5 / 2012
Adam Yauch • 1964-2012 | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/KKdlC3 on May 08, 2012 at 11:02AMAll of us at FMC were saddened to hear of the passing of Adam “MCA” Yauch of the Beastie Boys. A pioneering musician, rapper, filmmaker, and activist, Yauch was hugely influential in connecting music and social change.
Our friend and colleague Erin Potts of Air Traffic Control has shared some reflections:
26 4 / 2012
DC area artists needed for focus group about health care | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/IRBc3N on April 26, 2012 at 11:50AMAre you a musician, visual artist, dancer, actor, filmmaker or other artist living in the DC area?
Are you interested in making $50?
If you answered YES to both questions, we invite you to participate in an artist-centric focus group on Wednesday, May 2. The meeting will be 90 minutes long and held at a Metro-accessible location in the DC metro area.
Email artistfocusgroup [at] reingold [dot] com or call 202-333-0400 and ask for Jillian to find out how you can get involved!
Please repost and share widely with your artist friends. We want to hear from a diverse range of DC-metro artists.
19 4 / 2012
Give a High Five to a Musician | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/HVd1BF on April 19, 2012 at 09:48AMApril is a good month to remind yourself just why it is so important to show your support for musicians. Here are some ways to get you started:
Record Store Day. Saturday, April 21 independently owned brick and mortar records stores all over the world celebrate the 5th annual Record Store Day. Hundreds of artists make special appearances and performances, and participating independent record stores offer exclusive CD and vinyl releases, as well as other promotional products with limited availability. What a perfect day to take a stroll to your nearest mom and pop music store and enjoy some good ol’ records browsing! Find the participating stores at www.recordstoreday.com.
18 4 / 2012
Musicians: Who Is On Your Team? | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/J2NOqp on April 18, 2012 at 10:52AMLiving for a good decade in Washington, DC, I was very familiar with the “do it yourself” music culture. In fact, I was an avid participant in a community that was constantly putting on shows, releasing records, silk-screening t-shirts, making our own packaging, and supporting each other. I loved it.
17 4 / 2012
15 Steps to Starting a Local Music Festival | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/JcWQjW on April 17, 2012 at 05:39PM[This post is by FMC contributor Daniel Eno.]
The first annual JP Music Festival, held in the Jamaica Plains neighborhood of Boston in August 2011, was praised as an instant success and a model of effective local event production. FMC spoke with the event’s founders Rick Berlin and Shamus Moynihan, and marketing director Charlie McEnerney, about the planning and execution the festival, and the guide released shortly after the event titled “15 Steps to Starting a Local Music Festival (during a bad economy)”.
06 4 / 2012
YouTube Mostly Unscathed in Viacom Appeals Ruling | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/HvkTXm on April 06, 2012 at 12:29PMEver find yourself in a situation where a hot court decision drops but you literally have no time to do a proper analysis? That was exctly the case this week, when your steadfast FMC’ers found ourselves with a significant appeals ruling in Viacom’s high-profile case against Youtube. Granted, the decision just dropped yesterday, but dammit, we like to be first in analysis! (OK, maybe second; Public Knowledge is tough to beat.)
Background
02 4 / 2012
Music Attorney and Musician John Strohm on the Value of Public Radio | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/HGdF2A on April 02, 2012 at 03:19PM[This post is by entertainment attorney and musician John P. Strohm]
If someone had told me ten years ago that public radio would become one of my most reliable discovery sources for new music, I’d have had a good laugh. I grew up listening to public radio, but as a kid I thought of it as the antithesis of hip. My parents listened to news and classical music constantly in my childhood home. It was as familiar as the furniture or my father’s afternoon pot of tea. But to discover interesting new music in genres that interest me? Ridiculous.
29 3 / 2012
Shareholders Step Up for Open Internet | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/HmiJhA on March 29, 2012 at 05:06PMReaders of this blog are probably familiar with the concept of “net neutrality” and why it matters to musicians. But let us remind you anyway.
All of the amazing internet tools that musicians and music entrepreneurs use every day are a result of the open internet, which gives anyone a license to innovate. Without basic protections to preserve this dynamic, the internet we know and love could become extinct. We’ve seen that movie before: just look at commercial broadcast radio to see what happens when just a few powerful companies control access to audiences and what content is even available.
26 3 / 2012
LPFM Gets Ready for Prime Time | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/GTHeTQ on March 26, 2012 at 06:02PM[This post was co-authored by FMC Communications Intern Katie Willmott]
Are you excited about the big LPFM rollout? We certainly are. What’s that? You don’t know about this amazing technology that brings real local radio to communities across the country? Well, hold tight and we’ll explain…
25 3 / 2012
Copyright Alert System Revisited | FutureBlog
Reposted from http://bit.ly/H2YtBC on March 25, 2012 at 03:48PM[This post is by FMC legal intern Margo Varona]
In July of 2011, several Internet Service Providers (ISPs) announced a “Memorandum of Understanding” with the major content industries. In essence, the ISPs agreed to implement a “graduated response” policy to educate and potentially penalize internet users sharing or downloading unauthorized content. Our initial statment on the Copyright Alert System (CAS) lives here.
