Opinion: The Rosier side of “Remember When” in the Music Business

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(June 17, 2016) The other night, I found myself watching an old episode of one of my favorite television shows of all time: The Sopranos (I know I’m not alone). After all, the NFL and my beloved Jets are still a few months out. My Yankees were off (and barely worth watching anyway) and the NBA playoffs hadn’t grabbed me yet (they have since!). Flipping through On Demand, I picked a random episode of Tony and his crew to get me through a slow Spring evening. The name of the episode was “Remember When,” built around Tony telling his cohort Paulie and a table full of undesirables that “remember when” is “the lowest form of conversation,” as they reminisced about the good old days.

Here in this thing we call the music business, I’d bet there is a lot of “remember when” conversations happening on a daily basis….at least I know that’s true here at Shanachie Entertainment. A few years ago we were remembering when Circuit City would automatically and enthusiastically purchase any R&B or Smooth Jazz title we released in the multi-thousands of units; when Tower Records, Musicland and Blockbuster existed and were always a bet to support good solid releases; when first-week Soundscans totaled in the 5000+ range for every front-line release we brought to market. “Remember when we used to ship 40,000 CD’s on releases like this??” was a popular if not enjoyable conversation around here as recently as just a few years ago.

Recently the “remember when talks” aren’t looking so far back as they once did. Remember when the download was growing? When everyone was discovering the convenience of the iPod? When an iTunes gift card was a coveted item? When everyone was going to replace their CD collections with the download equivalent (cha-ching!) Sounds like a long time ago…but we all know it’s not.

Sometimes, it seems ominous, as if each new wave of technology sets our industry back, hurts our revenue and upside, and pushes us towards irrelevance and maybe even non-existence.

However there is a much rosier side to looking back, from the standpoint of a strong independent label like Shanachie. Remember when radio was the only real way to get a song heard in a meaningful way? I do. Remember when independents didn’t even bother making videos for our releases because we couldn’t get them played on the major video/TV outlets? I do. Remember when physical product over-shipped, under-sold and came back in droves? I do.

I also remember when front-line R&B artists such as Angie Stone, Dave Hollister, Will Downing, Silk, Regina Belle, Anthony David, Maysa and countless others would never be obtainable by a label like us. I remember when our A&R opportunity paled in comparison to what it is today.

And for sure I clearly remember a time when a bubbling superstar like Avery*Sunshine would never have been able to shine brightly enough to land on our radar (and eventually our label) without the DIY opportunity to make herself relevant and noticed.

As a consumer I remember when I had to throw a VHS tape in to record the once every three years Arsenio Hall appearance by New Edition in order to see them perform live. Now I can catch every single performance in some way shape or form. I remember having about 100 of my favorite CD’s stolen out of my car, thinking I could never really replace all of that music. I remember wanting to catch certain songs on the radio just a little bit more before deciding if I was going to purchase that song or the full album….and sometimes I never did hear it enough to decide. I remember being at the mercy of what radio wanted me to hear….of what videos MTV wanted me to see. Now I’m in complete control of hearing what I want to hear, when I want to hear it.

Look I get it. The math can be downright scary. From the $18.98 CD to the $9.99 album download to the $.99 and $1.29 single and now down to the fraction of a penny stream….it sometimes seems like a race to the bottom. Will the consumer ever think of the streaming music subscription and the fee that comes with it as a “must have”? A no brainer? Who knows…but I have hope. After all, my dad once said he’d never pay for the right to watch television content (he did eventually and still does). I myself bit the bullet on a monthly music subscription service 3 months back. There’s a lot of things I’d now give up before I went back to purchasing CD’s and ala carte downloads. My $10 per month is secure…you are welcome music industry.

So while “remember when” seems to be largely relegated to better times, it’s not entirely accurate. As consumers we have more access and opportunity to discover music, to listen to music, to love music than ever before thanks to technology.  And as an industry the same technology has provided the opportunity for some incredible artists and their music to be heard, to be promoted, marketed, and ultimately consumed.

Looking back is fun for sure, but if we’re going to do so let’s make sure we’re not forgetting what’s gotten better for all who earn their keep in this thing we call the music business. If “remembering when” this way, maybe it won’t be the lowest form of conversation after all.

By Rick Rosenberg

Rick Rosenberg is a 20+ year veteran of the recording industry who has risen to become an established sales, distribution and marketing executive within the independent music community. Rick is a respected force on the independent label and distribution landscape and a key business development executive who has led Shanachie’s charge into all relevant digital platforms and new business models.

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