Future Movement - interview for The Artruists

I was lucky enough to get this clip shot by Lara Akinnawo for her blog, The Artruists. Follow the link to her site and read the interview that accompanies this poem. This piece talks about the ridiculous state of our political institutions. Enjoy.

Big thanks to Lara.

Stig Of The Dump - I Got Game - ME TOO!

This track from Stig arrived in my email inbox from a promotions company with the attached message:

I Got Game [CLEAN EDIT] - PLEASE DO NOT BLOG OR BOOTLEG - SUPPORT THE ARTIST and LABEL.

So, if you're really down with hiphop, skip this post or buy the track on itunes and just read the text from this post while listening to your purchased version in your favourite (AppleTM) media player. That's real hiphop love fam...

...or is it? No, it is not. Now, I've met Stig a few times and we have mutual friends in Newcastle so I want to support him as an artist. I know he's got crazy rhyming ability and, in a battle, he will eat you alive (pun intended)!

However, if I'd bought this track without hearing it (like most of my record collection), I'd be whinging about the lack of depth to the production; the predictable subject matter; the lack of battle adrenalin and the general lack of originality I feel this track suffers from. But, as I received this track free to my email, I want to blog it and raise awareness of it in support of a rapper I want to see do well. I mean, it's a decent track. Good lyrics and delivery; tight concept; querky production but enough headnod to get keep you in the groove etc etc etc - the medium is the massage as Marshall McLuhan once banged on about confusingly

See, the nature by which we acquire music and the contract we enter into when purchasing it has been too long abused by record industry executives, managers, promoters, publicists and artists (through their collusion) for anyone to trust a product based solely on its PR.

Supporting artists and supporting labels are not the same thing. Denying public access and trialing of an experiential product such as music cannot be seen as supporting artists. raising public awareness; facilitating healthy debate, constructive critique and honest reviewing may lead to an informed investment in support of an artists creative endeavours.

This public relationship between artist and audience prior to investment could force the hand of the record companies to do the job they have been shirking for too long - to source, develop, produce and release the best music being made. This would hopefully give artists the motivation to lay off on the Autotune and stripper raps and put some creativity into their work. This approach aims at sustaining artists longevity, for your future enjoyment and subsequent re-investment, as well as reinvigorating the development of new talent. To me, that seems more supportive than the average promotions company approach of trying to get as many people to buy one piece of well-marketed shit before everyone buys another piece of equally well-marketed shit instead. We have been there, the only difference is that you don't have to traipse around Soho (or wherever) in the rain to do it. This second approach can only serve the interests of the promotions company eager to secure future trade by wowing label owners and execs with impressive sales figures for their roster of artists with little regard for the sustenance of those artists or their careers after the campaign has ended.

Leaky Fiasco

As Lupe Fiasco explains at the start of this interview for okayplayer, his imminently-dropping album Lasers (Love Always Shines Every time Remember the Smile) is a reminder that, no matter how bad things seem, there is always something new to strive for - beautiful.

He then goes on to slag off 'malicious', music-leaking; free-distributing; taking-the-money-out-my-mouth; jealous, beg-friends and criminals who have leaked, blogged, downloaded and shared his tracks that now appear in posts such as this one.

Personally, I think Lupe is a mad talented guy; I consider myself a fan (and at 35 it's not a term I use regularly), however, I'm sure I am not the only Lupe fan that doesn't have the time or motivation to trawl through artist websites in eager anticipation of their next release. Sorry Lupe, I like you, but, your just not that important in my life. Without bloggers raising the awarness of artists and their work (for which they receive no direct income), I and many, many others wouldn't have a clue when the next hot album by our favourite artist is dropping. At least, not until we saw the billboard; glossy magazine ad; TV interviews; single; video and sticker campaign that the labels have had to spend millions on in the pre-internet sales environment.

And all for you to dub it on the twin-deck cassette recorder; you should be ashamed...

The arguments put forward by artists (and labels... mostly labels) and the counter-arguments of bloggers and the millions of file-sharers/downloaders are well documented. In fact, they have been being documented and discussed both in and out of the music industry for years now. However, what's the answer...or answers? Well, it would seem they are many, and varied. Even this week, Eskay from NahRight encapsulates some key issues from a bloggers perspective in his article, On rap blogging and music leaks and Just Blaze attempts a more balanced representation of the issues of rights, access, promotion, fame and finance that fuel this debate:

Well, it seems the answer is unclear. Seemingly, all interested parties are having far more success describing the problem than they are with developing solutions that offer a compromise position for all stakeholders. But who is holding a stake? On the industry side it is much easier to identify the stakeholders. This is not entirely to do with them whinging around the internet about thieving bloggers and free-loading kids but also because, what is at risk (£$£$£$£$£), is more easily recognisable to most consumers and producers than the stake put-up by the consumer of the product. To summerise, in the current climate of expanding blogging and file-sharing, the labels lose money and the artists lose money. But what is it that justifies the free music downloading consumers actions in denying the artist, label and distributor their fair cut of the product they produced? The question here is about what the consumer has been denied in the time before the unsolicited intervention of the internet into a previously flourishing industry. Umair Heck on Bubblegeneration, offers some context on the history of the situation; some specifics regarding the breakdown of the contract between producer and consumer and, most interestingly, some models for future reorganisation:

The argument for the consumers negation on its contract with the record industry is a persuasive one but does it justify mass-boycotting of payment for music being produced now? This argument is harder to back. Do we want record companies acting like art dealers and claiming the vast majority of the profits for the endeavours of creative minds? Hell no! but, do we want artist to be rewarded for supplying us consumers with meaningful experiences? well, yes, really we know that should be a yes, definitely a yes. Am I justified in denying the artist his cut (however disproportionate to the industys) in order to protest about my mistreatment at the hands of record labels? harder to answer that one. It is worth remembering though, that despite all the theories and analysis, people act out of greed with great regularity, and there is much scope for that as the battle to get a foothold in the future music industry continues online.

Meanwhile, here's the first single from Lupe's new album - I'm Beamin

Don't worry Lupe, no charge for my representation, this time.