Quote:
Originally posted by KSig RC
[B]In terms of actual vocal talent, there are millions of great singers around, but not many convert to great performers./B]
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I think that it is more accurate to say that talented people are often not marketable. Britney Spears has zero musical talent, but she is a very marketable product.
The music industry was run by people with musical backgrounds. Starting in the 1970s, this began to change. Today, you'd be hard pressed to find an executive with a music lable who has formal musical training. They have MBAs, but couldn't play a C scale on a piano of their lives depended on it.
The music industry today has more to do with image, then it does with music. It has become rare to sign a musically promising act, and actually develop them. The technology has also made the music worse. You can now take someone, like Britney, who does not have a very good voice, have her sing, and then postprocess her voice with Apogee ProTools to make sure that her voice is now in tune. You can make her match the beat, even though her sense of rhythm as a vocalist may be off. There is less incentive to get talented people, because talent is not needed to sell the product anymore. Well, to a point.
There is now a rebellion against the garbage, and its being fought in the marketplace. People just aren't interested in poor quality music.
The internet has also hurt the music industry, but its not just the internet. I've talked about this with a lot of music producers. The main problem with the music industry is that they need the quick sale that a Britney brings. Talent is time consuming. It has to be developed. Britney is not talent. She is product.
To address this problem, NYU has teamed up with a number of people in the music industry to start the
Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music. Part of admissions is a musical audition. This program looks to teach people with a musical background all of the facets of the record industry. Such people will be able to spot, and develop, real musical talent. It will take years for this program to have an impact, but eventually, it will.
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