The Music of Volkswagon Golf

One time my buddy Charlie and I were on a roadtrip, and he was documenting the whole thing on video. There was a point in the trip, I think early one morning, he flipped the camera onto me. I was suddenly very conscious of my actions, my facial expression, my tone. I got awkward. “Sorry, I have nothing entertaining to say,” I said. “You don’t have to be entertaining, you just have to be real,” he said back. I think that was a good call. ... more

I can’t think of a single reason why it makes sense for Kanye West to have his own jankily-designed search engine, but nevertheless, there it is . He’s such a mogul, bless his heart. Go Search With Kanye . Good grief. ... more

Just caught this post from hypebot : Google is reportedly just weeks away from announcing a free music service in China with the help of Top100.cn. The move helps Google compete with China’s top search engine Biadu who allows searches of pirated downloads that Google blocks. Beijing based Top100.cn already has deals with Universal Music and a hundred other foreign and domestic labels to sell licensed downloads for 1 yuan (14 cents). Now working with Google, they wil... more

I just read a November New York Times article about 360, or “multiple rights,” deals. It’s an emerging music business model in which labels invest in bands for the longer haul. It works like this: Labels bankroll more cash upfront, work more heavily in artist development, and in exchange get a bigger share of artist earnings. Traditionally, labels made money from artists based on album sales, but with 360 deals, artists share earnings beyond albums (a reaction to ra... more