Month: January 2012

Digital Music East, Justin Timberlake, MySpace TV, and Where it’s All Headed

Human beings love music. It’s universally appreciated across all cultures and economic stations, all political and philosophical groups, and all ages. In fact, it threads itself, an incredibly strong communication tool, through generations. The impact of music is something that has never changed – it is as constant and timeless as humanity itself. It is as broad as the bridge from the Beatles to Irving Berlin and from Timberlake to Tchaikovsky.

But that’s about the ONLY thing in the music industry that is constant, everything else has been thrown up in chaos, redefining itself almost daily – often faster than even the most tech-savvy consumer can access – and certainly faster than artists and labels can learn. It’s not just the distribution and technology either; it’s the ever-shifting rights and monetization. Throw in the shape-shifting virtual and social spaces, and we’re looking at a virtual whirlwind of talent, tech and timing.

This is a time when mentors and leaders become uber vital to an artist’s process, and events like Digital Music Forum East (and West) become a beacon that attracts both the futurists and the icons of the industry.  This year’s Digital Music East happens in only a few weeks in New York and focuses on the five most vital parts of the industry today: Music-Tech, Rights, Distribution, Monetization and The Future.

Each series includes a number of 15-minute presentations by the top leaders and innovators in the music industry and panel discussions on hot topics, including:

Music and the Social Web
Music, Money & Innovation
New Technologies & the Artist
Rights & Licensing: If I Wanted to Reform Music Copyright Law, I Would…
What’s Next In Digital Distribution Models?
Monetizing the Music Experience: It’s Not Just About Selling Music Anymore
Predictions & Provocations about the Future of Technology & the Music

I will personally be speaking on “Taking the Crowd to the Cloud,” and basic info and tips on social media for indies and legends, the subject of my recent Amazon #1 bestseller on 2/23 at 11am. I was amazed to see how many artists did not know the variety of social spaces available to them, like podcast creators and streaming radio opps, such as BlogTalkRadio, and writing my eBook was a chance to provide a starting point for those new to the social space and Direct-to-Fan distribution.

Because in all fairness, even for the seasoned veteran in social media, this is a space that can raise even the portals to the highest of highs and then dump them when the next great triple E ride comes along, like the death of MySpace and the rise of Facebook.  And don’t think it can’t happen again.  Or UNhappen.  MySpace’s new benefactor, Justin Timberlake himself, is poised and ready to become the darling of real-time web TV – according to him at least.  “The future of MySpace is about what you’re going to do. About who you’re going to become,” he said in a brief presentation. “MySpace TV is the first foray into that future.”

MySpace TV will still encompass the site’s library of 42 million songs and 100,000 music videos, and it will enable instant communication and huge search-ability around them between friends.

Who knows where MySpace TV will go from there?  “As the plot of your favorite drama unfolds the joke of your favorite SNL character plays or even the last-second shot of your favorite team swishes the net, we’re giving you the opportunity to connect your friends to your moments as they’re actually occurring. This is the evolution of one of our greatest inventions, the television,” said Timberlake.  For the millions of artists who had invested their time and music and audiences on MySpace, I hope he’s right.

Kelli Richards
CEO
The All Access Group, LLC

 

Thousand-Mile View of Life

One of my highlights for 2011 was a thousand-mile-high ride on a Zeppelin. Yes, one of those huge dirigibles that float over concerts and sporting events. Riding in a Zeppelin is a rare opportunity – in fact, there are only two airships in circulation for passengers – one in Germany and one in Silicon Valley. Rumor has it that the reason there was a free seat for me was because Mark Zuckerberg’s sister backed out at the last moment.  I literally had only moments to make the decision and clear my calendar (no easy feat).

You can walk around the cabin of an airship, open the windows and actually stick your head outside! A true perspective changer for all of us, believe me. The thousand mile view of the world below can truly open up your vision, and as we passed over Stanford University, I began to think about Steve’s commencement speech and his advice, to stay hungry and stay foolish. A lifetime ago, I was part of the Apple MBA program. Only a handful of Apple employees were privileged to be part of that experience – a fully-accredited MBA program paid for by Apple, run on the Apple campus and offered during work hours. Apple’s commitment to inspiring the best thinking in their leaders was remarkable.

I am never far from Apple, even though my work there – which helped launch Apple’s entry into music – was two decades ago. In addition to my MBA, like all Apple Alums, I’ve experienced some of the best collaborations in my life on that campus. Something powerful entrepreneurs and executives try to bring to the table every day – but often fall short. It’s what makes Apple Alums continue to seek one another out. We’ve lived the results of stellar commitment, amazing collaboration and such out-of-the-box thinking that we literally changed the world. That is enough to shift anyone’s perspective, even long after moving on to new adventures and successes. And like the airship, it created a lifelong, thousand-mile perspective.

On December 8th I hosted a breakfast attended exclusively by a small, core group of Apple Alumni.  This was an amazing experience, and leads me to the planning stages of my latest coaching program, focused on Apple Alums and what we want to create next in the world and in our lives. 

As we are all painfully aware, there’s no other (active) forum like this out there, which enables Apple Alum to interact in a focused, empowering way, to share connections and ideas, and to support one another in achieving powerful goals in work and life.  The Apple Alum Coaching Program will engage alums in an alliance of confidential trust and synergy to solve current business challenges as well as take advantage of opportunities for growth with colleagues who share a common DNA. The connection to the Apple community is still key for many, and this program is the first of its kind to offer a forum of networking and synergistic alliances among Apple Alum who are characteristically “A-players”.

Here are just a few of the many Results and Benefits you can expect when this program is launched:

*Clarify purpose, goals, direction and legacyin your work and life.

*Gain powerful and empowering insights and feedback from kindred, like-minded peers that can propel you forward.

*Create a life of more meaning and authenticity that’s in alignment with who you really are and what you want to do in the world at this stage.

*Address whatever obstacles are holding you back from achieving goals.

*Learn to jettison things in your work or life that may no longer serve you

*Leverage best practices, tools, and resources to your own advantage.

*Develop (or renew) powerful connections in networking who you can team up with to create even more success during this next phase of your life.

I’m not 100% sure what the platform for delivering this program will be – whether it will be a high-end weekend retreat, a series of networking events, or perhaps a virtual platform, but I do know that it is sorely needed, and as an alum AND a coach, I’m excited about creating the space for it.

Kelli Richards
CEO
The All Access Group, LLC

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