Writing in the Music Industry Gina Cermenaro Northeastern University

Project One: Analysis of Writing in the Music Industry

The music industry today has an extremely competitive and rapidly changing landscape. While the foundation of the industry is still focused on fostering passionate artists who dream of making it big, music is no longer just consumed by buying an album at the local record shop. Many characteristics of the music industry today rely heavily on the speed and global scope of the internet. Therefore, there is an endless amount of new marketing and finance strategies utilized by teams of music industry professionals to promote an artist, and to hopefully make a profit. As a marketing and finance major, I am interested in how understanding the changes in the music industry can lead to the ability to promote an artist more effectively. By using new technologies as a way to reach fans, artists can make a more significant impact on a global scale. As a marketing professional, I would need to embrace the changes in the music industry and use them as a vehicle to help artists gain exposure in relevant ways. Written communication among music executives, producers, managers, artists, editors, reviewers, and consumers is essential to the success of an artist, and the holistic evolution of the music industry. Due to changes in technology, the average music consumer is no longer just reading features in Rolling Stone Magazine; consumers are also empowered as writers. Average consumers now have the ability to write comments online, which have the potential to be viewed by thousands of other fans. The exploration of why the music industry is changing must be complemented with an analysis of changes in technology and how those changes affect types of music writing. In the music industry writing is no longer just in the hands of paid journalists working for printed publications. Consumer generated content on the internet plays a crucial role in the industry, especially in an era when the success of a new single is often measured by the number of views on YouTube. Commenting, blogging, music loving fans have the opportunity to write anything they want about music via social media and music websites. The ability to share

Project One: Analysis of Writing in the Music Industry

ideas and write about artists online has changed fan culture and given fans more power than ever in the music industry. However aside from the typical music consumer, there are several other types of writing in the music industry. In marketing and finance, there are a variety of types of communication written for many different audiences. One great example is the website for the National Association of Record Industry Professionals (NARIP), which brings together industry professionals to share knowledge and network. Bringing some truth to the saying Its all about who you know. In this national association to qualify for membership, you must work at a major or independent label, record distributor, record marketing or personal management firm. Lawyers, publicists and consultants whose main client base is the record business are also welcome (NARIP.com). This is further evidence that there are several different types of writing among music industry professionals. The writing of a music lawyer is much different than that of a music publicist. In relation to all of these genres, I will be focusing on the writing done in record marketing, because that is my specific field. The National Association of Record Industry Professionals (NARIP) strongly emphasizes the importance of becoming more informed and more effective in the music industry. As I mentioned earlier, there are many technological changes happening in the music industry, and NARIP does a great job keeping members well informed. Many of the articles on the NARIP website have an educational tone and are authored by top experts in the field that speak at educational seminars on a regular basis. Authors also include featured NARIP members who are successful in the music industry, for example an owner and founder of a full service publishing company. The website boasts the names of authors, often including portraits of them next to articles or highlighting them as guest speakers at upcoming events. To be respected in the music

Project One: Analysis of Writing in the Music Industry

industry, it appears authors do not need to be older or have a corporate look to be respected. Many of the authors on the website are youthful and trendy, and they establish authority by having experience with top labels or, on the contrary, successfully starting an entirely new firm from scratch. But while NARIP members can be trendy, the website sends a serious, thoughtful message. The purpose of the text on the NARIP website is to inform and educate the audience. For example, one of the articles on the homepage is called How to Place Music on VH1 or MTV which is a review of an NARIP event called Music Supervisor Sessions with a VH1 executive. The article begins by explaining to the audience why music placement is so important: learning how to place songs on television shows is becoming a better way to make a profit as CD sales are decreasing and music piracy is increasing (Logan, 2013). The straight forward, educational tone of the article shows that the purpose is not to persuade or to argue an opinion, but to objectively make the audience more informed and effective. The audience of the NARIP is a vast number of music industry professionals in the United States and Canada. NARIP Membership costs $95 per year and claims to be a valuable asset for anyone involved in the record business, distribution (major, indie, physical, digital or mobile), intellectual property rights, music marketing, artist development, personal artist management, music law, licensing, music brand integration, publicity, promotion, concert tours or producing (NARIP.com). There are some articles that are accessible to non-members, but members get exposure to a mentor program, a career strategy sessions, and special events. The website keeps this content well organized and easy to navigate. Most of the articles on the NARIP website are located on the homepage, but I am not a member so the interface might look different. On the homepage, there are ads for different music

Project One: Analysis of Writing in the Music Industry

companies surrounding the text, but they are not distracting or bothersome. Aesthetically, the website is professional, simple, and appears to be an intuitive tool for industry professionals. There are several sections, including information about the NARIP, upcoming events, how to become a member, a list of member profiles, a list of job openings at music industry organizations, and a photo gallery. The NARIP website doesnt use outside sources because it is generating its own content. NARIPs site is mostly used for promoting NARIP networking events and guest speakers across the country. The articles on the website are summaries of lessons learned and tricks of the trade that were shared at the NARIP events. I find it interesting that there is an option to comment, but there are no comments. The information is not very difficult or controversial; for the most part it is broken down into simple terms. The website is clearly a networking tool that attracts members by offering some high level information. The tone of the text on the NARIP website can be characterized as friendly and concise. The writing style is formal enough to be professional, yet informal enough to make members feel welcome. The articles read similar to magazine articles, summarizing past NARIP events. For example, NARIP had an event in Paris with a guest speaker that specialized in placing music in movie trailers (Neff, 2013). The speaker has opinions on which music websites are the best, however the article is written in the third person and doesnt take sides on the topic. The writing is simply reporting the opinions and quotes of the industry leaders who speak at NARIP events. The sentences are long, and include quotes, but the paragraphs are short, concise thoughts. There is no use of figurative language and not much use of jargon. The concise, neutral writing style can be exemplified by the following paragraph: And to go fast, rights holders (or those placing music) must also be easily reachable. We need as much information about the track as possible. Having an email address or a telephone number in the tracks metadata on iTunes, for instance, saves a lot of time, says von Foerster. Then again, everyone has his/her own preferences in terms of tools, and it is necessary to know who

Project One: Analysis of Writing in the Music Industry favors what. Bulkeley prefers Soundcloud which allows me to visualize the structure of the piece and find what I want more easily. Even more so since the downloading process is simple (Neff, 2013). The only visuals on the website are photos of members at NARIP events. Overall, the style is appealing to me as someone that could potentially become an NARIP member. Just after briefly reading a few articles on the website, I have a better understanding of the direction the music industry is headed and how to cater music marketing towards those changes. The NARIP website reflects and enacts several of the values and practices in the music industry today. With record sales on the decline and technology changing rapidly, the NARIP

explores new ways to make a profit in the music industry, such as music placement. The NARIP website is also simple enough to appeal to all of the audiences that I mentioned, from music lawyers to music publicists. The concise style parallels the hurried nature of the music industry, giving just enough information to keep members informed on new technologies, such as the benefits of using Soundcloud vs. iTunes (Neff, 2013). Overall, the NARIP website proves to be a prime example of who is in the music industry and how they communicate in writing. The website provides a glimpse into the music marketing discourse community and arms industry professionals with the information they need to form strategies that yield a profit.

Note: This piece is strongly focused on the NARIP and offers the audience a high level view of the writing style in the music marketing industry. I do not see this as a great fit for my professional portfolio, however writing this has put me into the shoes of a music industry professional and in the right mind set for the rest of this course.

Project One: Analysis of Writing in the Music Industry

References Frdric Neff. (April 9, 2013). When Hollywood Goes to Paris. Retrieved from http://www.narip.com/?p=11075 Paul Logan. (April 26, 2013). How to Place Music on VH1 and MTV. Retrieved from http://www.narip.com/?p=11167