The 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's...each can lay claim to a very distinctive style of music, so distinctive in fact, that if a young person uttered "Oh, that's so eighties!" we would know exactly what they were talking about.Yet, here we are nearing the year 2010, and much of today's music is very similar to the stuff that was released the decade before it?How did that happen?Let us reflect, for a moment, on the current music industry. Is it forward thinking? Willing to embrace change? Reveling in creativity and/or new, inspired, voices?Hardly.This is an industry that sued kids for downloading music, when they should have rushed to understand mp3 technology, adopt it, and use it to their advantage, a move that would have made them money, and kept the general populace happy with them.After alienating their customer base, they tried to blame mp3 downloading for lackluster sales, failing to realize that it was their own inability to accept change, coupled with the penchant for releasing music that would only appeal to twelve year olds who knew no better, that had left a permanent bad taste in the mouths of consumers.Today, the industry is still clueless, ignoring the shouts of people who are asking for a valid alternative to the norm (not watered down versions of what is already out there, thinly disguised as something "new"…)In the old days, it used to be "let's find the next best thing!" Record execs were always on the prowl for something different, yet with a marketable appeal. They understood that something unique had a greater chance for longevity, which was their goal. They yearned for anything that would catch on and become the new gold standard.In other words, they were willing to take risks, and because of it, we have been privy to some of the greatest music in history.In today's time however, the Beatles would be tossed over in favor of Britney Spears, despite the potential ability to reap huge rewards with such a band.Modern labels want instant gratification, seeking to find the next (insert chart topping band name here), in an effort to reap the lucrative, if fleeting rewards, of sound recognition. This is in spite of an overwhelming majority of Americans confessing to being fed up with the crap we are currently getting via the radio airwaves.Also, while yes, the bottom line is important, companies can write off acts that don't do well, and the small percentage of acts who sell millions make up for the few bombs here and there.The ability to take risks is available, should they deign to grasp it.I am firmly of the opinion that the next Elvis, Michael Jackson, or Aretha Franklin is out there, but he/she is being tossed aside in favor of a disposable, blue eyed pop singer.Also, I think musicians and consumers alike are somewhat to blame for the fact that we are living in a recycled music era.Music decades were hallmarked by a shift in mood; the 60's embraced flower power, free love and an end to war, the seventies gave us an emotional release with disco and well as political commentary, the eighties spawned punk, new wave glam rock and synth driven pop -- the nineties got tired of the cotton candy of the eighties and called itself alternative…It was a direct response to the times. The people wanted music to reflect it's current mindset, and tossed aside anything that didn't meet the emotional and political expectations of that period in history.Yet, here we stand, accepting that which is unacceptable, letting record companies spoon-feed us crap that has no substance but is based purely on image.I recall a conversation I'd had with the President of a New York based record label, who gave me glowing praise for my work, but told me, "The music industry was ten percent talent ninety percent image." He asked me to get back to him when I had found stylist.Have I found my image? Not sure. My concentration has centered more on my musical voice – what I have to say and why. I am hoping that, in time, I will catch up with my musical reflection just as the industry is ready to accept it. In the interim, music's natural evolution is being suppressed, and in the end, an entire decade will suffer.
Posted by: Alicia - Inzino Staff
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