Music Business Predictions for 2015 1.29.2015

2015 will bring big changes for the music world... we're excited about it! Last year, Forbes writer Zach O'Malley Greenberg made some great predictions -- 3 of which were correct! He's doing it again, and I must say, I agree with him.

1. Ed Sheerhan continues to rise in popularity and becomes the top selling male solo act in the world. Taylor Hanson backs it up, and so do I. Ed is an extremely talented songwriter, singer and has a unique sound we're all craving.

2. RIAA will change it's formula to include streaming for platinum albums. Why wouldn't we agree? The number one way we're listening to music is streaming... it's a no brainer!

3.Adele will release a new album and it will go platinum. I have missed her, personally. I hope this one is right! Adele has been gone for too long from the spotlight, we need great singers and acts like her to take back the stage!

4. Justin Bieber's behavior will finally catch up with him. Will his activities outside of the music start to put a dent in his finances? It may. There are other acts sweeping up the hearts of teenyboppers everywhere that aren't running a muck. We'll see Justin.. We'll see.

If you'd like to read the full article at forbes here's the link:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/zackomalleygreenburg/2014/12/30/four-fearless-music-business-predictions-for-2015/


Jenna Despres, Account Executive @ PARMA Licensing

Music, Advertising and Branding 1.15.2015

In today's world musicians are constantly seeking a new ways to make more money with their music. Well, we already know that physical sales are decreasing and streaming is consistently increased but have you thought about branding? Music branding is very common among advertisements. These opportunities are interesting as a chance to write for a specific company, or even have your original track purchased for their use! Crazy to think about that, huh? 

The best way to explain the value of Music Branding is talking about the way music effects people and advertising. Most importantly the emotional connection music creates for a brand. I'm not sure I could find one person who doesn't recognize the "ba da ba ba baaa" of McDonald's ads... brand recognition anyone? Sometimes we find the new ad has a favorite song which reminds me back to the days of "Days go by" by Dirty Vegas and their Mitsubishi Eclipse ad. 

A very well said quote from the Forbes article inspiring today's post...  

“Music brings value to a brand in three ways: identity, engagement, currency. Specifically, using music to establish an emotional connection with a brand, increases brand recognition, creates excitement and buzz beyond the brand’s core products or services, and can empower consumers, giving them valuable content to discover and share. Music creates the value that brands need to win the war for attention and develop a genuine connection with their consumers. When used correctly, music not only creates loyalty, but true advocacy." - Eric Sheinkop, President/CEO, Music Dealers and co-author of Hit Brands: How Music Builds Value for the World's Smartest Brands

This quote sums up exactly how important music is in the world of branding and advertising. I think this is a great thing for artists to start thinking of with their publishers as well as on their own. Get your name out there!  


If you'd like to check out the full article -- Why Music Plays A Big Role in Branding

Thanks for checking in!

Jenna Despres, Account Executive @ PARMA Licensing

2014 Music Sales: Thoughts and Predictions

We’re fresh into a new year and it’s time to not only look forward to what 2015 will bring, but to reflect on what 2014 brought to the table. This article that hypebot.com released got me thinking…

The music industry saw an 11% decrease in overall album purchases, but I don’t think this really surprised anybody all too much. It makes sense with the 54% increase in audio and video streams – also not all that shocking.

So what can we expect for 2015?

There were still 257 million album sales in total, so with a number like that I would consider them far from irrelevant. They have a solid place on every band's merch table and are readily available at every major electronics enterprise. Surely those CD sections will dwindle in size, but I don’t see their hold on the merch table going anywhere, at least for the next several years.

After that who knows – one prediction comes to mind, and it will make more sense to briefly touch on vinyl first.

A 52% increase… wow! An increase wasn't all that surprising, but that’s a rather large jump. Now, why is this happening?

I've heard numerous audio professionals express opinions on both sides of the “it sounds better” argument. For me, in a lot of situations, it’s simply a preferred sound – a slight crackle, more organic, a unique type of deepness. On top of this, vinyl provides a larger canvas for the accompaniment of visual art, and lastly, appeals to “vintage” tastes.

Well CD’s have some tonal advantages over streaming music digitally from the internet, they still provide a physical means for graphic art, and are maturing relatively rapidly.

A continued decrease in album sales seems inevitable, but for this to be followed by a comeback against digital music in the more distant future, similar to the current progression we’re seeing in vinyl, does not sound impractical.

Now for the real question – should we invest in a storefront for a “vintage CD shop” is 10 years? 20 years? 30 years?

Nick Minicucci, Account Executive @PARMALicensing