Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke is warning the music industry is on the brink of collapse, insisting young musicians should resist signing record deals because the major labels will "completely fold" within months.
The British rockers broke away from their longtime label, EMI, in 2007 and went on to embrace the new digital era with the release their seventh album, In Rainbows, which they offered up over the internet and allowed fans to choose the price.
Yorke has now issued a warning to upcoming artists, urging them not to sign traditional record deals because they would be tying themselves to "the sinking ship."
In an interview for a new high school textbook called The Rax Active Citizen Toolkit, which aims to inspire youngsters to become more politically literate, Yorke claims the music industry is on the verge of a major crisis and could collapse completely within "months".
He says, "It will be only a matter of time - months rather than years - before the music business establishment completely folds. (It will be) no great loss to the world."
-- World Entertainment News Network
I've never been a big fan of Radiohead, but I agree with this statement. I will not be surprised if within a few month the music industry will topple, as it already is failing miserably with access to download free music easily.
Now this doesn't mean music will just stop being made, but cd's will most likely stop being made unless bands release them on their own. Bands and musicians will still continue to make music for a living by having live shows. And with websites like myspace makes it easy to promote a band.
Yeah, the music industry serves no purpose anymore.
With just a budget-level personal computer, social networking, open source software and a garage studio, any individual can do all the work that the record company used to do at the same level quality.
Likely we'll go back to how it was in the 50s and earlier. A million small independent labels churning out very high quality music and self-distributing.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- In the end they will lay their freedom at our feet and say to us, 'Make us your slaves, but feed us.'
Yeah, the music industry serves no purpose anymore.
With just a budget-level personal computer, social networking, open source software and a garage studio, any individual can do all the work that the record company used to do at the same level quality.
Likely we'll go back to how it was in the 50s and earlier. A million small independent labels churning out very high quality music and self-distributing.
I think that would be good. It's place more weight on actual skill instead of the current Disney style talentless morons using computers and that kind of stuff to make it big.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- I don't want a big car, particularly. I have no need for acreage, and I don't like the fuel bills. But I don't want a small one because they're all like supermarket own-brand cola: weedy imitations of the real thing - Jeremy Clarkson
I would be more willing to buy albums if they were sold straight from the artists themselves without a record label, even more so if they just gave away their music with a "make your own price deal" like in the article.
The record labels are out for themselves in the long run anyway. Artists hardly get any money from album sales these days cause it goes straight to the label.
This isn't the first time Radiohead have said something like this though so I wouldn't hold your breath just yet.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------- Elite He's been here for so long yet he's only made himself known once with Eliteitude...after that...not much else.
Posted by Neo 19/1/10
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