Should Indie Artists Bother Making CDs anymore?

Tizzy Lizz^ · Number of posts: 2317 Localisation: Illadelph Registration date: 2007-01-03

Should indie artists bother making cds anymore? Or should we go straight to the USB stick? Rely on the internet? Possibly a combination of it all?

I'm asking this after a discussion I had with an employee at Armand Records in Philly (which is closing its second floor that sales vinyl and cds)...he says, its the "end of an era"...

I see its affect on major artists, but I wonder, how much does this affect indie artists?

EDITED to add link to my myspace blog - to see comments from others on the same subject

Tizzy Lizz^ · Number of posts: 2317 Localisation: Illadelph Registration date: 2007-01-03

Ipod Quotes:

iPod has helped millions of people around the world rekindle their passion for music, and we're thrilled to be a part of that.
Steve Jobs, Apple CEO said this after Apple announced it sold its 100 millionth iPod in a little over five years on April 9, 2007.

"Without the iPod, the digital music age would have been defined by files and folders instead of songs and albums. Though the medium of music has changed, the iPod experience has kept the spirit of what it means to be a music lover alive." John Mayer, singer-songwriter

"The most common format of music on an iPod is "stolen.".
Steve Ballmer, American businessman

I wake up in the morning and the latest Chris Lydon interview in on my iPod. I didn't have to do anything, I didn't have to understand how it got there. I call it a kind of reverse Tivo.
Adam Curry, American journalist

I get the shuffle and then I shuffle the shuffle.US President George W Bush

"I wouldn't have an iPod, because it's something about the laziness that I don't like. I don't like having it that available." Peter Hook, English musician

"The iPod completely changed the way people approach music."Karl Lagerfeld, German fashion designer

I've been looking at the iPod- the Apple iPod. One of the interesting things about the iPod, one of the things that people love most about it is not the technology; it's the box it comes in.
Donald Norman, American educator

I take my running shoes and my iPod with me everywhere. I listen to music when I run. Having my music with me is really motivating. Lance Armstrong, seven-time Tour de France champion

In my hand luggage I always have my camera, iPod, make-up bag, tooth brush, cleansing products, clean underwear, socks and a change of clothes in case anything goes missing at the other end - and of course my passport. Lisa Snowdon, English model

It's hard to remember what I did before the iPod. iPod is more than just a music player, it's an extension of your personality and a great way to take your favorite music with you everywhere you go. Mary J. Blige, GRAMMY Award-winning singer

A_Str8 · Number of posts: 865 Localisation: Philadelphia Registration date: 2006-12-29

Tizzy Lizz^ wrote:

Should indie artists bother making cds anymore? Or should we go straight to the USB stick?

Music on CDs, USB sticks, and our hard drives is all the same - it's digital files independant of the physical media they're on. That means in order to remain competitive, any given form of physical media must have advantages over the others. This puts hard drives and MP3 players in the best positions.

Hard drives are our central places for storing and managing media. they are the backbones of digital lifestyles. MP3 players are the main way we access our media. If the hard drive is the backbone, the Mp3 player is the arms and the legs.

USB sticks and CDs don't have the advantage of being necessary to our musical experience. They're just delivery mechanisms. Delivery is important, but the physical items involved must be cheap and disposable. Once the music is copied to hard drives and mp3 players, usb sticks and CDs become useless. USB sticks cost too much to be disposable, so I don't think they'll ever replace or even offer serious competition to CDs.

The only real competition to CDs is the internet. There are still some people attached to CD's because they like having the inserts and stuff, but I think those are just the people that grew up before you could buy songs online. I think music sales will eventually be mostly internet-based, but CDs won't go away until the day that you can walk into a concert, reaceive a free album wirelessly on your mp3 player, and then purchase another album wirelessly on your mp3 player. This is technologically possible now, but not nearly as widespread or accpeted enough to make a difference.

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mozartpoetry · Number of posts: 36 Registration date: 2008-04-30

I think cds/books/t-shirts and general merch are extremely important for the indie artist. As someone that purchases from indie it would be unsettling to say.. yea go buy my cd on itunes... more than likely I wouldn't do it. So I would say maybe a healthy supply of cd's, but a presence on cdbaby&itunes is the best way to go. That's my opinion as a consumer& someone who has been to shows where someone killed it and the artist said go check 'em out onlline for merch.... people don't like that

jus words · Number of posts: 125 Registration date: 2008-05-21

I THINK IF THE PURPOSE IS GET THE MOST DOLLARS YOU WILL USE EVERY OPTION TO DO JUST THAT. AS AN ACTIVE INDIE ARTIST DOING THE HAND TO HAND SELLS YOU WILL LOSE SELLS JUST BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE DOWNLOADING ON THE INTERNET AND OWN IPODS. THEY JUST DO NOT BUY CDS AS MUCH. AS I WATCH MAJOR SIGNED ARTIST SELLS DROP THERE ARE PARALLELS CDS DECLINE IN HAND TO HAND YEAR TO YEAR STARTING FROM O5 TO THE PRESENT. BUT NOT YET EXTINCT SOMETIME YOU CONNECT WITH THE LISTENER ON A PERSONAL LEVEL THEY WANT AND NEED WHAT YOU HAVE . THE CONNECTION CAN BECOME MORE PERSONAL THAN MAJOR ARTIST OR INTERNET MUSIC BUYS. MAKE THE SELL HANDHAKE ,HUGS AND REAL CONVERSATION. THIS IS SLOW METHOD SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO COMBINE THIS WHAT ALL THAT TECHNOLOGY HAS TO OFFER;GOD BLESS.

IkanCyoursoul · Number of posts: 160 Registration date: 2007-06-14

I think that CD's are traveling down that sad path of irrevelance like a Beta machine, SUV's, and Stevie Wonder( Circa 1990).

I do believe in USB's. For the simple fact that everyone in the music business knows that we now live in the " I want to see my music era" We have become an extremely visual society and Ipod's are soncially superior and convenient for sound. The visual aspects i.e. those little ass screens will never fully catch on. The quality isn't as good and people would still like to see a music video on their HD flat screens. Those little Ipod videos are annoying. Don't forget about pictures to. I am sorry, but I wouldn't give two shits about Rihanna, Spears, Beyonce' etc. if it wasn't for their looks. I love all of their posters! So does horny little boys and little girls searching for an identity. A 1 gig USB could hold an entire album, a huge picture gallery and a series of music videos, trailers, and in dept interviews. The price of the USB's will go down as the demand increases. Not trying to show my age but I remember when each CD use to cost me an entire dollar per. Now? the damn jewel cases cost more than the CD.

A_Str8 · Number of posts: 865 Localisation: Philadelphia Registration date: 2006-12-29

Quote:

The price of the USB's will go down as the demand increases. Not trying to show my age but I remember when each CD use to cost me an entire dollar per. Now? the damn jewel cases cost more than the CD.

USB stick prices will go down, but they will never be cheaper than CDs because they're more complicated. A CD is just a flat piece of plastic with some kind of coating. For USB sticks, they need memory chips, various components, circuit boards, etc. and all that stuff has to be put together. You can get CDs in bulk for $0.18 each. CDs were never that expensive, even when they were brand new. Memory sticks just don't make economic sense. How can you charge a reasonable price for your album AND make a profit? If CDs become obsolete, it will be because of downloads. I don't think any physical media will replace them.

However . . .

I talked to a guy last night who convinced me that as a promotional item, memory sticks might be the way to go. He asked me "who's gonna throw out a 1GB memory stick?" I didn't think about that before, but people who'd toss a promo CD without a second thought would be more reluctant to get rid of a memory stick. The guy told me that his company sets up the sticks so your music (or whatever) is on a seperate partition so people can't delete it (or at least not easily.) They also set it up so it will autoplay when a person plugs the stick in a computer (unless they have autoplay disabled on the computer). So for promotional use, memory sticks have a lot of points in their favor:
- people won't throw them out
- people will use and reuse them
- everytime they're used, you get played
Still, at $8 per stick, 100 would cost you $800. Prices like that might be feasible when you have a record company backing you, but that can be tough for us independants.

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www.NothingExpected.com

www.AhdChild.com