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Written by Sherrill Fulghum
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The internet and the digital age has changed the way music and musicians have is not only made but heard by fans.
The digital age has made it considerably easier for musicians to make and sell their music. With a computer and the proper software musicians can record an entire album and than use that same computer and the internet to sell that album. Making albums in this way has been a major breakthrough for independent, small label, and new artists. With the digital age literally anyone can make a CD.
As a result, it is no longer a curse to be an independent or small label artist who used to get swallowed up in the musical pool. Because the major music labels dominated the airwaves and the markets.
Bands and artists are no longer confined to a small area of exposure – the band or artist can now be an international artist thanks to the world wide web. These opportunities open a world of possibilities for new talent.
Musicians have discovered new ways of collaborating with each other. Recently an entire album was constructed via the internet with the participating artists never having met or played together. Sites have even cropped up that are the musical equivalent to the communal story where musicians add on to the work already in progress until an entire composition is created.
On the consumers side music fans can locate music from anywhere in the world to purchase and download, even if the music was not released in their homeland. For example, if you like the latest rage in the UK that hasn’t made it across the pond yet, simply search the internet to find the music, and buy it. You can own it first and maybe start a new fad.
Music fans can discover new music with only a few clicks of a mouse or you can listen to samples of songs before you buy them. And with music downloading fans don’t have to wait for the album to arrive in stores any longer. There is a growing trend to “leak” or release new albums on the internet using various music services before the actual physical CD is released.
Music executives have finally began to understand the importance of having music available online for listening and buying. Billboard magazine now has a chart for online album sales which tracks album sales in the same manner as it does for CD sales.
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