Empower Your Ministry Blog

I think he was so right it was scary.  And it is not that lawyers can predict this or manipulate it, it is someone that has their finger on the temperature of new technology and they go with it.  If you look at the RIAA and the lawsuits, it was a struggle to keep things the way that they used to be and a struggle to keep their money in their pockets.  Essentially they are getting left behind because they are not willing to change to the new way of doing things.  And when VHS came out the powers that be had a fit  because that was the first mass produced media that you could record video on, easily. (sounds like the MP3 argument to me) They claimed that it was going to bankrupt Hollywood.  Several years later we can see that is still not the truth.  People still buy DVDS / Blue Ray and go see movies.  And last time I checked Hollywood wasn’t hurting for money.
 
One thing that is assumed is that record companies will always be around and there will be a use for them.  It can be good to have them behind you to market and push a group because they still have a lot of money and a lot of power.  It is more and more common to have artists that have their own recording studios and the capability to record their own stuff.  All you really have to have is a good computer with a good sound editing software and a few other things and you are on your way to a decent digital quality project.  I know in southern gospel, many artists will do table projects or budget projects and they sell well.  I would guess that it is partially because it is a novelty and not widely produced.  Before MC Hammer was popular, he sold CDs out of his car and refused to sign a deal with a record company until he found one that did it on his terms.  Too many young artist see the carrot dangled in front of their face and out of immaturity go for it. 
 
All that to say, record companies can be a good thing if they are fighting for the artist and actually have their best interest in mind as well.  The industry has changed so much in the last few years that it is fun to sit back and watch.  I think for the musicians as well as the companies that are involved, if they don’t jump on the wagon then they will get left behind.  Personally I like to keep my LP covers and CD covers because I have an old school streak in me.  Even though I have thousands of records, tapes, and CDs digitized, I keep the originals.  So I guess the record companies will be making their $15 A CD from me for years to come.