The future of Christian music.

What are your thoughts about this?

Instead of just Christian music, I think we have to look at the music industry as a whole.  As long as their are believers in Christ who are musicians, there will be music written from a Christian worldview.

The music industry in itself is in a slump.  There are not dozens of multi-platinum artists anymore that can sell millions of copies of a single album.  Because of illegal downloads and now streaming audio, major labels are signing less and less artists and eating up more and more of the profits of the artists they do have.  Also, with popular styles of music becoming more and more intertwined and generic, people are wanting to buy even less music than ever.

So, what is that going to do to the industry?  I think you are going to see more and more musicians finding ways to get their music out independantly.  Oh, they may not be radio darlings, but they will do new music through creative financing and use their live gigs as exposure.  There are tons of bands who sell a lot of product and can pack a smaller venue just because they've worked hard and developed a following.  I think you will see many of these artists also begin to tour together as much as possible to bring in more people who are fans of each artist.  Look at Disciple/Seventh Day Slumber/Decyfer down.  The first two have just released independant EPs and Decyfer Down is trying to raise money to do one now.  They are touring together to bring the joint fans together.  I think that this is going to prove fruitful for them since they are not represented by a label anymore.

So, with Christ focused bands, they are going to have to do the same things.  Besides, as the world becomes more and more hostile to Christianity, labels are going to sign less and less Christian artists just because they don't want to tarnish their brand with someone who is going to preach what the world now deems a hate-filled message.  We'll have to do more shows wherever we can and do it ourselves.  However, if it keeps anyone other than the Holy Spirit from telling us how to operate our music ministry, then that's a plus, right?

Very right.

I think in a way Music Industry killed the Music Industry itself. For years and years the industry made money on artists. The industry just continued doing what they have done for years, but meanwhile the whole scene changed, developed into something new. Artists were able to connect with the fans through various platforms, which paved the way for crowdfunding and a thriving indie scene. The only reason bands need the industry is for decent distribution and co-funding. 

I know that the Christian Music Industry in the US kind of killed the Christian Music Industry in Europe. In the US prices went down to compete with the prices of the secular scene, however Europe was obliged to follow the price codes that the mayor US companies imposed. So if a cd was $9,99 in the US, it would be €20,50 in The Netherlands. Sales in Europe went down, while import by individuals increased. I can import a new album by TobyMac for €10,99 (incl shipping) and buy it in christian bookstores for €17,50. 

I don't think illegal downloads killed the Music Industry. I think it was a new way for people to discover new music. I never bought more music in my life when i downloaded through illegal channels (that was still legal in that time in The Netherlands). Now streaming is a whole other thing. I do think that streaming services like Spotify damages the Music Industry. Why would i buy a new album when i have all the albums on the world in one program. I really think when prices would go down people would start buying more physical copies again. The whole vinyl revival is still growing. Last year vinyl sales in the US was more profitable than all streaming services (including Spotify, youtube, google play, etc.) together.

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I don't think illegal downloads killed the Music Industry. I think it was a new way for people to discover new music.

I am sure that for quite a few honest people, that probably is the case.  However, when you talk to people about where they get their music, most younger people will tell you that they got it from a free download site where they get all their music.  Older generations might still feel like we should buy something if we like it, most people 30 and under haven't legally paid for music in their lifetimes unless they were given an iTunes card for a birthday/Christmas.  That hurts the industry when a large cross section of fans, the very ages for which most modern music has been designed for, are not buying your products.

Don't get me wrong--I don't believe for an instant that illegal downloading KILLED the music industry.  It definitely is one of the bullets that has wounded it, though.

alldatndensum wrote:

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I don't think illegal downloads killed the Music Industry. I think it was a new way for people to discover new music.

I am sure that for quite a few honest people, that probably is the case.  However, when you talk to people about where they get their music, most younger people will tell you that they got it from a free download site where they get all their music.  Older generations might still feel like we should buy something if we like it, most people 30 and under haven't legally paid for music in their lifetimes unless they were given an iTunes card for a birthday/Christmas.  That hurts the industry when a large cross section of fans, the very ages for which most modern music has been designed for, are not buying your products.

Don't get me wrong--I don't believe for an instant that illegal downloading KILLED the music industry.  It definitely is one of the bullets that has wounded it, though.

True, i can't argue with that. It is definitely one of the bullets. But not one that came over night. I really think the industry should have seen this coming and should have been prepared in a way.

I think I've shared this before but it's worth the read. Derek isn't the only one doing this kind of thing - Showbread started giving their material away 2 albums ago and they're actually on a label that operates solely on donations. Real money for musical artists nowadays can only be made with merch and touring.

http://derekwebb.tumblr.com/post/13503899950/giving-it-away-how-free-music-makes-more-than

The other alternative that I've seen a lot of folks go to is crowd funding. Michael Knott funded his recent live album/DVD and a studio EP through Kickstarter and they exceeded the goal by something like $8000. John Mark McMillan only sells mp3's on iTunes and Amazon and if you want a physical copy (like me) he makes small runs via his label (that he and his wife own) Lionhawk Records.

I think illegal downloading killed the big business of music, but I think artists now have more control than ever and that's a good thing.

I think everyone who claims illegal downloading killed or wounded the music industry is missing the big picture.

Illegal downloading is just a by-product of the problem, not the actual problem. The actual problem is how the younger generation views music as a whole. 

One of the problems with the way they view music is that they see it as a disposable commodity that has no real value. 

I think several factors are involved in creating that mentality, one of which is the increasingly short attention span they have, where they like one song today and are bored with it by tomorrow. So they figure why buy something that they will only like for a couple of days or weeks?

They also have no interest in the long term enjoyment or collecting of their music. Back in the 50's and 60s, when radio used to be king, a kid could listen to all of their favorite music on the radio as the stations played all the popular songs around the clock. However, the kids still wanted to OWN the music, so they still bought 45s & LPs. Kids today could care less about collecting or owning their music, as they have no intention to enjoy it long term.


I am sure that there are other factors as to why they view music the way do, but my point was that it isn't the downloading that is the issue, it is the way the younger fans view the music industry that is the problem.