The Hit Isn’t Dead, It’s Just DifferentA lot of people are getting the sense that media is receding. That the Internet is swallowing the music industry, newspapers and the whole mass media industrial complex. So goes these things, so goes the hit. Top 40 music is a product of the major label distribution/radio/music law triumvirate. And we know where that’s all headed. So the hit is dead, right?
Not so fast. Hits aren’t dead. They’ve just changed. Hits are different today in such a way that they’re paving the way for a new golden era of music. This is the best time for anyone to be doing music…that is, if your goal isn’t to get rich, but to create good, authentic art. You don’t have to worry about the massive barriers of entry that the hits-led era concocted.
Chris Anderson of Wired Magazine says that we’re seeing the splintering of the hit; across all media. It’s the reason that few people are paying attention to radio, MTV and BET hip hop videos anymore. They’re too distracted by all the other stuff that’s available.
Anderson says that there are now 3 types of hits. The first two fit into the “Top Down” variety that mass media companies like record labels, movie studios, etc promulgated.
First Type: Authentic Hits: This is quality stuff that’s appreciated and consumed by large numbers of people. It starts out big and stays big. Think U2, Steven Spielberg films, The Olympics, Harry Potter, etc.
Second Type: Artificial Hits: These are low production quality products that have a slick veneer to them to make people buy. Think Brittney Spears and most hip hop music today. It starts out big, but plummets fast because people aren’t fooled easily.
Third type: Grassroots Hits: These rise up through fast word of mouth. They start small but tipping points can cause them to grow like wildfire. Think Barack Obama.
The third type is where most of the opportunity in today’s world lies because the barriers of entry to the first two are too great. Digital technologies , on the other hand, are available to everyone. In the case of music, there may not be as much money in the third type of hit, but this is where true and authentic music belongs and has always belonged. Appreciating it requires accepting that small is the new big. It also requires embracing the notion that music exists primarily to make life a bit more beautiful for everyone.
November 14th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
Good post. Personally, what would you advise to raise a grassroots hit to authentic hit level?
November 14th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
David, to do that I think you still need the help of mass media because most people are still 10 years behind the curve. Most people still have no clue what Twitter is. The Web is all about niche and to reach the vast majority of people, you still do need mass media. But why would you want that? Most people in the mass wouldn’t really care about your product. It’s very hard to make money off of mass anymore because it’s saturated. If you want to make money today, you need to create something that a “small” number of people are passionate about. You cater to the early adopters. Then they talk about it to their networks. If it’s good enough (ie, Barack Obama) it may go mass. But that’s no guarantee anymore. Best to focus on grassroots because it’s doable.
November 14th, 2009 at 3:23 pm
Solid answer. Thanks for the reply.
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