Over the past few years we have seen Vancouver, along with many other cities across the world, experience a huge rise in concert traffic. Artists I never thought could sell out the Coliseum, GM Place, the Orpheum, etc, have been able to do so with ease. Today on the radio I heard shows announced at GM Place for this December!
This is largely due to the rapidly changing music industry. I hear it first hand from my uncle (an independent Canadian country music recording artist) all the time - records are not selling (at least, not in stores), there is no music video industry on TV, and radio spins are not paying what they once did, nor are the stations supporting local artists nearly as much.
Of course, in some ways this is good. Copyright infringements and moral arguments aside, the new challenging nature of the industry pushes artists to innovate and find new ways to get their product out there and generate revenue. And for a lot of artists, the revenue stream that replaces platinum album sales is ticket sales for concerts.
It’s great to hear artists live and actively promoting their albums across the world. But I generally walk away from a stadium concert quite disappointed. It’s normally a mediocre production with an attempt at a temporarily heightened energy level that myself and 17,000 other people just stood and watched.
I want to see the music industry get even more personal. A few nights ago myself and some friends went to The LIbra Room on the drive. We had the pleasure of hearing the Werewolves of Creston perform live. They played an incredible, energetic set in the small, quaint bar with around 30 people. What’s more, during their break, they walked around and chatted with the patrons! I had a great conversation with their lead singer about musical theatre.
I don’t know how much money they made, but I know that it generated a lot of positive energy about their band from myself and my friends, as well as many others in the venue that night. At one point, we had all agreed to buy their CD’s if they were for sale! I know for sure I have never thought that for a moment at a stadium concert.
It was the personal connectivity we gained with the band that really made our experience, and hopefully, that is the direction the music industry is moving. Of course, I’m not suggesting that any of the huge names today would ever play a 30 person venue, but they do need to interact with their fans (and potential fans) in a more personal way to find true success. Through social media, online networks, and revenue generators such as live performances, musicians have a challenging but rewarding path ahead.
