Sound Recording Industries

Okay, Illegal Downloads Probably Are Hurting The Music Industry

This would have surprised me no matter who had turned it up, but there was a special irony in learning that illegal music downloads "aren't hurting the music industry" from a beleaguered print magazine's free-news arm: Illegal downloads aren't hurting the music industry, new study claims | ti.me/10 ... More >>

All of the Arguments About Digital Music, Summarized

Piracy is theft. Piracy isn't theft because nothing physical is being stolen. You are taking money out of the hands of artists. Artists were already being ripped off by labels. Artists can make the money back by touring. Kickstarter. Here is a bulleted list of numbers showing how much it costs ... More >>

Rachael Yamagata Gets By With a Little Help

Crowd funding from fans frees her to create Chesapeake.

Unknown Mortal Orchestra's Internet-Fueled Rise

As Fame Chases Him, Bon Iver Keeps Running

The Civil Wars Fight For Recognition

T Bone Burnett To Be Honored By The Producers & Engineers Wing of the Recording Academy In Ramp-Up To 2011 Grammy Awards

T Bone Burnett​The Producers & Engineers Wing of the Recording Academy swears it's kind of a big deal, having created a "best practices guideline" and leading various charges, etc., since forming 10 years ago. OK, whatever. Doesn't really matter.Because, if nothing else, what it's doing in the ... More >>

Eisley Has The Battle Scars to Prove Their Coming of Age.

Dallas' Play-N-Skillz Are Getting An MTV Reality Show--And Want You Be On It, Maybe!

Steve VisneauP-p-p-p-p-p-p-p-play-N-Skillz!​I was lucky enough to spend some QT with Dallas hip-hop super-producers (not to mention two-time Grammy winners) Play-N-Skillz last week on the set of Tum Tum's new music video for his Salinas brothers-produced track "Smoke Something" off his excellent n ... More >>

Play-N-Skillz Launch Label, Sign Local Artist

The proud owners of a new major label imprint.​ Yesterday, two-time Grammy-winning Dallas hip-hop production duo Play-N-Skillz announced a deal it has signed with Universal Music Group urban imprint SRC/Universal to launch its own imprint, which will be called G4 Muzik. After the jump, the full pr ... More >>

The Future of Used MP3 Sales

The Other Day at NX35: Tweet or Die (Or: The 21st Century Music Biz)

If you managed a band in 1999 and told your clients to forget the major labels and focus on "social networking" while giving away free tracks--you wouldn't have lasted long enough to even be working today. But at least you could say "I told ya so." Ten years (and countless futile RIAA lawsuits) ... More >>

PlayRadioPlay Splits With Label

How Major Labels Vie for a Comeback

It's finally dawned on record companies that they're screwed. But is it too late?

Label Mates

While the bottom drops out for the big boys, many locals are doing just fine

Screwing the Man

Electronic Robin Hoods claim music file-swapping is an act of civil disobedience

Free to Download

How can you steal music you can't even buy?

Home Free

Onstage and off, the Dixie Chicks changed the way they do business

Do the Math

The music industry says online piracy's killing the biz. A UTD prof says it ain't.

Radio Active

With Napster six feet under, the RIAA now wants to hang the Internet DJ

When Online Got Off Base

Or: How Mark Cuban would have--and could have?--saved the music biz

Bang to Hype

At SXSW, it's all about the buzz, not the Buzz Band

Not Wasting Any Time

Dallas duo creates an online record label

Empire Strikes Back

The record industry counters piracy in the courts and on CDs. But has it gone too far?

Industrial Evolution

The record industry crippled Napster with litigation. But has it made things worse for itself?

Double Shift

Jenny Toomey tries to figure out the future of music--for herself and everyone else

Dig A Hole

When the bass player split, the Toadies split up

Ransom Notes

Can one man convince millions of people to pay for their "free" music?

Playing Possum

After six years, The Toadies' new album is finally finished, and it's good. So why isn't it out yet?

Flanagan's wake

VH1 vice president's novel about the music business mourns an era just since passed

More Soup for you

Now on the same label as Britney and the Backstreets, is Bowling For Soup the next teen-pop sensation? Uh, no.

Bug in your ear

For 25 years, Bug Music has protected the rights of songwriters. In the process, it's gotten Willie Dixon's songs back from Led Zeppelin and transformed Iggy Pop into a TV commercial composer.

Take these records, please

Or: Yes, it was as bad as you think

Oh, Mann

Three years and one bad record deal later, Aimee Mann returns -- with two wonderful records

Rock this town

Or: Oh, look...it's another end-of-the-century list

Ben there, done that

Radish may be loosening their label's restraining bolt

Signing off

Local talent scout Teresa LaBarbera-Whites discovered singing sensation Jessica Simpson the way she always does: without even trying

The preacher and the Prophet

Why can't we all just get along? The history, or not, of Russell and Jeff's Deep Ellum

Cardboard tombstones

In the wake of the Ellington 100, lesser zombie boxed sets walk among us

Letters

Major Mistakes

Signing to a record label can be bad for a band's health. So why do they keep doing it?

Nothing but static

Broadcast Data Systems listens to the radio so you don't have to

Schmidt happens

After 10 years of being told he was the Next Big Thing, former Three on a Hill and Funland frontman Peter Schmidt makes the best record of his career. And he did it, for the most part, all by himself.

Rock and roll over

In today's music business, tomorrow's revolution is yesterday's fad

Spirit of '96

Last year showed pop still has more than a ghost of a chance

The Hip-Hop Hustle

Tommy Quon and goldfinger found out that Dallas is no rapper's paradise

Accidental Deaths

Wars between the electronics giants are killing Dallas' independent music stores

Rock and rollercoaster

After mulling its future for two years, Funland releases its first album

Fight the power

Reprise Records president defends the rights of his artists against the Right and the wrong

Star maker

Can Interscope do for four local bands what it did for Nine Inch Nails and Snoop Dogg?