In today’s consumer focused society, where creativity is judged more by its brand value than its originality, we at 3 loop are attempting to re-establish the close relationship that used to exist between the originators of music and their audience.
A direct result of an increasing emphasis being placed by music fans upon single, downloadable tracks is that many artists are finding their catalogue of work overlooked by repertoire owners struggling against a diminished financial return yielded by digital output.
It is true that, whilst record labels may not be actively marketing it, much of this catalogue can be found on various online sites (in instances where it has not already been deleted) but this only serves those consumers who already know where to look and what to look for. Little is done to actively promote such music to a wider audience.
Good radio stations playing quality music, new and old, do thankfully still exist, but without the active marketing of catalogue by repertoire owners or the availability of high street record shops in which to browse too many artists find their revenue generating careers cut all too short.
Re-Engaging Fans and Artists
We at 3 loop music are attempting to redress this lack of support for established artists by providing a platform through which they can re-connect with their fans and, in the process, rekindle a common passion.
Fans
‘Music fans have never had is so good’; thus runs the mantra of the likes of Spotify, Deezer and Napster.
This claim may be true in some respects but one has to accept the implications of having our musical tastes directed less by the likes of John Peel, Annie Nightingale and Tommy Vance and more by algorithms generated by ‘servers in the clouds’.
This ‘opening of the floodgates’ approach to music availability, with its inherent lack of contextual background, is the main driving force behind the emergence of the growing ‘shuffle generation’ of fans who retain little or no association with the artists producing the music they are streaming.
In turn the focus on individual tracks rather than albums only serves to further sanitise the relationship between originator and consumer; after all why invest time and emotional commitment in an artist whose career is at the mercy of a TV brand!
In a recent study Word Magazine analysed a six-month period where 4.5 million tracks were available for streaming on Spotify. During that time only 1.5 million were actually accessed and, what’s worse, the top 100,000 streamed tracks accounted for over 80% of total usage ( Word Magazine, May 2012 – The Tyranny of Music Choice, pps 60-63)
Fans (contd.)
What all of this means for the true fan is not only a lack of investment in new music (in the past album sales have traditionally funded new band investment) but the removal of the means by which they retain a close identification with the musicians who have directed their musical tastes and sound-tracked their lives.
This is a situation that 3 loop music seeks to redress; our emphasis being not to hark on about the past but to continue the story.
Artists
It is a fact of life in the music industry that once an artist has been side-lined by a record label, the supply of marketing and PR support that has this far underpinned their career disappears. The artist is left to their own devices to fill the gap in seeking to retain contact with their fan base.
In addition, all music recoded during the term of their recording contract remains the property of the repertoire owner and the artist has little or no control over how this music is managed.
Artists(contd.)
If the artist remains un-recouped, i.e. they have not repaid the advance given to them on signing to the record label via royalties earned, then even if the repertoire owner continues to promote original or re-issued material the artists receives no income.
In effect the artist has lost all ability to control or benefit financially from sales of their music.
By partnering directly with such artists (‘Partner Artists’) 3 loop music providea a means whereby they can re-connect with their fans, benefit financially from the provision of new or re-issued product and merchandise and promote new musical projects.
The Art Gallery
To compete the background to the creative process behind music we also seek to highlight the oft-neglected part played by the originators of artwork.
In our Art Gallery we provide a space for artists and photographers to expand upon their involvement in specific releases whilst facilitating the exhibition of their work.
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