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I'd say if all you're seeing is Soulja Boy and Chocolate Rain, you need to get around the net more and seek out some of the great independent music that's out t

I'd say if all you're seeing is Soulja Boy and Chocolate Rain, you need to get around the net more and seek out some of the great independent music that's out there That's exactly the problem. If I have to out of my way looking for it then I see a possibility of disruption. I personally might do this (because I love music) but I understand most people is not willing to do something more than open a YouTube video or take a quick look at a Wikipedia page. I brought the specific cases of Soulja Boy and Chocolate Rain because people can relate to them (they know who they are). Pomplamoose might be great but I don't think they're anywhere near mainstream (that might be a feature instead of a bug but I'm not entirely sure yet). Edit: I don't know why you're being downvoted but I think the idea of artists doing their own marketing is interesting. Stuff like this is what's making a living for people like Jonathan Coulton, but I still don't think every musician can (or wants) to do this.

davesims 15y ago
Who can tell the vagaries of HN voting habits? It usually evens out. I think the notion of "mainstream" is just as dead as the old industry models. Music audiences are more fragmented than they've ever been, and are learning to be more and more proactive in how they discover music. Local live music scenes are thriving, even while most of the artists will never make a splash beyond their communities. Sites like http://one-track-mind.com http://one-track-mind.com and http://www.indabamusic.com http://www.indabamusic.com, countless blogs like http://www.brooklynvegan.com http://www.brooklynvegan.com have become popular destinations for music fans that want to find something new and more interesting than what passes for mainstream. I suppose the new challenges that face artists also face music fans. Just as artists can no longer rely on industry hand-holding, music fans that want more than gagabeiberidolglee will have to be more proactive than they're used to being. The good news is that there's a vast amount of talent out there and they're making high quality recordings cheaper than ever.

davesims 15y ago

Who can tell the vagaries of HN voting habits? It usually evens out. I think the notion of "mainstream" is just as dead as the old industry models. Music audiences are more fragmented than they've ever been, and are learning to be more and more proactive in how they discover music. Local live music scenes are thriving, even while most of the artists will never make a splash beyond their communities. Sites like http://one-track-mind.com http://one-track-mind.com and http://www.indabamusic.com http://www.indabamusic.com, countless blogs like http://www.brooklynvegan.com http://www.brooklynvegan.com have become popular destinations for music fans that want to find something new and more interesting than what passes for mainstream. I suppose the new challenges that face artists also face music fans. Just as artists can no longer rely on industry hand-holding, music fans that want more than gagabeiberidolglee will have to be more proactive than they're used to being. The good news is that there's a vast amount of talent out there and they're making high quality recordings cheaper than ever.