I have to admit I’d never heard of “singer-songwriter, raconteur, spoken word artist, writer, publisher, actor, radio DJ, and activist”, as the Wikipedia describes him, Henry Rollins before his name came up in a couple of emails.
But never mind. I like the way he thinks.
He did a Q&A with Street Team Interviews >>>
STI: The music industry blames file sharing and/or piracy for declining sales. Do you see that as a major contributor, or is the current music business model simply not adapting to the times and technology fast enough? What other factors do you see contributing to its decline?
HR: I think the major factor in the couldn’t-come-soon-enough decline of the major label industry is greed. Greed and underestimating the intelligence of their patrons.
File sharing has had an effect, certainly. Why do people share files? Maybe because you put out a CD for $19.99 and two songs on it are good and the rest is so-so because you told the band to hurry up already.
When you make art into an industry, everyone will suffer. I am sorry about all the people who lost their jobs but this thing had to end.
STI: Vinyl has risen from the dead in a major way over the past few years. In 2008, sales of LPs were up by 89%, from 990,000 in ‘07 to 1.88 million this past year. What do you think has sparked this resurrection? What albums do you think sound better on vinyl than CD or other digital media?
HR: I think a lot of people enjoy the hands-on aspect of an LP. The artwork is more visible as well, always cool. That could be a part of it. What albums sound better on vinyl? ALL OF THEM.
Great stuff, Henry. ![]()
Jon Newton