Fandom An Unexpected Journey 2...from the beginning.

I am always surprised at how many people from around the world are visiting my blog. So I have reposted this post so people know where I have come from and where I am going. I love researching, finding out and sharing the things I find. It is totally fascinating. I hope I raise some awareness too.

I always hope that fans of what ever they are into can work together with the creators and the sellers of the content they love so much to create a sustainable future for all of us.

Dear Readers

I changed the name of my blog to Fandom An Unexpected Journey to reflect the subject matter of fandoms and the direction I wish to take in the future.

I hope to make this blog more of a legitimate blog about fandom. This decision was due to the range of search terms appearing on my and the number of people visiting on my blog statistics from around the world.

Liz Smith

In the beginning...2 years ago...

This is the story of an American woman Lynda Elstad (known as @lyndahere on Twitter and Facebook) following a Canadian musician/singer Alan Doyle and the band he plays with Great Big Sea from Newfoundland. It is a story of a woman who has followed the singer/musician and the band for over 12 years writing, photographing and filming about her efforts with little regard for the privacy and rights of the singer/musician and band or the integrity of their work. The aim of this page originally was to raise awareness of music piracy, stalking or “criminal harassment” laws, copyright and privacy laws in Canada, and to raise awareness of the obsessive fan behaviour associated with Alan Doyle, Great Big Sea and other celebrities in Canada. Hopefully Canadian news and current affairs shows will also pick up this research and do stories to raise awareness of some the issues facing their artists around the world.

My first introduction to Great Big Sea was through the Australian actor Russell Crowe. I followed Russell Crowe on Twitter and he regularly talked about the Canadian band Great Big Sea and the singer/musician Alan Doyle. The movie Robin Hood introduced me to the brilliance of Alan Doyle and Great Big Sea. To be honest I fell in love with them through watching illegally recorded videos on Youtube and most probably those of @lyndahere. I saw an illegally downloaded recording of the song ‘Where I Belong’by Alan Doyle about his native Newfoundland and I was a fan. I have since bought albums, gone to concerts and met the members of the band. I also listen to other Canadian bands and a range of other music.

But for every fan like me won through illegally recorded poor quality homemade videos how many are lost and how much money do artists lose. I don’t particular enjoy videos of live recordings where women scream and talk and love the sound of their own voice more than the artists they pay to watch. They continually breakdown and the sound is poor and I am out of there. I have become fussy about what I watch with limited time and money. It is has only recently that I have begun to gravel with the moral and ethical implications and the impact that illegally recorded videos can have on creative artists including financial lose. It is not just financial lose but spending time away from their family and their children as they have to travel more. In my research I found that Canadians are the biggest computer pirates in the world. The fact that Canadians are among the biggest computer pirates in the world downloading billions of dollars of illegal material including music makes Great Big Sea’s success with traditional music more remarkable.



In the seven months since I started this blog I have read a lot articles on the Internet, books and viewed other sources. They have included information on subjects that arise for example ticket scalping, trading in bootlegged material, cyberbullying, blogging, the paparazzi and others stated in the original introduction on music piracy, copyright and stalking. I have also included some responses to posts on Twitter from @lyndahere.

I have recently started reading research articles on celebrity worship syndrome and different types of fan behaviour including trolling, fandom, groupie behaviour, bootlegging in the movies, and phone hacking. Some topics for example, how musicians communicate with fans via social media such as Facebook were started and I have to return. I have also explored a range of resources including songs, photographs and some very old yet fascinating articles from magazines like the Rolling Stone, Time and the New York Times that provide a historical context for examining fan behaviour. Recently a range of rock and roll stars have released their biographies which provide a look at fan behaviour from their point of view some of which I am currently reading.

The topics are endless as well as fascinating. While the initial blog was started to raise awareness of negative fan behaviour it has extended way beyond that. It has extended way beyond the fan behaviour of @lyndahere with her words and actions inspiring further research only for me to find that she is part of range of people who are involved in my opinion a range of behaviour not always positive towards musicians and celebrities they profess to love. I want this story on the record.

In the ten months I have written this blog the philosophy of what I wanted to write about has changed as I have explored music piracy and in particular bootlegging. I believe it is okay to video record some songs in a performance for personal use or to put them on Youtube. I have seen many fine bootlegged videos by fans on Youtube. What I disagree with is the same person travelling around filming entire concerts and putting them up on Youtube week after week without getting a license or permission from the musicians and artists concerned and with little regard for the content or quality of the video. I don't believe putting bootlegged videos in competition to concerts professionally filmed for specials and promotions presents any musician or artist in the best possible light no matter what the reasoning is. I believe in educating people about what they are watching and working towards a sustainable music future for the musicians and artists themselves and the fans. I hope this blog has achieved this in particular educating and raising awareness about music piracy. Thankyou to all the people who visit the blog.

Oh...and nothing replaces seeing a band live...in particular my favourite group of Canadian guys Great Big Sea...

It has been a year since I started this blog. I have learnt a lot about the world of music. Perhaps the best thing I have done was to travel to Newfoundland and see Great Big Sea in front of their home town. The visit gave me a greater appreciation of Newfoundland and the music tradition that comes from there. This blog has never been about Great Big Sea, their music or Newfoundland. It is my journey as a music fan through the world of music and the fans that I have come across. Many of whom have brought much pleasure and knowledge to my life as Great Big Sea and Newfoundland music has. Much of what I learn't therefore has remained private to protect those people. It has also been about raising awareness of music piracy and bootlegged live recordings mostly through using education and research. I am not against the regular concert goer who records a couple songs but the amateur professional bootlegger that videos the same music endlessly with little regard for quality or quantity or the wishes of those involved.

Update
Wow I have nearly reached 100 posts on my blog. I have really enjoyed researching and writing it. Most of all I have learnt a lot about fans and fandom. My focus recently has been on what other fans have written and those whose jobs it is to review concerts for a living. Mainly because of other commitments in my life and also they are interesting too and are part of the story. Being a fan in today's world requires us to be skilled researchers if we are to get a full and an interesting picture of what is happening with our favourite musicians and artists, the events they are involved in and to participate in the fandom. To participate fully in the fandom requires knowledge. Much of our knowledge is fed directly to us through the main methods such news services, social media and the musicians and artists themselves. Or we can go out and find the real story. So much of the real story now is shared by fans themselves. I am interested in what people write and how they present the information to the public using other methods other than bootlegged videos for example slide presentations that let the images do the talking. I am always interested in a full and inclusive story rather than a partial biased story. I will return to all the things that make fandoms wonderful and not so wonderful in the near future when time permits.

Update number 2

A lot has happened over the last couple of months for Great Big Sea and their fans. The Great Big Sea XX tour rolls on throughout Canada and the US and is slowly coming to an end. The last announced concert is in Canada on New Year’s Eve and should be a wonderful finale. Alan Doyle’s documentary Boy on Bridge premiered on CMT in Canada and band member Murray Foster made comments on Twitter about illegal downloading and the impact of YouTube on music.

The big announcement however, was original Great Big Sea member Sean McCann has decided not to tour with the band anymore. The announcement left many fans disappointed. Fans flooded social media sites thanking him for all the pleasure he has brought us and the music he has shared. It was obviously a very difficult decision for him to make, in particular since he has a young family not to travel anymore. As fans we will miss Sean, wish him all the best and will continue to support him in whatever decides to do.

With Sean McCann leaving Great Big Sea and the rest of the members taking an extended vacation to pursue other interests I am also thinking about the future of my blog. Any fandom culture is constantly changing with the events that affect the creators of the fandom and in our case Great Big Sea. As a member of the fandom it also impacts on my blog. Not all Great Big Sea members feel as strongly as others about such issues as bootlegging and music piracy of their music.

Musician’s and artist’s thoughts and opinions on topics like piracy and bootlegging are also constantly changing as we found out with Murray Foster's comments on illegal downloading and the role of YouTube in music on Twitter. His perspectives are different now than when he was a young musician playing in a band called Moxy Fruvous. Many fans think because a musician or artist takes one particular stance on a topic like piracy and bootlegging their opinions are not allowed to change over their career. Murray was very brave to state this considering what a hot topic piracy and bootlegging is in our fandom. In Great Big Sea all the members feel differently about this at least in public anyway.

My opinions changed for a brief period on piracy and bootlegging and gave me an opportunity to explore why people pirate. When Alan Doyle’s Boy on Bridge documentary aired in Canada on CMT, @lyndahere took the moral high ground and anti piracy stance for once saying she would not pirate it. She was rewarded by Alan Doyle on Twitter. However, her bootlegged videos have never been acknowledged and responded too by Alan Doyle, Bob Hallett and Sean McCann.

Shortly afterwards @lyndahere announced on Twitter her friend in St John’s Canada had a recorder that was always ready to record anything @lyndahere@cristinatownie DVR? Please?MT @erinsulley Tonight @OutoftheFogTV bring you an interview with @alanthomadoyle and @bobhallett circa 2010. However, @lyndahere would not be doing the dirty deed herself because she was on the road in America and Canada following Great Big Sea. Another pirated copy of an Out of the Fog TV appearance by Alan Doyle promoting his solo album Boy on Bridge in 2012 was uploaded on her Youtube site AndPassionateKisses.   

Piracy and bootlegging isn’t something that appeals to me but I do enjoy watching some personal homemade videos of people’s experiences. I basically can’t be bothered with illegal downloading, the ethical and legal consequences, the poor quality of sound and the risk to my computer. Legal material is cheap for me and the money goes to the musicians and artists. It is interesting though why people pirate. I don’t want to do it even though I will not be the coolest kid on the block. My blog will continue to focus on bootlegging and piracy even though some of the members of Great Big Sea have relaxed their stance for the time being. As @lyndahere warned she is always ready to record whatever with little regard for the consequences of the actions for those involved including herself.

Liz Smith

"We’ll Go Into the Rising’ Horizon” A response to @lyndahere’s latest blog post…

Note...when foreigners decide they want to become honorary Newfoundlanders, it is a bit more complicated than the tradition of being 'screeched in' at Trapper Johns pub on George Street. Only Newfoundlanders can decide who is truly one of their own.

“I am not going to disclose any passages from Alan's book, not yet, not anything more than what he chose (or perhaps what Shelagh Rogers chose, since moments before the interview began he himself still hadn't picked a passage) for this Reading, though I will confess to being sorely, even desperately tempted to do just that.  There are so many passages I could quote, that I want to quote…We’ll Go Into the Rising’ Horizon” Part One –As Familiar As Truth The Boy’s Story” (Alan Doyle’s First Book Reading, Writers At Woody Point. 22 August 2014. Between the Rock and A Hard Place

Good news first @lyndahere. Just in case you missed it. ‘Where I Belong’ will be available in digital format for Canadian and American fans as well as international fans from the 14 October 2014 on Google Play and Amazon. I have pre-ordered mine. So therefore you don’t need to copy huge passages from the book. Alan Doyle is an educated, articulate man who has been speaking not only for himself, but also for Great Big Sea and Newfoundland to the world for years. Yes, we have seen Alan Doyle's many wonderful interviews on YouTube and he gets his message across perfectly without your assistance or interpretation. 

Over the past couple of weeks @lyndahere has been continuously on social media tweeting and posting about Alan Doyle’s new book and the Woody Point Writer’s Festival. She was one of the first fans to find and read the book at the writer's festival and tweeted a photo to valid her claims. Then there was the bootlegged video of his talk (which I didn’t watch), the blog post (which I only kind of read) and the many photographs. Next, she won a contest at Random House and now she is reviewing the book for them. (Although on Google play where I buy things anyone can write a review).

On her blog @lyndahere wrote about her need to copy large passages from the book and write about them. But as she has told us on so many occasions, what a kind and thoughtful soul she is (when receiving one of her many exclusive firsts) not to spoil it for others. However, in the next breath, she went back on her word and described a delightful and intimate story between a grandmother and her grandchild, to those of us who chose to venture into her blog. A sign of things to come.   

“I am not going to disclose any passages from Alan's book, not yet, not anything more than what he chose (or perhaps what Shelagh Rogers chose, since moments before the interview began he himself still hadn't picked a passage) for this Reading, though I will confess to being sorely, even desperately tempted to do just that… There are so many passages I could quote, that I want to quote - deftly crafted jewels whose brilliance dazzles in attention's spotlight (much like their Maker):…An insider's view into a way of life which is both irretrievably lost and irrefuseably enduring, rare in its vantage point and priceless in its perspective.

There is so much that could be said, that should and will be said when more than a scant handful of folks have had the opportunity to read this book. To dwell overmuch on the specifics now could diminish the thrill and joy of discovery in reading Where I Belong, and I took far too much of my own pleasure in that reading to risk undermining it for anyone else. But I will most certainly make a Literary Jewel Dazzle Date for immediately after the publication date. October 15th it is, then”. 

Fans throughout Canada, America and around the world have very kindly pre-ordered the book and are waiting patiently for it to be released in October 2014. @lyndahere to me, seems to be more interested in the thrill of the chase, being the first and only fan to do this or that and to write about it on social media. Then there is the exclusive interaction and personal knowledge shared with Alan Doyle on Twitter before moving onto the next thing in his career. She seems to be unable to live in the present and enjoy whatever is on offer, very rarely sharing and engaging with other fans, even those who like her and validate and reinforce her activities. @lyndahere is too busy off on the next thing repeating the cycle. She misses the point that when fans create a community and a sense of belonging that in turn determines and sells products. But hey what do I know.

I have just read the review of Alan Doyle’s book Where I Belong on the Amazon and Google Play sites. On the Amazon site there are a range of reviews from his colleagues in Great Big Sea and his friends and fellow Newfoundlanders and Canadians. A great review.

I am wondering what could she possibly offer on a review (other than to disclose content from the book). She is not a Newfoundlander and she was not born or raised a Newfoundlander. Nor does she seem to have done any serious study on Newfoundland, its people and culture other than to attend various music functions, charity events and spent a considerable amount of time down the pub with her trusty companion Christina. Her social media sites indicate she is not an insider or accepted by the community by anyway due to the fact that very few members of the Newfoundland community have ever contacted her despite the amount of time she has lived there.

“…I promise to put up reminders and links when this interview is broadcast come Fall. And I can certainly be counted on to remind the wide world outside about Where I Belong's publication.

The above statement says a lot about what @lyndahere thinks about fans and the people who are running this story and that she is in her mind an intimate and necessary part. But we know differently and have heard that all. We will be there when the time is right.

This review was copied from Amazon.com (No copyright infringement intended).

From the lead singer of the band Great Big Sea comes a lyrical and captivating musical memoir about growing up in the tiny fishing village of Petty Harbour, Newfoundland, and then taking to the world stage.

Singer-songwriter and front man of the great Canadian band Great Big Sea, Alan Doyle is also a lyrical storyteller and a creative force. In Where I Belong, Alan paints a vivid, raucous and heartwarming portrait of a curious young lad born into the small coastal fishing community of Petty Harbour, Newfoundland, and destined to become a renowned musician who carried the musical tradition of generations before him and brought his signature sound to the world. He tells of a childhood surrounded by larger-than-life characters who made an indelible impression on his music and work; of his first job on the wharf cutting out cod tongues for fishermen; of growing up in a family of five in a two-bedroom house with a beef-bucket as a toilet, yet lacking nothing; of learning at his father's knee how to sing the story of a song and learning from his mother how to simply "be good"; and finally, of how everything he ever learned as a kid prepared him for that pivotal moment when he became part of Great Big Sea and sailed away on what would be the greatest musical adventure of his life.

Filled with the lore and traditions of the East Coast and told in a voice that is at once captivating and refreshingly candid, this is a narrative journey about small-town life, curiosity and creative fulfillment, and finally, about leaving everything you know behind only to learn that no matter where you go, home will always be with you.

“In Where I Belong, Alan uses his natural ‘master storyteller superpower’ to draw you in as a reader in much the same way he does while holding court in the pub or in his own kitchen. This book shines a light on a very particular place and time in Newfoundland’s history, as seen through the eyes of one of the province’s greatest talents.”
—Allan Hawco, co-creator/star of Republic of Doyle

“To many people, Petty Harbour’s geographic isolation, bleak surroundings, and limited economic opportunities would have placed limits on their lives, limits from which they would have never recovered. To my friend Alan Doyle, they were just a challenge to overcome, and this strange and eccentric village would offer a well of experience, enough to fuel a lifetime of creativity. Newfoundland has changed immensely in the past decades, but Petty Harbour held onto its past for much longer than most places, and Alan was lucky enough to remember how wonderful it could be.”
—Bob Hallett, of Great Big Sea

“Doyle [is] a master storyteller in a land rich in that resource. Where I Belong brought back some amazing memories of growing up in a small fishing community and what was to be life outside our hometown. From the first time I laid eyes on him, Alan’s been that guy, the funny, charming dude cursed with charisma, with the talent to back it up. This book gives great insight into that super-talented, creative and insightful mind of a true entertainer.”
—Perry Chafe, co-creator/writer of Republic of Doyle

Bootlegging...some research and a few thoughts

As I have mentioned in previous posts, the Blogger statistics often direct to me to posts and ideas written long ago on a range of subjects including bootlegging and piracy. As @lyndahere loads up a bootlegged talk by Alan Doyle at his first author talk (also recorded by CBC radio for airing in the Canadian Fall) onto YouTube, the post was a timely reminder of where I have come and where I am going with the distribution of bootlegged and pirated material that has plagued this fandom.

Some aspects have remained the same. For example, it is not the first time @lyndahere has bootlegged and distributed content on YouTube including entire concerts, specials and interviews in competition to professionally recorded broadcasts. As I have said before I am not a fan, nor do I approve of her endless bootlegged and pirated material of any kind continually popping up on YouTube. Perhaps what I don’t like is @lyndahere controlling what the fans will and won’t see and hear. I have always found it well worth the wait for official content involving the professional creators, even if it means not being part of the current social media chit chat and having to wait.

“The effects of piracy upon the music industry. A case study of  bootlegging” by academic Lee Marshall in Media, Culture and Society is an interesting piece of research on bootlegging (as distinct from piracy) in the music industry published in 2004. The article defines the different types of piracy including bootlegging, who consumes bootlegs, the scale of bootlegging and what affects they may have upon the music industry. Although written in 2004 and before the rise of YouTube and other social media sites that distribute sound recordings and videos many of the observations, discussions and arguments made by the author and those he interviewed are still valid today.

The author highlights the need for research on piracy across a wide range of settings. In 2004 the number of music fans interested in bootlegs was estimated to be between 100 000 and 200 000. They were only available at special record fairs and through mail order catalogues. Today, with YouTube anybody with an Internet connection can create, distribute and consume bootlegged material. The author raises the issue that some bootleggers in 2004 wanted to be paid for their recordings. As a consequence it would legitimise bootlegging. (Although in other articles for the same time I have read genuine bootleggers are only interested in trading not selling). Today YouTube pays account holders for their content including bootlegged material and in a way it seems quite legitimate to watch it.

The author makes some interesting comments about bootlegging. For example, the author argues that artists don’t lose royalties because the fan bootlegging had bought a ticket to a concert or merchandise. I have made this point before in I believe a ticket to a concert does not include the fan’s right to extras including making bootlegged recordings. The author argues bootlegging does not compete with traditional sales of music in 2004 however, ten years later the way we access music has changed considerably and this is not so. When discussing the disadvantage of bootlegs the author did not raise the issue of the artists and control over the quality of their product and how they are viewed and consumed by fans. Today many of the advantages bootlegs played in connecting fans to music have been replaced by social media and the artists themselves. 

Marshall, L (2004) ‘The effects of piracy upon the music industry: a case study of bootlegging’ in Media, Culture and Society 26(2) (no copyright infringement intended)

Edited due to length and copyright.

….”bootleg albums contain recordings that have never been given official release. The vast majority of this officially unreleased material is of two types: live concerts (the result of either an audience member smuggling a recorder into the venue, or of a ‘line’ source, such as a feed from a radiobroadcast); and ‘out-takes’ (studio recordings of songs that did not make it on to the finished album, or alternative versions of songs that were released). The material contained on an artist’s bootlegs is thus not the same as that on their official albums.

The official industry has regularly portrayed the bootleg industry as a high-level, large-scale crime. The claim is always that these are all collectors, that they just do it for the sake of the music, that they only do 1,000 or so of each tape, and that a 10,000-unitrun is like the maximum they’ve ever seen. That may be true for some small segment of the bootleg population. But there’s definitely big-time commercial criminals involved. They’re not investing in four-color glossy jackets for a1,000-copy run; they do major runs, they do 50,000 to 100,000 units of someone’s product.

Bootlegging is a relatively small-scale activity. The individuals who collect bootlegs are in general the most committed fans that an artist has: ‘bootlegs appeal most to die-hard fans who want everything’. 

The sales of bootlegs are comparatively small because the number of fans interested in them is also comparatively small: Heylin estimates the number of fans buying bootlegs worldwide to be between 100,000 and 200,000.

The individuals who collect bootlegs are in general the most committed fans that an artist has: ‘bootlegs appeal most to die-hard fans who want everything’…The people who buy bootlegs are extremely committed fans who use bootlegs as a way of maintaining an ongoing, meaningful relationship with their favoured artists or bands. What is important here is to highlight that it is fans rather than casual consumers who are the market for bootleg records”.

Arguments against bootlegging

• The two main arguments are that bootlegs detract from officially released record sales; and that recording artists and songwriters do not obtain any royalty payments from the sale of a bootleg.
• The fact that artists being bootlegged obtain no financial reward for their work. Also, he’s [the artist, sic] being cheated financially in very severe terms, because every (bootleg) record that is sold bypasses the artist completely. He receives no royalties, no payment whatsoever. The artist has been deprived of any opportunity to earn an income from his creative efforts.
• The majority of bootlegs are of live performances and these tend to involve someone smuggling a recording device into the venue and recording the show. If this is so, then the artist (and his record label) has received payment for that performance in the shape of ticket sales (not including the revenue generated from sales of concert souvenirs such as T-shirts).
• Many current bootleggers desire a return to the situation whereby they are granted some rights to put out the bootleg by paying mechanical royalties. The record industry is against this, however, for it would confer some legitimacy on bootlegging. They had no role in creating the content.
• The attitude and loyalty of these fans also works against an argument made by Schwartz that bootlegs may detract from future sales: ‘a record company may find that its own plans to someday release performances from the past have been derailed by pre-emptive bootleggers’.

The benefits of bootlegging

• The three potential benefits of bootlegging re: bootlegs enable the industry to hold on to a particular type of fan; bootlegs act as underground promotion for both established and upcoming acts (this is related to notions of artistic authenticity, which are crucial in determining the value of the officially released commodity) and bootlegs have acted as an impetus for a large number of official (and successful) releases.
• One positive effect is that bootlegging helps maintain a consumer attitude among a demographic group that conventionally buys fewer records. Music is not the dominant consumer force it was in the1970s and, with many other competing leisure attractions, the declining consumer attitude towards popular music is a problem for the industry.
• Bootlegging at least maintains one (small) segment of consumers who would probably be lost to the industry otherwise, because it keeps collectors in the habit of buying new records. Bootlegs give these fans a product to consume, and keeps them in touch with other forms of music consumption (e.g. ticket sales).
• Bootlegs help maintain the relationship during the artist’s ‘off’ period, thus maintaining a stable market for when any new album is released. So one way that bootlegs help the industry is that they keep interested in music people who would normally have moved away from record buying.
• A lot of bands see tapes made by fans as free advertising.
• Bootlegs act as underground promotion because there is a critical kudos attached to being bootlegged. Being bootlegged labels you as a live act, which is important for notions of authenticity within rock music.
• These notions of authenticity are extremely important in creating the value of the artist’s official releases. Although the majority of bootlegs are of established and successful stars, bootlegs can also help up-and-coming bands develop a following and a critical reputation.
• There are many tapers who record bands like this as one way of documenting a music scene.
• Through the critical kudos attached to being bootlegged, and the way that this will feed into official record sales and concert ticket sales, bootlegs can actually feature as a good form of publicity for both established and new artists.
• The final way that bootlegging can be seen to have a positive impact upon the official industry is by acting as an impetus for official releases. This is particularly the case in the last ten years when the language of bootlegging has become commonplace within the official industry.

Alan Doyle, George Street… 'and the best Tuesday night on Earth’…

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle One week from today I play the Greatest Tuesday Night in the World. Regatta Roulette at the George Street Festival. Yeha. @GeorgeStLive 29 July 2014

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle 24 Hours or so till the Gig of the Summer. @GeorgeStLive in St. John's. Regatta Roulette. The best Tuesday Night on Earth. 4 August 2014

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle Walking down to @GeorgeStLive now. Let's Get it On. 5 August 2014



One of the best photographs I have seen in a long while taken by Alick Tusi at the George Street Festival and distrubuted on Twitter. Many thanks for sharing Alick. (no copyright infringement intended) Alick Tusi@positively4ever

(Sorry something happened with this blog post so I am just reposting it)

As I have mentioned in previous posts one of the things I love to do after concert performances of the artists and musicians which this blog is about, is to read the social media pages about how people share their stories. I love to read the thoughts of the musicians and artists whose gift it is to entertain, the professionals whose job it is to review such concerts and of course the fans who share their stories via words, photographs and on some occasions bootlegged videos. This time it is the George Street festival.

The Twitter feed of the official George Street Festival account kept fans in touch with what was happening nicely. Last night I came across the mother load of bootlegged videos of Alan Doyle’s concert soon after the event. They were uploaded onto YouTube and distributed on social media by a fan Jason Janes. It has been a while since I watched any bootlegged videos of Great Big Sea and their friends, so for this post I am going to revisit and watch some (These videos were acknowledged by George Street sites so I will take that as an okay approval type of thing).

I love the story these bootlegged videos told about Alan Doyle and the closing concert of the George Street Festival. They told me Alan Doyle was a showman and definitely where he belonged, in St. John’s Newfoundland.  What I love about these bootlegged videos was they told a story not only of what was happening on the stage, but what was happening off. To me the concert was more about Alan Doyle giving the audience what they loved and wanted to hear including the songs of Great Big Sea, Old Black Rum, Hit The Ground and Run and of course Ordinary Day. At times he let the audience run away with the song as he so often does. Alan Doyle and the fans were truly one in George Street on what Alan Doyle referred to on his Twitter feed as the best Tuesday night on Earth.

Alan Doyle and the band broke out in the Great Big Sea classic Ordinary Day, thanking God for the song. You know he meant it from his heart. It was the song that gave Great Big Sea their break and has remained a crowd favourite. He shared fond memories of the first time he played down the road at Trapper Johns in 1988. He paid tribute to the television show Republic of Doyle which Great Big Sea and Alan Doyle had been part of since it came to light over six years ago bringing St John’s and Newfoundland much exposure on the mainland and around the world. However, this was not Great Big Sea.

It must be a hard juggling act for any musician or band trying to remain grateful for the music and success of the past while trying to create a new future. Alan Doyle did this with style and grace. This was the Alan Doyle Band. The members of the Alan Doyle Band were fabulous indeed. Kendel Carson on fiddle and guitar, Cory Tetford on guitar, Shehab Illyas on bass, Great Big Sea’s drummer Kris MacFarlane and musician Paul Kinsman on piano and accordion. Together they provided a different, but excellent feel and sound to some old Great Big Sea favourites while forging ahead with their own music. There were the uniquely Alan Doyle Band moments and songs and the uniquely Alan Doyle moments and songs too. For example, I absolutely love I Don’t Like To Dance with Alan Doyle and his trustly sidekick Stickman Tak plus the gorgeous and fabulous Kendal Carson and her fiddle.

 

Then there was Where I Belong sung solo by Alan Doyle in front of his home crowd to close the concert filmed by @Lyndahere. The song Where I Belong tells the story of Newfoundland joining Canada and the migration of its people to the mainland which I gather would have touched many of the families in the audience. The crowd vocally let Alan Doyle know they also loved St Johns and Newfoundland and share the same feelings that when they also leave for the mainland, for whatever reasons, they too know where they will always belong in St John’s and Newfoundland.

What I like about these bootlegged videos was the sound which was heaps better than @Lyndahere’s bootlegged videos she distributed soon after because she is often too close to the stage. While @Lyndahere’s bootlegged videos may be technically better and are free of obstacles like fans and their body parts and cameras they often do not tell the other stories of what is happening on the stage and in the audience. That is her choice and the story she wishes to tell. As I have said before I don’t mind watching the occasional bootlegged video of a concert experience by a genuine concert goer but not those of what I term a ‘professional bootlegger’.

Bootlegged videos do not in any way replace a concert experience but are part of the concert experience. They tell me a lot about what the fan who is recording wants to see, hear and share which is sometimes not what the viewer wants to see and hear. Bootlegging is clearly a personal thing. The bootlegged videos by James Janes while not the best quality bootlegged videos I have ever seen told me important stories about the members of the band on the stage and the fans in the audience. They were on fire and just loving being together with family and friends singing, drinking and well having a good time on George Street, St John’s Newfoundland.

Thanks to Jason Janes for sharing. Links are available from his Twitter @JasonJanes account or YouTube account.

The power of devoted marshmallows and fandom…

One of the exciting things about being interested in fandom and writing a blog is that I never know where it will take me (for those of us interest in fandom the ultimate dream is a thesis at university). This particular post is about the fandom world of Veronica Mars, the movie. I first came across Veronica Mars, the movie and their fandom several months ago while researching on the Internet (devoted fans are known as marshmallows).The fans of the cancelled television series had raised millions of dollars to bring back the story in a movie format. Many of them had paid to be in the movie as extras (James Franco the actor, writer and director who wrote the article I attached to my previous post had a cameo role in it).

Last week at San Diego’s Comic-Con, the Veronica Mars fandom won the best fandom at the first ever mtvU Fandom Awards. They were up against stiff competition that included, the Teen Wolf fandom (for raising more than $25 000 to build a wolf sanctuary), the Community and Hannibal fandoms (for get their favourite shows renewed for a further season) and Supernatural (Mischa Collins and the fans of the series created “Random Acts,” raising money for charitable organisations).

The San Diego Comic-Con event was attended by Josh Rottenberg who wrote an interesting article on modern day fandom called “Comic-Con, Hollywood and nature of modern fandom” and published by the Los Angeles Times on 1 August 2014. He writes about many of the positive aspects of fandom, dressing up in costumes and bringing people together to express their love of particular cultural phenomenon. However, there was something unique about this Comic-Con in that it was also about the fans and the fandoms and the newly created mtvU Fandom Awards.

The author briefly touches upon the negative aspects of fandom for example, bullying, the bullying campaigns against actors cast in popular roles and fan funded movies like Veronica Mars. "Veronica Mars" fans may have brought the long-canceled show to the big screen with their Kickstarter donations, but, despite all the talk of the revolutionary power of crowd-funding, the movie ultimately proved a box office dud, grossing just over $3 million”. Fandom literature does tend to focus on an incredible amount of positive creativity and neglect the negative which I am interested in.

After researching Veronica Mars, the movie, the loss of profit expectations was more than a dud movie. According to an article published in the Sydney Morning “Veronica Mars' most devoted fans upset at their Kickstarter movie 'reward” by Matt Bungard on March 14 2014, Veronica Mars’ fans who invested in the movie were not given what they were promised. “When a Veronica Mars movie project was unveiled on popular crowd-sourcing website Kickstarter, the campaign quickly gathered momentum as devoted fans (or Marshmallows) emptied their pockets to the tune of $5,702,153, the most ever raised at the time. If a fan donated $35 or more, they were promised a "digital copy" of the film on its release date, March 14. All in all, there were 91,858 backers for the film, with more than 50,000 of those donating enough to receive a copy of the movie”…

Fans were in for a rude shock, however, when they found out that in order to watch the film, they had to register for both social film website Flixster and cloud-based streaming service UltraViolet. Following this, users were forced to watch the movie inside an app, rather than actually have a downloaded copy of the film which could be watched anywhere, or transferred to a different device…Advertisement This digital copy, which was locked to Flixster, also only came in standard definition…For many, their response was to turn to Amazon or iTunes – effectively buying it twice – or torrenting websites for a copy of the film". Therefore creating some unhappy and short-changed fans whom would have, I imagined spread the story throughout the social media world.

Today, five months later I bought Veronica Mars, the movie on DVD for $ 15 just to see what all the hype was about. It was $3 cheaper than Google Play. Enclosed was a pamphlet outlining how I could access a free digital copy on a device of my choice of the movie by setting up an account with Flixster and Ultraviolet the source of a lot of grief of the fans who invested in the film. But the horse has bolted. Fans who tried to do a good dead and help out the movie industry and through no fault of their own were done over by movie companies doing exclusive deals with digital providers.

Yes, I can understand why these fans turned to piracy in these circumstances. Yes, I agree with the author of the article television shows or movies who get fans caught up in red tape have no one to blame themselves if fans turn to pirating. Whether fans continue to put their money to fund projects such as this movie we will have to wait and see.

                                             

From geekytyrant.com (no copyright infringement intended)

“Comic Con, Hollywood and nature of modern fandom” by Josh Rottenberg published 1 August 2014 in the LA Times (no copyright infringement)

At the annual Comic-Con International expo, pop-culture fandom is elevated to veritable religious status, and the convention's 130,000-odd attendees have countless ways to worship at the altars of their choosing.

Want to dress up as a Stormtrooper? Suit yourself. Want to buy a bobblehead doll of your favorite movie character? Go for it. Want to stand in line for hours for the chance to be in the same room as the stars of your most cherished TV series? Right this way. Want to stand outside the San Diego Convention Center holding a sign that says "Kneel Before Zod"? Knock yourself out.

At this year's Comic-Con, though, there was something new, a particular place where fans could gather to essentially pay tribute to themselves: the first-ever mtvU Fandom Awards, held at Petco Park for a crowd of roughly 4,500 convention-goers. There are other awards shows in which fans vote for the winners: The People's Choice Awards, The Teen Choice Awards, The Kids' Choice Awards, basically anything with the word "choice." But the Fandom Awards were conceived as the first awards show in which the fans, not the stars, would actually be the winners.

“When you see all the enthusiasm fans have for their favorite TV shows and movies and the way they’re expressing it online through fan fiction, fan art and Tumblr — it just seemed like it would be great if we could come up with a franchise that would embrace that passion,”

Ryan Kroft, MTV’s senior vice president of specials and events, explained. Categories were designed to reflect the way fans engage with their favorite movies and shows, and celebrities on hand, including Channing Tatum, Chloe Grace Moretz and others, were instructed to keep their speeches focused squarely on the fans. "'Game of Thrones' fans are the best fans in the world!" actress Natalie Dormer announced when she collected the award for OMG Moment of the Year for the HBO series' "Purple Wedding" episode. "'Veronica Mars' fans are the best!" actress Tina Majorino enthused on accepting the Fandom of the Year award for the legions of "Mars" fans who helped bring the erstwhile TV series back to life on the big screen through a Kickstarter campaign.

You can call it pandering (or "fan-dering") if you like. But in many ways the Fandom Awards — and the entire circus of salesmanship Comic-Con has become over the years — represent the logical evolution of film and television creators' increasingly sophisticated, and increasingly urgent, efforts to capture audiences' enthusiasm.

In this digital age, fans are easier to reach than ever — and yet more fragmented and fickle than ever. With all of us awash in a vast and ever-expanding sea of entertainment options, most available at the click of a button or the swipe of a finger, it's little wonder Hollywood is looking for new and innovative ways to court, or supplicate itself to, every potential ticket buyer or binge-watcher it can.

Fans, of course, are more than happy to be treated like royalty. As the late film critic Roger Ebert noted in his 2009 review of the movie "Fanboys," there is an undeniable solipsistic and self-celebratory quality to much of fandom, a sense of being part of an elect tribe defined by taste.

"A lot of fans are basically fans of fandom itself," Ebert wrote. "It's all about them. They have mastered the 'Star Wars' or 'Star Trek' universes or whatever, but their objects of veneration are useful mainly as a backdrop to their own devotion. Anyone who would camp out in a tent on the sidewalk for weeks in order to be first in line for a movie is more into camping on the sidewalk than movies.” 

Consider the tsunami of Twitter hate actor Ben Affleck received on being named as the new Batman in Zack Snyder's upcoming "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice" (which, perhaps not surprisingly, turned into uproarious cheers when Affleck took the stage at Comic-Con). Or, more troublingly, read through some of the vicious and often blatantly sexist comments Village Voice critic Stephanie Zacharek received from some diehard comic-book fans for writing a negative review of the new superhero space opera "Guardians of the Galaxy."

Despite all of its efforts, it's unclear whether Hollywood will ever figure out how to harness fan enthusiasm —be it through social media, Comic-Con, or any other avenues — in a way that consistently translates into profits. "Veronica Mars" fans may have brought the long-canceled show to the big screen with their Kickstarter donations, but, despite all the talk of the revolutionary power of crowd-funding, the movie ultimately proved a box office dud, grossing just over $3 million.

As former Variety editor-in-chief Peter Bart wrote last week on Deadline.com, "One studio chief told me recently that all social marketing represents is a road map for spending less money while still failing to find an audience." 

Nevertheless, this much is certain: As long as there are people so devoted to their favorite films and TV series that they will make a pilgrimage to San Diego and stand in endless lines in 80-degree heat, the creators and stars of those movies and shows will be there to meet them with bells on. Or maybe even Stormtrooper costumes.

Veronica Mars' most devoted fans upset at their Kickstarter movie 'reward' by Matt Bungburg 17 March 2014. Sydney Morning Herald (no copyright infringement intended)

Some fans who donated to the Veronica Mars Kickstarter campaign are furious that they are not getting what they felt they were promised.

What's the worst way to reward some 50,000 fans who donated to your cause? By not giving them the promised reward. Or, at least, the reward in a format they're accustomed to.

When a Veronica Mars movie project was unveiled on popular crowd-sourcing website Kickstarter, the campaign quickly gathered momentum as devoted fans (or Marshmallows) emptied their pockets to the tune of $5,702,153, the most ever raised at the time.

If a fan donated $35 or more, they were promised a "digital copy" of the film on its release date, March 14. All in all, there were 91,858 backers for the film, with more than 50,000 of those donating enough to receive a copy of the movie.

Fans were in for a rude shock, however, when they found out that in order to watch the film, they had to register for both social film website Flixster and cloud-based streaming service UltraViolet. Following this, users were forced to watch the movie inside an app, rather than actually have a downloaded copy of the film which could be watched anywhere, or transferred to a different device.Advertisement  This digital copy, which was locked to Flixster, also only came in standard definition.

These might seem like the definition of first world problems, but in an age where companies are fighting harder than ever against online piracy, you would think that making it easier to acquire media legitimately would be top priority. For many, their response was to turn to Amazon or iTunes – effectively buying it twice – or torrenting websites for a copy of the film.

Director Rob Thomas was quick to try and appease fans after negative feedback, saying "we've always planned to include Flixster as a digital distribution platform. But I also know that many of you use iTunes, Amazon or other platforms, and would prefer to claim your digital copies on your favourite service, so we hoped we'd also be able to arrange for more options. Unfortunately, it just wasn't possible. In the end, Flixster was the best option for getting the digital movie reward out to all of you, worldwide, at the same time."

Warner Bros US has said it will compensate fans who contacted customer support after buying the film elsewhere. A spokesman for Warner Bros Australia told Fairfax that they were unaware of any backlash from Australian fans.

This is not the first time that fans have tried to purchase or acquire one of their favourite shows/films by legal means only to get caught up in red tape. In 2013, many Australian fans of Arrested Development tried to buy the long-awaited fourth season through Netflix, only to run into problems with geo-blockers. In the end, when illegal downloading is just easier, can movie and television studios really blame anyone but themselves?