Alan Doyle And ‘Summer Summer Night’…Video and new single release.

Alan Doyle @alanthomasdoyle New Single TODAY! I'd be grateful if you requested it, downloaded it, and streamed it. Yes...all three...why not?!? Thanks so much. June 23, 2017.

Alan Doyle recorded his new album ‘A Week At The Warehouse’ in Vancouver, British Columbia early this year. I have posted two previous posts about the experiences of Alan and The Beautiful Gypsies recording the album in February of this year. Last week Alan shot a video for the first single of the album ‘Summer, Summer Night’ in Toronto and shared his experiences of making the video via his official social media accounts including Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. The official video for ‘Summer Summer Night’ will be released at a later date and the album on October 13, 2017. 

This week Alan announced on his official social media accounts that the single ‘Summer Summer Night’ was released digitally where all good music can be bought including itunes and Google Play. 

There is also a copy of the ‘Summer Summer Night’ on Alan’s official YouTube Vevo music site which I have circulated via my Google + page. 

In an interview with the Toronto Sun newspaper recently Alan described the song being about how he liked to spend his summer nights when he was young (and elaborated on a Facebook post that he still likes to do). The new song sounds absolutely awesome. Fans can buy the song at all good digital music sites.

I have included a copy of some of the absolutely drop dead gorgeous screenshots for future reference. The screenshots are from the official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts of Alan Doyle. No copyright infringement intended.

Alan Doyle Reflects On Growing Up In Newfoundland…An article in the Canadian press.

Alan Doyle responded to a fan who shared the article ‘Canadian Musician Alan Doyle Illuminates the Beauty of Growing up in Newfoundland’ that was published in the Canadian newspaper, the Toronto Sun on the 22 June, 2017. The article only seems to be available online through the Toronto Sun’s pressreader.com version of it’s newspaper. The article has been edited for copyright reasons. 

I personally love Newfoundland and so I found Alan’s reflection and comments interesting. 

"...What was it like growing up in Petty Harbour, Newfoundland?

Petty Harbour was, and remains, a postcard-perfect Newfoundland fishing village with a wharf up and down each side, lined with fishing boats of various shapes, sizes and colours, My childhood there was pretty magical since there was always something fun and active to do and with a gang of kids my age to do it with. I was born into the Doyle family who were the go-to musical family for everything from a concert to a dance to a wedding to a funeral. I learned most of my music lessons through osmosis.

How has the culture of Newfoundland shaped your creative drive in music, film, and writing?

I think most rural towns have musical family that often play and sing for most of the functions. I was lucky enough to be born into one of them. We had a guitar, piano and accordion before we had a car. I’m serious. So, music for me came early and easy. Music and songs in particular are important in Newfoundland. We love to record our history, not just in libraries or history books, but in songs. So there are lots of them around, and they are most often about stuff in your own backyard. When I started writing my own songs, I just instinctually wrote about my own experiences in my own town. I was not tempted, as many are, to write about cars and girls in California. When I moved to St. John’s to go to university, I met so many people from the tight-knit arts scene of folks who worked in theatre, film and literary arts, all of who were early to have me help on a project here and there.

How would you describe Atlantic Canada?

The provinces that make up Atlantic Canada are way more varied that people might think. For example, the landscape of PEI and Petty Harbour could be from different planets. The music from Cape Brenton and Newfoundland could not be more different in the folk world. That said, the people Atlantic Canada share a community-mindedness and place tremendous value on songs, instrumental music and stories. They love to see visitors coming and they a survivalist mentality that often makes them shine the brightest at the darkest times.

Native Newfoundlanders refer those not born on the island as “come from aways.” What message do you want to send to those across Canada about Newfoundland and why they should visit?

A big reason to come to Newfoundland and Labrador is that it is a different place than anywhere else. It is not like anywhere else in Canada or the world for that matter. It has its own language, food, music, landscape and architecture. And the biggest reason to come to Newfoundland is to have a time with its most amazing resource Newfoundlanders..."

Alan Doyle in Petty Harbour, Newfoundland. The image is from cbc.ca (no copyright infringement intended).

Murray Foster And Revisiting Newfoundland…

Murray Foster has been successfully creating a life for himself after the Great Big Sea hiatus with a range of projects. Recently Murray revisited Newfoundland with one of his projects the Toronto Song Writing School. Murray’s adventures and those of the participants were shared via the Toronto Song Writing School’s official social media sites including Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The participants were lucky enough to participate in songwriting workshops and sing-a-longs with Murray and his Great Big Sea band mates Alan Doyle and Bob Hallett. There are two videos on Facebook, one of Alan Doyle talking and singing about songwriting and doing a bit of singing and one of Bob Hallett singing one of my favourite Great Big Sea songs Follow Me Back. Bob really has still got it after only appearing a couple of times on stage since the Great Big Sea hiatus. I really enjoyed the reference to Newfoundland. I have circulated a copy of the original recording of Follow Me Back from the Safe Upon the Shore on my Google + page. 

Then there were the fields trips in and around St. John’s during the day and at night including Signal Hill, Quidi Vidi, George Street and Bob Hallett’s pub Erin’s and his restaurant Tavola. From the posts I read the whole program looked totally awesome. I really regret not doing it. I have shared a couple of screenshots of Murray, Alan and Bob from the official social media pages of the Toronto Songwriting School. No copyright infringement intended.

Prior to returning to Newfoundland Murray wrote a post reflecting on his time in Great Big Sea and Newfoundland. I thought this post was really interesting for several reasons. I have been to Newfoundland I can see how different Newfoundland is from the rest of Canada. I have heard Newfoundlanders talk about and write about how different they are and the similarities they share with mainland Canadians. But I have never heard anyone speak about or read anything from mainland Canadians with a genuine connection to Newfoundland.

I decided to keep a copy here. I have edited the post for copyright reasons. The post is from the official Toronto Songwriting School webpage. No copyright infringement intended.

“…In two weeks, I fly to what in a weird way feels like my ancestral home – St. John’s, Newfoundland. Any Newfoundlander reading that (a Mainlander referring to St. John’s as ‘home’) will probably immediately resent it – but, I hope, immediately get it as well.

When I joined Great Big Sea in 2002, I was a pure Torontonian. I spent my time cracking witty jokes (nothing wrong with that) and going to parties where I would try to figure out who I should be to impress everyone there (something a bit messed up about that). Newfoundland changed that for me. It’s not that Newfoundlanders aren’t witty – they’re very funny people – but their humour and their way of being is based on being exactly who they are. For a Torontonian, that was a revelation – I was suddenly surrounded by people who weren’t trying to figure out who to be, they were trying to project who they were as loudly as possible, usually for comedic effect.

For several years, I struggled to navigate these two cultures. I’d jump on the GBS tour bus and feel like I was surrounded by people who talked too much, drank too often and laughed too loudly, then go home and have conversations with smart, well-dressed alien robots. But eventually I figured it out, like a kid who speaks English at school and Urdu at home. I also figured out the advantages of being a Torontonian in Newfoundland and a Newfoundlander in Toronto – I’ll let you in on some of those tricks over a beer sometime.”

So in two weeks I go back to St. John’s for the first time in four years. It’s a city that married its fortunes to the price of oil, and has discovered itself to have a rather moody wife. But I’m sure the spirit lives on – it always does.”.

Russell Crowe, Alan Doyle And ‘The Musical' Album...Part Five.

My blog posts about Russell Crowe, the crew from Indoor Garden Party and new album ‘The Musical’ have attracted a couple of hundred hits. As the album is about to be released this Friday, the 16 June, 2017 I have decided to write another post about the Indoor Garden Parties.

The tickets to the Indoor Garden Party concerts in London, Leeds and Dublin went on sale on the 2 June, 2017. Many of the Russell Crowe, Alan Doyle and Scott Grimes fans around the world from the United Kingdom, America, Canada and Australia have purchased tickets and are travelling to see the concerts.

The concerts should be amazing. I love the fact they have included VIP meet and greets for the dedicated fans with a bit of extra cash to spend. I am looking forward to reading about those experiences from fans through social media posts.

I thought new fans might enjoy this post by Alan Doyle on his FTR diary on his webpage about the New York concerts in October, 2012 about his experience being Sting’s guitarist for the night.

The post is from the official Alan Doyle webpage at alandoyle.ca. No copyright infringement intended.

I have included a post of a poster advertising the current Indoor Garden Party concerts from Russell Crowe’s official Twitter accounts. No copyright infringement intended. 

Home posted on October 26, 2012.

Well its been a pretty quiet couple of weeks. Not much to report.

Just kidding of course. Where to begin?

Weekend before last, the third incarnation of the Crowe/Doyle Indoor Garden hit the stage in New York City. I would be tough to call it anything other than an amazing night for all concerned. I got to NY a few days prior and met up with RC, Scotty, and the Size 2 Shoes Gents and a few other regular members of the gang. Was delighted over the next few days to work with Roberta Duchak, a lovely lady who has a storied pedigree in Musical Theatre and has become one of the most sought after vocal coaches in North America. Likewise, I was charmed to meet Samantha Barks who is to star in Les Mis with RC and could be one of the loveliest singers I’ve ever shared the stage with. Over emails and phone calls, I had worked with Carl Falk before, as he did all the additional music on the Crowe/Doyle Song Book Vol. 3, but I have never had the pleasure to meet him in person till the day of the show. That same day big Kev dashed in and rounded out the Merry Men. We all gathered and made for a great night on stage and in the audience too, I think.

Have I forgotten anyone? Oh yeah, Sting played too.

HOLY SHITE.

The day of the gig RC, whispers to me, ‘Looks like Sting might make it towards the end. He wants to sing ‘Every Breath You Take’ in the key of A major. Can you play it?’ I coolly looked right at him tried not act anywhere near as excited as I was, took a deep breath, and lied right to his face saying, ‘Yeah of course no sweat.’ Next possible moment I was surfing the net for chord charts and Youtube performances to get the changes right and scribbling cheat notes.

It’s a funny thing when opportunities like this arise. Often, and lucky for me, I am asked to do things I have no history or experience doing. You may wonder if I got nervous or anxious when I first acted with Oscar winners, or while meeting Royalty, or almost filled in at the last second for Blue Rodeo’s Bass Player live on National TV at the Half Time show of the Grey Cup. And I certainly did, but I was buoyed by the fact that I honestly am not supposed to know how to do those things. I really don’t want to shag these things up, but I don’t feel the same pressure I feel when some one asks me to play guitar or sing for them.

You see, I AM supposed to know how to do those things. I have been playing guitar and singing professionally for pretty close to thirty years. I should be way better at both of those things. And I am not being falsely modest here. I can sing in tune in my own way, and I can play rhythm guitar modestly well, but I am not a hired gun axeman or vocalist by any stretch. And most times that suits me just fine, as it is my own thing and thankfully some folks enjoy it. But when you are about to play ‘Every Breath you Take’ for Sting, a fella like me can’t help but think, ‘Frig, I wish I was a better guitar player.’

So I went and got Scotty and between him and me we agreed on what we thought the most commonly used chords and changes were between the many Sting and Police versions of this tune and we had something ready, in case one of the most famous people in Music History really showed up and asked us to play for him.

As many of you know, show up he did, and me and Scotty brazenly launched into it, again, trying to look muso cool, like this was no big deal. Pretty sure I can speak for Scotty when I say I can remember no time on stage when I wanted to play some thing right. I confess that normally occupies little of my attention.(I hope that’s not being too honest) Most times I am living in the moment of the songs and performance, and the nuts and bolts of the chords, rhythm and melody, have been ingrained over dozens or hundreds or thousands of plays, and they come out correctly on their own. But during the Sting song, behind my ‘yeah cool song man’ kind of smirk, I was counting bars and mentally forecasting the changes and sections to come.

I think it went well. The crowd loved it and Sting seemed as delighted to get to play with new people as we were to accompany him. There was one point though where Sting looked at me across the stage and uttered one word…’bridge’. It happened really quicky, and all that I am about to describe happen in a sec or two.

I looked back at him and thought to my self, “did he say ‘bridge’ or did he ask ‘bridge?’” And I was blown back to one of the hockey dances in the basement of the church in Petty Harbour in the mid 80’s where all the fellas would strategically try to get a gal lined up to dance for the slow dances. I recall getting a pretty girl who shall remain nameless, to agree to dance with me to this song. It was one of those dances where your head is past hers and slowly you both move your head back and you feel your ear next to hers, next thing you know, your cheeks are brushing, and in any second lips will be touching and you’ll be getting a kiss at the hockey dance. The song ended before I managed to get a smooch, but I remember it being the soundtrack to a lesson in courtship and a beautiful memory of my young life in my little fishing town with a population of 500 or so.

And now here I am in the Greatest City on Earth playing with the singer and composer of this song, and is he asking me if the bridge comes next? Jaysus.

Of course, I tried to show none of this irony and excitement to Sting or the others on stage or the audience. I just looked back at the lead singer of the Police and when he said or asked ‘bridge’, I said ‘yep.’

Then it was over and we all cheered and thanked Russell for organizing this whole deal and were celebrating an uber cool moment with Sting when I had to turn the corner to get a moment to myself and blink a few times. When I got around the corner, Scotty was already there. This is what two lucky bastards look like moments after they got to be Stings band.

That’s probably enough for now, though I’ve got loads to tell you about. Topics include the New GBS XX Box, video, and press and tour dates. A cool CD myself and Bob and a few others are finishing for a friend who passed away far too young. Also a night with the Symphony as Cory and Kendel and I play AD tunes with the Newfoundland Symphony Orchestra tonight. And maybe even some cool news about a wee part in a big movie.

Stay tuned.

The sun is shining again. Got to go get the Prince at school. It was Pajama day today and when I dropped him off there were dozens of kids running around in PJ’s. What a laugh.

As always, many thanks for reading, tweeting, and supporting all the stuff. I am very grateful for all of it.

Cheers,

Alan

Russell Crowe And Alan Doyle Help Out A Fan…

A lot has been said by Russell Crowe on Twitter…

It is well documented Russell has used the social media platform to share his love of his family (his children), his interests such as South Sydney Rabbitohs, love of travelling and music, maintain contact with and support his friend’s work, promote causes close to heart, defend himself when attacked by the traditional media, to deny their persistent rumours and to promote his work both in the movies and music. Many of his tweets have been sensationalised by the gossip and traditional news and a lot of it negative.

Many of the positive things Russell does on Twitter are overlooked by the traditional media as they are probably not considered ‘news worthy’. Twitter remains the way Russell prefers to connect with fans. Russell has created a fictional village which promotes love and kindness where many of the fans have connected and made friends on social media. Many of the fans have met in real life and become friends at Indoor Garden Party concerts and Alan Doyle and the Beautiful Gypsies' concerts around the world. Russell’s tweets over the years have made many fans very happy such as wishing them a happy birthday or all the best for some event important in their lives. Russell has also made others miserable as they have been ridiculed and blocked in front of millions of followers over some of their comments.

On many occasions Russell has provided fans with constructive feedback (both negative and positive) and encouragement on their creative endeavours. Over the years a young English fan Meg Doherty has attended concerts in London and contacted Russell and his friend and music partner Alan Doyle for music advice which they kindly provided with much encouragement. Recently Meg recorded some songs on an album called Northern Girl and again contacted them for advice.

Not only did both Russell and Alan provide constructive and encouraging advice they both lead the charge to buy Meg’s album which they promoted via Twitter. I just thought this was a really awesome gesture. As I have said before many of the positive things Russell does on Twitter are overlooked by the traditional media as they are probably not considered ‘news worthy’ so I wanted to put a copy here. I have provided a link to Meg Doherty’s Twitter feed and shared a video of a song on my Google + page. I would like to wish Meg all the best in her music career.




I've Done Nothing Today by Meg Doherty shared on my Google + (totally awesome)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INUdF5PEjXw

The posts are from the official Twitter accounts of Russell Crowe and Alan Doyle. No copyright infringement intended.

Cory Tetford And Friends…June 2017.

As posts on my blog about Cory Tetford’s solo music and new album ‘In the Morning’ have attracted a couple of hundred hits I have decided to post about his shows with some of friends and fellow musicians in June. These shows include a launch of his new album in Halifax, a show for the Newfoundland Songwriters in the Round in Toronto and another show in Halifax at the end of June.

Last week Cory Tetford (from Alan Doyle And The Beautiful Gypsies) did a launch show for his new album “In the Morning” at a local hotel in Halifax with friend and fellow musician Chis LeDrew and fellow Beautiful Gypsies band mate Kendell Carson. The show was sold out.

Prior to the show Cory did some local publicity included newspapers and press. An article “Songwriter Tetford gets a fresh start with launch of new project In The Morning” by Stephen Cook published at localxpress.ca on the 6 June, 2017 interviewed Cory prior to the show. I have provided the link here...

https://www.localxpress.ca/local-arts-and-life/songwriter-tetford-gets-a-fresh-start-with-launch-of-new-project-in-the-morning-635952 

He talks about his life in the music business, how his new album evolved and recording during time off from travelling with Alan Doyle and The Beautiful Gypsies. The album was produced by Alan Doyle and features his fellow Beautiful Gypsies band mates Kris MacFarlane, Shehab Illyas and Kendel Carson. 

Cory also did a couple of great videos of interviews on local television shows called Global New Brunswick on 5 June, 2017 and CTV Atlantic News on 13 June, 2017 and circulated them via his social media sites.

The second show was Newfoundland Songwriters in the Round in Toronto on 9 June, 2017 at Cameron House in Toronto. The group of songwriters that participated included Damhnait Doyle, Mallory Johnson, Barry Canning, Chris LeDrew and Cory Tetford. I found a set of nice photographs circulated from the Newfoundland Songwriters in the Round in Toronto posted by a fan on Facebook. I have provided a copy below.

While Cory did a couple of interviews about the album in the local press and on television in Halifax I found very few photographs or bootlegs from the shows in social media feeds (except from the usual source LH). If music fans took photographs and videos they were entirely for personal use and not shared on social media, at least in the musician’s social media feeds. It was great to see music fans go to a show and be right there in the moment with the music. I found a set of nice photographs circulated from the Newfoundland Songwriters in the Round in Toronto posted by a fan on Facebook. I have provided a copy below. 

There is a third show with Cory, and his friends and fellow musicians Paul Lamb, Barry Canning and Chis LeDrew at the Carleton Hotel on 28 June, 2017.

I have included two photographs from Cory's appearance on CTV Atlantic News and circulated by Cory on his official Twitter account. The photographs are from the official CTV Atlantic News Twitter feed. No copyright infringement intended.

Bob Hallett, Great Big Sea And An Update 2017…

Once again the issue of a Great Big Sea reunion was raised on the Online Kitchen Party, A Great Big Sea Community Forum on Facebook and again the fans discussed this issue at length. This is an edited version of the post placed on the page by a fan.

“…My friend and I came up with the idea of letting the fans say goodbye. Open up the entire GBS catalo to online voting by the fans. Each fan can create their own "Great Big Sea Top 40 Countdown" and submit it online. The results would then be tallied, but never revealed publicly. On July 1 (of whatever year we can make this happen), also known as Canada Day, in the nation's capital of Ottawa, Great Big Sea would get back together for one final show - Darrell included - to perform four sets: 40-31, 30-21, 20-11, and 10-1, all as voted on by the fans. At the conclusion of the show, the b'ys would take their final bow and sign off on the paperwork (on stage) to officially call it a career as Great Big Sea. It would be the send off they, and the fans, deserve…”

The post attracted 50 comments. I agree with a number of fans who posted that it is time for fans to move on until the original members of Great Big Sea decide what the future holds for them as a group.

As the Great Big Sea update posts on my blog containing comments made by Bob Hallett on this fan site about the current state of Great Big Sea have continued to be visited on a regular basis over the past couple of years, I decided to put his latest comments here. 

I decided not to include any of the fan discussion or comments that lead Bob Hallett to contribute, as this can be found on the post and Facebook page and for copyright and privacy reasons.

The posts are in Bob Hallett’s own words. I have included a lovely Bobber selfie taken recently on a trip to New York. The selfie is from the official Bob Hallett Twitter account. No copyright infringement intended.

“…The one and only reason GBS is not operating in some fashion is because Sean does not want/has made it very difficult for it to do so. To reiterate, the band is controlled by a NL based corporation, which is owned by myself, Alan & Sean on a three way basis. Sean has made it clear in various exchanges & through various manoeuvres that he wished the band to stop, and has also made it clear that he will actively oppose any other scenarios. Alan has made it clear that he has no desire to legally contend with Sean, and given it is unlikely that we could work with Sean again in his current state of mind, Alan wishes to focus on his solo career. So here we are…

…Also, to be clear, we have never talked about this at all. When we played our last show in Moncton, no one except Sean thought that was it. Nothing has really changed on that front. Contrary to popular belief, there is no big team around the band, it is just the three of us and Louis Thomas, and Sean has not talked to either of us in almost two years. Despite our troubles, GBS is the least complicated band ever…

…Why would we have known? The rest of us did not quit/break up, nor have we subsequently. Sean decided to leave, and immediately sent us letters from his lawyers threatening lawsuits if we did not do whatever it is he wants. We have not done anything, really, other than ignore them. That's pretty well it. To be honest, we are not even clear on what his issues/concerns/demands are anymore, as what he told us at the time and what he has said in various interviews are not the same. It's all bit ridiculous, really…

He told us in the winter of 2012 that he no longer wanted to be a shareholder in the band, and that he wanted to be an employee like Murray & Chris. We agreed to work it out after the tour. On the day of the Orillia concert, while we were on a flight, he tweeted that he was quitting. He did not say a word to us before or after as to why he had made that decision… The truth is a bit weird, but none of this is a secret…”

Musicians And Making A Living In The Digital Age…

For my 400th post and 5 year anniversary of writing my blog I have been inspired to write about a Canadian musician Miranda Mulholland speaking up for artists and musicians working in the digital age...

“…Because the digital distribution of music is not fairly compensating the people who create it, and touring cannot make up the difference”…Miranda Mulholland.

Recently Canadian musician Miranda Mulholland gave a speech “Redefining Success in a Digital Age” at the Economic Club of Canada about the impact of the digital age on artists and musicians including their rights and their ability to make a living from their creative work. Miranda has worked with a huge range of musicians including Alan Doyle And The Beautiful Gypsies and on the television show Republic of Doyle. 

Miranda’s speech was enlightening and her actions of speaking up for artists and musicians inspiring. Despite Miranda’s extensive resume she states that like many other artists and musicians in Canada (and around the world) they are unable to make an adequate living in the digital age even after monetizing everything they can. 

Miranda offers some really constructive advice to artists and musicians, fans, industry representatives, and the government that will help creators make more viable livings now and in the future. 

The speech was recapped in an article by an arts critic from the Canadian newspaper The Globe and Mail title “What happens when we starve our artists". I have provided a link to the article here for those music fans interested. 

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/music/what-happens-when-we-starve-our-artists/article35126623/

Miranda’s speech in full is available from her official webpage. I have provided a link to the site here for those fans interested.  

mirandamulholland.ca/advocacy 

I have copied a few paragraphs that relate to fans for example, how music services we use like YouTube and touring impacts on artists and musicians and how our actions can improve their creative work in the future. The photograph is from the official Twitter account of Miranda Mulholland. No copyright infringement intended. 

As a consumer we can assist artists and musicians by...

“There are a number of best practices that every streaming service gives to artists and labels. These are ways that they want artists to reach out to their fanbase that they have built and to plug into the system. Fair enough. Make it easier for your favourite artists.

Here are some FREE ways to help.

- Be a tastemaker. Create playlists for events, road trips, friend’s birthday’s. Add your favourite artists.

- Write reviews and rate. Getting reviews and ratings helps shift algorithms in favour of artists, helps their work come up as “things you might like” and can give your favourite artists an edge in the very competitive granting and funding races.

Here are some PRETTY CHEAP ways to help.

- If you think you’re going to buy a record or you’ve been tempted by a great track in advance of its release, buy the record on release day. This can accelerate an album onto the front page of whatever service you use to buy music, which is an excellent advertisement.

- Buy merchandise. Show off your band love with a sweet t-shirt, poster, tickets. Go to live shows!

- If you love an album or a book, buy it and buy one to give to a friend. 

- Subscribe to a music service. For the price of 1 album a month, you not only get millions of songs at your fingertips with no ads, but you also are making a difference. The revenue gap between ad based services and their subscriber versions is significant.(4)…"

We as fans can also be aware of the music services we use such as YouTube and Google and how touring impacts on artists and musicians…

"Let’s look at the biggest music service in the world – YouTube. Did you know that 82% of YouTube users use it for music? (3) It is supported by advertising and it is based on user uploaded content. But wait. Running a commercial site based on unauthorized uploading of copyrighted music is illegal, right?

YouTube says, it isn’t our fault – we are just the shop window. We didn’t put the items in the window, so we are not accountable for them. We are a passive intermediary. We are not liable for this massive copyright infringement.

But – once again – wait. A top brass at Google just bragged that “80% of all watch time is recommended by YouTube.”  He explained that “Everybody thinks that all the music that’s being listened to and watched is by search.”  But it isn’t, and in his words, “that’s a really important and powerful thing.”.

This means that YouTube actively directs consumers. This doesn’t seem all that passive to me. Zero accountability.

And when asked about the problem of low payments to artists, a Google executive said:
“It's important to note that on the concerns that have been flagged, there's no consensus even amongst the artistic community about the impacts of streaming and what they actually think about it or what they don't think about it. Every single time I hear a newspaper article about the reduction in royalty rates they're getting from streaming, I'll see another artist who basically says, “well, actually my royalty rates are pretty good”.

Well here’s a consensus. Your rates are the lowest in the world! Your revenue is built on the backs of other people’s talent and work and you refuse to acknowledge it.

Accountability means acknowledging value and compensating for it.

Here’s another solution musicians are presented with - Touring. So is Touring the Answer?

There are a lot of positives about touring, and you learn to find the bits you enjoy and make the most of them, but still – it’s work. Since the devaluation of music that has occurred in this new era of free, fans are more unwilling to pay for live music and the market is saturated with bands trying to eke out a living on the road.

Touring is also difficult for many artists. The framework doesn’t exist to support some genres - like hip-hop; it is unkind to people with families, to women. Loreena McKennitt - an artist/entrepreneur hero of mine, said that for artists like herself, touring was always a loss leader in order to promote her recordings. That has become entirely unsustainable.

She also points out that we should not be misled by equating fame with business viability as there are many famous people through the new technologies who are still unable to make a living….”

Piracy And The Impact On Emerging Artists…

“… it's a massive battle to get the music down once it's been uploaded, one emerging artists often can't afford. With a very conservative estimate of 10% of music royalties lost to piracy (borrowing from this analysis for movies), the loss of royalties on one album sale for someone making $40,000 a year would be the equivalent to Katy Perry losing at least $13.5 million of the $135 million she made last year…”

I am always amazed at how music fans continue to share bootlegged and pirated music over official videos on social media while expressing their love and admiration for their favourite artists and musicians. Despite all the publicity about the impact of digital technology and piracy some music fans continue to share illegal content without realising or caring how much these actions may actually hurt an artist or musician they profess to love.

I found this really interesting article published in Forbes magazine titled “How Online Pirary Hurts Emerging Artists” by Nelson Granados published on 1 February, 2016 about the impact of piracy on emerging artists including musicians. Even though this article was published last year in 2016 and the issue of piracy has been discussed extensively in the media by anti-piracy activists, the industry and the artists and musicians themselves there are still many music fans who don’t association piracy with stealing or are aware of how their actions affect others.

“What people don't realize is that this is someone's livelihood and illegally downloading music is essentially stealing their hard work. The artist isn't compensated, so all the life savings that they spend to make the music they put out isn't recuperated. What I say to the fans is that we need YOU to be our partners and buy the music. If you love the artist or band, buy it. If you don't have the money to buy it, then you have other avenues of listening these days that AT LEAST pays them something, but don't just take their hard work.” Kimberly James, President of indie label CBM Records.

The article offers fans some practical advice on how to help their favourite artists and musicians make a living and continue on with their creative work. And while this article writes about piracy the following statement also applies to pirated and bootlegged material load up onto YouTube…

“Ironically, when you download or stream from a pirate site, pirates profit from online ads or subscriptions. So while you are saving a few dollars, you are also effectively taking away an artist's well deserved gains and re-directing them into the coffers of pirates and criminals. By using legal sites, you can stop being an accomplice to organized crime and instead give back to the artists who often live on the margin to chase their dream and entertain you.”

“How Online Piracy Hurts Emerging Artists” by Nelson Granados published in Forbes.com on 1 February, 2016. I have shared the article via my Google + page. The article has been edited for copyright reasons.

If you download or stream from pirate sites, think twice. Piracy hurts emerging artists as much as established artists, but the relative damage could be worse. If you are insensitive to stealing from the rich and famous, I am hoping to touch your heart by demonstrating how piracy could hurt up and coming artists even more. If you download or stream from pirate sites, think twice. Piracy hurts emerging artists as much as established artists, but the relative damage could be worse. If you are insensitive to stealing from the rich and famous, I am hoping to touch your heart by demonstrating how piracy could hurt up and coming artists even more.

The impact of piracy on established artists is often cited because it's easier to put a number to it. For example, Hollywood studios have the financial backing to track illegal downloads and streams, and with those numbers I have estimated losses in the hundreds of millions of dollars. But the less documented damage extends far beyond the "red carpet", to emerging artists, especially those who are on the verge of making it.

Keith Kupferschmid, CEO of the Copyright Alliance, states: “Piracy arguably hurts independent creators who are struggling to make it – including photographers, film producers, musicians, and app developers – more than it harms established artists. Independent creators are striving to earn a livelihood and make a career. When they are pirated they lose essential income, they lose confidence, and the lost income prevents them from re-investing in their creative work.”

For example, in the music industry, albums can cost thousands of dollars to produce and, like any other form of entertainment, they should not come for free. Kimberly James, President of indie label CBM Records, says within two hours of releasing music she has found it illegally downloaded on hundreds of websites. “There actually isn't any less incentive for an up and coming artist's music to be pirated than a famous artist. Pirates scour the web in a „just in case they make it scenario to take artists, music and profit illegally, often in countries where we have no legal grounding to sue them.”

She says it's a massive battle to get the music down once it's been uploaded, one emerging artists often can't afford. With a very conservative estimate of 10% of music royalties lost to piracy (borrowing from this analysis for movies), the loss of royalties on one album sale for someone making $40,000 a year would be the equivalent to Katy Perry losing at least $13.5 million of the $135 million she made last year.

James adds: “What people don't realize is that this is someone's livelihood and illegally downloading music is essentially stealing their hard work. The artist isn't compensated, so all the life savings that they spend to make the music they put out isn't recuperated. What I say to the fans is that we need YOU to be our partners and buy the music. If you love the artist or band, buy it. If you don't have the money to buy it, then you have other avenues of listening these days that AT LEAST pays them something, but don't just take their hard work.”

To fight back against internet piracy, CBM Records joined forces with #ProtectOurFutures, which launched in July 2015 to raise awareness about internet safety and the damage of piracy on artists. A spokesperson says: “What many people don't realize is that many up and coming artists are one missed paycheck away from homelessness. It's already difficult for an artist to make a living through recording, performing, and selling their works, especially independently. So how unfair is it that they then have to turn around and worry that their music is being illegally downloaded?” Digital tech expert Eric Feinberg, who selflessly funds #ProtectOurFutures, adds: “If we do not address and fix piracy many artists will not be able to make a living. And without artists there is no audience.”….

On January 30, emerging musicians came together online to stream a concert to benefit the Paris terror attack victims (watch the concert here). Special tribute was given to Nohemi Gonzalez, the student at California State University, Long Beach, who was spending a semester at the Strate School of Design in Paris last fall. These artists are donating some of their livelihood for an important charitable cause, recognizing the importance of giving back.

Ironically, when you download or stream from a pirate site, pirates profit from online ads or subscriptions. So while you are saving a few dollars, you are also effectively taking away an artist's well deserved gains and re-directing them into the coffers of pirates and criminals. By using legal sites, you can stop being an accomplice to organized crime and instead give back to the artists who often live on the margin to chase their dream and entertain you.

Please comment, and please share with others who may not realize the unintended damage to artists from using pirate sites.