SXSW

SXSW PanelPicker Now Open For Voting

Even though summer is still in full swing, we’re already looking ahead to 2015 and our annual springtime sojourn to Austin for the South By Southwest annual music, film, and interactive conference. It’s always a jam-packed week of great music and important conversations, and we’re excited to be part of the action once again.

Every year, SXSW offers the public a chance to weigh in on the kinds of programming choices they’d like to see at the conference through their PanelPicker online tool. There’s a lot of great proposals to choose from; below, we’ve got a handful of panel proposals for which you might consider casting a vote.

South by Southwest 2014 is just around the corner, and as always FMC will be well-represented at the event with collaborations, presentations and of course, rocking out! The team will be all over the music festival and some of the interactive festival. FMC staff, boards and buds will cover pretty much every aspect of today’s music biz on panels, presentations, meet ups and even a film.

Wondering where you can catch up with FMC in Austin? Here’s a list of events and panels of particular interest:

Get expert advice on health-care issues with Hannah Byam (Events & Special Projects at FMC) and other professionals at “Artists and the Affordable Care Act: Get Answers, Get Covered,” a drop-in workshop focusing insurance and health care for musicans on Thursday, March 13th from 3:30-6.

Interim Executive Director, Casey Rae will moderate a panel exploring the latest approaches to copyright protection online. “New Adventures in Copyright Enforcement” takes place on Friday, March 14th from 2-3:30.

… and if you’re headed to SXSW Film, you can see our Director of Programs Jean Cook performing in the music-film, Pulp, on Wednesday, March 12th at 7 pm.

Read on for the full schedule of appearances and visit our SXSW page for a full detailed list of events to look out for.

FMC at South by Southwest 2014

March 8, 2014 - 9:00am - March 16, 2014 - 11:59pm

It’s that time of year again! South by Southwest 2014 is just a few weeks away and FMC is ready to rock it. If you’re in Austin at SXSW anytime from March 8-16, be sure to track us down: Michael Bracy mbracy [at] btbv [dot] com Hannah Byam hannah [at] futureofmusic [dot] org Jean Cook jean [at] futureofmusic [dot] org Alex Maiolo alex [at] futureofmusic [dot] org Casey Rae casey [at] futureofmusic [dot] org read more

SXSW: Here's what Federal Policy Has To Do With Music

By Josh Gross

Boise Weekly

March 14, 2013

Music and government may not seem like they have much in common. But four panelists did their best to convince an audience at SXSW that they were, in fact, hopelessly intertwined.

“These issues are breathtakingly complicated,” said the panel’s moderator, Michael Bracy, policy director at the Future of Music Coalition. “How do you build a regulatory structure for a market that is changing so rapidly?” read more

FMC at SXSW 2013

Future of Music Coalition is well-represented this week in Austin at the annual SXSW Music Conference. Of particular note:

Michael Bracy will be hosting an official panel called “Navigating Washington in 2013” featuring FCC Commisioner Jessica Rosenworcel. The panel takes place at 5 pm on Wednesday. This is an exciting opportunity for SXSW attendees to connect with influential policymakers and get an inside view of how the policies that impact musicians are made.

Jean Cook will join Brian Zisk as a panelist on the topic of “Fair Play: Music Startups and Artists” on Tuesday at 5.

We’ll also be helping Brown Paper Tickets kick off their “Make Radio Challenge” with tacos, bloody marys, and some amazing artists and activists talking about the awesome opportunities offered by Low Power FM, starting at 11 AM on Tuesday.

And if you’d like to just meet up with FMC staff for drinks, Michael Bracy & Jean Cook will be hanging out at Ginger Man Thursday evening (with music curated by Jon Langford). Read on for the full schedule of appearances by FMC Staff, Board, and Advisory Board members!

Mythbusting Part 4: Are Bands Monetizing their Brand?

In December, we took a data-driven look at a handful of common assumptions about how musicians make money: that they’re rich; that they make all of their money from touring; and that they don’t make any money selling records. read more

Mythbusting Part 3: Do Musicians Make Any Money from Selling Recordings?

Last week, we launched a series of blog posts that are using Artist Revenue Streams to examine some of the common assumptions about musicians and income.

In part 3, we’re looking at the assumption that, in a post-Napster world, musicians don’t make any money from selling music. As with the other perceptions, there’s a grain of truth in this, based on the simple fact that income from the sales of sound recordings in the traditional sense – sales of physical goods in retail stores – has changed drasticallly in the past ten years. There are fewer retail stores, more online ways to get music for free and, according to the RIAA’s data, a steady decline in the dollar amount of CDs shipped from 2004 to 2010.

But that’s not the entire picture.

In March of this year, Artist Revenue Streams co-directors Kristin Thomson and Jean Cook participated in a panel at South by Southwest called Brass in Pocket: Accessing More Musician Income. Drawing upon data collected through the Artist Revenue Streams project and the panelists’ personal experience, they talked about a handful common assumptions and myths about how musicians make money.

This week, the ARS team is expanding on the SXSW panel topic through a series of posts.

We’re starting by tackling the assumption that musicians are rich. This is a feeling that is reinforced by shows like MTV Cribs, by annual lists from outlets like Forbes and Billboard that publish figures about the most well-paid musicians, and even by musicians themselves who reference luxury brands in their lyrics, or embrace high-priced lifestyles. Naturally, the public begins to assume that musicians – especially chart-topping, highly visible ones – are rich, based largely on what they see on stage, read about online, or hear on the radio. And even when the musicians aren’t rich, some embrace the stereotype because it adds to their own brand’s value.

There are some musicians who are doing very well financially (at least in gross earnings), and we applaud their success. But, just like the US population, there are very few at the top. While there are a handful of musicians who are wealthy, the vast majority of working musicians in the US are middle class earners.

Helping Musicians Make Money [SXSW]

By Brandon McFarland

turnstyle

March 19, 2012

Ever wonder what the living wage is for a jazz band leader living in London? Or how about a cello player in an orchestra? Many of these musician gigs don’t win a popularity contest when it comes to the public’s perception of the music industry. There are tons of bedroom producers and garage bands that can generate a short-lived buzz, but it takes years of practice and formal education to develop a stable stream of income for the average musician. Luckily, they’ve got the Future of Music Coalition looking out for them.

At SXSW music festival, money talks abounds

By Todd Martens

LA Times

March 20, 2012

…There seem to be more ways than ever for the independent artist to bring in cash. The Future of Music Coalition, an artist lobbying group, announced during SXSW the results of two years of research into how musicians make money. Jean Cook, one of the architects of the project, said the research revealed 42 potential music revenue sources. No single artist is, of course, benefiting from all 42. A classical artist, for instance, may have access to only two or three, she said. But a singer-songwriter may be able to pull from as many as 25 revenue streams. read more

SXSW

SXSW PanelPicker Now Open For Voting

FMC at SXSW 2014

FMC at South by Southwest 2014

SXSW: Here's what Federal Policy Has To Do With Music

FMC at SXSW 2013

read more

Mythbusting Part 4: Are Bands Monetizing their Brand?

Mythbusting Part 3: Do Musicians Make Any Money from Selling Recordings?

Putting Common Assumptions About How Musicians Make Money to the Truthiness Test

Helping Musicians Make Money [SXSW]

At SXSW music festival, money talks abounds

Up Front

Featured Articles

Fact Sheets

Search By Issue