Marketing Pop Culture

NEA's first national profile of professional artists

As was reported in yesterday's NY Times, there are "[m]ore Americans [who] identify their primary occupation as artist than as lawyer, doctor, police officer or farm worker."

Based on the 2005 census, here are some stats:

• Nearly 2 million Americans hold primary jobs that fit the census' definition of artist
• Combined income was $70 billion, with a median income of $34,800
• Percentage of black, Hispanic and Asian artists is bigger among younger ones
• For those under 35, 80% of the writers are white
• Women outnumber men only among dancers, designers and writers
• 60% of professional photographers are men, BUT 60% under 35 are women
• Number of artists has grown fastest in the West and South, mirroring the population in general
• States with the most artists per capita: NY, CA, MA, VT, CO
• Most actors per capita: CA
• Proportion of black artists remained unchanged at %5, same as in 1990
• Metro area with highest proportion of artists in the workforce: SF
• More than 1 in 4 artists live in CA and NY
• Median incomes in 2005: $42,000 for men and $27,300 for women
• However artists make more than the national median income of $30,100

Read the full article here.

Friday, June 13: Stephanie McKay at Central Park Summerstage

My friend Stephanie brings her powerful vocals and infectious brew of soul and funk to bear to kick off Summerstage's 2008 season tomorrow night.  The date's in support of her forthcoming album "Tell It Like It Is," which is already gaining buzz in Europe.  I expect this show to even better than the two shows she sold out at the Blue Note this past March.

One more thing: She's opening for one of the true legends of music, the great Mavis Staples. So it should be a fantastic night of music.

Additional links:

• Stephanie McKay official site
• Stephanie on MySpace
• Central Park Summerstage (they've got a great season this year!)

NY Times on J*Davey

Further reinforcing my point of a cultural shift:

When J*Davey first appeared three years ago, it presaged a revival of interest in the intersections between electro and soul. A widely disseminated demo led to a string of dates opening for Prince and a major-label deal with a division of Warner Brothers. No album arrived, but in the time since, the art-soul singer Santogold has received critical approbation, and Janelle Monáe, an eccentric OutKast affiliate, has been signed by Sean Combs to his Bad Boy Records. Suddenly the landscape for a new-wave-meets-R&B band doesn’t seem so bleak.

Read the full review here

Additional link(s):

• J*Davey web site
• J*Davey on MySpace

Keep your (brand) promise, Barack

From Barack Obama's remarks last night:

Sixteen months have passed since we first stood together on the steps of the Old State Capitol in Springfield, Illinois.  Thousands of miles have been traveled.  Millions of voices have been heard.  And because of what you said – because you decided that change must come to Washington; because you believed that this year must be different than all the rest; because you chose to listen not to your doubts or your fears but to your greatest hopes and highest aspirations, tonight we mark the end of one historic journey with the beginning of another – a journey that will bring a new and better day to America.  Tonight, I can stand before you and say that I will be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States.

Barack's change brand continues to capture imaginations.  He is now one step closer to becoming the first African American to hold the presidency of the United States.  Truly we're at the "end of one historic journey with the beginning of another".  The current debate now is who he picks for a running mate.  More to the point: Should he pick Hillary?  I believe he need look no further than his own brand for the answer.  He's about change.  She's not.  Peep this:

“It’s backward looking to pick a Clinton at this point — and he’s all about forward looking, to being about change,” said Matt Bennett, a co-founder of Third Way, a moderate Democratic organization. “He’s all about a fundamentally new kind of politics. Picking a Clinton is by definition backward looking, and I just don’t think he wants that.”

More than angering Clinton and all of her supporters, Obama should focus on keeping the promise he made to the people who've supported him thusfar.  He and his team have to be good brand stewards.  Noah Brier is illustrating the truism that brands are a set of perceptions in the minds of consumers.  To align himself with her is--and, yes, this is an opinion I share--to irreparably break and damage his brand promise.

Besides, he's got a lot of options that will help him keep and strengthen his brand.

Bo Diddley, 1928 - 2008

By now, it's no news to most of you and rock 'n' roll pioneer Bo Diddley passed away yesterday at the age of 79.  There's been a lot written about his legacy, and his impact on four decades of musicians.  I had the pleasure and honor of talking about his legacy and his impact on music on NPR today.  It's a quick 8 minute listen.

Click here for the interview.

More coverage and links over at Bold As Love.

Rock is the new Black

So writes Jim Farber of the NY Daily News, as he gets into the whys of the mainstreaming of Black rock:

So, why are such stunning changes happening now?

Observers cite the same factor that has had the greatest impact on culture in general: the Internet. With digital downloads, "people now hear music before they see it," [The Black Rock Coalition's Earl] Douglass says. "They're not necessarily putting a face to it. All that matters is if it's a good song."

"Culture has become this big department store," says ["Passing Strange" creator] Stew. "You can go to a Web site and buy anything. Kids now will grab stuff they've never even heard of, just based on the name or the description."

And this download-mad shop-a-thon has changed the very notion of what's marketable.

Thanks to Carla Hall for the heads up.  Gotta love Twitter!

Even marketers take a day off

No marketing today.  No twittering.  Just this quick blog entry.  I definitely spent all day away from computers and other wireless devices.  I did, however, spend a lot of time in front of the grill serving up some righteous Q.  Before all that, we had a quick trip to a nearby playground to let the kids run through the sprinkler.  As you can see, they had some good, low-tech fun.

Happy Memorial Day, all!

Holiday weekend reading

If I weren't a dad, then the long weekend could be one of going out to eat, taking in a movie or two, seeing friends, some indie music and kicking back with a cigar and a good book.  I'd be content to end up where the day takes me.  As you can gather, that probably won't be the case.

However, there are two books that I'd like to make dents in.  The first is Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff's Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies.  As many of you know, Li and Bernoff are bloggers and Forrester analysts who have been following social media and its impact on business for some time.  This book is designed to help corporate exec understand and thrive in a world that's been made over by social media.  Stay tuned for my notes and thoughts on this one.

The second book that I'm looking forward to is Grant McCracken's new work: Transformations: Identity Construction in Contemporary Culture.  Many of you know that I'm a big fan of Grants, both for the writing he does over at his blog and because of his previous book, Flock and Flow: Predicting and Managing Change in a Dynamic Marketplace (2006).  You can check out the posts I did on the book, as well as the interview he and I did by clicking here.

I know: I'm being ambitious.  Will let you know how I made out early next week.

links for 2008-05-22

• Nas changes name of Nigger: 'The people will always know what the real title of this album is and what to call it'
  (tags: Nas hip+hop)
• Mass Appeal Folds
  The third niche music publication this year.  Tells you a lot about the business when a 12-yr old pub with 100K circulation can't make it.
  (tags: publishing hip+hop)
• Q-Tip Taps Radiohead's Main Man
  Q-Tip will work with producer Nigel Goodrich for his next album.  Should make for an interesting sound
  (tags: hip+hop Radiohead)
• Napster Goes DRM-Free
  6 million tracks with no DRM!  Yay!
  (tags: napster music+business music+downloads music2.0)
• Pitchfork hires 'independent lifestyle communications and brand agency'
  Thanks to The Daily Swam for the headsup here.
  (tags: pitchfork marketing music)
• Back to the 90s: Microsoft to bribe users to use Live Search (Updated)
  "Instead of making something really useful, let's appeal to peoples' basic greed and pay them to use our product.  That way, we can market the payola, not the service"
  (tags: Microsoft)

links for 2008-05-21

• Is Facebook On The Way Down? Depends On Who You Ask
  Once again, numbers can be used to prove either side of an argument
  (tags: facebook)