If you’re in LA this week, be sure to check J*Davey  out at The Roxy this Saturday, May 29!

Continuing with Mr. D’leau we get a little bit deeper on how J*Davey made things happen, changes in the music industry, and how it is now being on a major label.

Part 2

How did J Davey succeed?

Being ahead of the curve

What changes when you’re on a label?

The longevity of music

*BONUS:  Check out the video for the track Mr. Mister that he spoke of earlier in the interview.

My schedule is to post every Tuesday with a musing, and post every Thursday with an interview…

Well today, I don’t feel like it.

I was going to write an entire post on race and racism and stuff…but that’s a lot of work.  It takes time to really flesh out an argument, and make it interesting, and put up some video and pictures for you all to look at.

But I don’t have the energy right now.  I got a lot of other stuff to do.

So instead…I want to give you some free music!

If you’ve been following me on Twitter, then you may know that every once in a while I would give people free music mixes to listen as my appreciation to those following me and linking with me…

So!

Mix #1

Mix #2

Mix #3

Mix #4

Enjoy!

Before  I officially started this site I was just running around with my Flip-mino camera interviewing other artists and profiling my “epic adventures” as I liked to call them.  Before I knew it I was just getting more and more artists around me to interview.

As it turned out a bunch of close friends of mine knew Brook and Miss Jack.  I couldn’t wait to meet them one day.  Low and behold, one of my best friends was invited to the studio to hear what they had finished for their album.  I ended up at their studio around December of ’08 and heard the basic  “first draft” you could say of the album.  There was some MIND BLOWING stuff on there. All I can really tell you is that I was transported into another world listening to it.  Some of it ended up on Boudoir Synema.  I emailed their manager the next day and said “This is going to change the world.”  Soon after that I’d see Brook and Miss Jack around a bunch of other places.   I dropped in their studio on occasion, and we’d talk for probably hours about music, the industry, and all that.  I told them I did interviews.  Man if I only had my camera around for some of those conversations…

Brook is one of those guys that you really can’t get enough of.  He’s a bit more serious on camera but I really think if he didn’t do music he’d write comedic films.  He’s so sharp and quick witted, I can barely keep up.  His whole personality reflects his production style:  it feels familiar, but completely unique.  He’s that guy who you can feel comfortable around, but you know there’s no one else like him.  It’s the unique personalities and perspectives that really create stand-out material.

Sometime around July of ’09 I connected with Brook to profile him as a producer and get a more in depth look at his process.  I hit the record button, and let the good times roll.  Here’s part 1 of 3

Part 1

What’s up with the album?

His story

How J*Davey formed

Growing as a musician

His influences and style

Here’s one of the tracks I distinctly remember from that ’08 session…

And if you don’t have Boudoir Synema, get with the program!

Yesterday jazz legend Hank Jones passed away.  I don’t know his work in detail, but I’ve heard recordings he was on.  He died at 91 years old.  Almost 70 of those 91 years were spent having a career as a musician.  So few musicians and artists can ever brag to have such a career.

Usually, the artists with the shortest shelf lives are Pop Artists.   “Pop” is supposed to be short for “Popular”.  Meaning, the artist is extremely well recognized.  The Beatles were Pop.  Bob Dylan was Pop.  Stevie Wonder was Pop.  Look at the original We Are The World video.  All those legendary artists were considered Pop, as in popular.  Their name created an instant sensation when spoken.  If they were doing a show, it was going to be packed without question.

Today, Pop has become 2 things- a genre of music, and the definition of a short career.  When you hear a “Pop” song, it’s clear.  Sounds are distinctly mixed a certain way.   It’s a formula dedicated to making the song popular.  It has a generic sound that the majority of people like (or at least, they’re supposed to like).  Pop also denotes the career span.  When something physically “pops”, it’s a small explosion.  It’s quick.  Just as soon as it happens, it’s gone.  The effects of it don’t really last that long.  Think of the Spice Girls.  Backstreet Boys.  NSYNC.  Britney Spears.  All of those acts had a quick rise to the top, they hit hard, and then cash out.  That’s what pop acts were meant to be.  These days the “image” is bigger than the actual talent.  If they’re really talented (and smart) they lay low for a while, maybe doing shows and concerts, until the BIG EVENT happens and they return for stardom.  The media crowds around them for the drop of their album!  And when the single hits, oh the rapture!  Stores are flooded with fans, people screaming their name.  This is the fame that most people want as an artist.

With today’s music market, Pop acts seem to be the new standard.  Labels don’t have time or money to dedicate to someone to grow their career.  You come out, hit hard, and if you disappear, who cares?  Just go out and make that money, hoe…I mean, slave…I mean, artist.

Pop acts are the highest risk stock.  You can be a popular one hit wonder.  Or you can have adoring fans, a small career…or you can push into legendary status if you can sustain the game.  Pop music’s generic sound is easy to recreate, that’s why so many pop acts sound similar.  That’s also why it’s very hard to stand out and be remembered.

Let’s not forget the criteria- reputation, skill, fan base, and potential longevity.

LOW RISK

Michael Jackson

“But Merc80,  he’s dead!“

First off, this article by Billboard.

Some key quotes…

-Jackson’s solo album sales in the United States skyrocketed from 10,000 copies in the week before his death to 422,000 in the week ended June 28, according to Nielsen SoundScan…During the same period, U.S. track downloads surged from about 48,000 copies to 2.6 million.

- “On Friday morning, I got out of bed and went straight to my computer to order Jackson product,” says Dedry Jones, owner of indie retailer the Music Experience in Chicago. ” I didn’t care about old price/new price. People aren’t asking price on Jackson. They are just buying it.”

By the end of 2009, 6 months after his death, he sold about 31 million worldwide. Sony and the MJ estate have plans to roll out 10 albums over the next 7 years of unreleased & remixed material.  The Estate is guaranteed $200 million.  I can bet they’ll get more than that.  We’re just talking about albums.  If we start on DVDs (movies, music videos) or any other merchandise…Oh and Jackson 5 sales.

You’re talking about a time where music is downloaded and can be gotten pretty much for free, and went 30x platinum. 40 years solid in popular music.   At least 4 generations who grew up on his music, and a new generation of kids who even cried when he passed on.

HE SHUT DOWN GOOGLE!

He was crowned the King of Pop, and it’s gonna stay that way for a very long time.

Madonna

Her albums sales have fallen over the past few years, but that’s to be expected since you can get things for free off the net.  She’s 51, and still looks good.  No she can’t sing all that well, but she has more stage presence and hits than you can quantify.  Her fans are NOT going anywhere any time soon.  Get some good production on there, and throw her on a tour, and money is getting made.  Really when I think of a pop artist as “image”, Madonna is that person.  She’s been controversial.  It may be time for her to consider moving on, but if she announces a “final tour”, watch all things related to Madonna spike.  Get your investment money ready.

Justin Timberlake

Never thought I’d admit it, but this guy has sang with more soul and charisma than half the R&B cats out.  He’s made plenty of dance hits.  As long as he keeps grade A production, good writing, and doesn’t try to get too trendy, he’s a winner.  At this point I think it’s time for him to mature into more emotion filled songs.  Otherwise, get some Timbaland/ Neptunes production to back him, it’s gonna make hits.  Get that through a whole album with some versatility, he’ll win.

Pink

In one of my earlier posts I poked some fun at Pink cause I really have never understood how she has gotten such a following to the point where just last year she sold out the Staples Center.  Luckily the homie Nova put me on and sent me some of her tracks.  Now I get it. She can sing.  She can weave in and out of just about any style.  She has attitude.  Her songs have great production and a lot of emotion.  Every one of her albums has been multi-platinum.  She’s probably the last of the Alanis Morissette types, who sing with the kind of emotion that people believe in.  She can engage the audience with an aerial acrobat show, or probably even just sing with an acoustic guitar.  Makes  sense to me now.  Put ya money in on this one.

Medium Risk

Lady Gaga

When I asked who was the hottest pop acts on Twitter, Gaga was named the most.  She can sing, play piano.  It’s clear she has a base of real talent.  She’s released two albums, and has reached over 1 billion views on YouTube.  If you invest in the next album it’s going platinum easy.  But thereafter, you’ll have to invest on a case by case basis cause her longevity is a real question to me.  By her own admission, her styling is done by a team.  Well most Pop acts have their images created by some kind of imaging team.  If something goes wrong withing that team, or she continues looking crazy, after a while it’s just going to look absurd.  Her videos have been crazy, then gotten to the point of just being confusing.  She needs to switch it up.  Release some heartfelt ballads.  Let the audience REALLY be able to identify with you.  If she drops something that forces people into a space of emotion, she will never have a fan leave her side.  But until then, she only has 2 albums to show for herself and extremely fast ascension to the top of the public sphere.  She lost the Album of the Year Grammy to Taylor Swift last year.  Maybe that will motivate her to make some undeniable music on all fronts.  If she goes away and comes back different, then she’ll be a real long term investment.

Jay-Z

After Glastonbury it’s clear, Jay-Z is now a worldwide artist.  His last album had a very tight campaign that had him selling strong out the gate.  Now maybe it was just me, but I wasn’t really feeling the last album.  Jay has an ebb and flow where one album is great, and another is OK.  He clearly has the skill, but by his own admission the albums tend to be made quickly.  If he takes some serious time to craft an album, maybe even actually write down his lyrics, he can create at least 2 more masterpieces.  Either way, his fan base is dedicated.  Don’t let the next album be weak though, or else he’s falling straight to high risk.

Eminem

You usually have two guarantees with Eminem: He’s going to rhyme his ass off, and he’s going to go platinum.  Fan base is dedicated, and skill wise no one is really matching him.  I do think his psycho, drug crazed rants are going to have to come to an end.  After a while the subject matter is predictable which make his albums stagnant.  What’s not predictable is what the hell pattern he’ll choose to say it in.  I think Em has at least 1 or two good ones left in his bag.  Otherwise, he needs to find a way to reinvent himself to remain a long term investment.

Black Eyed Peas

It’s very clear what the agenda was once they reached Interscope: go Pop or die.  Fergie was added for the Pop flavor, and boom…platinum plaques.  Their albums as the wholesome hippie-ish, positive emcees didn’t reach platinum level…probably not even gold.  Now, you’d never even think they were the same guys that did “Fallin Up”.  Their last two albums still had a Hip Hop feel..now they are completely electro.  Will I Am doesn’t even spin Hip Hop records when he DJs now.  But the craziness of the sound and stage performances are pushing that Lady Gaga edge of surrealness, and at some point that’s going to have to come to the E.N.D. (pun intended).  They seem to reinvent themselves every album, which makes you wonder what they really stand for.  They have worldwide sales and plenty of endorsements thanks to Will’s business savvy.  But if their next album gets gimmicky, then it might be time to pull the plug.

Kanye West

Say what you want about his character, the dude came out swinging in ’03 and has dominated the scene to the point where he was able to do a world tour in stadiums.  The dude has pushed envelopes creatively.  He took something as played out as autotune and reinvented it, then went back to Jay Z sayin he should make a song dissing autotune,  and then put himself on the chopping block!  Since the Taylor Swift fiasco, he was embarrassed terribly, even gettin called a jackass by Obama!  But when it comes down to it, people are waiting to see what he’s gonna do next.  He’s got a dedicated base that he has connected to emotionally, and they’re going to support him no matter what. He’ll go platinum out the gate.  But lately, he’s been very strange…very kooky. Pushing that high fashion, couture, Gaga edge.  I want the old Kanye back.  He’s been smart, laying low, probably working hard on beats and creating a new style.  I think he needs to go back to the roots of the boom bap, throw a lil  twist on it, and son all the doubters.  As long as he doesn’t talk too much in public he’ll be fine, otherwise, he’s got a serious balancing act to pull.

High Risk

Justin Bieber

Every record labels dream.  A teeny bop sensation.  A cute, prepubescent boy who can sing and dance..and he’s White!?  Cha-ching!  Trending topic on Twitter every day.  He’s had one EP, and one full album.  Well cash in and cash RIGHT OUT.  The EP and album have gone Platinum each.   That’s cool.  But by the time he makes another album, his demographic will have gotten older, which means half of them will lose interest once he’s no longer cool.  Then he’ll have to face the other trials that plague child singers if he wants a career: voice changing and looks changing.  Then he’s gonna have to have great production,  great promotion, singles that catch fire, and all that from here on out.  Just put some money on him now so that his next album will do well, take the money, and run.  If there’s one mistake on his next album, he’ll be chopped to bits.

Taylor Swift

Taylor was also named as being hot along with Gaga.  Well yes she won a Grammy over Gaga last year, but I don’t think she has the true respect.  She’s been around since ’06.  Albums have gone platinum.  Bob Lefsetz is a guy with great insight on the industry.   He wrote frequently how industry insiders said she couldn’t sing.  Taylor reached out to Lefsetz and defended her authenticity.  He stepped back, talked to her, and even said he really believe in her heart.  But it was clear during the Grammys this year, Taylor really can’t sing well.  For someone who’s such a sensation (which especially happened after the Kanye incident), she didn’t have all that much concrete talent to prove it.  Her next album will have to be blazing or else Gaga fans will have her head.  She better be gettin serious vocal lessons and work her fingers to the bone on that guitar, cause she has a lot to prove.

Mariah Carey

There are very few women singers who have captured people like Mariah.  She can still sing pretty well, at least on record.  Not sure about her live shows.  Somehow she keeps making catchy singles that get radio play, but they all sound the same.  Her sounds seem to have the same format.  She should get back on some ballads, some soulful singing without straining her voice.  All that extra high note stuff, forget it.  Get to the basics, and sing with soul and emotion. She’s been in the game for about 20 years now though, so it shows she’s had longevity already.  Otherwise, her sales seem to drop every year.  I think its because she’s trying too hard to stay in step with the young audience.  She needs to try something different.  Try Jazz like Christina Aguillera did? *shrug*

Janet Jackson

She’s had almost 30 years in the game already.  Her longevity may be up now.  She’s one of the first to really define going from young good girl, to bad girl, to sexy diva.  When that Velvet Rope tour hit the world, she set the new standard for sensuality.  You couldn’t deny it.  Is she a great singer?  No, but she can at least carry a tune.  I mean, are you gonna tell me that “Anytime, Anyplace” is bad singing?  I doubt it.  But as it went along her sales started diminishing.  Once she got with Jermain Dupri she was tryin to be hip.  Wasn’t working.  She doesn’t have the chops to sing ballads.  She should maybe focus back on the Dance and Electro scene (without autotune), hit another album with that, do a tour for her fans (she can still put on a show), and maybe start discovering talent.  Aside from that, I think people have largely lost interest.

Beyonce

Her singing is great.  Yes, she can dance.  But the diva thing is starting to wear off.  She has a fan-base for sure.  But lately it’s like she doesn’t know where to go next.  She goes from Beyonce, to Sasha Fierce, to Honey Bee, to BB Homemaker.  She needs to pick a lane.  Let’s not forget that when B’Day debuted it didn’t receive very good reviews.  She tried to take on being the writer (which is Solange’s forte in my opinion) and producer, and it was completed in just 3 weeks.   So they went to release a “deluxe” edition.  I think if she wants to change things up, she should do a Destiny’s Child reunion.  Get to singing some ballads.  And not ballads like Halo.  I mean instrumental ballads that compete with Susan Boyle, and release them as singles.  She’s entertaining, but I don’t see her setting a standard for music.  Her next album should be done with care and dedication to connecting to the audience and being musically creative.  At this point she seems like she mimics what’s she’s shown.  She needs to blaze musical trails.

Mary J Blige

Mary has come a long way.  At this point, she is a pop artist.  Almost 20 years in.  That’s serious.  But her albums have fallen in sales each year.  Her last album didnt do very well because the lead singles sounded generic.  Autotune?  Mary needs to stop trying to be hip.  And, I’m sure she meant well, but she stepped way out of her lane by trying to cover Whole Lotta Love and Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin.  Very bad idea.  Let’s get back to some soulful, emotional Mary.  Otherwise, she only has one more chance to get it right.

Chris Brown

If there were ever an heir to the Michael Jackson throne, it coulda been him.  His dancing and performing skills were impeccable.  Good looking guy, wholesome persona in public.  Great songs.  Very good singing voice.  And then…well, we all know what happened.  Many have forgiven him, and many have turned him into a joke.  His last album had dismal sales and even worse reviews.  And someone out there made a terrible PR decision to have him sing at boxing match.  Right at the height of his fame it all shattered to pieces.  He’s going to have to do amazing musical and image work too shed that off of him.  Until then…

Rihanna

Rihanna may have a better chance than Chris because she was the victim in the domestic incident, so that works in her image favor.  The image of her battered face shocked the nation and immediately people wanted to hope that she would transcend the incident.  But when her singles leaked, they were lackluster.  She had 2 songs from her last album that struck big, with Rude Boy getting a lot of spins.  Aside from that , what else does she have?  The pop appeal is wearing off.  She’s now doing the extra sexy, rebellious thing.  She doesn’t really have much else to fall back on besides her sex appeal, and after a while it seems like she’s trying too hard. Let’s not forget the nude pics that ruined any image left of her “innocence”.  If she does actually care about the music, she may fair better focusing on that than anything else.  Otherwise, even she is still stained by the night between her and Chris Brown.

Whitney Houston

Her moniker was “The Voice”.

Please watch.

To be fair, this is an excerpt of her 7min performance of the song, the rest of which wasn’t as bad; but, for her to be that bad like a below average amateur!? I’m not going to get into any drug jokes.  It’s actually sad and embarrassing  to see how hard she’s trying to fight through that part of the song.  She needs to call it quits.  Any further investment in her career is a waste of money.  It’s terrible to see such talent fall from grace without a redeeming comeback.  This is a dedicated artist’s worst nightmare.  Granted, it was self induced through her use of drugs, but a similar fall like this can happen to anyone.  A freak accident.  Straining your voice.  Wear and tear on your faculties over time. A disease.   It can be taken away from you and then you are a completely different person.  This isn’t comedy, it’s tragedy at its worst.

When people think of being a star, they want to really be a pop star.  Get on the couch with Oprah.  Get to the point where their name is a recognized brand.  At that point you aren’t just an artist, you’re a corporation.  Everything you do reflects you as a person and everything under you.  But being a pop star as a career is very hard to manage. Someone like Justin Beiber can have his entire career come to an end before he even hits college.  Depending on how well his contracts, sales, and shows are, he could make some millions;  but, he still has years and years ahead of him to make that money stretch.  Chris Brown is barely 22, and before his third album came out his career was staring at completion.  This is a high stakes game, where if stardom is your aim, you may not be able to enjoy it much longer than it started.  You may have a few million to last you if you’re lucky, but you’ll have to do all you can to make it work.  When talking about his career as a comedian, Steve Harvey asked a question to an audience: Would you rather have a great hot meal every Christmas, or a good warm meal everyday?  Hank Jones’ name may not be recognized all over the earth, but he didn’t have to stop playing music for over 70 years.  He probably could have if he wanted to, I’m sure he was living ok.  But he had an entire career he could be dedicated to.  Those in the low risk category here have an undeniable quality of talent and presence that keeps their longevity.  Many acts now are aiming at pop stardom.   As I said earlier, “pop” already speaks of how your career may go.

Be careful what you wish for.

I have no idea when Fusicology started becoming my website of choice when it came to finding out about events.  It might have been sometime around ’04.  I was so happy to find an entire website dedicated to the music and culture that wasn’t “Hollywood”.  It was centered around the people who really cared about having a good time and not being pretentious.

All the things I could ask for!

Well little known to me I would soon meet the founder and owner of Fusicology, Asya Shein.  It was probably around ’05 when I first met her.  I was at a wedding reception party and we were having dinner.  I remember it distinctly because I believe Rhettmatic and J Rocc was spinning that night and Asya told me she was going to be heading there.  I was slightly jealous because J Dilla and Slum Village were supposed to be there.  Anyway, we chopped it up briefly.  She was real cool.  She talked about how much she loves music, especially House.  About another year later I saw her at an event and someone said “Oh yeah that’s Asya, she owns Fusicology.”  I was like “What?!”   Anytime I ran into her thereafter I would remind her about that brief talk we had at the wedding reception.  She seemed to vaguely remember, but in any case she would still strike up conversation and engage me anyway.  She’s not one of those industry types that looks you up and down before she decides if you’re cool or important enough to talk to.  It means a lot to find someone down to earth like that in LA, trust me.

After a few more encounters and starting the site, I asked her if she’d be down for an interview.  Someone as knowledgeable and connected in music as her, I knew she had a great story.

Part 1

How she started Fusicology

How she fell in love with music

Fusicology’s following

Part 2

The positive music market

Hurdles and haters

How to find her

Words of advice

Connect-

On Facebook

On Twitter

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