A weekly update on all things music, advertising, and technology coming straight to you from Anthony Vanger at MassiveMusic. #TWIM
ARTIST OF THE WEEK: SUZANNE VEGA
One of the few positives to come out of Covid was that it forced me to listen to artists I had long since given up on. Billy Joel, J. Geils Band, ABBA, Genesis. An artist I gravitated to frequently on my walks around Battersea Park with my dog Manchas in tow was Suzanne Vega. I had been a big fan while attending Columbia University and I even got to stroll past the actual Tom’s Diner every day on my way to class. Obviously, that song and Luka were the big hits, but the whole album is a masterpiece. Sitting on top of this magical music is Vega’s breathy, precise vocals and her pixie, arthouse looks. A true original. The video is the title track of the album Solitude Standing. Some old albums don’t stand the test of time, but Vega’s masterpiece sounds as fresh today as it did 30 years ago
#suzannevega #mynameisluka #marleneonthewall #solitudestanding #barnardcollege #tomsdiner
AD OF THE WEEK: THE NORTH FACE X GUCCI
Advertising is changing so quickly and this ad is a good representative of that change. It paints a broad stroke, creating a mood and feeling rather than selling a specific product. This is the second chapter of a collaborative collection between The North Face x Gucci. The campaign was shot by superhot fashion photographers twins Jalan and Jibril Durimel in Iceland. This territory’s otherworldly spirit and its unique landscape—from volcanic black sand to rolling green hills and awe-inspiring glaciers—feature intrepid explorers wearing the new collection. And a nice shout out to 90s electronic supremo, Moby, for the title track Go.
#gucci #thenorthface #jalanandjibrildurimel
NUMBER OF YOUTUBE CHANNELS MAKING MORE THAN $10,000 A YEAR UP 40% YOY
Youtube CEO Susan Wojcicki has published an open letter to the platform’s creators outlining its “priorities for 2022”.
In the letter, she covers “the state of the creator economy, innovation, supporting the work of creators, and protecting the YouTube community”.
Also in the letter, Wojcicki writes that the number of YouTube channels around the world making more than $10,000 a year is up 40% year over year, but doesn’t specify how many channels are earning that sum annually.
YouTube’s CEO also cites a series of reports from Oxford Economics that show the impact of the creator economy on nations’ economies.
“In 2020, as people around the world adapted to changing circumstances around the pandemic, YouTube’s creative ecosystem supported more than 800,000 jobs in 2020 in the United States, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Brazil, Australia, and the EU combined,” writes Wojcicki.
Other 2021 milestones cited by Wojcicki include YouTube hitting 50 million Music and Premium subscribers, (including trialers) and the news in June that YouTube says it paid more than $4 billion to the music industry over the previous 12 months.
WU-TANG CLAN’S RZA FILES $2 MILLION LAWSUIT AGAINST MERCH BOOTLEGGERS
Wu-Tang Clan’s RZA has filed a $2million lawsuit against multiple e-commerce stores believed to be selling fake band merchandise.
The rapper is seeking all profits from the bootleg sales of items sporting the collective’s iconic logo. Alternatively, he has asked for $2million for “each and every” use of the trademarks.
The businesses involved have been accused of counterfeiting, false designation of origin, and trademark infringement. In addition, major online marketplaces like Amazon, eBay, and AliExpress have been asked to stop promoting the bootleg stores through their platforms.
According to the documents filed, and obtained by US magazine Complex: “Many defendants also deceive unknowing consumers by using the Wu-Tang Clan trademarks without authorization [sic] within the content, text, and/or meta tags of their e-commerce stores to attract various search engines crawling the Internet looking for e-commerce stores relevant to consumer searches for Wu-Tang Clan products.
CASIO LAUNCHES NEW VOICE SYNTH AND KEYBOARD
Casio has launched two new keyboard products aimed at synthesizing vocals. The products were teased by Casio over the past few weeks, with a vocode-style soundtrack hinting at what the new products were designed for. According to Casio: “The CT-S1000V is the first vocal synthesizer that can literally turn any text — such as song lyrics — into a musical phrase and then ‘sing’ it in full harmony based on any notes played on its keys.”
Using the LyricCreator app, users can type in any text they want and it’ll be synthesized by the S1000V. They can then play the melody using the keys. There are 22 vocal styles, including talkboxes, processed choirs, robot voices, vocoders, and whispered voices. There are also standard synth and synthesized sounds with 800 presets and 64 voice polyphony. There are also built-in speakers for on-the-go playing, Bluetooth wireless audio, a built-in sampler, and quarter-inch outputs.
The S500V removes the vocal aspect but keeps the sounds, wireless audio, and a six-track song recorder for layering parts.
The S1000V costs £429 while the 500V will cost £379. Visit the Casio website for more details and find out more about the 1000V in the video below.
Written by Anthony Vanger
Additional research and reporting by Adam “Badger” Woolf
Artwork by Badger