To be FREE, or not to be FREE that is the music question

Excuse the lame Shakespeare paraphrasing. ACEtone Studio has been giving away for free several tracks with the best intentions of generating interest in the music produced here. And along with the best intention was the hope that it would drive some listeners to actually buy other tracks specifically released as commercially available music. It may have worked to a small degree, but the financial rewards are miniscule, hence my decision to make the same freely downloadable tracks available for sale. I'm working on this right now. The ACEtone ALLstars music has been hugely downloaded worldwide - now I'm working on selling it to see what happens. A crappy myspace page and the Snocap code to go with it. It will be interesting to see.

Surely it is better to dedicate yourself to your work and be rewarded for it. It is nice to hear kind words, yet the words ring a little hollow when there are not a few $ to help keep it going.

Happily the major record companies are in their 'last throes' and we are currently enjoying or suffering a period of flux that will result in some kind of new business model for music. One hopes that it will be a positive step towards rewarding the artists and frankly punishing the suits and marketing departments.

The only thing record companies really have going for them is their marketing. That is where all of the money is spent. So the marketing types should go independent - or the companies should set them apart and have them do what they do best...be assholes...and promote music. So as a musician you get to pay for someone who knows your music not what the label decides. Personally I couldn't give a crap. The kind of music the majors release is mostly dreadful rubbish. But it would be nice to think of them somehow adapting to the internet age.

There is much more I'd like to add to this topic, and I will in the future. But for now, free music is a good thing, but reward the artist if you value him or her. Most of my favourite artists either live hand to mouth or are dead due to extreme poverty. Make you think?