With the smartphones coming, and all these apps coming, the music business gets one more kick at the can, and I hope they don’t fight this one, because there’s a huge opportune to grow the business faster than what they’ve ever considered. I think there’s a huge sense of optimism for the first time in about five years that this business can actually grow. –Terry McBride in his 2009 interview with tech reporter Matt Hartley [video above].

Music is becoming more of a service than a product and Terry believes that in these digital times, context trumps content, access trumps ownership, and customer service is as important as ever. P2P filesharing should cease to be an issue as listeners increasingly prefer instant-access streams.

The second interview details the history of the Nettwerk Music Group as a DIY all-in-one company that developed by adapting to meet the needs of musicians and their fans. Towards the end he talks about joint ventures between musicians and non-music brands as being likely in the next five years.

I really think that the paradigm is shifting. I think within the next five years you’re going to have other brands inside the market signing artists. Brands will look at this going, well, we already use music within all of our TV, and radio, and, you know, internet media. Um, why don’t we just sign the artist? –Terry McBride, in his 2008 CMU-Tube interview [video below].

On my previous post, Musicians—Money Is Not Motivation, Dave MacDonald had commented that Terry McBride recently spoke positively about the music industry at TEDxVancouver in November 2009. That video isn’t available yet, but I hope they air it soon on TEDxTalks—I’ll keep you posted.

[homepage thumbnail photo: Flickr/stephen_dyrgas]

For decades, Michael Jackson has been a paramount inspiration to music and dance. He is one of the top performers to ever grace our world and our hearts. His undeniable talent united people around the globe—through music—and he will long be remembered as entertainment at its best.

Last night, as I arrived home around 9pm, a few elementary-school aged kids in the neighborhood were hanging out near my apartment. One of them told me that, “Michael Jackson died.” For a moment, I questioned if he was serious—which of course he was—and next these kids began saying some unwarranted and negative comments about the renowned entertainer.

I asked them where they heard such things, to which their best response was, “the news.” I told them then to forget the news, that in my eyes Michael Jackson is one of the best musicians of our time, and he should be regarded as a hero. The kids—still joking—just didn’t get it. I understand these are kids, but I wish that they could learn about respect—for people, and the arts. I think that parents and teachers need to better address the issue of respect for one another. If these were my kids, they’d be grounded for the summer—with no TV ever. This brief interaction made me feel sad about the world’s perception about Michael Jackson…

But as I walked upstairs and looked into my computer screen, I was relieved beyond calculation when I saw the thousands, and thousands, and thousands of MJ tweets in Twitter’s trending topics with loving words about Michael. I was reassured. Society still has a chance. I’m taking comfort in the steady flow of positive comments under YouTube videos of Michael. One of my favorites, is the First Ever Moonwalk.

In my life, I’ve been moved by the soulful music of the Jackson 5 and Michael Jackson. The passion in the music is humbling. They have given more to our world than they could ever take back. Michael is truly The King of Pop. Thank God for Michael Jackson, and may his spirit live forever in our hearts.

Note: Originally published on thespinarounds.com on Jan. 26, 2009 and back dated here. virtualmusic.TV launched in July 2009 with the ‘pilot’ article Music In The Virtual Realm.