Research Project on Music Streaming Services & the Music Business

By Lenny Rountree

Music Artistree School of Thought is a blog where I share ideas pertaining to arts integration, to benefit our life-long learners and offer a unique perspective on music education. Having taught instrumental, vocal, music theory, history, and theater to middle school students, I know how important their phones are to them. They enjoy listening to music via YouTube and various streaming services. Many of them have told me Spotify and Pandora are their "go to." I noticed they don't seem very knowledgeable about the economics of accessing music they way they often do and what impact this has on the artists whose music they enjoy. Here is a long-term project assignment for kids in 7th grade and upward.

If you are an educator involved in arts integration at your school, you might be interested in taking a look at my plan. My 8th grade students are separated into teams of three and four to compose and notate the "hook" of a song which represents an "audio file" they will "sell," through their "website" (represented by a poster they will create). They are assigned to research music business practices, past and present, and then give a presentation of their discoveries. They must relay their strategies on earning income, as if they are artists in today's music business. See the lesson plan below and please feel free to post a comment.

Unit: Artists Surviving the Music Business Today

Silently read ___________________________ regarding the impact of YouTube, and audio

                     (Teacher’s choice of article or written piece, etc.)      

streaming over the internet on compensation for recording artists:

Show article here

List 15 of the most important words from the text and use them to make a statement, a short summary, describing the “big idea” put forth in the text.

1.                                                                  10.

2.                                                                  11.

3.                                                                  12.

4.                                                                  13.

5.                                                                  14.

6.                                                                  15.

7.

8.

9.

Can you name two or three main points? Now that you have listed words from the text that seem important, use them to create a summary of the text!

Sentence Starters: “The text is basically…” or, “The gist of the text is ….”

Write your summary or gist of the text below. Be prepared to share your ideas in a group discussion:

Project Assignment - Exploring Challenges Facing the Recording Artist

Musicians who create the music we love are no longer being adequately and fairly compensated for their work, partly because their recordings are shared on YouTube or streamed on Spotify, Pandora, Apple Music and other services yielding them only a tiny fraction of total earnings of all the money being collected by those companies. As a result, a small group of people, not involved in the creation of the recordings, garner the majority share of potential earnings. Two essential questions we will explore in this unit are:

·         How do recording artists, songwriters and musicians convince music lovers to buy the songs (downloads) directly from the artist themselves, especially when people are now accustomed to listening to music for free?

·         How will this condition of streaming downloads and sharing music via YouTube affect the emergence of future recording artists?

In this unit you will work in assigned groups to step into the shoes of the recording artist, in a very, limited way, without actually performing all the tasks a recording artist, producer, songwriter or musician has to accomplish in order to produce the recording. You will work collaboratively to:

ü  Create a song title and the song’s “hook” as a representation of a song you are selling through a fictitious website (represented only by a poster showing you and your members). The “hook” is that part of the song most people will remember long after the record is over, and easily echo back upon listening. The “hook” will be a melody you will compose and notate on music staff paper to be turned in at the end of this unit.

ü  Detail in writing the characteristics of your song: such as, lyrical content, pace, genre, structure (ordering of verse, chorus, bridge, coda, etc.). Be sure to include this description in your group presentation document. You do not have to complete writing an entire song, although you can if inspired to do so. You will be assessed for the performance and presentation of your group’s collaborative “hook,” and what you foresee as the other characteristics of the “song.” Use pitched classroom instruments and your collective imaginations to conceive of this melodic hook, which you will notate on music staff paper using standard notation symbols like measures, notes and rests.

ü  You must write the text of a “post” “ad” or “marketing statement” designed to convince your audience to pay you directly for a download of your “song.” The text should appear “artfully” on the poster you will create, which should also show you and your members posing as the “artist.” You should determine the price of your audio download, and the best audio file to present to the public. Show this on your “site” (poster). This will require some research on your part.

ü  Compile research data on current and past music business practices and put the data on a working google doc I will share with you and your members. You will use this google doc to prepare a formal group presentation document with a minimum of 175 words, detailing your findings, as well as your goals and strategies to sell your “song.” This document will be presented to the class before being handed in along with the poster. Note: You may want to divide the quantity of words required, equally among your members.

ü  Present your groups efforts to the class at the end of this unit by musically performing the “hook” and then alternately, each member discussing the things learned from your research and your interactions. Display or distribute your group presentation document, culled together from your working google doc. Be sure to discuss the selling and streaming of songs, how the money is collected and distributed among all concerned parties.

ü  Individually you will write a reflection on your increased knowledge, participation, role, and work within your group. This reflection should be no less than seven full and complete sentences, clearly written with proper spelling and grammar. This will be due upon the day of your group presentation or at the end of this unit.