soungalo in the world!

June 19 - 22 :: Jozi

2010-06-29T23:54:00.001-04:00

Some photos from our time in Jozi & Soweto + some photos from the concert Bas Rootz on our last night in Joburg.

June 15 - 18 :: Northwest : Amantle, Borolelo, Maftown, Beasts

2010-06-29T23:51:00.001-04:00

Some photos from our time in the Northwest

June 14 :: 2nd Game - Soccer City

2010-06-29T23:50:00.001-04:00

Some photos from the second game we saw

June 12, 13 :: Durban + 1st Game

2010-06-29T23:49:00.000-04:00

Some photos from the Durban side of things

June 11 :: BDay + Opening Game

2010-06-29T23:45:00.002-04:00

The first 9 pictures in this set are from the opening game in the fan park in Soweto.

June 8, 9 :: Departure + London

2010-06-28T23:19:00.002-04:00

Our trip started with a little bit of a whimper. We tried to get out of Boston 1 day early, by trying to go standby and get 36 hours in London as opposed to 12 hours. When we got to Logan, we thought we could do it, and had a helpful dude at Virgin try and sort us out. Sadly, we ran into his supervisor, and she just had to go and call Priceline, who told us it'd be $400 to change the flights. . .

June 10 :: Arrival, Opening Concert

2010-06-28T17:54:00.004-04:00

Upon landing in Jozi, we said goodbye to the English dudes we met on the plane, cleared customs, and found Hempza in the arrivals hall.Already packed with fans, the atmosphere was amazing. We started to get the idea of "Philip" aka "Feel It" (as in - "can you feel it?" - the tag phrase of the cup atmosphere). Vuvuzelas, chants, songs, flags, noisemakers, and SMILES! We were all here to have a

Amazing durban stadium - moses mabhida stadium

2010-06-13T13:33:00.002-04:00

more info on the stadium here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moses_Mabhida_Stadium

We are at the world cup!!

2010-06-13T13:31:00.001-04:00

field.jpg

2010-06-13T13:28:00.001-04:00

Durban ger v aussie!

Test of phone email to blog

2010-06-06T10:58:00.000-04:00

Does this work?

world cup!

2010-06-06T10:55:00.002-04:00

haven't used this blog in a bit, but due to my ongoing concerns about facebook owning my life, i'll be using this rather than that to do any updates from the field. that is, if we choose to take time to find the 'net from south africa. the 'net with the keeper should be much more interesting. ;)

Content Curation: Why Is The Content Curator The Key Emerging Online Editorial Role Of The Future?

2010-02-11T16:02:00.000-05:00

This is kinda what I do, but not so much the "continually" bit - the day job tends to get in the way of that. ;)But this is also what the day job does - on a more systematic basis though.Welcome to the future.Content Curation: Why Is The Content Curator The Key Emerging Online Editorial Role Of The Future?

Time to Lower Digital Music Cost

2010-02-05T15:15:00.000-05:00

Now this is what i've been saying for a long time - drop your digital prices folks! StrategyEye - Industry Intelligence

Another great african music blog

2010-02-05T09:19:00.001-05:00

There are so many great music blogs out there (awesome tapes from africa, mudd up, etc - too many to list here) and yet I feel like the African Music blog scene is limited. So when I find new blogs (or am turned on to them) I get way psyched. In this case, Adam turned me on to this blog - "Underground Spiritual Game". Excellent stuff. Full playlists of podcasts. excellence indeed!Enjoy.

Pitchfork: Articles: Killin' the Game: New Music From West Africa

2010-02-02T17:45:00.000-05:00

Great, long article on new African music. Pitchfork isn't usually my bag, but I like it when they do this kind of stuff! Pitchfork: Articles: Killin' the Game: New Music From West Africa

WADaBo Calendars -Dance & Drum in Boston (& Cambridge)

2009-07-31T18:55:00.004-04:00

So I haven't put this up since June of last year, and their have been some updates. Check out the calendar below, and if you want to subscribe to the calendar via XML, iCAL, or HTML, use the following links.XML: Please use the following address to access your calendar from other applications. You can copy and paste this into any feed reader:http://www.google.com/calendar/feeds/

Used Pontiac Vibe (mine) for Sale? Maybe!

2009-07-20T20:05:00.003-04:00

We're thinking about selling a car. . . my car. I love this car, so it's a bit hard for me to contemplate. But really, do we need 2 cars when I live <2 miles from work? So as hard as it is for me to do this - I'm thinking seriously about selling the first new car I've ever bought. I've taken good good care of my Vibe, so I'm looking for a good home for it. I'll throw some pictures of the car up

I'm a Conde Nast Traveler. Ha!

2009-06-14T21:03:00.003-04:00

So I just submitted a photo to a Conde Nast contest. A condenastest? Anyway, . . . I probably don't fit the typical profile of their travelers, so I submitted a photo that probably doesn't fit their typical photo profile. Here is text I submitted along with it:The first night of our honeymoon. A small restaurant in the heart of the old city in Lisbon. A rotating cast of local amazing Fado singers

Coumba Sidibe 1959 - 2009

2009-05-12T22:53:00.008-04:00

. . . has passed to the ancestors.I got the call with the sad news from a Malian friend today. Coumba was a pioneer, one of the women who helped create what we now know as the Wassoulou style of music. In the 60s and 70s in Mali, music in the Wassoulou region was transforming from sacred and traditional to the popular front, with that transition being led by female singers including Coumba and

sadness. . .

2009-03-19T15:19:00.001-04:00

sadness for someone i never knew. backstory in link or here. for more: kate's photo albumandkate's blog

Public Art

2009-03-19T10:51:00.003-04:00

Worth reposting in total I think is Jill Medvedow's (the director of the ICA) response to the puritanistic response by many vocal old windbags to Shepard Fairey and his arrest. Such idiocy and a waste of public money. Let's get on with our lives, we have many more issues to deal with here in good ol corrupt Boston. And let's see more graffiti all over! Lively up the public sphere!----------------

globalistas and transculture

2009-02-25T14:02:00.002-05:00

So this article is a nice follow-up to K'naan's album. I'm sure myself and many many others in the world/global/whatever music sphere are posting/reposting this today. It is a great article, cites some great music, and links to some of the best blogs (imho). Excellent. All this makes me wonder if Canada will lead the way for us as we explore how to mix cultures/races/histories in a respectful,

K'naan's new joint

2009-02-24T17:44:00.004-05:00

I met K'naan and his manager Sol at the UN-Habitat Hip Hop Summit in South Africa. Good guys doing good work. Check their new joint, out today. I'm listening to it on Lala, but pick it up anywhere you can. This is a great example, imho, of how to do hip hop in your own way, bringing in influences from different places, but maintaining quality. All too often, heads doing hip hop in different

Ghetto Ruff wizes up

2009-02-17T17:45:00.002-05:00

After many years, Ghetto Ruff has wized up. Many years ago, I signed them up to a digital distribution deal on Calabash Music. For many years Calabash was the only place outside of South Africa anyone could get their GREAT music. Now, only a short time after their music has "disappeared" from Calabash (Mondomix has not yet picked up the license), they have appeared on eMusic. Excellent. 3 albums

GBS!

2009-02-08T22:45:00.001-05:00

hee hee

2009-01-29T11:37:00.002-05:00

new design

2009-01-28T09:49:00.003-05:00

so i finally upgraded to the new templates, which look exactly like the old ones, but worse. so now i have to sort out if i want to fix this by getting new background images, or migrating this to wordpress, or taking some other action to get it working in blogger. oy. i already made the following changes to the template:740 - 940 outer wrapper485 - 585 main wrap1240 - 340 side wrapthis solved the

tech in africa (and mali specifically!)

2008-12-09T11:50:00.002-05:00

very interesting article on linux in africa, which mentions mali specifically. i have been dealing with this on a very micro level since i helped facilitate a friend buying a OLPC laptop for his daughter. she was in mali, but had been having fun with my laptop when she was here. so he had me buy a OLPC laptop for her, and sent it over. it was fine, however, she was frustrated by the seeming

long tail is dead

2008-12-04T17:20:00.003-05:00

so i'm on this list serve (FA Worldmusic) where I occasionally weigh in. today i weighed in heftily - check it out.---Nothing like being called out to make one sit down and start writing. ;) Thanks Dmitri!Mark, I think the simple answer is that no one is making money from digital sales yet - even the top overall sellers like Katy Perry are not seeing large percentages of their income come from

Helen Cleo Lumpkin Matlock

2008-11-27T10:27:00.002-05:00

East Aurora, New YorkWednesday, November 26, 2008Helen Matlock, the center of gravity of our family for many years, passed away quietly this afternoon, in the presence of her children and their spouses, after a brief but intense illness, at the age of 85.Helen was born on her family farm in Losantville, Indiana on June 4, 1923. She attended Purdue University, then Iowa State University, from

Desmond Tutu on Obama

2008-11-10T09:58:00.002-05:00

It is amazing when the people you hold up as heroes also are writing wondrous words about the man your country just elected as president. . .Even if I don't always trust my own opinion, I do trust Mr. Tutu.------------------------------------------------------------------- The Man of TomorrowHis election has turned America's global image on its head. By Desmond TutuSunday, November 9, 2008;

Krugman Strikes Again!

2008-11-08T21:29:00.002-05:00

The Obama AgendaPublished: November 7, 2008 Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2008, is a date that will live in fame (the opposite of infamy) forever. If the election of our first African-American president didn’t stir you, if it didn’t leave you teary-eyed and proud of your country, there’s something wrong with you.But will the election also mark a turning point

goosync psyched! psych?

2008-11-07T15:45:00.002-05:00

i happily today was able to install goosync on my nokia e62 (i'm also now an ambassador for nokia's s60 program, so watch out, i'm gonna be pimping all sorts of things for them). so now i can see my google calendar appointments. HOWEVER (and this is a big one), i can only synch one calendar at a time unless i want to pay ~$80. . . . ouch. this would be a "for life" upgrade, but it is steep. . .

world circuit - years late, but now at the party

2008-10-29T12:12:00.002-04:00

So World Circuit signed up with IODA, and announced the news today. Congratulations. Only 5 years late. . . I mean really - if any other genre's label that controlled the catalogs of the biggest acts in that genre had been absent from the digital space this long. . . . Buena Vista, Ali Farka Toure, Toumani Diabate, Oumou Sangare, etc etc.I would not be surprised to see the piracy numbers on these

travel to festivals?

2008-10-29T10:31:00.001-04:00

if you want to travel to some awesome music festivals around the globe, check out this listing. great stuff for sure.

Post-Canvass thoughts. .

2008-10-27T13:47:00.007-04:00

I had the pleasure and honor of doing a small bit of campaigning for Obama in NH last sunday. 21 doors knocked, 5 hours of walking around rural New Hampshire, petting and calming many dogs, and enjoying the New England fall.I did enjoy being back on the doors, something I haven't really done since I left the union. Being in the company of other committed, passionate people working on a singular

what's up with your multiple blogs dude?

2008-09-28T13:13:00.002-04:00

so just a quick update - i use this blog for many things - to keep a record of random happenings, my travels, music, etc. it has at times crossed over into the "professional", especially as much of my life is a nice melange of profeesional & personal. it will continue this way i presume. however, i'm also keeping a "strictly professional" blog over at erichludwig.comjust another rss feed to add

water water everywhere

2008-08-11T09:54:00.003-04:00

our street - clark st in somerville, in the middle of the rain storm yesterday. . .

Boston Modern Global Music update

2008-07-24T09:34:00.000-04:00

I've spent the past two Wednesday nights at the MFA and have loved it! Great shows, great atmosphere, great dancing. I mean, where else can you dance outside in a gorgeous courtyard surrounded by huge trees and an huge art museum in the middle of the city! Plus the shows are done early for all you early to bedders.There are a couple great shows coming up there that you should join me at. Next

vinay

2008-06-27T16:54:00.003-04:00

you can watch vinay in this pbs documentary. . .

your life. . .

2008-06-26T17:32:00.003-04:00

is short. live it like you mean it. or, for you techies and business school peeps: "Your time is a zero-sum game, and only you can decide how to slice it up."that's from david pogue, tech writer at the nytimes. i think this is especially profound for me at this point in time due to the awful news of vinay's passing.http://helpvinay.org/i never actually met him, but did meet his wife and family

Boston Modern Global Music Calendar View 2

2008-06-11T09:31:00.003-04:00

I'm keeping a calendar of shows I think are "cool" or interesting on Google Calendar - details below if you want to view or subscribe.subscribe:XML: http://www.google.com/calendar/feeds/538m1pu2to3gekfet2mbkqb280%40group.calendar.google.com/public/basicICAL: http://www.google.com/calendar/ical/538m1pu2to3gekfet2mbkqb280%40group.calendar.google.com/public/basic.icsHTML: http://www.google.com/

Boston Modern Global Music Calendar

2008-06-10T23:26:00.000-04:00

WADaBo Google Calendar!

2008-06-10T22:52:00.003-04:00

Still a young man

2008-06-05T08:38:00.002-04:00

I got this email (below) today, which is good/bad news. The good news = I'm still a young man, and not part of the old boys club which decides who gets to participate and who does not. The bad news = I'm still on the outside looking in, and they (the insiders) still don't "get it". [explanation further down]I just hope that we are not subjected to another "panel of everyone" open blab sessions

Ramata Diakite - New Album coming!

2008-06-02T11:32:00.003-04:00

I have just got a rough mix of a new album from Ramata Diakite! Very exciting. for those of you who don't know, i am managing Ramata, who is an amazingly talented singer from Mali, West Africa. the owner of her US label and i have been talking to her for a while about some new songs to complete an album, and she went ahead and got into a friend of mine's studio in mali (Studio Mali, run by Paul

African Field Recordings (Hugh Tracey)

2008-06-02T10:31:00.002-04:00

A friend is working on this project. I've been familiar with Tracey's work for a while, having helped get it on CalabashMusic and such, but to see some video footage as well in this trailer from the Tracey archive is really, Really amazing.Rogier Kappers' next film is about one of them, Hugh Tracey, an amateur folklorist who spent 40 years recording music in sub-Saharan Africa. - this from a

Obama Inspriation

2008-05-27T08:53:00.002-04:00

From Obama's speech at Wesleyan. My favorite parts up top, the full article below:"There's no community service requirement in the outside world, no one forcing you to care. You can take your diploma, walk off the stage, and chase only after the big house and the nice suits and the other things our money culture says you should buy," Obama said. "You can choose to narrow your concerns and live

2008-05-08T15:31:00.001-04:00

get e-rich rolled!

2008-04-25T20:16:00.000-04:00

what about me?

2008-04-25T20:12:00.002-04:00

so remember when erich took off for mali in december of 2004? right after a sweet 2 weeks in fiji? it wasn't just to experience 3 red-eyes in a row. it was actually to help film a project, a follow-up to 1 Giant Leap. Mali was the first country on the voyage for the filmmakers, they continued on (without erich, who was just a local fixer in mali), and now almost 4 years later (!) they have

2008-04-03T13:44:00.001-04:00

2008-03-23T22:53:00.000-04:00

Billy Bragg speaks out - "The Royalty Scam"

2008-03-22T14:50:00.001-04:00

From the NYTimes Op-Ed page. . . The Royalty ScamBy BILLY BRAGGPublished: March 22, 2008Dorset, EnglandLAST week at South by Southwest, the rock music conference held every year in Austin, Tex., the talk in hotel lobbies, coffeeshops and the convention center was dominated by one issue: how do musicians make a living in the age of the Internet? It’s a problem our industry has struggled with in

"The notion of cultural purity is a dead-end"

2008-03-22T14:37:00.002-04:00

"The notion of cultural purity is a dead-end."- Yo Yo Ma (speaking in relation to his Silk Road project"Ma said he thinks 'nothing great was ever produced in isolation.' He said his study of history at Harvard University led him to realize that Eastern and Western cultures have mixed since at least the time of Alexander the Great.""'Even something as basic as our Western major and minor keys may

"The reality is, conscious Americans know that Barack Obama is the color of truth."

2008-03-20T21:33:00.001-04:00

"The reality is, conscious Americans know that Barack Obama is the color of truth."- Stevie Wonder

obama, race & the end of the soundbite

2008-03-18T23:46:00.003-04:00

You can see Obama's awesome speech today on his own page and at the NYTimes (where I linked). I'm embedding the video below as well. One thing that is really heartening to me is the end of the soundbite. Even though this whole thing has flamed up due to a sound bite or two of a minister, the debate is really being done in longer pieces. Look at people talking on YouTube and you'll see

beards are back

2008-03-17T19:26:00.003-04:00

I was going to start this post with the following sentence but then found variations of it on about 1.3 quadrillion other places on the net as a bunch of (cave-dwelling) dudes suddenly all came to the same realization i did: we are inadvertently cool."Who knew? I'm really cool, I didn't even know it, and I didn't try! Amazing! All I did was grow a beard."Don't believe me? Do a quick google search

2008-03-11T14:21:00.001-04:00

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great reading

2008-03-04T12:18:00.001-05:00

Nobelist Stiglitz Tallies Iraq War's Outrageous Cost: ReviewReview by Charles TaylorMarch 4 (Bloomberg) -- The title tells the story of ``The Three Trillion Dollar War: The True Cost of the Iraq Conflict.'' Joseph E. Stiglitz and Linda J. Bilmes have produced a devastating argument against the American invasion of Iraq. ----------------------------------wow. great article. the book probably is

What is "Radiohead style"?

2008-03-04T09:52:00.003-05:00

The article below bothered me. Or, rather the headline did. What does "Nine Inch Nails Release New Album Radiohead-style" mean? And why I have I seen this same headline above different bylines?Does "Radiohead Style" mean that the album is offered for whatever price consumers want to pay? Because that IS what Radiohead did, but it is NOT what NIN did. Does "Radiohead Style" mean that the band is

Last FM Playlist

2008-02-17T15:12:00.000-05:00

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Kakande w/Mory Kante

2008-02-17T14:37:00.001-05:00

I'm at it again. Time to promote the stuff I'm promoting. In this case, Kakande with Mory Kante.Kakande will be playing Johnny D's featuring a guest appearance by Mory Kante! This concert is a CD Release Party for much anticipated new album Dununya.Mory Kante is an international super star from Guinea, West Africa, and rarely backs anyone up. However, Kakande (led by Famoro Dioubate from Guinea)

Yes We Can Song

2008-02-04T23:44:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to post the text that accompanies the Obama video below. . . Inspiring stuff, just like the man himself.The Yes We Can Songby will.i.am I was sitting in my recording studio watching the debates...Torn between the candidatesI was never really big on politics...and actually I’m still not big on politics...but 4 years ago, me and the black eyed peas supported Kerry...And we supported

Why Toni Morrison is endoring Obama

2008-02-04T23:35:00.000-05:00

Here is the letter that Toni Morrison wrote when she endorsed Barack Obama. I like this line "I would not support you if that was all you had to offer or because it might make me "proud."" that she writes when she talks about the race/gender conflict dynamic so many people are struggling with. I am voting for Barack because it will make me proud. Not proud to be voting for a black man, just as I

OBAMA! Si Se Puede! Yes WE Can!

2008-02-03T23:04:00.000-05:00

OBAMA! Si Se Puede! Yes WE Can!

Andy Palacio

2008-01-19T16:56:00.000-05:00

please hold andy palacio in the light. he is currently fighting for his life. he has been tragically taken ill within the past week. i'll paste the email from his label & manager below.andy is a musician.andy is a humanitarian.andy is a mensch.andy has made a positive impact on this world.andy is an inspiration.andy is a hero.please pray for him, hold him in the light, carry him with you in your

DRM is Dead!!

2008-01-07T23:32:00.000-05:00

today is the day! drm is dead! it was very exciting to turn on today and read these kind of headlines:* Napster Goes DRM-Free on Downloads, MP3s Ahead* Sony BMG Confirms Initial DRM-Free Strike, Retail Play EmergesAmazing stuff. i think that iTunes is going to be the only place to get DRM'ed tracks (except for some SOL little independent sites) within 6 months. and that (DRM on iTunes) only

good news/bad news

2008-01-04T00:47:00.000-05:00

Some interesting facts below highlighting both the opportunity for growth and the sad state of music sales today. Very interesting, but also great. The numbers keep on going up and up, which is a wonderful sign.Despite a 45% increase in digital sales, overall U.S. music album sales fell 9.5% in 2007, the Associated Press reported, citing data from Nielsen SoundScan.Individual digital track sales

Another Alexandria Fire?

2007-12-19T12:39:00.000-05:00

Listening to the news on the way into work today, hearing that there was a mysterious fire in Cheney's offices, my first thought was that we are having another mysterious fire of Alexandria. . . I wonder which documents, tapes, computers, etc have been destroyed in the fire. . . I'm sure the cause will be mysterious, or something that could have been created by a talented agent. And I'm sure that

Obama!

2007-12-19T12:36:00.000-05:00

I'm going to just paste Brooks column today from the NYTimes here, as I think it is a great piece of writing on why Obama is the best choice for President. . . More Senators like Hillary, and a President who is Barack, and we're on our way, prosperity bound.The Obama-Clinton IssueBy DAVID BROOKSPublished: December 18, 2007, NYTimesHillary Clinton has been a much better senator than Barack Obama.

Kwani Experience Video

2007-11-14T15:32:00.000-05:00

Watch more free videosThis is from a group in South Africa who I am working with, and I love this video. Fun combination of great music, talented animation work, and good videography. The embed doesn't seem to work, but if you just click on the link in the title or in the "watch more free videos" you should be able to see it no problem.

Quotable

2007-11-12T20:26:00.000-05:00

I seem to be the quote man for my friend Dmitri. At APAP in January, I gave my bit about "obscurity being a great threat than piracy" to the artist that the "world music" community works with. Now at this years WOMEX, I talked about the development of niches, and the communities to support them. Apparently, he was listening."Just back from WOMEX, where two of my favorite quotes were "Music blogs

the tax man cometh - Canadians to pay tax on downloaded tunes

2007-11-02T19:59:00.000-04:00

this is going to be interesting . . . i think many of us have been dreading the tax man's intrusion into the mp3 business, and kind of hoping that he wouldn't show up. however, here he is, and we'll see what folks in canada do, both on the business and consumer side. I just hope that the SOCAN in Canada is better than the ASCAP/BMI/RIAA cartel down on the south of that border.OTTAWA -- The

RIAA forced to put up or shut up

2007-10-02T22:40:00.000-04:00

Read the story linked in the title. My favorite piece is this:"Toder, Thomas's attorney, plans to start with the basics — making them prove they own the songs at all. On Monday, U.S. District Judge Michael J. Davis threw out 784 pages of documents produced by the record companies to show they owned a sample of the songs. Toder had argued that the documents were produced seven months late."Hah! So

whew. read this, laugh, breathe, read again

2007-09-28T18:14:00.000-04:00

a stunning shredding of the term 'world music'. oh my. read it and then let me know what you think. i posted a comment thanking this blogger for their commentary, as we inside the world music echo-sphere get too caught up in this argument all the time with very little new commentary added. this is a nice outside perspective, and the bonus is that it is a nice reminder that there is a huge market

Another online Video Editing Solution

2007-09-27T12:11:00.000-04:00

Live performance of Zola's 'Umdlwembe' shot at the launch of ControlArms.org in Jozi, South Africa in 2006. ControlArms is a project of Oxfam, Amnesty International and other groups designed to create tougher controls on the global arms trade.Zola is on Ghetto Ruff, and mp3s are available at:http://zola.calabashmusic.comhttp://tsotsi.calabashmusic.comRough footage here, but great dancing part way

Breaking News - Zingku acquired by Google!

2007-09-27T11:45:00.000-04:00

as mentioned in an email to users, and posted on their site:"We've entered into an agreement to have Google acquire our Zingku service."Zingku, and another branded version (Ripple9) have done some work with CalabashMusic, but they have a killer set of mobile tools that the artists I work with are all using . . .

oops! someone forgot to renew their domain!

2007-09-27T10:47:00.000-04:00

On one of my little journeys round the web today, came to the Universal Music Groups job page (yes, i am job hunting, and no, i wouldn't mind working for "the man"). Clicked to their US based jobs, cool. Clicked thru to see what international opportunities might exist and . . . BINGO! someone forgot to renew the domain. doh!see for yourself - go here http://new.umusic.com/Jobs.aspx and click

Sharon Chadha: More good news: Tuareg rebels in Niger and Mali are NOT branches of Al Qaeda

2007-09-25T11:11:00.000-04:00

Sharon Chadha: More good news: Tuareg rebels in Niger and Mali are NOT branches of Al QaedaGreat post by Sharon here. I too have been troubled by both the attempts at outside Islamic groups to try and gain a foothold and radicalize Mali, as well as the attempts by the USA and others to try and put soldiers into Mali to resist this radicalization. Neither a fundamentalist Mali nor a militarized

Calabash Widget from Widgetbox

2007-09-19T14:42:00.000-04:00

Just found this on Widgetbox. Thanks Bluemen!

NYTimes "Gets It"

2007-09-18T14:45:00.000-04:00

The NYTimes gets it! It is about making content available to people to use, and they will use it! As the google example has shown (for better or worse), advertising is enabling content owners to trade eyeballs for content. I had long been a reader of the Times online, reading all sorts of stuff. But when they launched their TimesSelect section, I no longer could read the key articles, so

RIAA, File-Sharing, Lawsuits, and more

2007-09-17T19:00:00.000-04:00

Just finished listening to a quick report on NPR Marketplace on filesharing lawsuits being pursued by the RIAA. As someone working in the music industry, and potentially looking at working for a major label, I can't think of a more inane tactic than the lawsuits being pursued by the RIAA. And, more specifically, the tactics and methods used in pursuing these lawsuits.I mean, really, if you are

Zola Video

2007-09-17T17:25:00.000-04:00

I've been meaning to put up this video for a LOOONG time. Anyway, I shot this with my little canon a90 digital camera, so the video ain't great, and the sound is worse. But, Brightcove and their new little consumer tool Aftermix came along and made it really easy. I just grabbed an mp3 of Zola's Umdlwembe (available at http://tsotsi.calabashmusic.com/ if you wanna buy the song, and you can get

perspectives on the music industry

2007-09-13T13:07:00.000-04:00

because i'm in the music industry, and specifically, working on the future of music, about 15 people forwarded me this article in the nytimes about rick rubin. if you don't subscribe to the times, you can probably find it excerpted on the web somewhere.however, no one forwarded me this blog post by the craziest man in the music blog biz, bob lefsetz.i say crazy in the sense of that lefsetz really

this IS future of music

2007-08-20T22:17:00.000-04:00

This seems to me to be the future of music. DRM-free, easy plug into other sites, very viral distribution, sharing revenues with fans, creating long term relationships between fans/artists, simultaneous releases across all platforms and territories. The revenue sharing piece is especially important to make sure that DRM-Free is profitable for artists. This is also worth a quick caveat, that

bye bye drm. . .

2007-08-10T19:24:00.000-04:00

what did i say? way back . . . and not just me, but everyone else. DRM is doomed. Universal is actually doing some real work on sorting out what the future will be, and doing so outside of iTunes, since real experimentation is impossible there. . .Universal to Test Sale of DRM-Free Tracks Everywhere but iTunesSubmitted by Mark Hefflinger on August 10, 2007 - 10:59am.New York - Universal Music

the power of music, part 2

2007-08-09T16:20:00.000-04:00

and now from my own country -According to the band's web site, Pearl Jam's Lollapalooza webcast was censored by sponsor/webcaster AT&T: When asked about the missing performance, AT&T informed Lollapalooza that portions of the show were in fact missing from the webcast, and that their content monitor had made a mistake in cutting them. During the performance of "Daughter" the following lyrics

the power of music

2007-08-09T12:47:00.000-04:00

the title of the linked article says it all:"Music is too subversive for the new South Africa, says apartheid hero"the article continues:"One of South Africa’s greatest musicians — a hero of the struggle against apartheid — believes that he is no longer welcome as a performer in his own country. The virtuoso trumpeter Hugh Masekela claims that many of the talented musicians whose voices became

micropayments are a lie

2007-07-31T20:52:00.000-04:00

i've been meaning to write this post for a long time. waaay back, when i worked for SEIU, a co-worker and i were talking about this issue, even before i really got into digital media and payment issues.anyway, it turns out that one of the puzzles we've been trying to solve with calabash is that of pricing. how to price an mp3. how do we bring the price down from the $0.99 arbitrary price that

allofmp3.com are crooks!

2007-07-31T20:16:00.000-04:00

i have posted on other blogs about this as well, but you know i got to talk about it here on my own blog. the site allofmp3.com was a site based in russia that supposedly was "legal" under russian law (according to the site and its defenders). however, as the article in the header link details, "Russian prosecutors are targeting Denis Kvasov, former owner of controversial MP3 store AllofMP3.com,

Boston Herald Article on the GU Tour

2007-07-30T18:39:00.000-04:00

Hip-hop hits HubBy Chris FaraoneFriday, July 20, 2007Ben Herson went quite a bit out of his way to organize the Global Underground hip-hop tour that marches through the Middle East nightclub in Cambridge Sunday night. The founder of world-music label Nomadic Wax, Herson, a Newton native and Hampshire College alum, traveled as far as Tanzania and Senegal to scout hip-hop talent. “I went to

DJ BOO!!

2007-07-24T19:59:00.000-04:00

DJ Boo on the 1s and 2s on tour with Global Underground

Global Underground Percussion

2007-07-24T19:58:00.000-04:00

Chauncey rippin it up on djembe.

Rebel Diaz - Global Underground @ Middle East

2007-07-24T19:57:00.000-04:00

Lah from Rebel Diaz _killin_ it on tour with Global Underground.

tour continued

2007-07-24T19:53:00.000-04:00

the tour ended up on a high note at the middle east on sunday night. great show, great energy. even overheard the indy-rock hipster staff at the middle east say that this was the best hip hop show they'd seen!

Chosan at Galapagos

2007-07-20T12:28:00.000-04:00

Chosan (from Sierra Leone) rips it up at Galapagos on Thursday night, July 19th.

Eroc at Galapagos

2007-07-20T12:25:00.000-04:00

Eroc from the Foundation Movement flanked by Op (Foundation Movement) and Chosan.

tour started, lessons learned, press gathered

2007-07-20T10:26:00.000-04:00

we just kicked off our little mini-tour for the Global Underground Hip Hop 2007 season last night at galapagos in brooklyn. the crowd was enthusiastic, but less in numbers than we had hoped. the musicians were great, although we had a different line-up than anticipated. and we're ready to roll onto providence and boston!speaking of boston, we got some great press today in the boston herald, so