Tidal Streaming!!

[AZwildcats]

I doubt my ear buds could tell the difference between FLAC and 320kps

 

[heliumclinton]

We've established Tidal is to benefit artists, I'm lost as to how it benefits the consumer? They're just assuming everyone will follow their fav artist?

 

[georgescorewell]

Jay talking crazy in that interview...really cringe worthy.

 

[KingdomFlatbush]

Hov creating platforms to support artists

 

[jumpmanpro97]

pay for music? I haven't paid for music since the late 90s. I like Jay-Z and all but when he compared bottled water to music :roll eyes

People are not respecting the music, and [are] devaluing it and devaluing what it really means. People really feel like music is free, but will pay $6 for water. You can drink water free out of the tap, and it’s good water. But they’re OK paying for it. It’s just the mind-set right now.

 

[shoeking2101]

pay for music? I haven't paid for music since the late 90s. I like Jay-Z and all but when he compared bottled water to music :roll eyes

lol

 

[trynafeelmink]

We've established Tidal is to benefit artists, I'm lost as to how it benefits the consumer? They're just assuming everyone will follow their fav artist?

We as a consumer always complain about how artist "sell out" or continue to make moves that are for popularity rather then the good of the music. Truth is most artist follow that path because they are trying to make money. If artist are getting a significant cut off the sale of the music, it would lead to less & less Artist feeling they need "Smash Hits" in order to stay relevant or make money from music.

Cole & Kendrick both took the route of focusing on solely the music rather than hitmaking and both will be platinum by years end. They were allowed to do that because they have fans that SUPPORT. Shows, Merch, Streams, DL's etc etc they know they have the support of their base so they don't have to sacrifice art to make money. Tidal should help benefit up & coming artist so they are never stuck in that position of i wanna make great music, but i need this party smash so i could pay my bills.

On top of that. They main sells are higher audio quality, & Exclusive content from artist who are with them. I don't really use streaming services much, but if i was paying 10 for Spotify anyway and know Tidal is also going to be 10, but will have exclusive content from artist that i like why wouldn't i go to Tidal.

So in reality no this isn't life changing for the consumer.... but spotify is offering the EXACT same service for the same price and as Tidal picks up, i'm assuming they will start to lose more and more material from the bigger artist in the industry.

 

[Hahahaha]

Time.com wrote a pretty good article on Tidal.

http://time.com/3765268/tidal-music-jay-z-beyonce/

The launch event for the rapper's streaming service was a big mess

After its splashy launch press conference yesterday, the primary argument for Tidal—the two-tiered music service recently purchased by Jay Z that costs either $9.99 or $19.99 per month—is that artists deserve more money for their work. It’s not necessarily a wrongheaded argument, but the manner in which Jay Z and his contemporaries have pressed the point is embarrassingly out-of-touch.

There are real, systemic problems with current streaming services like Spotify, which stream music for free to listeners and distribute to artists a paltry fee drawn from advertising. That’s why Taylor Swift withdrew her hugely profitable catalog from the service last year. The argument Swift has been making is that music has inherent value; from her statements regarding Spotify to her op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, it’s a point she’s consistently made well. The argument Jay Z and his fellow stars at the Tidal launch (including Nicki Minaj, Madonna, and Beyoncé) are making is that they deserve to set the price point for their music. The supporting evidence for this claim? They want to set the price point for their music.

The rhetoric around Tidal was pretty funny, when it wasn’t embarrassing. A promotional video showed various celebrities gathering to discuss their master plan as Beyoncé, who would seem to know better, said “Every great movement started with a group of people being able to get together and really just make a stand.” From Seneca Falls, to Selma, to Stonewall, to Los Angeles, where a bunch of celebrities demanded that their fans give them more money—this country has such a rich history of protest movements.

Jokes aside, the celebrities at the Tidal launch press conference did a remarkably poor job of elucidating why the consumer accustomed to getting music for free should begin paying for it. In the age of Spotify, it is entirely legal to listen to music constantly and never spend money on it. Countering that fact with the moral claim that celebrities would prefer if you didn’t stream music for free only makes sense if you believe celebrities should get everything they want, one hundred percent of the time.

As for the rhetoric in the press conference that music is special and has a unique place in our culture: Music fans agree! That’s why they listen to music often, on services that provide that music for free. But rather than building a better system, Jay Z and friends have, so far, put their energy behind a product that’s more or less the same as Spotify, but more expensive. A product this pointless could, maybe, be sold as a charity case by artists who depend on every penny of fan support. But Jay Z, a rapper who wastes no opportunity to brag, on his records, about his business acumen, is not that figure. Based on the optics of the Tidal launch, his business acumen may have failed him this time.

I don't stream music, I still buy CDs and LPs but I agree with the article.

 

[georgescorewell]

The **** Jay was talking made no sense at all.

 

[osh kosh bosh]

I don't understand this.

Not sure you can sell audio quality to the masses.

Beats were able to create the premium headphone market, not because there headphones were the best, but because they were able to dominate in terms of design and branding. Headphones were extremely ugly and boring design wise before beats and beats turned them into a status symbol and fashion accessory.


I just don't see how you can do that with streaming.

People listen to music on laptop speakers, on crappy ear buds that came with their phones, people listen to music through horribly compressed youtube videos.

I'm not convinced the mass market cares about quality and you can't turn software into a status symbol.



I'm a big enough lunatic to download FLAC files and listen through dedicated headphone amps and studio monitors tough to imagine normal people caring enough to pay monthly.

 

[ravagebx]

Again, ya'll (and that Times article) are missing the point. The Tidal artists aren't demanding more money from consumers/fans. They're demanding a larger share of the revenue that's already being generated via streaming. Money that is currently going from users/advertisers to the tech companies like Apple/Pandora/Spotify, who in turn are basically throwing the artists scraps. There are people who pay for these services. A lot of people. Those people will be given the benefit of exclusive content, and higher quality audio (with the premium service) if they chose to switch as @tyisny  explained. And for those who are enjoying free streaming, you aren't being forced to make a switch. They are gambling on the notion that users will follow the artists lead. 

The question really becomes, if you're an artist, why wouldn't YOU switch? And if your record company owns your music and you just get points, why wouldn't they allow you to release your music on Tidal? 

Not to mention the other aspects of the service they spoke on. Editorial sections, ability to create and share directly, no constraints on creativity, transparency in relation to tracking the metrics of your music, etc. As an artist, wouldn't you want these things? On top of all of that you get equity in the company (pyramid set up? Not sure how that works.) Theoretically, if there are 500,000 music artists who decide to release their music exclusively on Tidal, from the sound of it, those artists would then become what amounts to shareholders. They would own the platform that is releasing their art. This would create a threefold revenue stream (sales, subscriptions, stock). It's an interesting proposition imo.

I personally do not subscribe to a streaming service nor do I listen for free. I've been considering paying the $10 for Spotify though. This has made me reconsider my options. I'm going to wait a while and see how this plays out.

 

[cj003]

-Someone above said this will improve the quality of music being made, I can't agree. 12X20=$240/year. That is about 20 albums. There are not 20 albums a year that are worth purchasing in my opinion. I understand the argument that if artist made more money they'd make quality music, I just don't buy it. The market dictates the type of music that is made. This is 2015, if an album is underground and not in stores, I can get it with a few clicks. You don't need a bunch of marketing anymore, if someone is a fan they'll find your music. Hot music is heard by those who want to hear it. The problem is most people enjoy music that is out...this super poppy watered down music. Im talking about your AVERAGE person. Most of the crap albums that are put out have a single or two, i rather buy that for a buck on itunes.

If a crap album is exclusively on tidal, I'm bootlegging it.

-Are small artist going to get paid more off of this? In all of the articles it says that the "artist will own the service". So, if have zero talent at all. If I make a garbage cd, do I now own a portion of the company? Am I getting the same percentage of ownership as Kanye and Madona? It sounds like a rip-off to the artist just like pandora, spotify, etc. Except that Jay and company will make a hell of a lot more. If the average artist were getting more money per spin, why don't they just publish what they will get per stream. Pandora has done so.

-Those artist on stage w/ Jay, pretty much all of them have a record contract. They aren't indy artist. They don't own their own music. There is nothing stopping spotify, pandora, etc from cashing out the record executives for the exclusive right to stream an artists music. If Pandora cashed out Def Jam for the exclusive right to stream all of their artist, 'Ye aint getting a dime from his music on Tidal until his contract is up and he gets a better one.

Until actual numbers proving this benefits all all artist, I'll assume that the artist on stage took the place of traditional record executives. They get paid while the struggling artist is still struggling.

 

[americangenius]

We as a consumer always complain about how artist "sell out" or continue to make moves that are for popularity rather then the good of the music. Truth is most artist follow that path because they are trying to make money.

I hear you but I'm not sure how this makes sense in terms of making artists make different music. The market has always determined what sells, if you don't sell/have a fanbase now why would your music be more popular on that platform? Artists that put out what they want with good content have been selling, this platform won't change the musical taste of the masses.

I'm not sure why artists would put out better music because of Tidal.

Edit- didn't realize poster above me touched on similar points

 

[Hahahaha]

This is just a popularity contest. Beyonce is on board because it's her husband so plenty of big named artists will follow and hope their stans do the same. People will go there because their favorite artists tell them too but Spotify, Beats, Google and all the others will buy other artists and streaming companies will become the new labels. So if one artist is signed to Tidal but your other favorite artist is signed to Spotify, what do you do? Tidal isn't the only one that will have exclusive albums and artists catalogues.

 

[Jordan8]

All in all when I saw Jay bought a streaming service for $54 mill i already knew it was quick flip. Son you only need a half a mill subscribers for the year to make your money back in revenue. His team found a great deal

I just read that the company is already worth $250 mill now. It's worth 5 times more just off that press conference. :x


The music streaming company Jay Z bought for $56 million last month is now worth $250 million

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/jay-...al-valued-at-250-million-2015-4#ixzz3WCcyakOz

 

[rillo561]

Jay Z looking for a buy out?

 

[Jordan8]

Of course I didnt believe none of that "No end game" BS

 

[shoeking2101]

In general, I don't understand how or why Streaming is so big.

I mean, I get it, but I really don't comprehend why it's such a big business, and why it's projected to be an even bigger business moving forward.

Piracy is so huge man. From ripping songs off of soundcloud or youtube by simply copying and pasting their URL's, to a simple twitter search, or a simple sharebeast / zippyshare search on twitter, Piracy is huge, and not only huge it's easy as hell. It literally takes all of one minute to search for a link to Wale's new album on twitter right now and download it to my iTunes.

I'm a guy that still buys CD's, simply because I like collecting them. But with piracy so easy these days, I don't understand how or why people are willingly paying 10 dollars a month. Is the average fan that far behind the wave as far as illegally downloading songs and albums?

Also, I can't wrap my mind around Tidal selling itself as being this service that provides elite level quality music. Simply because, they couldn't believe that people would actually care enough about that to pay right? It looks like their plan is to court as many celebs as they can and hope that those celebs bring over with them their fans.

But like I said, I've never understood the streaming wave fully. I understand the purpose it serves, but I don't understand why has it been so successful.

 

[onthenephs]

I used to be into piracy until I became like 25. At that point I just felt like it was a weak move from a person who enjoys music the way I do. I look at it as entertainment cost for myself. 1 hr of music a day is certainly worth to me .66 cents. I agree with that fairness and price to be honest. I been subscribed to a streaming service, music unlimited with Sony. Just cuz it was on the ps4. And I felt good like yA I get to enjoy all this new and random music and these artists get to eat. Naive I guess. And prolly naive to think tidal is good to. But shares of a streaming company. That's pretty dam cool. Didn't Apple do that ? Jay is boss for that move and it can be amazing.

 

[mytmouse76]

In general, I don't understand how or why Streaming is so big.

I mean, I get it, but I really don't comprehend why it's such a big business, and why it's projected to be an even bigger business moving forward.

Piracy is so huge man. From ripping songs off of soundcloud or youtube by simply copying and pasting their URL's, to a simple twitter search, or a simple sharebeast / zippyshare search on twitter, Piracy is huge, and not only huge it's easy as hell. It literally takes all of one minute to search for a link to Wale's new album on twitter right now and download it to my iTunes.

I'm a guy that still buys CD's, simply because I like collecting them. But with piracy so easy these days, I don't understand how or why people are willingly paying 10 dollars a month. Is the average fan that far behind the wave as far as illegally downloading songs and albums?

Also, I can't wrap my mind around Tidal selling itself as being this service that provides elite level quality music. Simply because, they couldn't believe that people would actually care enough about that to pay right? It looks like their plan is to court as many celebs as they can and hope that those celebs bring over with them their fans.

But like I said, I've never understood the streaming wave fully. I understand the purpose it serves, but I don't understand why has it been so successful.

I faithfully bough albums up until almost a year ago. I don't drive like that anymore so I don't really have a use for physical cds even though I prefer them. I don't really like buying from itunes. I can pay 10 for one album online or in stores or I can pay 10 for spotify and get the newest album from whatever artist I like plus a bunch of albums i used to have or some random song that may pop up in my mind i want to hear. I can follow others playlists.

I don't have time to download whole albums or single songs to put in my itunes then add to my phone. Only songs on my phone are from artists not on Spotify.

I listen to all my music on standard apple earbuds or my ipod dock...quality isn't a big deal to me as long as i can hear all the words...all that FLCA or whatever i'm reading in here is foreign to me...

only way to get me to switch is if they offered concert tickets exclusive on there...if Bey and others pull out of Spotify i'd probably download their stuff out of spite

 

[drones]

I don't know if it's the pro black in me or what but it kinda rubs me the wrong way when I see our ppl come at Jay for his entrepreneurship.

Like JT or Ryan Seacrest is making a killing w multiple ventures, white guys don't knock them for their moves lol

This is a big part of it to me...why do we always try to tear other black folks down when they make moves?  Not all black folks, but so many of us are on the plantation mentally to where we point and laugh at each other for doing big things.  I don't see any other group doing that but us.

 

[AZwildcats]

As a black man myself I always want to see other black dudes flourish, but I won't be supporting this project. I don't think it's a good idea and I'll call it as I see it. I'm sure he'll make a nice profit off this though

 

[rrickrude]

pass i'll stay with spotify because of the student discount.

 

[8pm at msg]

I was gonna say it sounds like Jay took an L on this one but if the value of this just jumped to $250 million then yeah...he'll probably dump it off on someone else within due time.

 

[mr marcus]

I prefer to download my music so this **** has no benefit to me and i rarely listen to albums anyway...majority of the time I'm listening to mixtapes or non album drops if it's rap