Sources: https: //www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJvk4TgCL14
https://www.nprillinois.org/2022-02-07/why-new-music-cant-compete-with-old-music
Recently, Kate Bush’s 1985 song “Running Up That HillLinks to an external site.” was featured in several episodes of the popular Netflix series “Stranger Things” (season 4). This is one way that music companies make profits on the secondary market, in this case, by featuring a song on a TV soundtrack. Besides garnering the music company another stream of revenue through licensing, it opened up a whole new audience for the song. The song had a resurgence in popularity, climbing to the top of the Billboard charts, as well as on iTunes and Spotify. You might be interested to know that this is not an isolated instance. According to one analysis by a music analytics firm, some 70% of the U.S. music market comes from songs at least two years old, with much of it decades old.
In Chapter 6 of the textbook, we’re focusing on how the media and culture industries work. One of their strategies for success is the minimization of risk. The music industry is cautious, and sometimes the safest bet is an old song. And old songs are just as profitable (or more so) than new ones. But what does this do to our culture?
In this discussion, we’re going to talk about media products from the past, and their popularity in the present. As a starting point, listen to this podcast from the NPR program Here and Now. It’s a 10 minute segment: NPR PodcastLinks to an external site.
Instructions
Each student will make a long post that consists of their response to the discussion prompts. Once you have posted to the discussion, you will be able to see posts from other students. Choose one or more of your classmates to reply to. There is no set requirement for word count, just write as much as you need to fully and thoroughly respond to the theme of this discussion and the prompts (but more is usually better). You don’t need to make both your long post and reply at the same time; in fact, it is best if you visit the discussion two or more times while it is open. There’s always something interesting to learn by reading what your fellow classmates have to say.
Prompts for Long Post
Please number your responses as follows (but don’t include the questions themselves). Responses should be thorough and well-developed.
1. Making reference to the podcast, to what extent are you aware of all the old music that is popular again today? Where have you seen this? According to the podcast and textbook chapter, explain why the music industry continues to promote old music.
2. What two or more examples of “old” media do you read, view, play with or listen to? This can be books, TV shows, movies, music, or videogames. Be specific and provide details about each of your examples. What about this old media is attractive to you, and why?
