Facebook to Offer Places Deals

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Facebook announced today it will soon update its mobile apps for iPhone and Android users, reports Mashable.com. Among the good news is that Android users will now be integrated into the Places and Groups functionality. Apple users will also soon be able to add photos.

Also part of today’s announcement, it was revealed that Deals will become part of Facebook Places. Deals–just as it sounds–is part of the new iPhone app and allows users to find special deals at nearby businesses. At first the new Deals will only be offered to iPhone users, but should soon spread to Android systems too. there are four types of Deals; Individual Deals (for discounts, free stuff or other rewards), Friend Deals (where you and a pal claim something together), Loyalty Deals (for the regulars) and Charity Deals (which allow you to donate to a cause). Early merchant deals include GAP, Chipotle and more…

Location-based marketing is expected to become a fixture in the music industry where opportunities abound to influence fans to buy and receive special offers. For example, for checking into a record store during debut week, fans might get a discount coupon to buy the CD.

Radio Use Shrinks; Concert Industry Faltering

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This slide shows that radio usage in a 24 hr. period has dropped from 2:43 in 2000 to 1 hr. 24 minutes in 2010. Conversely, Internet usage has expanded from 59 minutes, to 2:52 in 2010. Time spent reading magazines and newspapers has fallen. TV use has grown slightly.


Radio’s Future II: The 2010 American Youth Study conducted by Edison Research and sponsored by Radio-info.com contains a multitude of slides showing changes in attitude toward radio and other media since the study was conducted a decade ago in 2000. Results are based upon 1,533 interviews nationwide, split almost evenly between age 12-24 demo and age 22-34 demo. While this sequel to the 2000 study measures large changes in media and radio use there are also some interesting slides that do not concern radio.

For example, it is not surprising that cell phone ownership increased from 29% in 2000 to 81% in 2010. Of the 81%, 43% say theirs is a smart phone. When the age 12-24 group was asked how often they read a printed newspaper, 58% said, “Never” and 28% answered “sometimes.”

When asked “How many concerts you attended in the last year?” it became clear that the current economy has not bolstered attendance. In 2000 24% of 12-24s went to three or more concerts and 43% said, “none.” In 2010 only 12% said “three or more,” and 64% replied “none.” In 2000 the mean was 2.1 concerts attended, but ten years later the 2010 mean is .9.

The study also addresses the growth of Internet radio streams and apps such as Pandora. In its recommendations it suggests, “Send more stations after these demos or watch them fade away–the consumer and the advertisers still see radio as a youth medium–why don’t the owners? Claim Internet audio or lose it. It can’t be just your over-the-air product. It must be a font of innovation. Learn from what is driving Pandora.”

This graph shows the steady decline in album sales over the 10 year period, falling from 785 million to 2000 to 380 million in 2009.

New Hearing Protection Offers Safety and Fidelity

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Excessive volume can be a problem at concerts and music clubs and it is all too easy to put ones hearing at risk. EarPeace is a newly designed product created to, “deliver high quality sound and great protection.” The reusable ear plugs, which cost about $15, are made from hypo-allergenic silicone and come with a protective case.

EarPeace provided free hearing protection this past year for thousands of attendees at South by Southwest. The company noted that, the average decibel level at a concert is 110 which is safe on your hearing for less than two minutes. “We developed EarPeace as a discreet and comfortable way to turn down the volume, without compromising sound quality. It’s a huge improvement when you can still really hear the music, understand your friends speaking, and leave a venue without your ears ringing,” said Jay Clark, founder of EarPeace. “People don’t use traditional hearing protection for three main reasons: it compromises sound quality, it’s uncomfortable, and it doesn’t look good. We believe we can fundamentally change the way people care for their hearing by addressing those issues.”

For more info visit www.earpeace.com

Swift Becoming Music City Sales Hero

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Taylor Swift’s Speak Now is officially in the wild and on sale. The 14-song set hit bins and digital download locations on Monday (10/25) giving it one day longer than the usual 6-day release schedule to log what seems destined to become a record breaking debut week.

Industry guesstimators are predicting sales in the 800-900k range while admitting the possibility that Ms. Swift may break the one million mark. A quick look at our Album Sales Benchmarks sidebar shows that Swift is highly likely to eclipse Eminem’s 2010 record, has a strong likelihood of erasing Shania Twain’s record status and will easily surpass debut week sales of her own previous album, Fearless. Remaining to be seen is whether the 20-year-old who penned all 14 songs on her new disc can also join Garth Brooks and Lil Wayne in the mile high one million+ club!

A quick look around the net shows that Amazon is selling the digital album today (10/27) for a low $3.99, and the plastic CD format for $8. The iTunes download contains a digital booklet and allows fans to “complete the album” (not pay for tracks they they already own), but rings the register at a higher $13.99. Aiming at the Target, fans can find an exclusive CD with extra content for $14.99 or the regular CD edition for $9.99.

Taylor Swift pictured on the red carpet of the CMT Awards. Swift offers a hidden message, "CMT Awards," in the lyrics for the song "The Story of Us," in the liner notes. Many people speculate the track is directed at John Mayer. Photo: izzynashville.com

Odds makers expect that Swift’s Speak Now will become country music’s largest-ever selling digital week album. Writer Randy Lewis points out in the LA Times, “The enthusiastic response to the album runs counter to the downward trend of overall record sales, which in the latest reporting period were 14% lower than in the same period last year, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Just two weeks ago, Toby Keith’s Bullets in the Gun set a new record for the lowest sales figure for a No. 1 album debut –71,000 copies– since SoundScan began monitoring retail sales in 1991. Swift also would counter the trend of artists who have been unable to match or top their previous sales figures. Her 2008 sophomore album, Fearless, debuted at No. 1 after selling 592k copies in its first week of release.”

Not surprisingly Swift is blanketing the media. Here’s a few of her higher profile appearances: On Thanksgiving night, NBC will air the one-hour primetime special Taylor Swift – Speak Now. On 10/26 she visited The Today Show (NBC) and The Late Show with David Letterman (CBS), followed by stops at Live! With Regis & Kelly (10/27), Dancing With the Stars (11/2) and an album release party on Ellen (11/1).

According to www.metacritic.com Speak Now is getting highly favorable reviews from both critics and fans…

Sugarland Sweetens Sales Chatter

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Sugarland topped both album charts this week as its Incredible Machine churned out sales of almost 203k units with about 19% sold in the digital format. Nashville rockers Kings of Leon earned the No. 2 spot on all genre album sales with its fifth album,
 Come Around Sundown, which shifted about 184k copies. Also new this week is Union from Elton John and Music City resident Leon Russell which scanned almost 80k to earn the No. 3 rank, all genre.

The list of new country albums and the added sales they represent has been steadily elevating country’s weekly sales totals pushing it up 7% this week to a total of 771k. (Readers may recall that last week’s math showed that average weekly sales of 1.67 million units through year end would be necessary to equal last year’s country album sales totals.) Last week country sales were off 12.5% and this week have improved slightly, now down a more modest 12.3%.

Moving to the Tracks chart for Digital Genre Country the love story is all about the Hendersonville 20-year old. Taylor Swift owns three of the Top 4 track spots with “Mean” (163k+), “Back To December”
(70k+) and “Mine” (49k). (Big Machine’s The Band Perry owns the No. 3 position with “If I Die Young” (58k) giving the label all four top slots.

Music City Networks Acquires Zambooie

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Lang Scott

Web agency Music City Networks, LLC, has acquired merchandiser Zambooie, which will now operate under the name MerchMo. The two companies combine expertise in digital strategies, web design, and merchandising to offer solutions for online promotion, merchandise creation, and tour merchandise management. Collectively, they serve a varied client roster, including Lady Antebellum, Kelly Clarkson, Brad Paisley, To Write Love on Her Arms, Toby Mac, Jars of Clay, and others. Zambooie will continue to exist as a destination site for consumers in the rock, Christian rock and charity markets, and new genre-specific destinations will be created by MerchMo as well.

“Combining merchandising with our existing eCommerce capabilities is a natural fit for both our companies,” said President Lang Scott. “We fill in a lot of gaps by combining our talents and are excited to move aggressively into tour merchandising while we continue to offer the best digital services for our clients.”

MerchMo will also provide product design for entertainment and corporate clients, as well as full fashion lines and retail placement.

Johnson and McConaughey “Playing The Part”

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Jamey Johnson’s music video for “Playing The Part” is directed by Matthew McConaughey. The video, shot in L.A., was the actor’s first directing attempt and the first video from Johnson’s new 2-disc set The Guitar Song.

“Jamey, and this song, both have a great sense of humor, so I wanted the video to have a ‘wink’ to it,” says McConaughey. “For any video, if you like the song, you should like it even more after you see the video. I wanted this video to support the lyrics, and elevate the song. This is a story with a beginning, middle and a surprise at the end. I started out with a 250-pound stripper leaving work in the morning, and ended up with a man in a gorilla suit getting fired from used tire store.”

McConaughey met Johnson during the 2009 Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, where Johnson received the Song of the Year award for “In Color.” McConaughey presented the award for album of the year, for which Johnson was also nominated. “I met Jamey backstage,” McConaughey notes.”He hit on Camila, we shared a few laughs, and we stayed in touch.”

The video below offers some interview footage and fun “making of the video” stories from backstage on the set of “Playing The Part.”

Johnson, who is currently on tour, will perform on NBC’s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on Tuesday, October 26.

Bill Johnson Undergoing Treatment

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Bill Johnson (photo: Jim Shea)

Bill Johnson, long time head of the CBS/Sony Music’s Creative Department, (before its merger with BMG), has been diagnosed with lung cancer and is now undergoing treatment. Johnson was instrumental in most all graphical images, album covers and sales pieces that the label produced during that era. He also designed the MusicRow logo that is still used today.

Presently Bill is undergoing chemo and radiation treatments, but remains in good spirits. “It’s a roller coaster ride, but all in all I’m doing OK,” says Johnson. “Cynda has been by my side every minute, monitoring medical treatment, giving me total home care and loving me.”

Bill admits, “There are so many friends I would like to connect with but I’m either in treatment or sleeping. I wake up with a list of things to accomplish for the day, but then don’t have the energy for getting anything done.”

Friends who wish to leave a note or well wishes can do so at CaringBridge.org where Bill is keeping up a journal and there is a guestbook. Click HERE to contact Bill.

Get well soon, Bill!

Slicing The Nashville Sales Pie

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There are many ways to measure country music sales, but it all boils down to the fundamental question, how big is my slice of the pie? So first let’s talk about the overall pizza pie and then we’ll address some of the recent slices being cut up and handed out. (Source: Nielsen Soundscan.)

For the week ending 10/17/2010 country album sales are off 12.5% YTD compared with the same period last year. As always in our reports, this includes both physical and digital album sales. With only 11 shopping weeks remaining in 2010, the industry overall is now down 13.6%. Country YTD sales are 27.753 million units. For 2009 country sold 46.13 million units. To equal 2009, we have 11 weeks to scan 18.377 million more units or 1.67 million per week. (That’s a tall order considering that this week we sold a total of only 718k.)

However, before anyone runs out to Pizza Perfect to order more slices (not a bad idea), remember the holiday fever will greatly increase the rings of registers and there is a pile of platters yet to launch which are destined to entice consumers.

Now let’s look at how some of the individual slices are shaping up this week. Capitol Nashville served up Darius Rucker’s sophomore country set which tops the country chart and gets second place overall, selling almost 101,000 units. Rucker moved 31% of those in digital format. And then there is The Band Perry. The sibling trio storms this week’s list with over 52,000 units, placing them in the second spot on the current country album list. Personally it feels a bit early to start humming holiday carols, Lady Antebellum’s Merry Little Christmas (Target exclusive) hit the bins with debut sales of about 18k units, a number which is sure to grow as the holidays loom.

It’s hard to gauge how the previous week debuts are faring in terms of drop offs, but one clue is that even with recent releases—four weeks old or less—from Darius, TBP, Kenny Chesney, Toby Keith, Zac Brown Band and Billy Currington, this week’s current country 75 still tallies an underperforming 470,368 units total.

Competing for this week’s debut slices are Sugarland who insiders are now predicting will notch sales of 200-225k and have an excellent chance of topping both the country and all genre album sales charts. And finally all Nashville is wishing Taylor luck with fingers crossed and breath held for what is sure to be the largest launch of the season for any genre (10/25). Stay tuned.

Kingsley Hosts Swift’s New Album Premiere

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Swift at the Grand Ole Opry 85th Birthday Celebration (10/9)

Bob Kingsley’s Country Top 40, in association with TARGET, will present a 90-minute album premiere with Taylor Swift and her new CD Speak Now, hosted by Kingsley. The CD release date is set for October 25th.

“Just when you think the career of Taylor Swift can’t get any more amazing, she finds a way to top herself,” says Bob Kingsley. “‘Speak Now’ is a terrific record, highly melodic, both fun and thoughtful, with youthful energy and great songwriting. I’m very glad to be able to present the CD and Taylor’s insights into it to our radio audience.”

Market exclusive broadcast rights are available for the special. Stations airing it will gain exclusive access to the Target version of Speak Now for on-air giveaways. Bob Kingsley’s Country Top 40 is the number one syndicated country countdown, airing on over 360 stations across the U.S. and Canada. It is produced by KCCS Productions in Weatherford, TX, and is represented by Dial Global Radio Networks.