No More CDs, Says Sony
BY AUSTIN CARR
Remember those shiny circular things that could barely hold twenty songs?
Well apparently record labels are still using the prehistoric technology, but not for much longer. Sony Music delivered what some consider a knockout blow to CDs, announcingrecently that on May 1, it will cease sending promo CDs to critics and journalists, and instead only provide them with digital previews. Sony is the second-largest music company in the world, and the first major label to do digital-only promotions--hopefully it's not the last.
This is only a toe-in-the-water attempt at ending all CD production for good, but it's still a good indicator of where the industry is eventually heading.
Over the last decade, overall CD sales have plummeted 48% in the U.S., declining steadily almost every year. Meanwhile, digital sales continue to rise, growing 27% in 2008 and 8.3% in 2009. Digital downloads now represent 40% of all music purchases. What's wrong with major labels, right? The business model seems obvious: Go digital.
Unfortunately, CDs are far from finished. Why? Because digital revenue has failed to compensate for declining CD sales, and more importantly, compact-discs still account for 80% of all album purchases--the labels' bread and butter.
So it'll likely be a while before we're 100% digital, but Sony's move will definitely encourage other labels to follow suit with promos.
My question is: Who is still buying CDs for music? Does anyone still carry around a Discman?

West coast dates are available for purchase now.
3/17 AUSTIN, TX-SXSW
4/2 BOISE, ID- KNITTING FACTORY

3/17 AUSTIN, TX-SXSW
Itunes Reveals Top 25 Downloads Of All Time
“iTunes changed the way you buy music, making songs and albums available for download, day or night,” declared Apple on the site. “Seven years later, we’re about to celebrate our biggest milestone for music, yet—10 billion songs downloaded.” The 10 billionth downloader will win a $10,000 iTunes gift card.
As part of the promotion iTunes is also offering a rare glimpse at its most downloaded songs of all time:
1) "I Gotta Feeling," Black Eyed Peas
2) "Poker Face," Lady Gaga
3) "Boom Boom Pow," Black Eyed Peas
4) "I'm Yours," Jason Mraz
5) "Viva la Vida," Coldplay
6) "Just Dance," Lady Gaga & Colby O'Donis
7) "Low," Flo Rida (featuring T-Pain)
8) "Love Story," Taylor Swift
9) "Bleeding Love," Leona Lewis
10) "TiK ToK," Ke$ha
11) "Disturbia," Rihanna
12) "So What," Pink
13) "I Kissed a Girl," Katy Perry
14) "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)," Beyoncé
15) "Hot N Cold," Katy Perry
16) "Stronger," Kanye West
17) "Live Your Life," T.I. (featuring Rihanna)
18) "Hey There Delilah," Plain White T's
19) "Right Round," Flo Rida
20) "Party in the U.S.A.," Miley Cyrus
21) "Don't Stop Believin'," Journey
22) "Bad Romance," Lady Gaga
23) "Use Somebody," Kings of Leon
24) "Fireflies," Owl City
25) "How to Save a Life," the Fray
Houston, TX - This Thursday, the city of Dallas will begin welcoming the throngs of sports fans and celebrities rushing to partake of the many NBA All Star celebrations going on throughout the weekend. Amongst them will be Grammy-winning, Houston artist Chamillionaire, who has put together a Texas All Star line-up of his own; namely Paul Wall, Slim Thug and Dorrough, for a music video shoot to Chamillionaire’s brand new song, Main Event. The plan is to shoot each of the guys guerilla-style, as they walk red carpets and mix and mingle at the many A-list events they plan on attending; a style of shooting that award-winning video director, Dr. Teeth, is very comfortable with. The final video will also feature a grand finale performance scene featuring all of the artists to be shot at an undisclosed location.
“I thought I’d take this opportunity to remind the rest of the world that Texas is still doing it big when it comes to music.” Chamillionaire says of his ambitious endeavor. “Every artist on the song with me has independent hustle and strength in the streets. It’s an All Star song so what better place to shoot the video than All Star Weekend, right here in our own backyard.”
DOWNLOAD LINK:
Chamillionaire “Main Event ft. Paul Wall, Slim Thug & Dorrough” (produced by Chops)
http://audio.fanbuild.com/fanbuild/chamillionaire/main-event.zip


