The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the music industry in multifaceted ways.
Mike Flannery, a Professor in the Department of Music and Arts, acknowledges the ways the music industry has changed throughout the pandemic. “Back when you could sell records or CDs or tapes in a music store, that was the original business model,” Flannery said. “Around 2001 when I worked with Atlantic records, I had 13,000 copies sell and over a million illegal downloads. There had to be a shift in the music industry to keep this from happening, so the industry moved to streaming and cheap subscriptions to keep people from stealing music.
He continued, “The pandemic is the great equalizer because whether or not you have a budget to tour, all of the social options like concerts for music are halted. People have more opportunities to grow big that are just ordinary students without a record label, because the formats are adapting and moving to social media.”
Scott Buksbaum, a senior Music Industry student, is a member of a well-known local band named “Malibu.” His band has been utilizing social media through live-streams, a live performance video that allows for them to share live music with their followers. This adaptation has helped them to stay relevant and engage with their fans, but the band is still facing financial hits due to the pandemic.
“We have been affected by the Coronavirus pandemic because we can no longer play shows, and that is how we made most of our money,” Buksbaum said. “We were supposed to tour over the summer, but because of COVID we couldn’t. The only way we’ve been combatting this is doing live-streams with our record label. We can’t record in New York City, so we’ve been recording in our producer’s basement.”
Aside from the monetary disadvantages that come with the pandemic, Buksbaum acknowledged the personal hardships the band is facing is helping to motivate and inspire their music. “When it comes to the creative outlet aspect of it, we have more time to focus on our music with quarantine,” Buksbaum said. “We also have more to draw on with our own personal struggles and relationship problems caused by the pandemic.”
Flannery also touched on how the pandemic can inspire creativity. “A lot of my friends are definitely working on more projects because they have more time and aren’t wrapped up in the social stuff they usually do,” Flannery said. “If you’re good at keeping yourself motivated and mentally fit, there can be a lot of productivity during all of this with creative work.”
IMAGE TAKEN from Malibu on Facebook
