Autotune vs. Melodyne

Autotune vs. Melodyne

Has singing Become a lost art?

Artists such as T-Pain, Cher, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Black Eyed Peas, Rihanna, Akon, Aphex Twins, Chris Brown, Miley Cyrus, The Dream, Jason Derülo, Jamie Foxx, Jeremih, Ke$ha, Sean Kingston, Avril Lavigne, Lil Wayne, Drake, Madonna, Maroon 5, Nicki Minaj, New Boyz, Owl City, P. Diddy, Daft Punk, Taio Cruz, B.o.B, Jennifer Lopez, Colby O’ Donis, Sugar Land, Justin Timberlake, FAR EAST Movement, LMFAO, Pit Bull, Timbaland, Usher, Rebecca Black, Natasha Bedingfield, Kanye West, Faith Hill, Alice Cooper, Billy Joel, R. Kelley, Rascal Flatts, etc. use Autotune to their advantage (Ason). As you can see, Autotune makes millions of dollars in various genres of music.

Nowadays, there are stories circulating around the music industry that many recording artists can’t sing. Since the invasion of Autotune, many artists have relied solely upon its automatic pitch correction parameters to make superstars. Well, I am here to dispel that myth. There is actually a sister tool, Melodyne by Celemony, which auto corrects artists that can sing but may be slightly off pitch. It is a hidden gem in the industry. However, I have been using both for many years. Each has its own distinct characteristics. Simply put, Autotune the News, are adjunct instruments. One must still be able to manipulate parameters or presets in order to get desired effect. There are also many spoof videos such as the Gregory Brothers Autotune the News, which has penetrated into YouTube’s popular culture with over 385 million hits (Youtube). They definitely understand how to connect with their target audience.

Albeit, the artist must have some form of talent. If one cannot sing at all, it would be very difficult to fix. In fact, Autotune works better on an artist that sings slightly flat. Bottom line, a song has to be catchy before it can become a hit-Love it or hate it. Fact still remains; the song must come before the artist.

 Autotune vs. Melodyne Pt. 1

Autotune vs. Melodyne Pt. 2

                                                                              

Gregory Brothers. Autotune the News. http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=hMtZfW2z9dw

Jones, Ason. (January, 2012). Rate Your Music.com Retrieved from  http://rateyourmusic.com/list/Thrashisawesome/artists_who_have_used_auto_tune

Mic Courtesy of MXL 

Vet Boi™_How to Record Live Horns

Steve Jobs: How to live before you die

Steve Jobs: How to live before you die

                            

Typically, my blog is on music. So why did I decide to post about Steve Jobs? Steve is a huge inspiration to me. Quite frankly, if it weren’t for Steve and his vision of the Apple computers, music would not be what it is today. Steve is the Godfather of musical content and catalogue within iTunes. Although very much human, he is a deity. The Mac dates back to the first Commodore computer, which has been instrumental in shaping sounds and inspiring musicians around the globe. I learned how to sequence with the Atari Notator (ancestor to Logic) on the Commodore 64.

Today, I am an avid user with programs such as Logic, Protools, Ableton, Reasons, Record, and Garage Band.

At a 2005 commencement speech at Stanford University, Jobs gave three life-altering stories. He began by saying, “You cannot connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect looking backwards.” He dropped out of college to take a calligraphy class. This set precedence for the beautiful typography within Apple’s graphics and Word applications. Other formats followed suit. Jobs believes that even a gut wrenching mistake can and will lead you into your destiny.

Ten years after starting Apple, Jobs got fired from the very same company in which he started. He felt like he was a failure, but realized he still loved what he did. He was free to start over. He pressed on to start the number one animation company in the world, Pixar. Jobs interjected, “You’ve got to find what you love! Keep Looking and don’t settle.”

His last life lesson was regarding death. His doctor informed him that he had pancreatic cancer. He says. “If you live your day as if it was your last, one day you most certainly will be right. Everyday, if you remember that you are going to die while asking yourself do I need to change what I am doing, you will never fear losing anything. Death is the destination we all share. Your time is limited! Don't live someone else’s life (Jobs).”

Jobs, Steve. Filmed in 2005 posted (2009). Steve Jobs: How to live before you die. Retrieved from TED Blog http://www.ted.com/talks/steve_jobs_how_to_live_before_you_die.html

What is Music Publishing (Micro Music Biz Version)?

Periodically, I sit on recording engineering, music production, and songwriting panels. It’s inevitable; I get asked this question, “How do you make money in the music business right now?” The answer is not a simple one. I recommend diversifying one’s talents to maintain a viable worthiness to potential clients. Meaning, one should learn how to record, mix, edit, master, produce, sing, play an instrument, operate lights, DJ, become an assistant, or manage. However, to the artist, I suggest learn how to write songs, register the songs with Copyright.gov, and maintain ownership of their copyrights.

Publishing=Pipeline Income. Basically there are four different areas of income from publishing: print, synchronization, mechanical, and performance.

Initially, publishing belongs to the copyright owner such as the songwriter. However, there are circumstances where the songwriter may assign that copyright to a third party such as a publisher, manager, or producer.

Often times song writers will work for bands to help them with lyrics and music to play, but here again, the writer of the song is the owner of it and gets the copyrights to it, and thus the publishing money.  One thing to recognize is that copyrights are not the same as sound recordings.  Someone can record a song and sell it to another band or company and then that particular company owns that recording, but they would not own the song.  The original writer will always maintain the copyright for that particular song.  The reason for this is the publishing money is connected to the copyright, so the owner will be the only one making money off of the song itself (Music-Law.com).

Once a songwriter understands the intricate details of copyrights, then he will be able to exploit, position, display, sell, distribute, and perform his song properly. Additionally, if someone wants to remake or sample from a particular copyrighted composition, the new derivative must be cleared and a fee must be paid in order to obtain the rights to perform, play, or sell the new version. There is an alternative to this called Creative Commons, whereby, the copyright holder grants a free license, but attribution must be given to the creator.

Another popular making money angle is sync licensing or synchronization. Sync licensing is a fee paid to the copyright holder to sync a musical composition to film, television, video games, theatrical performances, or musical videos. Once a person gets paid a sync fee, they have just received publishing income.

Performances and mechanicals are two other ways of deriving publishing income. Every time a song is played on the radio, television, and certain non-interactive Internet radio stations, the copyright holder receives publishing income.

Finally, there is one more type of publishing income called print licenses. Some compositions get printed and sold on sheet music. Publishing income is derived from this as well. Basically, there are many ways of generating income for a song. However, if an independent artist/songwriter intend on getting their song heard on a major broadcast level, he may have to sign to a major label of publisher. There are plenty of exceptions to the rule with the advent of Internet technology. Nowadays, there are more independent channels to assist with successful placements.

Ricco Lumpkins aka Vet Boi™

Today's Music Producer

Many people covet becoming a music producer. They see the flashy lights, the paparazzi, the money, the parties, the girls or guys, and the Grammy Awards. They hear names such as Timbaland, Teddy Riley, Prince, T-Bone Burnett, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Dallas Austin, Polo da Don, David Guetta, Rodney Jerkins, Quincy Jones, Trent Reznor, RedOne, Max Martin, Dr Luke, Dr. Dre, Scott Storch, David Foster, and countless others.

What does it take to become a producer? What are some of the characteristics a producer should entail? First let’s clear the air on what a producer is not. Although a rising job title, a producer is not a beat-maker. There a plenty of misconceptions a beat maker is a producer. This is simply not the case. A beat maker is an integral part to the complete process, but is, in most cases equivalent to a musician, which is a hired hand.

Despite the digital evolution, today’s producer is the same as it has always been. He must be able to deliver records. Long Live Analogue.  I digress.

First, there are two types of producers: the executive producer and the record producer. The executive is primarily the business entity, label, or money guy. He has some say of the overall direction and creativity of the project such as Clive Davis. The definition of a record producer is one who delivers a record in a commercially viable form within budget and time constraints. The producer manages budgets, personnel (such as musicians, songwriters, background vocalists, vocal arrangers, engineers, and editors), selects studios, and oversees the creative process until the record is mixed, edited, mastered, and delivered to the label.

The producer does not have to be a full fledge musician, but has to know when to hire the right musician for the job. It would help if the producer knew some musical theory and had some arranging skills. There is nothing worse than an artist singing flat and/or in the wrong key. His job is to bring out the best artist performance. Perhaps, the song is too slow or fast. A producer must have some technical knowledge of the computer equipment and software he uses, whether it is Logic, Protools, Ableton Live, Record Reason, FL Studio, Garage Band, Sonar, Cubase, etc. These formats are known as Digital Audio Workstations (DAWs). Otherwise, he can hire an audio engineer or a technician to assist with his acquisition.

A producer has many characteristics or hats to wear to ensure delivery. He has to be an effective communicator, be able to read one’s emotions, be honest, be firm, be flexible, stage the right recording environment, be an avid listener, influential, have business savvy, and effectively manage time. Nonetheless, he has to be both A and B personalities. He has to deal not only with the creative side but the business as well. Meaning, he has to deal with the clients (investors), managers, attorneys, studios, musicians, A&Rs, and artists. In some cases he may be involved with the marketing, promotions, and radio personnel…

Ricco Lumpkins

www.platworldprojx.com