Ariel Publicity

http://greatunknownspresents.com
http://greatunknownsmusicexpose.com

Great Unknowns Presents is a music/talk show dedicated to spotlighting new music artists in the unsigned and independent industry. Each artist is interviewed for the spoken and written material to give you exclusive information about each music artist, because the audience deserves to know who they are listening too.
In conjunction to The Great Unknowns Presents is Great Unknowns Music Exposé. An online music magazine focused on featured interviews with the artists behind the music. Each artist is interviewed for the written material and published here. Each and every week, enjoy in-depth questions and unedited answers from the artists themselves.

Q) Tell us a little bit about your podcast. What inspired you to start it?

A) My podcast started as a hobby really. Originally, it was a class project for my journalism class. The podcast option was open to several ideas and I wanted to come up with something that would showcase my talent as a radio host, but also provide a service. Since radio is over done and played out by the “mainstream payola giants”, I wanted to feature artists that no one has heard of. If people had heard of these artists, I wanted to re-introduce these artists to other people. What started out as a mere college program turned into something much greater.
When I received an invite from Ariel Publicity and after I had won two prestige’s awards for best college podcast, I realized that this was more than just a project and I took it to the next level and I began to track my track statistics. With the help of Ariel Publicity, I began showcasing unsigned artists and I moved my show from a free podcast hosting site to a pay site for better quality and for more storage space. Since my very first show, I have been constantly improving my format and it has paid huge dividends and I created a huge following that went from 300 listeners per week to nearly 2,500 listeners per week. When I placed my podcast on iTunes, that was a major catalyst for the shows success and it has grown to a 40,000+ listening audience which is continuing to grow at a rapid pace.

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The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast

MARC GUNN, Award-Winning Celtic American Musician and Podcaster
Thank You for Listening to My Music –> http://www.marcgunn.com
and the Irish & Celtic Music Podcast –> http://celticmusicpodcast.com

Q) Tell us a little bit about your podcast. What initially inspired you to start it?

A) The Irish & Celtic Music Podcast is a twice monthly podcast featuring mostly independent Celtic music from around the globe. It began with a fascination of the podcast as a promotional tool for my band and for Celtic music at large. It started out as an extension of my Celtic MP3s Music Magazine.  Eventually it surpassed the magazine in popularity. I started it with my own desire to promote my own unique stylings of Celtic and folk music. Yet it is ultimately about helping independent Celtic musicians gain a greater voice in a noisy world.

Artists signed to major or even smaller labels usually have a promotional team out there spreading the word for them. I get a ton of CDs from such labels as Compass Records, which does a great service for the Celtic music world. But bands like Poitin, The Tea Merchants, Ed Miller, Maidens IV, Athas, Bedlam Bards, and The Rogues don’t have the money or resources to notify all the Celtic media about their music. I see my role as a facilitator to get their music in front of people who want to hear it. And I’m happy to say that I do just that.

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http://www.astralaudio.net

Q: How can contemporary artists make more money on the internet?

A: Models like what Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, and Mark Mosher have given potential buyers a choice of what a particular song or album should be priced at. Their success along with keeping things drm free encourages fans to obtain works from the artists. Perhaps if artists gave fans the chance to rate individual songs or the entire album as a whole, then a higher rating could mean that fans are more likely to purchase the work. An option would be to cap the price at around $15.00 for the CD and $5.00 for the digital download. If the rating goes down, the cap should be lowered along side this.

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Q. What are your favorite blogs/audio blogs featuring new music do you like to visit?

A. Believe it or not I love BlogCatalogue.com. Blog Catalogue is a directory of just about every blog mentionable..  I usually go to the music section of blog catalogue and just enjoy the array of music blogs.   When it comes down to the nuts and blots of getting the latest on what’s happening in quality music blogs it’s the Hype Machine (hypem.com)

Q. What inspired you to start site?

A. WSF Radio is sponsored by AWM Records, Inc. The inspiration behind WSF Radio was the demand from independent artists who were looking for outlets, and platforms to be heard from.   Many may not know WSF Radio started out as a sports program which played indies music in between breaks..   It was not long before artists began to contact the station asking for reviews, and their music to be played on the station. The more I listened to music from the independent artists the more passionate I became for playing their music. I was totally floored at the sea of talent that was not being heard. WSF Radio actually stands for Worldwide Sports Fanatics. Moreover, the more I listed to the music the passionate and love to promote and support independent music just grew, in the midst of promoting independent music WSF Radio recognized the shows format needed to be completed revamped to the station which supports independent artists.

Q. What do you think is the impact of blogs, internet radio, and podcasts on independent music?

A. Blogs, internet radio, and podcasts on independent music really are the wave of the 21st century. I really believe internet radio and podcasts have a positive impact on independent music.   These vehicles such as blogs, and podcasts, and internet radio have really created a media to propel independent music into the spotlight versus in years past podcasting was rare. However, these instruments became popular, and gave independent artists a stronger sense of control over their destiny. With the changes in how the music industry has changed I tend to believe more consumers want an alternative music source such as independent music.   Every artist should have a blog, fans love blogs, and blogs is the connection between the artist and their fans. Independent musicians should go after every internet radio station that’s on the web. Internet radio is taking over, and more people are using, listening, and love internet radio more than ever before.

Q. When you started your station, did you anticipate that blogs would have such an upscale trend as it does now?

A. When the station first started the trend of blogs were growing, and we could see the direction of were blogs were headed, but we did not anticipate how quickly blogging would skyrocket, and literally become a household word.

Q. What are the ultimate goals you wish to achieve through your site?

A. Our ultimate goal for WSF Radio is to have our own independent network channel on Blogtalkradio.   Although having our own station to serve independent music does give artists exposure; moreover by having our own network channel it will create greater exposure for artists by having a permanent front page ad on the Blogtalkradio website. We foresee our site as the place where new artists become discovered.   We are working hard on branding our site as the platform where independent artists are pushed to the next level in their music career.

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http://www.suchcoolstuff.net

Celebrating Independent Artists

1. What are your favorite blogs/audio blogs featuring new music do you like to visit?

You know, it’s funny. I don’t really read any music-related blogs on a regular basis. I’m a bit of a chronic Googler, and that’s how I find most new (and new to me) music, both for my blog and for my own enjoyment. I read other blogs regularly, particularly in the left-leaning political and feminist blogosphere, but I’m pretty fickle when it comes to subscribing to blogs about the arts.

2. What inspired you to start site?

I very briefly tried to run an Etsy shop, but I found I was far too lazy to keep it up. One of the biggest challenges I had was getting my name out there, so when I decided to start a blog with the idea of profiling things I enjoy in general, I quickly saw that I could use it to help other artists promote themselves and their small businesses.  Then I e-mailed a few artists I admired and got things moving. Initially I profiled only visual artists (painters, photographers, fashion designers, etc), but I really wanted to expand to include music.

I’ve been quite literally surrounded by music all of my life.  My father was a studio musician for years, and my uncle was played with Dobie Gray in the 70’s.  My sweetheart is also a professional musician, so our house is filled with music all the time.  It was only natural for me to want to expand my blog to include music.  Much like the artists I began Such Cool Stuff! with, I started by e-mailing musicians I admire, and before I knew it things really took off.  I love playing my small part in helping artists of all types get their name out there.

3. What do you think is the impact of blogs, internet radio, and podcasts on independent music?

It’s just huge. This is a frequent topic of conversation in our household.  With this new media there is a lot more access to the public than you had back in the day. Anyone (like me!) can start a blog and become an instant media outlet, and smaller artists have a greater chance to get their name out there.  On the downside, with the pool of both talent and media so large now it will take an extra measure of effort for those who do gain exposure to make it meaningful.

One of the things I mourn about the way new technology is impacting the industry is that the digital availability of music has pretty well killed the concept of the album. I’ve always been a big fan of looking at an album as a whole, as a story with a beginning, middle, and end. Now with things moving to a digital format, that’s being lost.  Every track needs to be able to stand on its own. There aren’t any B-sides now in the traditional sense.  Such a shame. My favorite songs have typically been the B-sides.

4. When you started your station, did you anticipate that blogs would have such an upscale trend as it does now?

I actually only started the blog about a year ago, so there hasn’t been that much of a change for me personally. I do think it’s astounding to look at the way the internet has changed our lives on a massive scale. Just twelve years ago I’d never even used the internet. Now I use it for pretty much everything, and whole industries have had to change everything about the way they do business.

5. What are the ultimate goals you wish to achieve through your site?

Such Cool Stuff! has always been fairly experimental. I started it without a clear idea of where it was going, and the direction has proven to be ever-changing. It’s a hobby for me (my day job is in a very different industry), so I have the luxury of letting the current take me where it wants to go with regard to the blog. I’m excited to see where we end up!

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Rew and Who? is the new indigent radio show hosted by Rew of ‘RewBee – The Jewel of NYC’. It’s pure entertainment that will leave you wanting more, more, more!  With their “Anything Goes” mentality, Rew and Who? is spontaneous and informative giving its audience an inside look on today’s indie music and entertainment scene through the eyes of Rew.

http://www.arizzmaradio.com/rewbeesworld/index.html

1. What has to be done in the technological sense to monetize music to a greater degree on the internet?

Are you talking $$$ ? Well it’s a strange world right now everyone seems to be saying and a strange business, musicians can have all their music pretty much downloaded for free on the internet. in my opinion licensing is the way to make the bucks, royalties. I got a song on “Bad Girls Club” & that was the nicest amount of money I ever saw, it did happen through emails so i guess that counts as the internet! Keep knocking keep sending, doors open when you aren’t looking, at least that’s how my life works.

2. Where do you see the next trend in social media? What else can be done in terms of having an online conversation? What is the next “What are you doing?” question?

That’s funny cause as I’m doing this i am IM-ing, facebooking and texting. The next I guess is beaming!

3. What inspired you to start broadcasting/blogging? It that still your source of motivation?

Actually i fell into it and it has become so much fun and so time consuming and so rewarding all at the same time. I love meeting creative people and giving them a place to strut their stuff. I have been an artist for a while and it does seem like the Iinternet is the place to go. It’s here & it’s staying. I feel really fortunate to be on it at this time with *ReW & WHO?*

4. What are some things bands can do to get your attention to be featured on your broadcast/blog? Do you ever cover a band that you are not particularly fond of musically?

I am a firm believer in ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder’. I believe talent is widespread, it’s what one does with it, almost like you gotta have the what so when you meet the who something can happen. Who you know does matter! I guess I now know many **Who’s**, I will give anyone a shot at their 15 minutes of fame, it’s up to them to be asked back again, it’s a vibe thing, a chemistry thing, I don’t have to like your ‘art’ per-say, but how you present it & how real you are, that’s what works best for me. Also getting lots of viewers to tune in is a giant perk!

5. Will major labels ever be the gatekeepers again, or have they lost all of their power to the internet forever? Can they somehow return to prominence?

I can’t predict the future, I don’t even know what’s going to be 5 minutes from this moment. It’s a big adventure out there right now it’s really anybody’s game and I think it’s fair that everyone can promote their music and dream BIG. Still to get real airplay, payola does exist, that’s what i’ve heard and it’s small at the top, but the Internet let’s everyone swim, its a big ocean and everyone can have a shot. It takes luck, passion and believing. I always say I’m an optimist or that I live in total delusion. I don’t know the difference. Thanks!

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