It is said that Tracy Chapman was turned down by some recording companies who felt that her style of music lacked commercial viability at a time when music fans were flowing with the tide of Hip Hop. She refused to yield and eventually became a global superstar. In South Africa, the late Reggae superstar, Lucky Dube, had problems with his recording company when he wanted to switch from Mbaganga, a South African native music that he played, to Reggae music. The authorities of the recording company felt that Reggae would not sale as much as Mbaganga would and will thus result in financial reverses for the company. Lucky Dube left the company to start his reggae career and became global phenomenon inspiring many during his two-decade period before his death in 2007.
Musicians are exceptional people with the capacity to make new inventions in the area of their act. It thus amounts to locking their creative power to insist that they must continue to play music that promoters consider prototypical. The industry is one that thrives only when there is unconditional freedom for people to unleash their imaginative wits.
Music promoters no doubt play an indispensable role in whatever good the music industry has given the world. It is normal for anyone in business to watch out and guard against losses. It is however, noteworthy that promoters must understand the nature of the people they deal with. The exceptionality of music artist is such that, must times, they are ahead of the rest of us in the sense that they play what is sometimes difficult for us to comprehend. As a result it sometimes passes out as failure only for future generations to discover the marvel in the project eventually. In view of this, promoters must learn to respect the opinion of music artists and take it as part of the pains of being in showbiz. Read the rest of this entry »