NHT Blog

We’re living in a short attention span society.  I get it and this shouldn’t be coming as news to any of you.  Consider why short form videos are so en vogue.  For that matter, post Reels on Instagram and then look at your analytics for the average watch time.  Eight seconds maybe?  There’s your proof that people just aren’t staying focused on much for very long.

In my online “Interview Tips Course,” one of the many (many) lessons that learners will hear about is to not cancel.  There are so many reasons to not cancel, I explain, and it really should only be done if you honestly and truly are borderline headed to the hospital (or already in the hospital).  Sure, a death in the family would qualify too, although even then, if it’s your mom’s aunt who is 97 years old and 1500 miles away and you haven’t had any contact with Aunt Mary in years and years, don’t play the

“It’s okay not to be okay.”  (Clare Cunningham on Episode 490 of “Now Hear This Entertainment.”)  “I’m giving you permission to take a vacation from your problems.”  (Richard Dreyfus in “What About Bob?”)  I’m telling you it’s alright to go a bit off the beaten path.  (Me in this week’s blog.)

I saw something recently that argued that “innocent until proven guilty” has been reversed in recent times to where people are starting to feel like, “guilty until proven innocent.”  The music industry version of that might be – as tough as this is – that when you start getting into the song review business you can easily get pulled into a posture of assuming the songs are going to be bad until someone convinces you otherwise.

Last month marked seven years already since the fatal shooting in Orlando of pop star Christina Grimmie.  At only 22 years old this was absolutely a case of gone (way) too soon.  Clearly, she was otherwise destined to very much make her mark on the music scene for years and years to come.

We’re halfway through the ten-year anniversary of one of her most popular and iconic albums.  To mark the occasion, her brother Marcus (artist name mGrim) is carrying on her legacy, reimagining the title track from “With Love” in a rock/math rock form.

At the end of April, London-based Lola Aviva released the single, “Green Eyes.”  As a big fan of Elton John, I automatically started singing his song, “Blue Eyes” in my head and thought, “Whoa, unfair comparison.  That’s setting the bar way too high.”  Besides, he is a piano player and the artwork for this track shows Aviva holding a guitar.

It was good to let the two songs stand on their own, but for a variety of reasons.

Starving artists.  Independent musicians.  Gig economy.  Creatorpreneur.  (Okay, I might’ve made up that last one.)  (Although ©2023 Bruce Wawrzyniak on it, nonetheless.  Wink.)  There are terms and phrases out there that imply that the individual is living paycheck to paycheck.  Another en vogue expression is that someone is “bootstrapping” their operation.

You remember how to make a G chord on the guitar.  You have instant recall when it comes to what gets plugged into where for your live music setup.  You have lyrics that you know by heart.  You still replay lessons from your voice teacher in your head when you fall back on the techniques that he or she taught you.

But what about the big lesson that we all learned during the pandemic?  And just because we’re now beyond May, it doesn’t mean that we can discard mental health awareness.

We happily interrupt your regularly scheduled weekly blog for the creator industry to instead present another song review because it means that a melodic needle has been found in the haystack of submissions.

This time around the track that gave me great joy to not have to hit the Decline button on is a tune called “Suffocate,” from an artist named Rae Lou.  It just came out a little over six weeks ago and I’m optimistic that it has been enjoying increased growth and popularity.

Social media has become an essential tool in the music industry, especially for new musicians looking to gain attention and create a following. The Plugged Into Music study from the marketing agency Wasserman found that “one in three use social media to share music they like with friends and family.” They also found that “TikTok is the most used social media platform for music discovery among Gen Z.”