Arbiters of Taste

There seems to be a bit of a downside to nearly unlimited choice. A few years ago, I had all my cd’s on a few shelves, would hear new music on the radio, and occasionally go see a live show. Now I have the option to hear a million different songs by pushing a few buttons. But time is limited. How do I sort through these millions of songs to hear the ones that I will potentially enjoy? There are few things I dislike more than listening to music that was not worthy to be listened to.

This is where the power of the social networking sites comes into play. The sites that allow the greatest methods for discovery of new and relevant music will be the sites that make it. The sites that also facilitate the sharing of ideas and new music will lead the way.

But this also signifies a huge change within the industry. The arbiters of taste have changed. Arbitration of taste is now more of a user generated phenomenon as opposed to being generated by the radio stations or labels. I don’t know what to think of that yet. I hope it will lead to higher standards for music, but it could also lead to the next hot thing which makes for a great single for about 4 months and then dies. I am interested in user generated arbitration of taste that discovers quality music that will last generations rather than for the next few months.

I think it is interesting to note the Starbucks news story from today. They are cutting part of their entertainment division that was in charge of cd sales at Starbucks. Seems that Starbucks started out by introducing new artists (acting as arbiters of taste) but then shifted their focus to safe, well known artists such as Alicia Keys and Paul McCartney. My guess is that if Starbucks had been more edgy on their arbitration of taste, people would have picked up the outdated cd format and bought it.

Stay tuned,
Erik
erikrostad.com