How NBC's The Voice Sold 20 Million Songs Without a Single Star

By Claire Suddath   December 03, 2014

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Courtesy NBC

Over the past three and a half years, people have downloaded songs from NBC’s The Voice more than 20 million times. That’s a lot of downloads. So many downloads, in fact, that when Lady Gaga hit the 20 million mark back in 2011 the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) announced that she was the highest-certified digital artist ever.

It’s surprising that millions of people are downloading Voice songs, and not just because it means they’re paying amateur singers to cover existing songs that have already been recorded much more deftly by other artists. The Voice’s Matthew Schuler has a nice voice and all, but both Leonard Cohen and Jeff Buckley have all the “Hallelujahs” you’ll ever need. And what’s most surprising about the 20 million milestone is how successful The Voice has been at marketing its music without producing a star.

If you’re not a regular Voice viewer, have you heard of Javier Colon, Jermaine Paul, or Tessanne Chin? No, you haven’t. That’s because The Voice isn’t actually designed to discover a new pop star. The show, which pulls in close to 14 million viewers each week and is currently the most watched reality-TV program, works best as a vehicle for the judges’ careers. Blake Shelton was barely known outside of country music circles when the show made its debut in 2011; this year he brought in $10.3 million from album sales and touring, according to Billboard, putting him on par with the likes of Kanye West and John Mayer. Fellow judge Adam Levine’s band Maroon 5 made more than twice that.

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“We have never made the promise of stardom,” Paul Telegdy, president of alternative and late night programming at NBC, recently told Billboard. Commercials for the show advertise the judges, not the contest. And while American Idol’s promotions still peddle the promise that the show can make aspiring singers’ dreams come true, The Voice prefers to cast Betty White as its golden-voiced discovery.

American Idol doesn’t release its track sales the way The Voice does, so it’s hard to compare the two shows’ sales. And The Voice’s numbers don’t include sales of songs released by contestants after they have won the show, so these numbers aren’t pitting its still relatively unknown stars against, say, Kelly Clarkson. Still, Idol has been in an undeniable slump in recent seasons; in August, Caleb Johnson had the lowest album sales of any Idol winner, at just 11,000 copies of Testify sold in the first week. Yet that’s not as low as The Voice’s season five winner, Tessanne Chin, who sold 7,000 copies of her debut, Count on My Love, in July.

Even so, The Voice’s popularity keeps growing. And it’s surging during a time when record labels find it increasingly difficult to expose audiences to new music.According to the Atlantic, Top 40 stations play popular songs about twice as often as they did a decade ago, leaving very little room for new artists looking to break out. What’s more, when people listen to music they almost always seek out songs they’ve heard before.

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Maybe that’s why shows like Idol and The Voice do so well: People feel like they’re discovering new artists even though they’re listening to the same old tunes.

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China's Second Hand Rose Tours the USA - America's musicians not that impressive

Posted by chris@gfm.fm

Chris B asked Liang Long, frontman for Second Hand Rose, some questions after their recent tour of the US.  Second Hand Rose are a Chinese rock band who exploded onto the Beijing band scene in 2000.  Their unique combination of Chinese and Western sounds and their hyperbolic visual spectacles have earned them a reputation as one of the best live bands in mainland China.

You guys have just been on your first tour of the States, can you share with us any highlights of this tour?

The success of the tour is within our expectation. But it also exceeded our expectations. We never doubt our music. We had a vision at the very beginning that our music style is aimed at international stages. It was really motivating to see audiences in the States enjoying our gigs so much. What came beyond our expectation is that ethnic Chinese show much more interest about local contemporary culture than ever before. Of course it is mostly due to the mass media coverage.

What did you learn about your bandmates that you didn't know before?

There’s still long way to go to keep the band professional. Some members didn’t prepare well enough for oversea touring.  We need to have better problem solving skills to act quickly for unexpected situations. But of course we mean what goes on backstage. I think we did quite well on the stage, even more relaxed than many of our gigs in mainland China.

Are there any musicians or bands that you guys would like to collaborate with?
Yes, we prefer musician that’s more challenging. We are preparing for that.

What did you learn about the US?
We found the possibility of interaction through cultural differences.

I think it’s the same reaction during gigs. They all enjoyed our music. The slightly differences with  Americans probably being attracted by the uniqueness of sound and visual effect on stage; whereas Chinese audiences feel  proud of the familiar sounds and reminded them of their hometown.

You guys have been a band for over 14 years.  When it comes to songwriting, how do you guys work?   Does someone bring in a melody?  Or do you Liang, write the lyrics first?  How do you guys work together to create your songs?

I wrote all the lyrics and melodies before 2008, and we did the arrangements together. Our creation process shifted  to group creation gradually. Although lyrics are  still written by me, we stepped out of the traditional structure and experimented on new melodies. Our band members have been more creative on the song arrangements. Now we work as a team to create our songs, so we are all part of the creation team.

Sony’s Amy Pascal and Scott Rudin Apologize for Racially Insensitive Remarks About President Obama

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The leaked emails “are not an accurate reflection of who I am,” Pascal says in a statement

Sony Pictures co-chariman Amy Pascal and producer Scott Rudinapologized Thursday for racially insensitive remarks they wrote about President Obama in emails that were leaked and published online.

“The content of my emails were insensitive and inappropriate but are not an accurate reflection of who I am,” Pascal said in a statement, adding that “although this was a private communication that was stolen, I accept full responsibility for what I wrote and apologize to everyone who was offended.”

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Rudin issued an apology via Deadline:

“Private emails between friends and colleagues written in haste and without much thought or sensitivity, even when the content of them is meant to be in jest, can result in offense where none was intended,” he told Deadline. “I made a series of remarks that were meant only to be funny, but in the cold light of day, they are in fact thoughtless and insensitive — and not funny at all. To anybody I’ve offended, I’m profoundly and deeply sorry, and I regret and apologize for any injury they might have caused.”

Charlo Greene, Alaska television reporter and pot activist, investigated

MEMPHIS TN (IFS) --  A long long time ago about 1967-1973, Alaska was the only state to let it's population grow marijuana, but was bullied by President Nixon, if they did not stop it, he would not give them their equal share of Highway tax dollars.  The state caved in, and now you have Ms. Greene carrying the water for the whole state.  Alaska, you know you want it!  Get real!


ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — A campaign-finance investigation is moving forward against an Alaska television reporter who quit her job on-air and vowed to work toward legalizing marijuana.

 The Alaska Public Offices Commission wants to know whether Charlo Greene used crowdsourcing funds to advocate for a ballot initiative to legalize recreational pot use. Greene challenged the commission's request for documents.

 The commission on Wednesday rejected her objection to a subpoena, the Alaska Dispatch News (http://ow.ly/EZQhr) reported. That gives the agency the authority to continue the investigation to determine whether money that was spent would trigger reporting requirements. Greene, whose legal name is Charlene Egbe, said the order should be worrisome to those who take a stand on any issue.

 "If you publish your personal stance on any issue, then this government agency believes they have the authority to ask for emails, bank-account information, all of your records," she said. "That's scary." The commission is unfairly targeting her, she added. During a live newscast in September, she revealed herself to be the owner of a medical marijuana business and quit her job with a four-letter tirade. Soon after quitting, she launched an IndieGoGo online fundraising campaign to continue her fight for marijuana legalization.

The effort raised more than $8,400. The commission notes that she hasn't been found in violation of the law. "But without a reasonable investigation, no determination can be reached," the commission wrote in a three-page order. Greene said the campaign should not be subject to reporting requirements because it was fundraising for her organization, the Alaska Cannabis Club, not for passing Ballot Measure 2.

The agency cited examples where they believed her campaign was advocating for the initiative. Alaska and Oregon this month joined Washington and Colorado as states approving legal pot. ___ Information from: Alaska Dispatch News, http://www.adn.com

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New IS video warns US over Iraq deployment

 

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Islamic State Release Trailer for Upcoming Movie Entitled Flames of War

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BEIRUT (AP) — The militant Islamic State group released a video warning the United States that its fighters are waiting for it in Iraq if President Barack Obama sends troops there, as his top general said may happen if the current strategy of airstrikes fails.

The slick 52-second video entitled "Flames of War" shows militants blowing up tanks and images of wounded U.S. soldiers. It then shows a clip of Obama saying that combat troops will not be returning to Iraq, ending with a text overlay that reads "fighting has just begun."

The video's timing, released late Tuesday, suggested it was a response to Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said in testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee that if the current Iraq strategy doesn't prevail, he may recommend the use of ground troops.

"To be clear, if we reach the point where I believe our advisers should accompany Iraqi troops on attacks against specific ISIL targets, I will recommend that to the president," Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declared in testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee. He referred to the militants by an alternative name.

The video was released by the Islamic State group's Al Hayat media center and was portrayed as a trailer for a longer video to follow. The group operates a sophisticated propaganda machine with slick production techniques, using social media to broadcast a stream of battles, bombings and beheadings to a global audience.

The strategy is aimed at terrorizing opponents at home and winning recruits abroad. The group recently released three videos showing the beheading of two American journalists and a British aid worker.

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