If there’s one thing I passionately believe about the music business it’s that it’s radically changing every day. The old business model is simply unsustainable in our interconnected, global world, and new models are coming and going at lightning speed.
Art Brut is a new model.
I can’t do the subject justice in a quick post, so when you have the time, read the article that caught my eye. However, here’s the jist of what’s going on. Art Brut is a British rock band started by Eddie Argos who had the brilliant idea of franchishing the band and it’s music. Yes, I said franchising.
Eddie has invited the world to use the name and the music and he suspects there are about 100 Art Brut franchises worldwide at the moment. Some Art Bruts are no more than a person, some are bands that have other names too, but have attached themselves to something bigger. How big? Google Art Brut and approximately 6.5 million hits turn up.
For the bands, this is something fun and interesting to be a part of. Any participant is instantly linked 6.5 million times. It’s helped Art Brut number one too. They’ve had two hits in Brittain and a CD is hitting stateside too. Eddie has managed to actively engage a growing group of music minded folks all over the globe. He’s said “wanna play?”, and the response has been yes. That has led to more publicity than he could have ever generated conventionally (if there’s even a conventional way anymore).
Because the traditional music business model is done, the current market is extremely fragmented and chaotic. This presents both challenges and opportunities. Art Brut has cut through. Will you?
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