Music Production is Now Accessible to a kid from Compton.

Things are changing.  

What things? 

Artistic ownership for one.

 

Our collective conception of what or who an 'Artist' is will continue to evolve with an almost. 

A technological alchemy is transforming the Artisan.

Is it good and bad? 

Likely. But I'm not one to dwell on bad results coming from a major socio-economic pivot.  

So as an amateur musician I remember a time when only the rare genius actually had recording equipment in their garage.

Analog, The Studor and two-inch tape.  

It wasn't analog recording itself excluding the vast majority of us. It was the cost.

The Studer J37 - used in Abby Road Studios cost $60,000 and originally had just one track.

And it just got monetarily more out of reach from there.

Your only way in was endless touring and continually submitting demo tapes.

And then along came the cassette four-track.  But like the incandescent light bulb the four track was swallowed up by a computer and master MIDI controller.

And where is analog?  No one cares. 

And why would they?  A single individual can build a viable recording studio for $500.

Affordable digital recording equipment busted down the doors and evaporated the threshold of music recording.  

A person with complete physical paralysis can now write, sing and record a song with no assistance.

Probably one of the coolest changes accompanying affordable recording is Gangster Rap.  

And say what you want about it but consider the consequences if this social pivot wasn't occuring.

The level of unrest and drug addiction would likely be without precedent.

Old money wasn't listening to the necessity of social upheaval. So Music just marched around them.  Now, a 20 year old kid from Compton can acquire the same wealth that would have been spent to keep him in his cage.

At least rappers seem to rap it out before they immediately go for their gun.  The possibility exists violence can be avoided through music.

And for those folks viewing Rap as anything but music I suggest brushing up on music theory.

By definition music is simply the movement of sound through time.

And the good news?  The threshold to music production is disappearing altogether.  It is wide open.  

An overweight, elderly Irish woman with a beautiful voice can be a legitimate rock star now.  

But that's not far enough. Music clearly desires production to be even more broadly accessible.

Song writing and production is now available without a garage full of cool digital gadgets.

A small rectangular device fitting in your hand is every bit as powerful as a workstation or even professional studio.

That has to be a miracle.