I'm Supposed To Feel Sorry, Why?

The more I keep reading about the .mp3/RIAA battle, the less I feel any compassion whatsoever for the RIAA and their goons.

Now it's still not right to illegally download .mp3s, I'm not condoning that. However, it's not as if the moneygrubbers are completely perfect either.

.mp3s have changed the way the music industry works. And as a result the RIAA has lost total control over the creation of anything musical in the US today. A small artist can now circumvent the RIAA, use the .mp3 format as a promotional tool and can probably end up making more money self-publishing than they would ever net out through the RIAA. Yeah, they don't get the MTV exposure, the instant celebrity status or the groupies from day one, but in the end they are better able to support themselves with a job they love.

And that scares the dickens out the RIAA. They don't want self-sufficient, intelligent, hard working musicians because those deviant musicians could prove that there is an alternative to the monopoly. The effect could ultimately be more damaging than a successful anti-trust suit. The RIAA wouldn't get broken up; it would cease to exist.

The author of the article is obviously a fairly frustrated musician with an axe to grind. And that's ok, he doesn't exactly go out of his way to hide the fact - you pretty much know exactly where he's coming from.

But he does bring up some excellent points about the inferior quality of today's "music." Much of it is a blatant rip-off of a 70s or 80s tune. Much of today's music does seem to be more focused on shock value than on any actual musical quality.

That's why I basically stopped buying CDs. Why waste $20 on an inferior product?

Want me to start buying again? Come out with something worth buying. Until then, I'll use my money to pay down bills or to buy books so that I can learn more about stuff I like.