With so many media outlets, streaming services, piracy, independent labels and more, how will the music industry look a few years from now?

Sites like Spotify seem to have made music too accessible. Why pay $10 for an album when you can pay $10/month and have access to everything? Because of the infinite volume of artists and songs, it's difficult to hold people's attention. Singles are more important than albums. Digital is more important than vinyl. Bands need to create unique experiences if they are to stay relevant, and creating copy-cat albums, and playing the same set lists all tour long don't do the trick.

A local band did perhaps one of the coolest things I've ever seen in music. They played a concert in the city's planetarium, with a huge video show in the background. It was a unique experience that gave them a lot more attention in the area. Look for more of this.

I like Spotify because I can search out a particular artist/album/song unlike Pandora and a few others. I share the little nuggets with friends and they do the same with me. It isn't like the radio where you randomly find something good. But most of the radio stations around here (Evansville, In) repeat the same 20 songs over and over again. I can find some of the regional artists that I like on Spotify and I don't have to feel guilty about listening to their music because they are supposed to get some of the royalty which is better than YouTube in most cases. Plus I am not spending hours and a ton of money searching the web and little music shops to find an album that only has one good song on it. Live is still the best though.

I see music getting even more accessible accross the world, and anti-piracy laws getting stricter

I heard an artist (I don't remember which) lament that they thought with the market changes and the ease of getting music distributed that there would be a rise in the local and regional artist. It would become easier for a local artist to rise to the point to be to make a decent living from playing and selling music only and not have to work multiple jobs but that their would be a decrease in the mega-stars. I have wondered about that. What does everyone else thing?

I agree with local and regional artists gaining more popularity, and earning it faster, but I doubt that they'll be able to rely on purely being musicians for their jobs. The landscape has changed to the point where many local artists' first few releases are released for free or minimal cost. Add in the costs related to live performances and merchandise, and you'd pretty much have to be touring full time right off the bat to make a career possible. The feasibility of this doesn't come along until years into the gig, and even then it's a 24x7x365 job. Indie bands selling songs for commercials is making a lot more sense these days.

I can see the Indie bands selling songs for commercials helping them reach a broader audience. I think more diverse the spectrum we are exposed to the more we appreciate it. I would like to see more venues in my area that are not bars. We have a small coffee that is a great place but small. A few of the local towns are starting to having bands in the summer

Another technology that helps me find new artist (sometimes) is Shazam. If I hear music in a store, restaurant, or anywhere, I can pop it out and find out who it is. I have been noticing here recently that I am getting less matches but maybe I am trying artist that haven't made it big enough to be on there.

As mentioned before by Rich, a unique, engaging experience will be critical to a band's success these days. Listeners can find legally or illegally pretty much any song they want, but it is the band's show and their points of view what will gain them devoted fans. Another thing to consider is that the the quality of the music is being diminished by many labels in order to satisfy the great demand; sadly, many 'artists' are part of that wagon.
This conversation reminded me of Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd, and how the concept of the album was a critique to the music industry and their focus on money over talent. 'Welcome to the Machine' would be a good song to check out.

I agree. I find some many bands just an imitation of a sound of another band or like a friend told me once, "They are the sound; every song sounds like the other." I know bands like The Stones have had years to craft and change and experiment but I have choices and avenues to discover new music. We are no longer limited to the Walmart music section and 1 or 2 Music Stores in town. I can open my laptop and connect to the internet in the coffee shop and explore music with other people; no longer limited to the 50 or 100 CDs in Jukebox (which was better than when I was a kid and they were 2 sided 45 singles.) The corporate media machine have choked the air-waves with the for the masses money presses. But we have the power of the internet.

Hello everyone, this is a great conversation one that is very close to my heart. I think we are moving towards a upheaval in the music industry. Once musicians make the decision to take control of the careers, and industry. It's time for the professional musician, to make quality products that fans want to buy. And market themselves like any other professional. The ball is finally in their court. The one thing I'll give Sean Parker credit for is the beginning of evening the playing field for musicians.

Sorry, leveling the playing field for musicians.

What does everyone think about musicians using sites like kickstarter to fund recording?

I like it, but bands that do it better be prepared to give back to the donors. Don't say, "Hey, help me fund my new album that's going to be awesome," and then create the album and leave the donors in the dust. Thank them for helping out. Whether that's with a free copy, tickets, artwork, special product packages...be sure to give back.

I think that crowd funding a project is a good way to "test the waters" to see if people like what you have to offer. I agree with Rich, if you get funded and get something out of it you should not forget who backed you up in the beginning.