Jackson Free Press

Perhaps Asa Carter, a Klansman and the secretary of the North Alabama White Citizens Council, said it best in 1956:

"Rock 'n' roll is part of a plot to undermine the morals of the youth of our nation. It is sexualistic, unmoralistic, and the best way to bring people of both races together."

Well, yeah.

Music—rock 'n' roll, gospel, hip-hop, country—is probably the best way ever to bring people together. And being that the old bigot was talking about such immorality as people of different races getting along and working together, then, hell yes, music is great for that, too. It is the great equalizer. It is the connector. It is the way young people express themselves, and reach out, and rebel, and ask for help. It is the way older people reconnect with their youth, their idealism, their soul. Music rocks.

Of course, music can be used for negative and selfish purposes. Greed. Misogyny. Violence. But that's usually only true of musicians who aren't trying to reach out to people, and other musicians, around them. The ones who are in it just to get chicks or more bling or just to be cooler than thou. And those are the same ones who would have the same problems no matter what profession they chose to channel their neurosis. (You know the ones: Their hair is more important than their art. Blech.)

This musical reverie went through my mind last week as I sat in the Red Room at Hal & Mal's, listening to Kamikaze explain the mission of the recently formed Mississippi Artists & Producers Coalition at a meet-and-greet sponsored by the JFP.

Kamikaze's presentation was all business, all networking, all-inclusive. It was an effort like I may never have seen to bring diverse artists together under one umbrella, to help each other, to speak with one voice when needed, to stand up for each other.

Kamikaze's focus was both on sending out a message that Mississippi is a Music State to be reckoned with, and on helping individual artists with everything from booking gigs and being treated right by venues to using members' dues to put out compilations of members' music. They've already published Hip-Hop, Vol. 1; they're looking to do Rock, Vol. 1; Blues, Vol. 1, and so on. And once the CDs are out there, the coalition wants to make sure the songs are getting played on radio around the state.

"You get 300 spins on the radio, you can get a record deal," Kamikaze said, holding up the coalition's first CD.

"Mississippi is slowly becoming a hotbed. … We've got to get people to stand up and take notice. We've gotta make noise," he added.

M.A.P. started out as mostly hip-hop artists, but is now focused on reaching out to all types of musicians. Represented at the meet-and-greet were gospel, blues, R&B, indie rock, spoken word. The crowd was impressive: M.L., Compositionz, Vicksburg blues duo Osgood & Blaque, white rapper L'il Shane, The Rockwells, and many more. The tables and chairs were all full—although Kamikaze said later that he wished more rock and indie acts had shown up.

Each person stood up, talked a bit about themselves and their music or poetry. They promoted themselves and their music; afterward, everyone mingled while Phingaprint showed off on the turntables. Business cards were exchanged; CDs and flyers passed out. There was none of the sense of animosity, jealousy and pettiness (one of the musicians called it "fighting like crabs in a bucket") you sometimes witness between artists who are stymied by competitiveness—meaning that negativity holds everyone back. It was refreshing and hopeful.

Kamikaze gave out a four-page explanation of M.A.P. and its goals. The very first sentence showed that there is no sugarcoating going on here: "Mississippi, a state with a longstanding history of cruel civil rights atrocities, also has an extensive history stemmed in blues, Southern soul, spoken word and hip-hop. Many of our musical forefathers have ties to the Magnolia state, but yet Mississippi has often been overlooked during the South's recent rise to prominence in the industry. After decades of crippling racism, Mississippi has now experienced a creative renaissance." All true.

The best part, though, was what followed: not whining, but a detailed plan for uniting, teaching, nurturing and economically empowering Mississippi artists. The event had the tone of what I like to call "going Dr. Laura on your ass." What I mean is not her homophobic side, but her focus on taking responsibility. Not complaining, but working to make things better. Squarely acknowledging past injustices and problems and causes, but then going out and fixing the problems. Not whining about what people think of you if you're just going to do the crap that makes them think it.

M.A.P. is about action, and I dig it. And it captures perfectly what I believe about that age-old riddle about Mississippi: Do we help ourselves by looking backward or moving forward? The answer, of course, is we must do both. Simultaneously. That is what M.A.P. is trying to—use the power of numbers to empower and embolden Mississippi artists to step up and demand to be noticed. And it feels like one kick-butt way to get past that low self-esteem problem that the state suffers from. Who, us? We can't do that. Hell, yeah, we can.

Whether musicians are punk, or indie, or hip-hop, they can demand respect, if they just will. Kamikaze looked at attendees squarely as he declared, "This is not a gang we're putting together here; it's not a social club." It is a coalition—of people from different backgrounds, with varied musical tastes, some from public schools, others from academies. All creatives.

"Each one has to teach one," Kamikaze said. M.A.P. members are expected to support younger artists coming up, give helpful criticism and attend their gigs.

Ultimately, though, M.A.P. is about success. The crowd laughed heartily when Kamikaze said, "I want all of us to hop in our Hummers and leave looking good."

The next M.A.P. meeting is Tuesday, Aug. 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the coalition's new office in Thalia Mara Hall. All are invited. Call 601-212-6381.

Previous Comments

ID

70393

Comment

Thabi has posted a gallery of photos from the M.A.P. meet-and-greet so everyone can see what you missed! Remember, there's another meeting Tuesday.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-07-29T08:40:20-06:00

ID

70394

Comment

we really need to rally together and figure out a way to get local musicians on the radio. a lot of people won't risk paying $5 to see a band they've never heard. Since so many stations in town are run by clear channel, which has strict guidelines about what can run, we might have to do some dancing to get local tunes on the air, but there's got to be a way.

Author

casey

Date

2005-07-29T14:22:12-06:00

ID

70395

Comment

There is no more local radio, at least among stations with a viable signal in reasonable influential markets. Today, a local artist will find it almost impossible to get airplay on meaningful stations. Even "Jack", which proclaims it's "breaking the mold" of playing only established, familiar cuts only plays "safe" oldies. New Orleans, Jackson, and Memphis used to be great markets for "breaking" hits regionally or nationally; but, now the consultants and national program managers won't allow any experimentation. Although far from mass exposure, perhaps a local "internet" station could be a venue. While not reaching the masses, it could expose new material to a smaller, but influential group of listeners. Once there is demand at the retail level, ones chances of airplay are somewhat increased. A webcaster with a couple thousand unduplicated listeners per week could also find some niche' advertisers to support the effort financially. Marketing such a web-based radio "station" would be fairly simple for the first one to arrive on the local scene. Just some random Saturday morning thoughts....

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-07-30T06:57:13-06:00

ID

70396

Comment

Sonny, I've actually been thinking of a webcast for quite some time. It's just as tedious as a regular radio station and can be quite costly (bandwidth). It's not nearly as costly as the airwaves but you still have to deal with licensing and bandwith and hosting, etc. I'm currently sitting on tracks for four artists that will be performing at OUToberfest with full airwave and webcast permissions and am having no luck. They're very radio-friendly but I can't possibly think of a radio station with farely open guidelines in the area with a wide listening range. I do have two bands loaded on a flash-based player and are waiting on more tracks from upcoming artists to be delivered via snail mail. I've even done research on shortwave radio, AM or community radio. You still have to deal a tower ($5000-$10,000) if I remember correctly. Licensing through the FCC (which are limited). Licensing and payment for songs played to the artists and/or their label. I am curious if MPB radio is accessible by the community like Public Access TV is here in the city? Shouldn't we have a radio station much like public access? Mr. Stiggers, any input? Sneaker radio is the best bet I can think of for getting thest tunes through the speakers of the people that might be interested. Sneaker radio being: burn a disc; put on some sneakers; run it to the person and have them play it. ;-)

Author

kaust

Date

2005-07-30T07:47:05-06:00

ID

70397

Comment

I just wrote a lengthy response and lost it. (UGH) More coffee... I understand the expense of webcasting. Perhaps it would be easier to get investors to look at low power FM. It's set aside for nonprofits and, although I'm far from an authority on tax matters, it would appear to be an attractive investment. I have no idea what's still available here in low power, I know several organizations were granted construction permits and have not built their stations (St. Andrews, etc.) http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/ is the link to the Audio section of the FCC website and has search capabilities. I would think for about $50,000 one could get a station on the air with decent equipment (a must!). You can hang the antenna on most anything...water tower...multi story building..etc. You're limited in height about the average terrain; but there are ways to work that to your advantage. WJNT has a low power FM they use at night and it covers pretty well...ten to twelve miles in a car...probably about half that on your average home receiver. Perhaps, Hinds, Holmes or another institution, even a high school, would furnish antenna and studio space if students were allowed to intern at the facility. Also, the broadcast schedule could be limited to essential hours to reach the people you're programming to. BMI and ASCAP licenses for commercial broadcasters are based on revenue; but, I think the fees for nonprofit, low power stations are fairly reasonable. Again, I think about $50,000 would build it and furnish some initial operating capital until donations (similar to MPB Radio) would kick in. Monthly expenses could be held to a minimum. Investment in a good computer system and software to handle the programming would be essential. One fulltime employee and a parttime person, along with voluteers would be sufficient staffing. Perhaps someone on a parttime commission basis to round up donations. Anyhow, just Saturday morning ramblings. I spent nearly 50 years in the business here and in much larger and smaller markets and looked at some local music programming (Saturday and Sundays) several times; but, I never fought the battle with corporate to the fullest. (This was before Clear Channel, et.al, when corporate was smallet and broadcast groups were limited to the old seven and seven and five rule for AM/FM/TV). I would think if a low power station began exposing our local talent, marketed itself successfully among potential listeners and created retail demand for the product that at least some of the big boys would play. Personally, I am out of touch with the local/area talent scene and (honestly) don't care for alot of what's out there. I suppose I've moved on the a nostalgic demographic. However, if the pool of talent is anything like it's been over the years (and it's probably much larger and varied in genre) I would think that there has to be investment money out there somewhere to furnish a venue to expose our resources to a wider audience. Again, just rambling... I'd love to see something like the above come about...

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-07-30T08:38:14-06:00

ID

70398

Comment

I would to ... and I will cover y'all's efforts. This one is beyond my expertise, and my hands are full here. But there are some other folks hanging around here with some knowledge and ideas on it. We should keep the conversation going.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-07-30T13:10:50-06:00

ID

70399

Comment

There are perks to featuring unknowns and locals... Primarily, they're more willing to freely provide broadcasting rights for exposure. Which would certainly save on operating/licensing costs. It'd be interesting to make a low-powered station part of the studios being discussed. What better way to test and promote new releases?

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-01T08:08:11-06:00

ID

70400

Comment

We can break through this wall people. These stations count on our apathy to let them continue to play us. We just havent raised enough hell. these stations hands are not always tied and a lot of times a simple word from the PD thats usually right here in JACKSON can get a local band played. Its how 3 Doors Down got signed. A progressive station on the cost decided to support their local heroes started playing their record...and the rest is history. we have to force the hand of these guys. I did the same with the urban stations here and now they have relaxed their policy on local artists. If its really good, they'll give it a shot. rock 93.9 and Y101 are the BIGGEST culprits and we should start boycotting their events until they show us love. Bans like Storage 24 and LBE should be WAAAAAAY bigger than they are now but like casey says a lot of peeps wont come see a band that they havent heard or seen on mtv. the attendance at these rock shows around here is depressing but with radio support that would change drastically. I think we need to get these guys at those stations whoever theey are andd take them to task. ...By the way come to the mtg on tuesday. 7:30 pm. MS ARTS Center ( next to thalia Mara Hall). large Rehearsal hall.

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-01T09:28:27-06:00

ID

70401

Comment

And I meant "coast" not cost

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-01T09:29:10-06:00

ID

70402

Comment

And I meant "coast" not cost and "bands" not bans

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-01T09:30:09-06:00

ID

70403

Comment

K, I was actually planning on attedning Tues evening. Very interested in what y'all have going on. BTW, we plan to contact Y101 this week about Eric Himan and Anna Byars... Like I said, they're radio-friendly. Neither are locals but it'll be an interesting experiment.

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-01T09:32:21-06:00

ID

70404

Comment

will look fwd to ya coming out. and bring any other interested people with ya. my next move is to invite the pd's of Y101 and rock 93.9 to the next mtg and ambush em.LOL. No seriously, i think they should have to stand in a room and face tthese local artists with no desk or secretary to hide behind. We're also planning on putting together and ALL GENRES concert soon at thalia Mara hall. the first of many I hope and we will need everyone's input. we're gonna be looking for donations and sponsors. So come out . Thanks.

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-01T09:37:23-06:00

ID

70405

Comment

Kamikaze, I don't think I can make it Tuesday. But I put aside some extra papers for y'all of the issue with the M.A.P. Coalition feature, as well as a bundle of this issue if someone can pick them up. Maybe we can convince Knol to bring them to the meeting. We'll put out a Lounge reminder about this meeting. Also, you might post a sign on the main doors of Thalia Mara Tuesday, since I think that's where the paper says the meeting is. I'll be there if I can, though. Give 'em hell.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-08-01T09:49:51-06:00

ID

70406

Comment

Kamikaze, the only problem with your idea is that very little, if any, of the "adds" on 93.9, for example, are decided by the PD. Most songs have to reach a certain level on services such as MediaBase and be approved by the national consultant. MediaBase keeps records of every song played by stations chosen in each market by format. Their signal is relayed to satellite and then to MediaBase which decodes the songs played and tallies them for subscribing stations. Even if the station has no consultant, it would be difficult for a PD to qualify to "headquarters" adding a lot of material that is not rated nationally...or, at least, reagionally. This is particularly true with the recent ten million dollar fine slapped on Sony and the investigation into many radio stations regarding paylola. (Cash, trips, contest prizes, etc.) Your best bet with the commercial stations is to get someone to agree to put on a special program, probably Sunday nights, featuring local talent. It would be a "foot-in-the-door." Considering the thousands of listeners to 93.9 or Y-101 it would be difficult to mount a campaign that would put a significant dent in attendance at events. Also, most PDs are conditioned against pressure to play local groups. I'm all for the local exposure; but, there has to be a realistic approach to it.

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-08-01T10:06:38-06:00

ID

70407

Comment

By the way, it is easier to get material on stations in smaller markets and on lower rated stations. Jackson ranks considerably higher than the Biloxi-Gulfport-Pascagoula Arbitron Metro.

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-08-01T10:08:34-06:00

ID

70408

Comment

There are two local, very independent channels here... I think I'm sooo not a radiobaby so correct me if I'm wrong. Doesn't Edward St. Pe own one and there's another very low-freq in Fondren, right? St Pe is very into the local scene... Maybe we could approach him about an evening? Heck, it may just boost his listeners and advertisers. You really could do a nice "variety show" in two hours or less once a week... Something like that might also be possible over MPB but I suspect that's a shot in the dark.

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-01T10:12:10-06:00

ID

70409

Comment

St Pe is probably a good idea. Again, we're back to low power; but on the air!

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-08-01T10:14:03-06:00

ID

70410

Comment

I think reasonably, we're looking at low-power or low-bandwidth. Low-bandwidth does give the option of having a two-hour local show available at all times rather than during that one stretch of live time over the airwaves. Most people in the city are online and connected... Am doing some research on this. I've always wanted a live set on the net.

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-01T10:28:57-06:00

ID

70411

Comment

I feel ya Sonny, but I been doin this for 10 years my man as an artist. and as being an artist that has gotten considerable radio play in Jackson I'm fully aware of BDS and mediabase. all of my songs that get radioplay are tracked. (Otherwise, you're shooting yourself in the foot). In fact I've gotten radio play as far over as Corpus Christi, TX to the west and Philly to the east. I've dealt with PD's personally on all levels in many different markets.(because I'm not just an artist but a CEO as well). that whole "consultant" thing is another crutch for these pds to hide behind, trust me. True alot of them dont have absolute power, I agree, but JAckson is what is known as a P2 market. Your P1 markets are thee NY, ATL, LA, Chi, N.O., Dallas, etc. Major cities. Jackson ranks about 120 or somewhere in there according to the lat rankings by Radio and Records. you can go to Radioandrecords.com and see for yourself. In P2 markets, PDs have a little more freeedom. A local hour would be great. But for real numbers to be put up you and I both know that an artist needs to be put in regular rotation. One spin a day isnt cutting it. At any givn moment on a station depending on the population of that city there's only a percentage of listeners tuned in at that time. Your song gets played during that hour but only a few people will hear it. And the way readio is today, in order for you to have a hit your song needs to get drilled into people's brains. We'll take what we can get. Something is better than nothing but PD excuses aint gonna cut it. They are some of the slimiest, most untrustworty people on the planet (some of them) but Sonny in any scenario we as a peopl are strong enough to make a change. that "We're too little ane they're too big" mentality is what keeps them on top. I'm not gonna let em get away with it. Y101 will play some local artists and 93.9 will too if their phones light up enough trust em. It worked when I did it for JMI and RJH, and it will work for them too.

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-01T10:32:38-06:00

ID

70412

Comment

I'm with you all the way. To build a decent frequency (3x or so) and adequate reach, you WILL need regular play...say 30 or more between 6A and Midnight. It is unfortunate that NO local music station, among the major players, is locally owned anymore.

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-08-01T10:36:57-06:00

ID

70413

Comment

See, this dialogue is good because we are talking about plausible solutions. things that CAN work. Thats why folks participating in what the Coalition is doing is so important. It IS a shame that these stations arent locally owned anymore. BUT with ideas like yours and Knol's and many others coming under the auspices of a united group, we can take back our power!! when we create our own shows, our own forums, our own low-watt radio stations, we give the power back to the artists---back to the people. Then WE call the shots. Right now, the power lies with corporations and slimy PD's(I hate to keep using that word, but when you say PD I just see a slimy slug-like creature. SOME of them are pure a-holes) ..These are the kind of discussions that PD's and concert promoters don't want us to have, Believe me, they hate what M.A.P. can do potentially do. We need to continue this discussion. Long-live pirate radio!!!!!!! Come out to the mtg Sonny. if ya can or send a proxy. we need your input.

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-01T10:49:30-06:00

ID

70414

Comment

I noticed that you quoted Asa Carter. He has an intriguing history.

Author

Ex

Date

2005-08-01T15:54:54-06:00

ID

70415

Comment

Donna, As always I enjoyed your commentary. And thanks for mentioning Lil' Shane in your piece. He is actually one of the 16 final contestants for the 1st Annual Creative Arts Amateur Talent Search that we are having in a few weeks. I have to say I am personally proud of him, because he raised his score almost 30 points during the second audition from the first audition: a feat not accomplished by any of the other contestants. His perserverence is just another testament to what we can do no matter what our color, genre of our craft---- as long as the overall goal is to provide a positive blueprint on the artistic landscape that is MS.

Author

c a webb

Date

2005-08-02T12:22:21-06:00

ID

70416

Comment

I would love to hear a local station playing local groups but that is a long, uphill battle. At best you might get a handful of Mississippi artists played and you also have the potential problem of a change in management or format wiping out all of your hard work (I still remember the shock of turning on WZZQ the morning that they had gone from rock to country--a dark day for Mississippi music). The alternative to radio is the internet. What about a website like 'AllMSmusic.com" as one central location where all Mississippi groups of all genre can have links to their MP3 files? Instead of trying to find the websites of each group (if they have one), let there be one location where you can find the music of all emerging Mississippi artists. Maybe each group could get a thumbnail photo, a brief description paragraph, and a link to their website, but it would mostly be a place to showcase their music with MP3 files that are available for the listeners. As for the music, it would be great if it could operate under some type of music software. Just as an example, Musicmatch.com has a package where you copy mp3 files into a music library and then you can play all or select specific groups or tracks or genre, etc. With something like that you could have the entire spectrum of Mississippi music on one site and people could pick and choose what they want or they could just choose the entire playlist and expose themselves to all that Mississippi musicians have to offer. As a business formula it is cheaper than doing anything that involves radio and it would be available worldwide, not just in a local community. Plus, it's something where the control stays local and not in the hands of out-of-state station owners. I don't know if ad money or donations would bring in enough to support such a site, but it could help defray the cost. If something like this got rolling, it might be possible that the bands would kick in a little to have their music included but I think that charging the listener would defeat the purpose of the site since you are trying to get the music out to the people. It's just a thought and I'm sure that someone else out there can enhance the idea and fill in the details.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-08-03T07:01:14-06:00

ID

70417

Comment

First, K, I'm sorry I didn't make it last night... Have been having a miserable week and won't bore y'all with the details. Hope the meeting was productive. Frank, linking to a musician's files on THEIR server would be an easy business model. Actually, if someone wants to pitch in a few bucks, I'm willing to go forward with a centralized database pointing to individual music files of Mississippian artists. Beyond that, you run into bandwidth issues. MP3 files and streaming are very bulky and require a good bit of bandwidth to deliver. Most MP3 files range from 3-14mb. If you have 200 people download one MP3 that averages 6-7mb, you run into an issue where you're pushing Gigabyte transfer levels which can drag a server to a screeching halt or can lead to significant "overage charges" for bandwidth use per month. I have 9 tracks streaming from the OUToberfest site and have seen significant spikes in my bandwidth used by visitors, server space usage, and overall slower performance if more than 10 people are live from the site. Technology is great and the Internet has many possibilities but it can be very expensive and does and will not reach the masses of Mississippi for another 3-7 years. I still know people that can access the Internet at work but have no basic computer at home or it's on dial-up which makes streaming an absolute nightmare for most. Speaking of software, from my own experience, most don't want MORE software. They want it to be functional with their own. There are ways you could create indie, hip hop, alternative, country, and blues playlists and stream them right into most people's existing applications like iTunes or other MP3 players. Developing a whole new application would not be time- or cost-efficient. Still, Frank, you have my gears turning with the suggestions you've made. They complement and are very similar to ideas I've been kicking around for at least two years. Now that the music scene is starting to blossom, it might be time to put them on a white board for better analysis.

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-03T07:18:43-06:00

ID

70418

Comment

Knol--As is always the case, if it were easy to do then someone would have done it already. You are obviously more familiar than I am on what all of the roadblocks would be but I do think this is a more workable solution then trying to rely on convincing local stations to play local music. Two other thoughts that may or may not be possible. First, is it possible to select a song and hear it without actually downloading the mp3 file? On Yahoo they have some sort of build your own radio type deal. I haven't investigated it very much but it looks like you basically build your playlist on their site and then they just stream the data to you--no need for massive downloads. And the second option is simply using the streaming process that is done by a site like a college radio station. This would meant that the website operator picks the playlist and you just get what is being offered at that particular point in time--it's not ideal but that what we get with radio. As broadband becomes more and more available, the internet will move closer and closer to becoming the primary source for music as opposed to radio. I think the way to go has to be someway where the user is hearing the tunes without downloading the music. If they like the music, then they can purchase a CD through the website with the website getting a cut of the sales amount (another revenue stream to make such a website viable). I know I make it sound simplistic when it is actually very complicated but it would be really nice if such a site did exist.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-08-03T07:55:22-06:00

ID

70419

Comment

"Two other thoughts that may or may not be possible. First, is it possible to select a song and hear it without actually downloading the mp3 file? On Yahoo they have some sort of build your own radio type deal. I haven't investigated it very much but it looks like you basically build your playlist on their site and then they just stream the data to you--no need for massive downloads" - Frank Data is data. A 6MB file is a 6MB file regardless of whether it is streamed or downloaded. Technically, a stream is nothing more than a download played after a certain amount of the file has been "buffered". "I think the way to go has to be someway where the user is hearing the tunes without downloading the music. If they like the music, then they can purchase a CD through the website with the website getting a cut of the sales amount (another revenue stream to make such a website viable). I know I make it sound simplistic when it is actually very complicated but it would be really nice if such a site did exist." - Frank I totally agree that streaming is a viable option. Still, it is a costly option at the moment if you plan to have >100 listeners a month. It still can be costly at <100 listeners if they listen repeatedly... Assuming you have full copyright permissions, that does eliminate the cost of licensing and "per play". I've actually been working on a portal based on some scripts I was working on for "Mississippi Artists". This site would allow artists AND musicians to post their work for viewing and/or listening. Again, the problem with this model is you would have to rely HEAVILY on advertisements, possible grants, and public donations to balance costs of massive server storage (graphic files can be up to 14MB for hi-res images and music files can significantly larger if not compressed properly)... Or, you'd have to charge the artist. Another cost issue is design... To build a self-sufficient site that relies on user-friendly automation, you are looking at hours and hours of development for the frontend (graphics and graphical user interface) and more hours on the backend (databases, scripting, development of a streaming player that prohibits downloads, etc). Once developed, you have to deal with marketing costs and maintenance costs such as tech support (believe me: even the geekiest of geeks will more than likely send an email for something that's probably a user-error), billing, sales for advertisements, etc. It's significantly possible to get a grassroots, automated site up-and-running within a month's time assuming the funds are there and the motivation to make it a success lasts beyond the new car smell. The best bet might be to get someone like Time Warner or Air2LAN to sponsor the bandwidth and storage for free ads on the site... That would eliminate those costs right there. But, there's still development of the site and marketing... I'm not trying to bear bad news but present a more realistic representation of the project scope. If it were as easy as most think, there'd be millions of independent, online stations now. As it is, most are tied to Clear Channels, corporate radio stations, record labels, and HUGE nightclubs and artists. The Internet is no longer the free-for-all it used to be... It's being strip malled just like the rest of the globe.

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-03T08:40:30-06:00

ID

70420

Comment

Great that you guys mentioned that. We're in the process of constructing a website for M.A.P. that would include music, pix, and bios from all MAP members with links so that if you listen to the music and wish to purchase some music you can click on an icon that will take you to that groups site. if they don;t have a site. we'll st up paypal for them. Its a work in progress because a site of this nature would be expensive to construct and have someone host and maintain. Hpefully some one with the know how will see our vision and want to contribute their services. Becaus e its helping all of us. Spread the word around and if ya know someone who builds sites and would be willing to give to the cause let me know. Call the ofc 601 317 1891(Ourglass entertainment) We are also planning a HUGE All Genres Concert for Thalia Mara Hall. This will be a show never before seen in Jackson and I'm excited about it. A big concert featuring artists from different forms of music on one stage in one night bringing LISTENERS AND FANS of different types of music together underr one roof learning to appreciate the other forms of music that they may have never given a listen. We're looking for able bodies to help us pull this off. (Sponsors, Donations etc.) we're gonna need funds to make this big(flyers, radio ads on ALL the major stations, tv commercials etc.) if ya got any info or know of anyone who wishes to help get at us.

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-03T08:41:31-06:00

ID

70421

Comment

The best bet might be to get someone like Time Warner or Air2LAN to sponsor the bandwidth and storage for free ads on the site... Kamikaze, talk to Bill Farmer at Time Warner. He's very active and supportive of Jackson's revitalization. He's on the Board of Directors for the Jackson Chamber of Commerce and chairman of their executive committee.

Author

Steph

Date

2005-08-03T09:56:29-06:00

ID

70422

Comment

http://www.reelradio.com is a site that's been around for years and has a vast collection of radio staiton and jock airchecks dating back to the 50s. They are there to listen to, but not download. Of course, most of us...I assume some of you...have recorders that record anything coming through the speakers...not just download-able material. At any rate, it may be worth the time to check out the site. It's a non-profit deal and solicits donations which have kept it afloat for a long time. He is NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL in appeal, so he is drawing from a large reservoir of potential donators. Perhaps he would share some information with you as to how he put the site together years ago, maintains it, and costs.

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-08-03T09:56:45-06:00

ID

70423

Comment

Sonny, thanks for the link. Upon quick glance I noticed the following key factors: - 501(c)(3) status (non-profit) - making donations and grants readily available. - Real Audio format- problematic format for many people including Mac users. More troublesome to encode for garage bands and bedroom beatmakers. - 32k encoding - Many people suggest this quality is actually worse than AM radio. Since he's basically playing older, analogue, mono, AM radio, that's not a problem for the shows he's streaming. Most musicians would want nothing less than 96-128k (which is still below CD quality) if they were promoting their sound. His basic ooperational costs appear to be around $800 a month. That probably covers bandwidth, paycheck, and operational costs. He's using NO advertising. Hosting is more than likely a factor in those costs but usually paid in yearly (or more) increments. Just some output upon viewing the site. 501(c)(3) may be the way to go if it's going to be a communityNet especially targetting the arts.

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-03T10:06:36-06:00

ID

70424

Comment

Knol Aust, interesting input. Thanks. I know little about audio streaming and website costs. My knowledge is on the broadcast side. I'm learning a lot here.

Author

Sonny Day

Date

2005-08-03T10:09:36-06:00

ID

70425

Comment

I have heard that MAP is anticipating completion of non-profit status filing soon.

Author

Steph

Date

2005-08-03T10:10:31-06:00

ID

70426

Comment

I'm working on some basic diagrams/flow for databases and functionality for a site like we've been discussing... As mentioned above. It's tedious and promises to be time-consuming. If only I could do that as a full-time job. ;-) K, I'd love to help with the MAP site but am currently slammed with OUToberfest (site work, sponsors, booking, graphic design, networking, marketing, etc), freelance jobs (two are ongoing), and the full-timer (which consumes most of my day)... Still, if you want to send an email giving the overall concept of the site, functionality, etc (maybe some sketches), please do... You should have my eddress. If you'd rather do all that via paper (some people function better on tree flesh), I can arrange to meetup with you or swing by the JFP office to get some rough ideas you're kicking around for the MAP site.

Author

kaust

Date

2005-08-03T11:05:43-06:00

ID

70427

Comment

Cool. thanks. hit me at the map email [email][email protected][/email] and leave your info. we'll talk next week. Perhaps me you and Steph could meet.

Author

Kamikaze

Date

2005-08-05T09:01:31-06:00