Streaming Questions

Now that artists are collecting money on more sites, I wonder if listeners are being more selective as to what albums or songs they stream. Even though the money appears to be minor compared to what they get for touring revenue or even for physical sales, I'm starting to feel like giving more and more unknowns a listen.

With You Tube now paying up as well as the usual suspects, now is a good time to think about who you give a stream too.  The whole point of sampling albums before you buy is to figure out whether you should pluck down $10 or more or less for the whole thing.

Let's figure a Jay-Z doesn't need streaming revenue to make money from his latest album.  But what about New Orleans legend Kermit Ruffins whose album I streamed on Rhapsody?  He would love to have the plays that Jay-Z will get for moving units.

As we delve deeper into the digital and streaming era, questions as to who and how one gets paid are going to grow.  But subscribers like me will have to decide how we want to use these services.  I'm still learning.