The Role of the Music Blogger
I have been blogging off and on since 1997, taking time off to focus on other projects, yet always returning to this habit of sharing music discoveries with you. I’ve seen the Internet change over time, shifting from pre-Google to the Social Networks of today, and I’ve always been interested in analyzing these trends and how they affect music. So with this in mind, you’ll understand that I’ve had this question floating around in my skull for a while: At the start of this new decade, what is the role of the music blogger?
Curators
While I have considered the blogger as a social broadcast of media, I was reminded the other day that we’re simply curators of our taste of music. A curator is bold enough to consider his/her taste better than most, and wishes to develop this experience by collecting (or posting) select audio files and bits of information that can be discovered by others.
In the 1950s and 1960s, radio personalities were free to play the music they enjoyed, and people tuned in to hear songs from the DJ they trusted. While the radio has largely destroyed the freedoms that DJs used to enjoy (college stations are exceptions), the music blog has embodied this role of music curation.
Parasites
Steve Johnson wrote about the concept of ‘Parasitic Media’ in his book, Interface Culture, stating that whenever changes are happening at rapid pace, parasites rise to the top to help us make sense of the changes. These parasites feed off of the content others produce. Though I hate to admit it, most music bloggers are doing exactly that. By not producing fresh content ourselves, we feed off of the music news we hear from others, post music that others created, and help our readers make sense of the changing world of music. Though the name, ‘parasite,’ certainly draws bad connotations, Johnson would argue that parasitic media is needed.
Filters
As curators and parasites, music bloggers have become filters. We sift through the hundreds of recordings sent our way and select the ones we wish to share. When all of these filters promote the same artist, that band experiences a similar boost that an artist experienced in the 1960s when hundreds of DJs promoted the same band.
Creators
We’re seeing more and more music blogs moving away from being parasites and are instead contributing. These creators are releasing vinyl+digital recordings, recording studio sessions, creating videos of artists traveling through, and in many other ways. When music blogging fully shifts in this direction as a standard, music blogging ceases to be parasitic.
What role do you see the music blogger fulfilling? Please share.