If you follow the signs about the future of music distribution they all seem to be pointing toward streaming and away from downloading actual files. In general this makes a lot of sense. Having an entire music library accessible from anywhere, on any device, at any time is a great idea, especially once social features and sharing become more ubiquitous. It’s why services like Spotify and GrooveShark — and Netflix on the video side — are so popular, and it’s why mega-companies like Apple, Google and Amazon (for movies so far) are working on similar services.
This leaves me wondering about how DJs will adapt. In recent years, DJs media of choice have moved from vinyl and CD to laptop, using tools like Serato Scratch Live and Traktor Scratch which still give the feel of vinyl or CD but allow DJs to carry much more music with them in a compact form. I assume the next generation of DJs, who didn’t grow up using vinyl and CDs, will use a new wave of tools which will be even more portable; iPad apps for example. I’m also pretty sure there’ll be a retro resurgence of DJs who use actual vinyl again at some point, but I digress.
What I’m curious about here is what digital DJs will do when streaming takes over. Will DJs have to use specialized portals that allow actual file downloads? I imagine sites like Juno Download, Beatport, Bleep, Boomkat and TurntableLab won’t stop doing where they’re doing, but they carry very DJ specific music. You can’t go onto those sites and get, say, top 40 tunes for example. Will iTunes and Amazon MP3 continue selling downloads as an option once streaming takes over?
Tools for DJs to use audio streams will inevitably emerge, but as we know, internet connections are fickle which could lead to a very frustrated DJ and audience. That said, I’ve already been to a number of house parties where folks wind up playing YouTube videos or tracks from GrooveShark and it seems to work out OK. The only thing missing is the ability to beat-match, equalize, and mix those streaming tracks into a seamlessly engaging set.
Another very real possibility is that machines will eventually make DJs obsolete. What if IBM’s Watson was stuffed with every conceivable music recording and used The Echo Nest‘s spectral waveform analysis to determine similar tracks? Combine that with Pandora’s music genome info, Amazon and Netflix recommendation algorithms, sensors that could read and predict audience reaction, the ability to seamlessly mix tracks, and you just might have a recipe for a workable DJ replacement.
Mostly though, I’m just curious about what new tools DJs will use in the meantime.
Interesting, related article just posted on Hypebot: Cloud Music Expected To Boom In Next Five Years
Well, I guess people post all their comments on Facebook these days. There’s been some dialog on this post on my Wall over there:
Sarah Lee likes this.
Absci Deejay
pro-gigging with vinyl will be difficult for future revivalists. distance notes: “So you turn up and the decks aren’t set up, and when they are set up, they aren’t supported properly, so feedback is ridiculous, resulting in you removing all of the lower frequencies using the mixer. So then there’s no sub at all. That’s why I made the switch to CD. http://www.kmag.co.uk/editorial/features/distance-interview-0311
March 18 at 4:53pm
Deejay Cee
Agreed. Any revival will have to involve the DJ bringing their own equipment, just like I often had to do back in the day. I imagine the hard work will be part of the romance. I don’t see that happening though, until the next generation of DJs have more or less stopped using turntables altogether.
Monday at 10:37am
Colin Mahoney
I can’t see streaming as the future of anything – music, movies…whatever…I can’t see it happening. No way. The quality of the recording would suffer and I can’t see how you would solve for mobile applications? Your car? Your Ipod? Am I missing something?
Monday at 5:36pm
Deejay Cee
Netflix watch instantly is one example of a streaming service that’s already having a major effect on the video industry. In Europe the streaming music service, Spotify is more popular than iTunes. The only reason it’s not in the US yet is because the record labels are balking. Meanwhile the rumors are that Apple, Google and others are working on similar services. And the next generation, who care much less about “quality” are perfectly content streaming music over YouTube. Read my blog post for more: https://archive.mashit.com/2011/03/18/streaming-music-takeover-what-about-djs/ and check out “Cloud Music Expected To Boom In Next Five Years”: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2011/03/cloud-music-expected-to-boom-in-next-five-years.html=
Yesterday at 9:51am
Colin Mahoney
but what about mobile devices? Do we think that the non-phone ipod/mp3 player is done for?
Yesterday at 12:53pm
Deejay Cee
Yes, that seems to be where it’s headed. Pandora, MOG, Rhapsody and more are already popular subscription music streaming services on mobile devices. Music and other media will ultimately be streamed on-demand to any device. It still leaves me wondering what tools DJs will end up using.
3 hours ago
Deejay Cee
I already watch Netflix and YouTube streaming movies on my iPhone.
3 hours ago