IP

My business Curtis Digital Media has tons of Intellectual Property (IP). To protect this IP, I have to make sure that all trademarks and copyrights are properly registered. If each one is not properly registered then it opens up a can of worms for my business. It may cause a lot of legal issues for Curtis Digital Media. The main issue with this would be people would be able to unlawfully use my original works, and profit from it with no regard for me.

My main trademark will be the name “VonMoneyYall.” This is more of a stage name and VonMoneyYall is the face of the company. When people see or hear the name VonMoneyYall they will already know what to expect from us. The name VonMoneyYall will be comparable to a “Jay-Z” or “P. Diddy.”

I have a distinctive calling card that I will put on every song that is produced or has VonMoneyYall on it. This is a distinctive sound that is made is the background of every song that is produced by the engineers at Curtis Digital Media. This is something that does not take away from any song or any type of production that our company does. But, it is a trademark that will be known as ours.

Another calling card is that all of the artist who rap or sing will have to say “its (insert stage name)

 Yall” when featured on a song. They will say it with a certain tone and cadence. For example, if VonMoneyYall is feature on a song he will be required to say “Its VonMoneyYall” on who ever song it is and this will allow everyone to know that Curtis Digital Media is a part of this production. It’s not so much of what was said(that is important to), but how its said. These trademarks will help protect the work done by Curtis Digital Media.

IP law Concentration

https://itunes.apple.com/us/itunes-u/intellectual-property-law/id388454392

Apple vs Samsung

http://iplawpodcast.com

The Federal Trade Commission

http://www.ipcolloquium.com/Programs/18.html

Legal Issues

“I am”

There are two super producers in conflict or using “I am” in their name. Will.I.Am of the Black Eyed Peas is saying that Pharell Williams of N.E.R.D. is unlawfully using his “I am” trademark in which he owns. Pharell changed his name on YouTube to IamOther and planned on starting a campaign with the same name. Will.I.Am feels that Pharell will cause confusion amongst fans. And according to TMZ, there is no actual lawsuit against either one of these producers but, Pharell has asked a judge to grant him legal rights to use the "I am" for his campaign. The names are close but I don’t think that it will necessarily cause any confusion for anyone. Both are big named producers with completely different brands. And both uses of “I am” are completely different. I don’t think that there is any problem with what Pharell has done from what I have seen so far.

“Mac vs. Lord”

Mac Miller is not necessarily a household name, but it seems that he wants it that way. He is definitely a known and respected rapper in the music industry, and he definitely is RICH which most people don’t think until they research him. There was a rapper named Lord Finesse who released a song in 1995 called “Hip 2 Da Game,” and in 2010 Mac sampled the song and put it on a mix tape. The song never directly made Mac any money because it was not for sale it was just released on a free mix tape. And according to AllHipHop.com Mac and Lord Finesse spoke after he heard the song and there was not a problem. Recently Lord Finesse is suing Mac Miller for sampling the song. I feel that he does not have a case. I feel this is a perfect example of trying to use a person success to get to the next level. Lord Finesse probably did not realize who Mac Miller really was because he is not always in the limelight. And at the time Mac was not who he is today. But since he is “Mac Miller” now Lord Finesse sees it as an opportunity, rather money or publicity.

“50”

Rapper 50 Cent sued an Internet ad company for a game. The game was called Shoot the Rapper. 50 Cent is a rapper who can attribute getting shot to his success. 50 Cent was shot nine times in front of his grandmothers house. Not only was that publicity for his career, it also build an interesting story which he told through his music(and other sources of media), it gave him motivation to “Get Rich or Die Trying,” and the list can go on and on.  The game that the ad company made had a picture of 50 Cent moving back and forth and if u clicked on him you would shoot him and you are promised a prize. I fell that there should not be a problem with 50 cent winning his case. Its obvious that he is know for being shot, and the picture is obviously him. Not only are they using him unlawfully, they are exploiting a negative time in his life.

Quality Hip-Hop

Quality Hip-Hop

Today, Hip-Hop fans are divided. There are some fans of Hip-Hop music who consider there selves Hip-Hop heads and they say that “Hip-Hop is dead.” That statement means that the quality of music nowadays is not up to par with what they think it should be. These Hip-Hop heads are fans of older music and a select few new artist.

There other group of Hip-Hop fans are just you average everyday listener. This person may like a song because they like the artist, or they may like a song because they like the beat (music in the background).  Sometimes this casual listener can’t even explain why they like certain songs, they “just do.”

I am somewhat in the middle. I think that every song should have some type of lyrical content, and it should also have a nice beat. I think that the combination of both is what produces a quality song. Most Hip-Hop heads can care less about the beat, as long as the lyrical content is good. Lyrical content  is not only  how they say what they are saying, but what they actually are talking about. Many people think that the in the current state of Hip-Hop there are only four topics which are violence, money, sex, and drugs. And the casual listeners don’t have to have any good lyrics in the song, as long as they can dance to it they like it. I think that as fans we should put more pressure on musicians and producers to make quality music.

At the end of the day, I feel that the music that is put out today is still quality, but it is just a different brand that what the Hip-Hop heads are used to. Music is a business, and it is all about supply and demand. The type of music that is made, the music that is played on the radio, the type of music that is purchased is all demanded by fans. And each artist caters to that fact.

Below are links of others opinion on the topic.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1LZhcLG9qI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-kkQ3MBniE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OfELEn4Rsn0

Social Media Goldmine

Social Media is the way of the future. People considered things like Facebook and Twitter a Fad. Well Facebook has been around for a long time and twitter is getting some time under it’s belt.  And we cant forget about one of the most popular websies on the internet, YouTube. There are other Social Media outlets that are gaining popularity now of days like Instagram, Vine, and Keek. These Social Media platforms are here to stay (in my opinion) and could be used to our advantage.

Social Media opens up a world of FREE advertising that could be used by artist, businesses, and anyone else who wants to reach the public. If you put the time in to build a network then your payoff will be great. You can share information with hundreds, thousands, and even millions of people, depending on your networking ability.

Even large companies have noticed how important it is to have some form of social media. If you go to career pages the larger companies they all have a social media department because of how important it is. Everyday new job titles are created because of social media.

My advice to you is to become well versed with all forms of social media because it can be helpful for you in whatever you pursue.

Artist Management

Are artist managers necessary? There a lot of people in the music industry that are independent, should they still get managers? The answers to these questions are yes. Anyone who decides that they want to make money by using music needs a manager. Like any business, someone needs to be familiar with the industry and all of its practices. This person will make the best choices possible for the business and decisions that prove to be profitable for the future. When you decided to join the music industry as an artist you are essentially making your life a business. Artist in the music industry have an image to uphold and are always in the limelight. Plain in simple an artist is to close to the situation and to emotional about their work to make the best decisions, that’s where the manager comes in. Also managers are to know things that artist would not know to help the artist make the best decision possible. Depending on the how famous the artist is, their market, and what projects they have coming up, the manager will not be the only one making decisions for the artist but they will lead a team of people who are experts in their field to help the artist stay successful. Managers play an important role in the success of musicians not only with the planning. Manager are also to help the artist with other things, like educating them on the industry, mentoring them, and giving the artist direction.

Although it is very possible for a person to manage himself or herself, it is not recommended. A person may do a good job but at the end of the day, there are only 24 hours in a day and something will have to give. Meaning an artist who decides to manage him or her will only end up sacrificing something in the long run. Both are full time jobs and it is very hard to give 100% at both.

Taking over of Hip-Hop

It is 2013 and it seems like equality is the most important thing for us as Americans. Everything has to be equal, and if its not we need to change it. But, the principles that out country lived on for so long has made this hard. There is still a divide between men and women, between straight and gay, and there is still a divide between blacks and whites.

Rapper Scarface, who is one of the most influential people in Hip-Hop EVER basically said that white people are trying to take Hip-Hop from the black community. I thought it was ignorant, and I thought that he was out of line for saying something like that. Like he was just pulling the race card to be controversial. After listening to his interview I would say that I would have to agree with him.

Scarface starts off by talking about how its not fair for people who can not relate to a certain style or culture to determine the type of music that this style or culture listens to. And they have a misconception of the music. They compare Jay-Z talking about guns to Chief Keef talking about guns and there is a huge difference. They may not understand the difference, or they may just understand it and continue to put of music that make the black community look stupid.

Another thing that really hit home during the scarface interview is the comparison that he made to Rock-n-Roll. How it was a black thing and how whites took it over. How now-a-days if u see a black person make that type of music they are out of place. Can the same thing happen to rap?

Violence: Cause or Effect

As you can see from my other post, violence is prevalent in the hip-hop community. But, is hip-hop the cause of this violence, or is the violent music and effect of what is going on in the “hood.” Hip-hop was known as the ghetto CNN in the past. Hip-hop was a media platform that allowed artist to create music about things that are relevant to them, about the places they live, it gives information like CNN about things CNN would never broadcast. Now we have sites like YouTube and WorldStarHipHop (self proclaimed ghetto CNN) to give us insight about what is going on in these urban areas, because it is still not put in major media circulation. Does hip-hop still serve this purpose?

Many people blame hip-hop for causing so much violence. That is not the case, hip-hop may cause violence on rare occasions and that is still a major problem. Hip-Hop INFLUENCES LOTS of violence, and then it is not handled appropriately. Individual responsibility is taken lightly now of days. I am not saying that the violence in hip-hop is good and does not need to leave nor am I saying the it does not have a bad influence on the youth, but what I am saying is that we cannot make hip-hop the sole factor for causing violence when it is one of many factors, and in my opinion a small factor in some cases.

Tony Anderson did a study similar to this while analyzing the effect of youtube on hip-hop. And after hearing his findings we find out that most of these rappers from the hood talk about violence because its what they know, its what they seen. They rap about drugs, not to promote them, but because they actually use or sold them.

The violence in music is a reflection of everyday life. Hip-hop is still the news for the “hood.”