All-Leo Asks…Kieron Donoghue, Share My Playlists founder
Time for another chat with one of our industry friends. In this instalment, the Asks… series caught up with Kieron Donoghue, founder of a brilliant new network, Share My Playlists, where you can share playlists you’ve created on Spotify.
How did you come up with the idea for Share My Playlists?
I first got introduced to Spotify when it was in Beta a couple of years ago and immediately fell in love with the idea. I genuinely thought (and still do) that it is going to change the way we consume music. No longer will we buy or download music, we’ll pay to access it anywhere. So anyway, I thought that I really need to be a part of this revolution and started to think of ways I could get involved. After a few weeks of using Spotify I found that while it’s great as a media player if you know what you want to listen to, it’s not so good for music discovery. Hence the idea to build ShareMyPlaylists.com so people can not only share their playlists but also discover new music via other people’s playlists.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
When I see feedback from the public on their SMP experience. I monitor things like Twitter feeds and it makes me feel all warm inside when people say things like this…
What’s been the hardest part?
Trying to convert non believers (people who don’t use Spotify) of my business model. There are still a lot of people around who don’t buy into the whole access model and therefore don’t see the point of SMP.
What else do you want to achieve professionally?
I want to take SMP international. I’m hoping for the day that Spotify expands into the USA and beyond, my ambition is to be right there with them to support their eco system.
Your site enables users to share their Spotify playlists. What do you think the future holds for Spotify?
I see the day that Spotify is the default media player for everybody, OK maybe not everybody but the majority of people. It will probably change a lot from what we know Spotify as now. I see lots more partnerships coming online for Spotify to enable users to listen to music via Digital TV, mobile, in car and so on. Oh and Spotify plays will be counted towards the official charts globally.
What websites do you have bookmarked?
www.hypebot.com – for music industry news and opinion
www.musically.com – for the same, but more of a UK slant
eu.techcrunch.com – for news on tech startups
www.popjustice.com – well you just have to don’t you?
In your opinion, what’s the next big thing in digital?
I still think that we’re at the very beginning of location-based services. I love FourSquare and the fact that Facebook Places has launched means that location is now available to the masses. Combine location with the type of personalisation we’re seeing from recommendation engines and it’s going to be really exciting.
All-Leo Asks…Dave Macnamara, Music Blogger
For the next fabulous instalment of our Asks… series we caught up with Dave Macnamara, the man behind …And Everyone’s A DJ.
Why do you do what you do?
Used to work in Music, now work in Online Consumer PR.
Where do you discover new music?
I often wonder. I’ll see someone mention summat on Twitter and follow their lead. I still have a lot of friends who work in music so they tip me off. I try to spend one night a fortnight just looking in various places like Soundcloud, DiS. I still read the NME too, on my commute, you occasionally find something interesting in there.
What things make your working day a good one?
Erm….just getting everything done, and on time, really. 9-5 is long enough, without staying a bit later.
…And what makes it difficult?
Maybe cos I work online, it’s VERY easy to get distracted. Every day, I usually have about 20 things I want to read, watch or play when I get home.
What have been you’re …And Everyone’s A DJ-related highlights so far?
Erm….some of the interviews have been fun. Goldie Looking Chain and Example were a lolfest. I did take a thrill when I got an email from a singer-songwriter from America who hadn’t been aware that Liam Gallagher had used a song of his on the soundtrack to some Pretty Green promo video. I’d stuck the track up on the blog, and he got in touch to say thanks.
If you were CEO of a record label for a day, what would you do?
Give it all away, make people pay per play. I saw an article recently about some former CEO suggesting albums should be a pound. Well why pay anything for something you can get for free? We go on about artists getting paid, well if their music is good enough, fair play, you should be rewarded every time someone enjoys it, but there’s a lot of people around making a lot of money, while churning out utter gash music. I don’t condone illegal downloading, but like anything if you like it, you should be willing to pay for it.
Who’s hot right now, musically?
I really don’t know. There’s so many bands around that are so hot for a second, but then their next song disappoints and you lose interest. I kinda don’t like the fact that there’s no gradual building of bands anymore. One minute they’re forming, the next they’re buzzing, week later it’s the job centre, dream over. If I had to name names I like right now…..I like Tame Impala, I like, like most people, The Vaccines and Mona. I remain to be convinced by Warpaint, haven’t really listened to their album….oh saw a band the other week called The Lysergic Suite who blew me away. S’about it really. I’ve been listening to loads of Kanye lately, but he’s not really that cool, is he? I think he’s a G.
All-Leo Asks… Eric Tremlett, Moderator
Eric Tremlett moderates the official Leona Lewis forum. We asked him a few question about what he does. Read his responses under this picture that Eric himself took of Leona at a meet and greet in Cardiff…
Why did you decide to become a moderator?
I decided to become a Moderator because I thought I would be able to make a difference and help to make the Leona forum the best forum.
What’s your favourite thing about your role?
Being able to support my favourite artist in the most positive way possible. Seeing the forum kept as one of the most tidy forums on the internet. Interacting in a positive way with with other fellow members and hoping to gain their respect.
…And the worst?
The worst job is having to delete people who spam/advertisers, but that even has its up side.
What advice would you give an artist about the best way to connect with their fans online?
Keep in touch with the fans via Blogs, Twitter etc. Twitter seems to give the personal touch that the fans appreciate the most.
Which websites do you visit most often and why do you like them?
I visit other websites – mainly www.alexandraburkeofficial.com. Not because it is the best site, but because I like her as well. I am a member of loads of other sites, but the one I visit most is The Idol Craze as it gives information on all idol shows from around the world. I also have my own forum leonalewis.forumsmusic.com which is still very new.
Which celebrity do you think communicates really well online?
This is a hard one as most seem to communicate well through Twitter these days. I obviously look forward to Leona and Nicola Carson tweets.
All-Leo Asks…Bradley Stern, MuuMuse Founder
Let’s get back now to our Asks… series. We caught up with Bradley Stern, founder of the successful music blog MuuMuse and asked him a few things that will hopefully point you in the right direction.
Why do you do what you do & how did you get there?
I do what I do because I feel like I have something to say.
Three years ago, during a particularly slow day at a particularly mundane office internship, I was skimming through some useless MP3 blogs and thought to myself: “I can do this so much better.” And so began MuuMuse.
I just wanted to prove that there could be just as much intellectual dialogue around pop music as there is around the high-brow stuff in life, even if the bulk of my material is dedicated to posting hilarious .gifs and making fun of Nadine Coyle’s accent.
What’s the best thing about your job?
When I get an email from a reader who just wants to tell me how much they love my site. That basically makes my life. The free concerts, album launch events and interviews are always nice too.
…And the worst?
Blogger drama.
What’s the one thing you wished PRs did more of?
Higher quality images and being more transparent about potential opportunities with the artists they represent. If you’ve got phone time available with your artist, let me know rather than having to prod you about it.
…And less of?
Less biographies–bullet points of achievements would be nice rather than descriptions that only lead to disappointing realities. (No, your band doesn’t sound like ‘The Knife crossed with Rihanna.’) Less download links and more streams/direct links to songs so I can hear the track instantly. I’m not exactly inclined to download a 100MB album from YouSendIt if I’ve never heard that artist before.
Which websites do you have bookmarked?
Many. Aside from Gawker, Oh No They Didn’t!, fourfour, DListed, and Slate, I love PopJustice, Idolator, Pop Wrap, Rap-Up, The Prophet Blog, Hard Candy Music, Electroqueer, XO’s Middle Eight, and Sheena Beaston. There are dozens of others I’m forgetting.
What advice would you give to bloggers who are starting out?
Keep writing. Create original content. Don’t just embed a video and hit “post.” Review something, compare it to something else…just do SOMETHING. Think outside the box. Just because everyone else is writing about the same thing doesn’t mean you can’t present something in a new light. If you’ve truly got a unique voice or style, you’ll eventually create an audience. That, and don’t be afraid to ask questions. You never know who’s willing to grant an interview or send you a CD to review.
How do you drive traffic to your site?
Social media: Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, forums – you name it, I’m spamming it. That and good ol’ word of mouth.
What do you think will be the next development in online media?
Spotify will finally make it way stateside (I hope).