And that's where the "new media" comes in. Reblecha and others have taken advantage of the internet in general, youtube in particular and other avenues to bypass the traditional music industry.
I think that's a good thing overall. What with the social networking, consumer electronics, software, and CD burners, local musicians can make and sell their own recordings directly to their fans, entirely bypassing agents, record companies, etc. They can gain popularity both by word of mouth and the internet.
The Grateful Dead were sort of a pre-internet prototype of this. They played lots of gigs every year, but rarely advertised them. They had a phone hotline which fans could call to learn of upcoming dates and venues, and word-of-mouth did the rest. They pretty much sold out everywhere they played. And they didn't discourage fans from making amateur bootleg recordings of their shows, which were widely traded.
Here's another example of a young teen with a homemade YouTube video. I saw this over the weekend at Gerard van der Leun's American Digest site. While she's no threat to Rebecca Black in terms of view numbers, one commenter points out that her cover, which has been out one month, already has more views than the original, posted two years ago. This is serious talent. I love the bluesy lilt of her voice, and she's also very easy on the eyes. I can't get this song out of my head now.
(And I've watched the original. There's no contest.)
You're Gonna Miss Me- Lulu and the Lampshades (Cover)
