从广播电台主持人，转到词曲制作人经纪，再跳入互联网社区，继而拐进服务运营商的SP，然后当上唱片公司总经理，目前落户在百度。看似无数次的改行，事实是16年来的工作，根本就未离开过音乐，估计这支与音乐的探戈会跳足一辈子。
每次跟唱片公司的朋友聊起音乐行业在中国的发展，"盗版"两个字一定如影随形。
每一篇关于音乐在中国的采访文章或博客，话题总是离不开"盗版"。
渐渐，"盗版"成为中国音乐行业所有问题的标准答案。
我不打算在这里提出解决盗版问题的建议，因为盗版不是"一个"问题，而是"一连串"问题所引发的综合症。想知道如何治愈盗版这个病，也许应该先了解音乐行业在中国是什么情况。
说起"音乐行业"，大部分人会把它等同于"唱片公司"，甚至认为所有唱片公司加上艺人经纪公司就等于"音乐行业"。这种对音乐行业的不了解甚至误区，其实都是盗版的温床。
上图是我从一本日本杂志里看到一家音乐学校的招生广告，标题"音乐业界MAP与职位介绍"。广告的目的就是让读者先知道，到底音乐行业里有哪一些单位与岗位，然后按自己的兴趣与专长去报读相关的课程。
通过这幅音乐产业地图，能够一目了然看到，唱片公司只是整个音乐产业的一个部分，不是全部。更重要的是，一个歌手、艺人的成功，其实是有赖于许多单位、人才的支撑与配合的。也就是说，一个地方的音乐市场能否成功发展，是取决于行业里的每个环节是否都各就其位、各尽其职。
Artist歌手、明星
整个音乐行业的核心当然是歌手、明星们，因为他们以及他们演绎的歌曲作品，就是整个行业的产品与资产。
如果"歌手"是一个职位，那它的职位描述以及入职条件应该是什么？先不计较身材、长相、年龄、人品等条件，但以下几项算是最起码的吧？！
ü 歌唱得好 = 不能走音、错拍子
ü 声音好听并且有个性 = 一听就知道是谁
ü 现场表演能打动观众，产生情感交流
事实上，每天填满各个娱乐版面，充斥在这个那个排行榜里的歌手，有多少是能够符合以上条件的呢？一天到晚在电视上看到歌都唱不好的歌手，又怎样能期望普罗大众会很尊重与珍惜这个"行业"，以及这个行业要推销的产品（音乐）呢？我经常在卡拉OK包间里会感受到这种"我比他唱得更好"的不屑。
是中国没有优秀的歌唱人才吗？肯定不是。
更多的或者是因为中国实在太大了，而中国音乐行业的"权力核心"又那么高度集中在北京，导致对于许多有才华的人来讲，入行的门槛非常高。就算千辛万苦"漂"到北京了，如果不是有点"关系"或"背景"，要受到唱片公司赏识还是挺难的。
过去几年疯魔中国的一系列选秀节目，虽然是相对降低了入行门槛，但是电视台的第一目标是推高收视率与冠名费，其次是快速制造人气偶像，而不是歌手，对于提高本土流行音乐水平还是作用不大。
打破潜规则，让有才的人有机会，是百度娱乐的精神。因为我们相信，只有通过高水平的作品与人才，才能振兴中国流行音乐行业。
千里马需要伯乐，璞玉需要工匠琢磨。要成为真正的超级巨星，光靠歌手自身的才华和努力是不够的。下面要介绍的，就是艺人对内、对外的两大协力阵营：
艺人对内：支撑团队
Management Office经纪公司
（商务）经纪人、歌迷会管理人、助理
Record Company唱片公司
（A&R音乐）作曲人、作词人、编曲人、制作人
（包装）造型师、发型师、化妆师、舞蹈老师、平面摄影师、MV导演
（Marketing & Promotion营销）策划、媒体宣传
Recording Studio录音棚：乐手、录音师、混音师
从以上名单可以看到，哪怕只是一个艺人要发布一首单曲，至少就有20位工作人员需要投入参与。而每一个支撑人员的工作，其实都是需要具备相当的技术含量，都是一个专业（不然日本就不会有学校，专门教授音乐行业里的各个工种所要的专业）。所以千万不要以为，音乐行业是很容易"混"的。也许单凭一腔热情，过过日子还是可以的，要成就一番事业，做出成绩，恐怕还是需要实力加运气的。
艺人对外：合作单位
1） 宣传推广
长久以来，音乐的推广是非常依赖媒体给歌曲的播放与歌手的曝光。
Radio电台 / Broadcasting company电视台 / Publishing company报纸、杂志
媒体与唱片公司是一种唇齿相依的关系，娱乐媒体需要内容与明星号召力，唱片公司需要媒体通路达到宣传推广的作用。
Internet新媒体：互联网、无线网
而新媒体的崛起，大大提高了唱片公司的宣传成效。互联网一方面大量节省了唱片公司的传播成本，二方面加强了歌手与听众之间的互动性，让唱片公司更快、更直接知道一首歌的受欢迎程度，从而做出适当的营销决策。
Live House 小型演出场地
至于小型的演出，是锻炼歌手现场表演、提高歌迷忠诚度的最好方式。
2） 创造收入
唱片产业又不是慈善事业，光有宣传，没有收入，岂能生存。过去在中国，为唱片公司、歌手创造收入的只有Concert Making Company演出公司及CD Shop音像发行商、音像店。翻开今天唱片公司的财务报表，CD的销售已经到不了总收入的一半，而演出的收入又只有已经成名的歌手才比较可观。那音乐行业在中国就要崩溃了吗？
其实音乐家创造收入的方式，一直都是随着"科技发展"演变的。远在古典宫廷音乐的年代，音乐家的营生就是靠现场演奏。直到印刷术的出现，让音乐的传播多了一个途径，乐谱的发行也成为了音乐产业的开始。后来爱迪生发明留声机，录音的技术让音乐的传播，从"独一无二"的现场欣赏，变成可以反复聆听的；音乐的商业模式，也就从单纯的演出，发展为演出与产品销售兼具的产业。从黑胶唱片到卡式磁带到CD，虽然录音的载体在过去几十年，已经历了好几代的改头换面，但是音乐产业的商业模式基本没有太多变化，依然是倚赖"录音产品"的销售。
互联网普及后，音乐变成了一行代码、一个文件，存储介质和传播方式再次变革，消费终端也出现了变化，iPod、MP3播放器、手机……让人应接不暇。互联网让音乐传播变得"零障碍、零成本"，直接冲击着音乐产业强调"销售录音"的核心商业模式。相对国外已经发展非常成熟的音乐市场，中国的流行音乐产业其实还处于刚起步阶段。假使能够抓准互联网所提供的机遇，唱片公司应该更能顺应潮流再来一次漂亮转型。
说到这里，就不能不提百度提出以广告变现的音乐商业模式。这种创收途径虽然是推翻了传统音乐产业的"产品销售"概念，但同时衍生了一种结合歌曲推广与收入创造的崭新商业模式。简单说，传统的广播电台或电视台，只是为艺人与他们的作品提供媒体推广，却不会给他们分享任何广告收入。反之，跟百度合作的艺人，既能享受海量的推广曝光机会，同时能从百度分享到广告收入，这绝对是音乐产业的一个大跃进。
标签：
音乐行业,
梁康妮
译文:
Current Situation of Pop Music Industry in China
From a radio station anchor to a broker for song and lyrics composers, and then jumping into internet community, subsequently moving into SP (self-propelled record) operator servicing, becoming a record company general manager, and now settling down in Baidu. It seems that the person has changed jobs numerous times, but has actually never left music in the 16 years of working and would presumably tango with music for the whole life.
Whenever a conversation is held with friends from record companies on the development of music industry in China, the two words "pirate copy" are inseparable.
Every interview article or blog written on the music in China has always touched on "pirate copy".
Gradually, "pirate copy" becomes the standard answer to all problems of the music industry in China.
I do not intend to suggest how to solve the problems of pirate copy, because it is not "a" problem, but a syndrome caused by "a series" of problems. In order to find out how to cure this illness, one should perhaps understand what the music industry is like in China first.
Talking about "music industry", most people would treat it as the same as "record company", or even think that all record companies with performing artists and brokers added are "music industry". This kind of incomprehension or even misconception actually serves as a nursery for pirate copy.
The above diagram is a conservatory's advertisement for pupils that I found in a Japanese magazine, entitled "Music Industry Map and Position Descriptions". The purpose of the advertisement is to let readers know beforehand what the different units and positions are there in the music industry, before enrolling for the relevant courses according to their interest and specialties.
From this Music Industry Map, it can be clearly seen that record companies are only part of the whole music industry, and not the whole lot of it. What is more important is that the success of a singer or a performing artist is in fact dependent on the support and cooperation of many units and talented people. That means whether or not a local music market can be successfully developed depends on whether or not every link within the industry is doing its respective part as required.
Artist Singers, Stars
The core of the whole music industry is of course singers and stars, because they themselves and the works of music they perform are the merchandise and assets of the whole industry.
If "singer" is a position, then what should be its position descriptions and entrance qualifications? Leaving aside shape, appearance, age and character, the following are considered as some minimum prerequisites?!
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Singing well = not out of tune or out of beat
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Pleasant voice with personality = one can tell who is singing only by listening
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Live performance can touch audience, generating the exchange of emotions
In fact, how many singers, who fill up the entertainment coverage everyday and flood the ranking list here and there, can meet the above conditions? Singers appearing on TV everyday can't even sing properly, how can the general public be expected to respect and cherish the "industry" and the merchandise （music) that the industry wants to market? At karaoke compartments, I often scorn the singing there with the feeling of “I can even sing better”.
Is it that China doesn't have outstanding singing talents? Definitely not.
Furthermore, or perhaps China is really too big, and the "core of authority" of Chinese music industry intensely concentrates on Beijing, resulting in very demanding professional entrance requirements for many of those who have talents. One might manage to "drift" to Beijing with all conceivable hardships, but without any "connection" or "background" would still be very difficult to be appreciated by the record companies.
In the past few years, although a series of talent time shows that China was crazy about did relatively lower the professional entrance qualifications, but the first objective of TV stations was to push up their audience rating and ranking rate, and the second objective was to quickly produce popular idols, and not singers, therefore the effect of raising local pop music standards was still insignificant.
Baidu's entertainment spirit is to do away with hidden rules and regulations, and let the talented have the opportunity. We believe Chinese pop music industry can only be shaken up via high standards of the works of art and talents.
Swift horses are to be discovered by talent scouts like Bole（Translator notes: Bole from the Spring and Autumn Period of ancient China was well known for his expertise on horses), and uncut jades are to be polished by artisans. Relying only on the singer's own artistic talent and effort to become a real super star is inadequate. The recommendations on how the performing artists liaise with the internal and external main main camps are listed below:
Internally: the performing artist supports the team
Management Office: Broker Company
Commercial Affairs: Broker, fans administrator, assistants.
Record Company
A&R Music: Song writer, lyrics composer, song editor, producer.
Makeup: Character stylist, hair stylist, makeup artist, dance teacher, print media cameraman, MV director
Marketing & Promotion: Planning, media and communications.
Recording Studio: Bandsmen, recording director, audio mixer.
It can be seen from the above list that even when a performing artist only wants to release a single, there must be at least 20 staff getting involved. In fact, every supporting staff is required to have a considerable amount of technical know-how and to be from a specialized field (otherwise Japan would not have schools specially providing courses on different professions in the music industry). So, don't ever think that it is easy to "muddle along" in the music industry. With passion it is perhaps okay just to get along with life, but to have success and achievement, it seems, real substance and luck are needed.
Externally: the performing artist cooperates with all the units.
1) Public Relations
Music promotion has long been very dependent on media broadcasting the songs and providing singers exposure.
Radio/Broadcasting company/Publishing company, Newspapers, Magazines.
Media and record companies are interdependent "like the lips and the teeth", and with entertainment media requiring subject matter and the singer's rallying power, while the record companies are in need of the media as an access to achieving their promotional outcome.
New Media: Internet, wireless network
The springing up of new media greatly enhances the promotional outcome of the record companies. On the one hand, internet substantially saves promotional communication costs for the record companies, and on the other hand, it strengthens the interaction between singers and audience, thus allowing the record companies to have the quicker and more direct ways of finding out how popular a song is, and then make appropriate marketing decisions.
Live House: Small-scale performing site
Small-scale performance is the best means of training singers on live performance, and boosting loyalty of fans.
2) Producing Income
Record industry is not a charity, how can it survive with only promotions and no income? In the past, companies making money for record companies and singers in China were only Concert Making Company and CD Shop. An overview of the financial reports of record companies today shows that, the sale of CD is less than half of the total income, and the performance income is considerable only for singers already famous. Is music industry in China about to collapse?
In fact, the manner by which musicians produce income has always been following the evolution of " science and technology". As far back as the era of classical aulic music, musicians relied on live performance for a living. With the arrival of typography, music had another channel of spreading, and the publishing of music books heralded the music industry. Later on when Edison invented gramophone, recording technique enabled the spread of music, and the "unique" live performance changed to what could be listened to repeatedly; business model of music thus developed from the simple performance to the industry of performance hand in hand with merchandise sale. From black tape record to cassette tape, and then CD, although the recording carrier has experienced several generations of change in the past decades, but the business model of music industry basically has not changed much, still relying on the sale of "record merchandise".
After the popularization of internet, music becomes a line code, a file, and once again the storage medium and spreading pattern have changed, followed by the change in consumer end-users; laden with iPod, MP3 player and mobile phone...... people just have more than what they can handle. Internet allows music broadcasting with zero hindrance and zero cost, directly impacting the core of "record sale" business model which the music industry emphasizes. Comparatively, overseas countries have a well-developed music market, while the Chinese pop music industry is still at the starting stage. If record companies can grab the opportunity provided by the internet, they should be able to go with the tide and have another beautiful transformation.
At this juncture, we have to mention Baidu's proposal of business model that links music to advertisements. This way of getting extra earning overthrows the traditional concept of "merchandise sale" held by the music industry, and also derives a brand new business model combining the song promotion and income producing. To put it simply, traditional radio or TV stations only provide media promotion on the performing artists and their works of art, but will not let them share any advertisement income. On the contrary, performing artists cooperating with Baidu not only enjoy enormous opportunities of promotional exposure, but also can share advertisement income from Baidu. This is absolutely a great leap forward for the music industry.
