Why are they famous? Reality Television and Other Unconventional Paths to Fame

Have any of you ever wondered: Why is Kim Kardashian famous? I definitely have. Although she has certainly made a name for herself beyond the infamous sex tape made with then-boyfriend Ray J, Kim’s road to fame only began because of said sex tape. Along with reality shows, social media, and talent competition shows, scandal is just one of the paths to fame celebrities use today.

Monica Lewinsky, Anna Nicole Smith, and Divine Brown are just a few people who have turned scandal into success. According to Johnathan Lemonnier’s article, “How scandalous celebs have fared”, Monica Lewinsky has been quite successful since her affair with ex-President Bill Clinton put her in the spotlight back in the 1990’s.  Since, she has signed a book deal, appeared in a Barbara Walter’s interview, signed a deal for an HBO special, created her own handbag line, and became a spokeswoman for Jenny Craig. As Lemonnier puts it, “Not bad for an intern”. The late Anna Nicole Smith used her marriage to 89 year old billionaire, J Howard Marshall, to her advantage. The scandal boosted Smith’s career landing her a slew of cameo appearances and a reality television show. Divine Brown earned more than 1.6 million dollars in publicity alone after getting arrested for “servicing” actor Hugh Grant in a parked car, according to Lemonnier.

Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton also rose to fame due to their indiscretions on tape, but what kept them in the spotlight was something even more people are using to reach celebrity status: Reality Television. If it weren’t for shows like “Keeping Up with the Kardashians”, “The Jersey Shore” and “The Real Housewives”, people would only have raw talent to rely on to reach celebrity status. You know, like they used to. I am not saying that Kim Kardashian (Keeping Up with the Kardashians), Snookie (Jersey Shore) and Bethenny Frankel (The Real Housewives of New York) haven’t earned at least part of their fortunes due to hard work- Kim’s clothing line, Snookie’s book, and Betthenny Frankel’s Skinny Girl Margarita empire (Parade)-but I am saying that talent is not what got them there. These reality television shows put us into these people’s lives, making them celebrities for, well, doing nothing but letting the cameras in. I wonder how many of us could say our lives would make great tv?

Though a lot of reality television has left people (myself included) asking why some celebs are famous, some people use television shows to actually showcase the true talent that they do have. Competition shows like American Idol, Project Runway, and The Apprentice have given many people a shot at fame based on their talent. Some success stories include Carrie Underwood and Kelly Clarkson (Idol) who both have extremely successful music careers, Bill Rancic (The Apprentice) who is a successful business man, and Christian Siriano (Project Runway) who has a deal with Payless and his own fashion line (Parade).

One of the newest paths to fame is social media. People are creating their own brands and making names for themselves through the use of social media platforms like Youtube, Vine, Instagram and Twitter. The phrases “youtube famous” or “vine famous” are used all the time to describe micro-celebrities who have built fame and fortune off of these platforms. People can now reach millions of viewers by simply uploading a video of themselves performing a talent, tweeting a few funny words, or making vine and Instagram videos of themselves doing something outrageous.  Steven Leckhart, in his New York Times article, “Finding Fame, and Sometimes Fortune, in Social Media” says, “Social media have made it easier than ever to catapult from obscurity to prominence. In recent years, the Web has blossomed into a more egalitarian version of “American Idol,” where nobodies compete for attention alongside somebodies. Today, a teenager posting webcam videos to YouTube can get a movie deal (“Fred: The Movie”). A 30-something posting one-liners onTwitter can land a TV show on CBS(“$#*! My Dad Says”). Bloggers creating Internet memes are being offered book deals at a dizzying pace”. With videos and pictures going viral every day, the internet has allowed people to create their own fame. The article, “To See and To Be Seen: Celebrity Practice on Twitter”, describes why people use social media to become famous: “Reality TV popularized a behind-the-scenes, self-conscious examination of celebrity construction; online, this goes one step further. Theresa Senft defines ‘micro-celebrity’ as a technique that ‘involves people ‘‘amping up’’ their popularity over the Web using techniques like video, blogs, and social networking sites’. ‘Micro-celebrity’ describes a prevailing style of behavior both online and off, linked to the increase in popularity of ‘self-branding’ and strategic self-presentation” (Marwick & Boyd, 141).

 Now that it has become easier for people to promote themselves, whether through scandal, reality television, or social media, how do you think this will change the entertainment industry? I believe the industry will start to see less “real” talent and will focus more on the shock factor to gain people’s attention.

Works Cited:

Leckart, Steven. “Finding Fame, and Sometimes Fortune, in Social Media”. The New York Times. 26 Sep. 2012. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.

Lemonnier, Johnathan. “How scandalous celebs have fared.”Advertising Age 79.12 (2008): 3-25. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.

Marwick, Alice, and Danah Boyd. "To See and To Be Seen: Celebrity Practice on Twitter."Convergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies 139th ser. 17 (2011): 139-58. Web. 30 Mar. 2014.

“Stars Who Cashed in on Reality TV Fame”. Parade Magazine. Parade Publications, Inc. 05 Oct. 2011. Web. 29 Mar. 2014. 

Teens Gone “Bad”: The Evolution of Justin & Miley

Justin Bieber was known as the young heartthrob teenage boy found on Youtube. Miley Cyrus wore her blonde wig on Disney Channel for over 5 years. Now what? Bieber was recently arrested for a DUI while Cyrus is floating on a hotdog in little to no clothing during her Bangerz tour. What caused these drastic changes? Why is it now “normal” for teen celebrities to turn “bad,” or to find themselves in rehab?

Bieber was arrested in January. According to “Judge: Justin Bieber Video Will Have Blackouts,” “Bieber has pleaded not guilty to charge of driving under the influence, resisting arrest and driving with an expired license” (Anderson) In addition to the arrest, according to the article, “Biebs Behaving Badly” he has also “hoped Anne Frank would have been a Belieber,” “[been] charged with allegedly assaulting a limo driver,” “[settled] a lawsuit for allegedly assaulting his own bodyguard,” has been caught with strippers, and spit on his neighbor among other things (Entertainment Weekly). Yet, he still has a solid fan base and is one of the most followed celebrities on Twitter with over 50 million followers.

The media tends to encourage this bad behavior. According to E! Online, “A shirtless image of the 19-year-old pop star graces the new cover of Rolling Stone Magazine. Bieber’s image is accompanied by the headline, “Bad Boy: Why Justin Bieber Just Won’t Behave” (Malec). The media almost “glorifies” his actions and reports every mistake he makes. Calling him a “Bad Boy,” just adds to the attention the media is putting on Bieber’s recent “tantrums.”

Why does anyone care? We become fascinated with celebrities. We find their every move newsworthy and judge everything they say and do. I think the article “The Promotion and Presentation of Self,” attempts to answer these questions, “Collectively, we disdain the public focus on celebrity at the same time as we continue to watch, discuss and participate, and thereby ensure the maintenance of a celebrity industry” (Marshal 427). As much as everyone dislikes Bieber, they are still talking about him. I think this adds fuel to the fire. He might be just 19 years old, but all of his actions are being closely watched. This might cause anyone to act out. 

Now onto a somewhat different situation – Miley. Miley Cyrus is definitely not who she used to be. Who gets to define if this is a “good” or “bad” thing? Like the article, “Celeb Winners and Losers of 2013,” the writer couldn’t even decide if Cyrus was a winner or loser. It mentioned some of her most “bizzare/famous” moments of the past year including her “controversial, sexed up and ultimately embarrassing performance at the MTV VMAS,” but also the fact that “her new album, “Bangerz,” was a massive hit” (Shewfelt). On one hand, besides the new album, Cyrus has debuted three videos, all including sexual acts and drugs. Her current tour includes Cyrus barely dressed included a marijuana unitard. On the other hand, her videos have had millions of views, some of her concerts are sold-out, and her VMA performance became one of the most talked about performances ever and will not be forgotten.

Regardless of whether or not this past year has been a positive or negative one for Cyrus, I think most of the backlash stems from disappointment. Cyrus had a huge fan base of teenagers and younger children from Hannah Montana. Coming from doing a stint on Disney Channel to constantly cursing, being nude, and promoting drugs is a drastic transformation. Parents who once took their daughters to see Hannah Montana are now horrified by what Miley has become.

Once again, I think the media is encouraging this image and giving Miley exactly what she wants – attention. What does this say about the media industry and society in general? For example, According to the Billboard article, Miley Cyrus strips, swings around Naked in Wrecking Ball Video,” “a nude Cyrus is shown straddling a swinging wrecking ball and lip-synching along to the pop ballad. The 20 year old smashes more walls and licks the aforementioned sledgehammer…” (Lipshutz). While extremely inappropriate, according to E! Online, the video “has become the fastest to reach 100 million views on Vevo” (Gicas). She is getting the views on her videos and is constantly being talked about all because of her “new” image.

            So much attention and expectations are put on teenage celebrities. Whether this is an excuse or “reason” for outbursts and arrests, I don’t know. I think it is a trend that will continue if we don’t stop giving celebrities the attention they crave.

Works Cited

Anderson, Curt. "Judge: Justin Bieber Arrest Video Will Have Blackouts." Billboard. 4 Mar. 2014. Web. 28 Mar. 2014. <http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/5923164/judge-justin-bieber-arrest-video-will-have-blackouts>.

"Biebs Behaving Badly." Entertainment Weekly 21 Feb. 2014: 14.

Gicas, Peter. "Miley Cyrus' Wrecking Ball" Music Video Breaks Vevo-Viewing Record Previously Held By Miley Cyrus Herself." E! Online, 13 Sept. 2013. Web. 28 Mar. 2014. <http://www.eonline.com/news/459297/miley-cyrus-wrecking-ball-music-video-breaks-vevo-viewing-record-previously-held-by-miley-cyrus-herself>.

Lipshutz, Jason. "Miley Cyrus Strips, Swings Around Naked in 'Wrecking Ball' Video: Watch." Billboard, 9 Sept. 2013. Web. 28 Mar. 2014. <http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/5687261/miley-cyrus-strips-swings-around-naked-in-wrecking-ball-video>.

Malec, Brett. "Justin Bieber Labeled a "Bad Boy" on Rolling Stone Cover, Mag Dissects His Fall From Grace." E! Online. N.p., 27 Feb. 2014. Web. 28 Mar. 2014. <http://www.eonline.com/news/515453/justin-bieber-labeled-a-bad-boy-on-rolling-stone-cover-mag-dissects-his-fall-from-grace>.

P. David Marshall, “The Promotion and Presentation of Self: Celebrity as Marker of Presentational Media,” in The Media Studies Reader, Laurie Ouelette, ed. (New York: Routledge, 2012), 427 - 438. 

Shewfelt, Raechal Leone. "Celeb Winners and Losers of 2013." OMG! 27 Dec. 2013. Web.

Celebrity Crisis Management

Celebrities of all ages have their own brand. Sometimes these celebs make mistakes creating their image to suffer. Some deal with the drama in positive ways by spinning the story or going to rehab. Others deal with the issue but have just gone too far off the deep end. Lets not forget the few who do not even try to manage the crumbling image of their life. When it comes to celebrity crisis management, there are good and bad ways to solve their problems. I am going to discuss a few popular celebs, their mistakes/meltdowns, and how they deal with it.

            For those of you who did not hear about the Paula Deen controversy, she quickly grew unpopular after she admitted use of racially controversial language. Because of this incident, she lost her endorsements and high profile on the Food Network and many other things. Najafi Cos is now endorsing her. “Naijafi and Nanula said Ms. Deen has managed to build her social-media presence and to hold on to relationships with other major companies, including cookware distributor Meyer Foods, furniture manufacturer Universal Furniture and poultry producer Springer Mountain Chickens. Springer Mountain said sales of Ms. Deen’s products have grown by 35% in the past two quarters”(Hawkins). Paula Deen’s career had a big hit. She decided to reach out to her dedicated fan base through social media keeping her career alive while under construction. As she received more investments and has done in-store appearances, her fan base has more than doubled and her products like her magazine has risen.

            An even bigger scandal that no one will ever forget is when Chris Brown decided to try domestic violence during his career. Let’s just say, although no one will ever think of him the same, his career is not completely gone. “Chris Brown’s 2009 campaign and original song ‘Forever’ with Wrigley’s Doublemint gum was suspended after the singer was arrested for his post-Grammy Awards assault of Rihanna…although Brown has yet to link a major endorsement deal following his felony assault conviction, he has performed at virtually every major music awards show in recent years and seen two different albums debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200-asign that careers can rebound relatively quickly after scandal”(Hampp). Although Chris has gotten lucky he is not doing himself any favors by recently getting kicked out of anger management. This entire scandal not only hurts Chris but look at how people view Rihanna now for being back with him. I guess some celebrities just think that their career will always bounce back; good luck this time Chris.

            Other artists decide to go to rehab to better their mistakes and to also show their followers that they are trying to fix their issues. A few celebrities just off of the top of my head that have recently been to rehab and came out refreshed and with their images back in tact are, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, and Amanda Bynes. “Selena Gomez spent two weeks at Arizona’s the Meadows rehab center in January – but not for substance abuse, her rep insisted February 5. Rather, the singer needed help to rid herself of on-off boyfriend Justin Bieber” (Berlin). Selena Gomez never has acted out as bad as Amanda Bynes or Britney Spears, but she showed her fans that it is ok to get help. Amanda Bynes was sent away, not by choice, but after all of the commotion she was recently seen in her parents custody living a healthier life. Demi not only went away to rehab but also has been extremely open about her issues to her fans. She did many interviews, one of which was with Katie Couric. She went to rehab for an eating disorder and bipolar disorder. “Demi continues to speak out for young girls who struggle with their image. ‘I want girls to know that it’s OK when they grow up and their body changes. I want them to be aware that certain things they might do to lose weight can be dangerous – life-threatening, even” (Larrabee). This singer along with Britney Spears broke back into the spotlight when joining the show X Factor as celebrity judges. This show really brought both of their careers back on track and was good for their latest albums. Britney is now even performing in Vegas.

            Now lets take a look at Lindsey Lohan, we can’t forget about her. After in and out of rehab and the courtroom, she is 36 days sober and premiered on Opera’s show OWN. She exposes her struggles with sobriety and all of her issues. She appeared to look clean and wants to share the truth. “Filmed four days after Lohan left her sixth rehab, the interview kicked off Winfrey’s OWN network’s Lohan programming, which will also include a reality docu-series about Lohan’s attempt to get her life back on track” (France). When I think about Lindsey I cannot remember anything successful about her since The Parent Trap and Mean Girls. She has tried to come back with random no name movies and her attempt at playing Elizabeth Taylor but has failed miserably. It makes me think, even though she is getting her act together and this Opera stunt may be good for her, is it the drugs that hurt her career? I think that maybe Lindsey was just a child star who turned back and lost all talent simple as that. As a final thought I want you to think about Shia LaBeouf’s new mental breakdown. He has shown up to events with a paper bag over his head, had a wacky art show, and is all out of sorts in the Twittersphere. After tweeting “I AM NOT FAMOUS ANYMORE,” he has even gone to the extreme as to skywriting. (Twitter). What should his strategy be? What do you think about how these celebrities deal with their dilemmas? Are they being genuine or are they just going to far where it is becoming pathetic. *cough cough Lindsey Lohan

           

Berlin, Erika, Sarah Grossbart, and Jennifer O'Neill. "SELENA GOMEZ: From Bieber to

            Rehab." Us Weekly.993 (2014): 8. ProQuest. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.

France, Lisa Respers. "7 Things We Learned from Lindsay Lohan's Sit down with Oprah

            Winfrey." CNN. Cable News Network, 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.

Hampp, Andrew. "Beating the Rap." Billboard 125.16 (2013): 15. ProQuest. Web. 27

            Mar. 2014.

Hawkins, Lee. "Paula Deen Is Ready to Come Back, Y'all." Wall Street Journal 11 Feb.

            2014. Web.

Shia LaBeouf, thecampaignbook. “I AM NOT FAMOUR ANYMORE.”Twitter.com.9 Feb. 2014. Web. 27 March 2014.

Larrabee, Dory. "Demi Lovato’s Revealing New Interview About Eating Disorders, Self-Harming & Bipolar." Hollywood Life. N.p., 17 July 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.

Upcoming non-mainstream music artists in the dawn of the ‘free era’

For some music is a sound that produces effects, usually produced by instruments or voices in order to create that effect. For others it’s an art that hosts a connection with our individual emotions. At what point do we/or do we become aware of the powerful source of ‘mainstream’ music? The term mainstream focuses on music that is usually on the radios Top 40 and is well recognized publically for example; Rhianna, Beyonce, Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake etc. Are the top 10 predictions for 2014 really predictions? According to the article Spotify in Review: 2013, the top male and female artists across the globe were Rhianna and Macklemore. According to an article by Top10, the top three most popular songs of the week of March 13^th 2014 consisted of Pharrell Williams’ Happy, Katy Perry’s Dark Horse and Jason Derulo’s Talk Dirty. The trends in mainstream music continue and very few non-mainstream artists, such as indie or folk artists tend to get a breakthrough in the industry.

With relevance to the growth of online radio e.g Spotify and Pandora, we as a consumer/audience, for the first time, determine what WE want to listen to. Spotify allowed me to explore the world of introducing acts, basically a monthly playlist that is a spin-off of British Broadcasting Channel (BBC’s Radio 1 Introducing unfound talent). Spotify aids all kinds of upcoming artists by ensuring they have a platform to present their art to an audience other than a flyer to the by passers of a community club or a college campus. The “Spotify in review: 2013” article illustrates just how crucial Spotify can be in determining the future of an artist or band. With 24 million users currently active and the most popular song in a single day being Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” with 15 million streams it can be hard for non-mainstream artists to get recognized. Regardless of the continuation of mainstream music Spotify presents a unique way for us (audience) to control what we listen to for free. Should we as an audience recognize the implications of ‘free’ listening?

Over thanksgiving break I visited Asheville, North Carolina and automatically fell in love with the music scene within the city. Matt Townsend, a local upcoming folk artist from explained to me the impact of Spotify with relevance to his career. “Free music is kind of a complex issue for me, especially at this point in my career. On the one hand as an artist I feel that nothing is truly owned. Art is made to be shared, and shared in a direct interaction with other people, look at it as one buying a cd is actually buying a ticket to whatever journey you as an artist hope to take them in. On the other hand however, as a musician trying to make it a career, I have to eat. Now, I am going to offer my music for free. I do this because of the stage I’m at in my career, it is important for me to connect with people.” An important aspect of non-mainstream music artists is to not only be heard within their particular demographic but to branch out and ‘touch’ the ears of wider audiences. It’s difficult and for many, similar to Matt the decision is how they draw the line of free listening and get paid for what they do. According to an article in the Guardian based upon upcoming artist Zoe Keating, statistics showed that for every track played, artists make 0.4 cents. “The income of a non-mainstream artist like me is a patchwork quilt and streaming is currently one tiny square in that quilt. Streaming is not yet a replacement for digital sales, and to conflate the two is a mistake.” Personally, I think the establishment of online radio has introduced both artists and audiences to a new wave of listening. According to an NPR article “Spotify is good for the music industry,” CEO Daniel Ek said “What we are trying to do is to move people away from piracy into a legal model that contributes revenue back to the music industry,” Spotify allows artists to express their art online to users and branch out to their audiences through the use of ‘sharing.’ But do the upcoming non-mainstream music artists like Matt; really stand a chance in gaining recognition through Spotify? I don’t believe so.

Overall, I think it’s important to understand that Spotify acts as a catalyst for non-mainstream artists. It helps grasp the initial interest of the audience, allows the user to listen to the artist’s work and persuade them to join the ‘journey’ with the artist and purchase the album on Itunes. Many believe that online radio aids the upcoming artist in ways other media outlets don’t, however its ‘free’ perks, can capitalize on the natural of the art. Do you agree? 

Citations

"Spotify Year in Review 2013." Spotify. Accessed 20^th March. 2014. Web.

Sisario, Ben. “Pandora and Spotify Rake in the Money and Then Send It Off in Royalties.” Media Decoder (New York Times blog) 24 Aug. 2012. Web.

NPR. “Spotify is good for the Music Industry.” NPR Music. Accessed 20^th March 2014. Web

Stuart Dredge “Streaming music payments: How much do artists really receive?” The Guardian. Accessed 19^th March 2014. Web

BBC “David Firth ridicules 2009 music scene” You Tube 29^th May 2009. Accessed 20^th March 2014

Top Music Mafia “Top 10 songs of the week- January 4^th 2014” You Tube 30^th December 2013. Accessed 20^th March 2014.

 

Streaming and Downloading, How Apps Have Changed Music

When sitting down and writing most papers, all you can see is college students with headphones plugged in. Me personally, I have yet to put any music on my iTunes Library because I have a new computer and downloading all that music would just take too long. So where do I turn? I turn to streaming music. According to CNN, “five years ago, music consumers had to choose between buying a CD or downloading the album. Nowadays, thanks to the rise of music-streaming services like Pandora and Spotify, that choice is becoming whether to download music or just stream it online” (CNN).

I don’t know about most of you, but I now fall into the category of streaming over downloading. Where do you get most of your music? Where are you listening to you music? Are you streaming or downloading? Even though these questions are so simple, they actually hold a lot of weight now in the music industry.

So why has streaming started to take over? It’s pretty simple. It’s the growth of music apps that are now out there. According to Music Week, “music app revenues on iOS and Android grew by 77% in 2013, with Pandora topping the chart as the highest earning music app in the world” (Jones). It is no surprise then that music sits as the third biggest app category on the market. Some apps that we are use to hearing about are Pandora, iHeartRadio, Shazam, iTunes Radio, SoundCloud and Spotify. “Pandora, the internet radio service garnered 1.58 billion listener hours last month, up from 1.39 billion in December 2012” (Jones). According to Spotify, in 2013 it has had “4.5billion hours played, 1 billion playlist and 24 million users” (Spotify).

Even with all of these music apps available, there are more still to come. One in particular that is on the rise is Beats Music. According to Jimmy Iovine, Interscope Chairman, “he promises, (this app) will combine the music-suggesting algorithm of a service like iTunes Radio, the catalog breadth and depth of Spotify, the potential for discovering new artists offered by Pandora, and the editorial voice of your favorite music blog” (Anderson). Even though it does have similar qualities to other apps it does have its own unique features. “Right Now” is a feature that Beats Music has introduced and that they hope will be the next big streaming tool. “‘Right Now’ is an option, which asks for a place, an activity, a person and a genre in order to construct a context-specific playlist for the users” (Anderson).

            Now that there are more mobile devices and tablets, people are becoming more tech savvy. Knowing the change in the way people want music, it is no surprise that the music industry has surely seen some changes and will continue to. Apps are not only used for streaming music, “but potential for artists and labels to utilize apps as a tool to excite fans, generate awareness, increase engagement and perhaps even result in increased overall consumption” (Nielsen). When we live in a digital age, it is no surprise that artists are trying to find another way to connect with their fans. That being said it is actually something that is already in the works. Trent Reznor, who works with Beats Music, “says that a future update will allow music artist to have an interaction with the people who would be streaming their songs” (Anderson).

            The music industry is for sure seeing some changes and will continue to change as years go by. However right now, it seems that consumers and artists are turning to apps and streaming. Consumers want streaming for the convenience. You can have albums and playlists where every you go, and share them amongst friends. For music artists, they are trying to interact more with their fan bases. By doing this they can generate a larger and more loyal fan base. It shows the fans that the artists care about them and want them to be a part of their lives.

Will the traditional ways of buying and downloading music ever truly go away? I personally believe it will always be around, but it will be not as prevalent as it once was. There is also nothing to say that in a couple years something better than streaming will come out. We sure don’t know what will be the next big thing for the music industry, but the apps that are coming out are what everyone is focusing on.  As more and more of these apps come out, there is still one overall goal. That is to provide consumers access to music over multiple devices and platforms. There is no one way consumers want to enjoy their music. Some people will have massive collections of music and some will have one playlist. It is not one size fits all system, but it is a way to bring music to people and that’s what the goal is.

Work Cited

Imam, Jareen. "Young Listeners Opting to Stream, Not Own Music." CNN. Cable News Network, 01 Jan. 1970. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.

Jones, Rhian. "Music App Revenues up 77% in 2013, Pandora Highest Earner - Report."Music Week. N.p., 31 Jan. 2014. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.

"2013." Spotify Year in Review. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.

Anderson, Kyle. "These Guys Want to Reinvent Your Playlist." EW.com. N.p., 17 Jan. 2014. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.

"GETTING APPY: HOW ARTISTS USE MUSIC APPS TO ENGAGE FANS."Media and Entertainment. Neilsen.com, 21 Nov. 2013. Web. 23 Mar. 2014.