The Intersection of Music and Advertising

It's a sort of ad for society. That's why music was very important at the same time in advertising. Of course, they went hand in hand; they did almost parallel. I don't think without rock and roll, we wouldn't have a certain type of advertising, very erudite, adventurous, daring.

The Impact of Rock and Roll on Advertising

• Rock and roll was very important for political and economic reasons.
• The encapsulated tightness of the three-minute pop song also played a role in condensing a message.
• Advertising, obviously, has its 30-second or 15-second windows.

"If you think about it, it's something that probably a musician would say: Oh, you shouldn't say those things. I find it an art. I think both arts are very... they always fed each other."

The Influence of Film Directors

Consider a lot of the great film directors. Ridley Scott is a classic example; he was making adverts first. Ian Softly is another, along with those who transitioned to music videos.

• Condensing a story down into a small amount of time is the best breeding ground for these kinds of arts.
• Ridley Scott knew how to sell himself.

"If you think about his first big blockbuster, which is Alien, I think he definitely saw what was going on and he needed a blockbuster in Hollywood."

The Power of Simplicity

Ridley Scott summed it up when he presented the film:

"Mr. Scott, what's your movie about?"

He famously replied, "It's Jaws in outer space."

In that year, the two biggest movies were Jaws and Star Wars.

• "Where do I sign? How much you need?"
• It's a great subtext; that's what the movie is about.
• If your concept can be summed up in either a song, film, or advertising in two paragraphs, or even one line, that's it.

Complexity vs. Simplicity in Creativity

You can even use Brian Eno and make it complex production-wise and interesting. If the concept is very simple, it will translate.

The Economic Necessity of Pop Music

Does all of the branding, product imagery, and understanding of logos contribute to the zeitgeist statement and futurism?

Do you feel that's a sort of economic necessity of pop music?

• Pop music is about economic necessity.
• It's about turning over.

If you look at the most influential music, it drew inspiration from black music. African American music is the root of everything.

"You know, anyone white from our generation? Lou Reed told me that you scratch the white skin and we got black."

African Americans faced limited access to education. The only ways out were:

1. Music
2. Sports

Even cinema was challenging for them.

"There was only two way out: social inspiration and economic aspiration."

Without Motown, we likely wouldn't have had a black president. Without Atlantic Records, there might still be apartheid in South Africa.

The Shift in the Music Industry

Popular music, by being popular, is about an economic necessity.

"Like everybody, in a way, we all have to earn some money for a living, which is very unfortunate. But it's called the music industry, not the music charity."

So, what is it today, the music industry?

"Well, let's get a ham sandwich. We were the ham. The music industry was the ham. Today, it's the mayonnaise."

The Changing Landscape

What do you mean by that?

• Today, it has completely reversed.
• We used to give tour support money when you signed an artist because the tour supported the record.
• Now, you release a record to finance the tour, making music a promotional tool.

"Yeah. Yep."