We all know how difficult it is to earn a living from making music. Whether we are composers, artists, session musicians, producers, or sound engineers, it’s a constant struggle for both recognition and financial reward. Music streaming is the new distribution method, and compensation schemes for content creators haven't fully caught up to this new model yet.
VEVA
Veva Sound was founded in 2002 in Nashville. Through partnerships with with The Recording Academy, The Library of Congress, DDEX, NDSA, & NDIIP, they have been serving all three major label A&R departments to create and implement the standards for how sound recordings are preserved and monetized.
Studio Collect Plug-in
VEVA Sound have recently released a free DAW agnostic plug-in called Studio Collect Plug-in (SCP). It tracks metadata and produces a truly RIN compliant report that travels through collaborators in the digital supply chain. This plugin can be used within the recording session to collect your credits, while you record, and travels with your session.
It exports a valid DDEX RIN file, so your metadata can travel into the industry using the global standard defined by DDEX. Their motto is “Collect while you create!”
The Studio Collect plug-in is part of the larger Studio Collect Suite, scheduled for release this Fall.
Download the free plug-in here: http://www.vevasound.com/studiocollectplugin
Learn more about VEVA Sound here: http://www.vevasound.com
Soundaways RIN-M
Along comes Soundaways: http://soundways.com/rin
Their mission statement is “to revolutionize the supply chain of sound recordings, from the studio to the services and devices used for listening.”
One way they are tackling this ambitious goal is by introducing a free plug-in called RIN-M:
RIN-M creates a full set of metadata, in the least possible amount of time. They are calling on every downloader to use their influence to build common use of RIN-M, as a means of tracking production created metadata gathered at the point of creation.
It works right from within your DAW of choice and allows you to enter relevant metadata for your role in the song's production. They are building partnerships with all the major downloading and streaming services.
RIN-M is basically a check-in system for people and companies, as they create music. The idea is that you enter your participant's information and then send your RIN files downstream to the next participant in the chain.
Here is why you should care about this type of metadata:
http://www.soundways.com/content/rin-m-why-you-should-care-about-metadata
DDEX
Which brings us to DDEX: http://www.ddex.net/about-ddex
DDEX is a consortium of companies including Apple, Amazon, Pandora, Spotify, and over 30 other leading media companies, music licensing organizations, digital service providers and technical intermediaries, focused on the creation of digital supply chain standards. They met over the course of 10 years to make music metadata standards. For 4 of those years, The Recording Information Notification (RIN) standard was being discussed and prepared.
Here is a list of current members actively participating in this project:
http://www.ddex.net/current-ddex-members
We are in a transition period, where compensation and tracking schemes haven’t caught up yet. But there does seem to be a light at the end of the tunnel.
Jaxsta
Which brings us to Jaxsta: https://www.jaxsta.com
Jaxsta began in 2013 to answer the first-hand need for an official data source that ensures that credit is shared where credit is due. Jaxsta has been collecting data and building a platform set to launch this year.
This is how they see their role:
“With the evolution of digital music we've lost the 'jacket' that used to come with the album. Our mission is to track down the people behind the music. From radio to roadies, artists to producers, photographers to video directors.
Jaxsta will be the credit roll for our industry.
They’ve already got some impressive data partnerships underway; most notably with the Recording Academy, the organization that produces the annual Grammy Awards. Jaxsta will be a home to official GRAMMY winners and nominations data — listing the full 59-year history of the GRAMMY Awards. On the 60th anniversary of the GRAMMY Awards, Jaxsta will be an official reference source for detailed Recording Academy data of GRAMMY nominated and winning releases.
Conclusion
So, there is hope for us that better days are ahead. I suggest reading up on these organizations and potentially joining them if you are in a position to contribute or benefit.
I look forward to the day when we all have RIN-M sitting proudly in our Logic Pro templates.