Is Music Journalism Still Relevant in the Modern Era?

Remember when we'd race to the newsstand to grab the latest copy of Rolling Stone or NME? Man, those were the days. But now? We've got Spotify algorithms and TikTok telling us what's hot. So, what's the deal? Is music journalism dead in the water, or is it just changing its tune?

Look, I'll be real with you - things have changed. Big time. That scathing album review that could tank a band's career? Ancient history. But here's the thing: music journalism isn't six feet under. It's just... different.

Let me break it down for you:

Finding the Needles in the Haystack

Guys, there's SO. MUCH. MUSIC. out there. It's insane. Last I checked, Spotify was adding like 60,000 tracks a day. A day! How the heck are we supposed to find the good stuff?

Enter today's music journalists. They're like your cool friend who always knows about the best underground shows. They're digging through the noise to find those hidden gems. And let's be honest, we need that more than ever.

Giving Us the Juicy Details

Sure, your favourite artist can tweet "New album out now!" But don't you want to know more? Like, what inspired that weird synth sound on track 3? Or how they managed to write an entire album during lockdown?

Good music writers are still out there, doing the deep dives we crave. They're connecting the dots between the music and the world around us. And in this age of surface-level hot takes, that's pure gold.

Long Reads are Back, Baby

Okay, this one's kind of wild. Even though we're all supposedly glued to our phones with the attention span of goldfish, guess what? People are eating up long-form music writing again.

I'm talking artist profiles that read like short novels. Oral histories that take you behind the scenes of classic albums. This stuff gives us the connection we're starving for in the age of algorithmic playlists.

Shining a Light on the Little Guys

Look, Taylor Swift and Drake aren't hurting for publicity. But what about that amazing indie band you stumbled across at 2 AM? Or that genre-bending artist pushing boundaries?

Music journalists are still out there, championing the underdogs. They're helping us discover music that the algorithms might never serve up. And that's freaking beautiful.

A Voice You Can Trust

Let's face it - the internet's a mess. One minute you're reading a glowing review, the next you realize it's just cleverly disguised PR. Good music journalists? They're like that brutally honest friend who'll tell you when your outfit doesn't work. We need those voices.

The Rough Patches

I'm not going to sugar-coat it. Times are tough for a lot of music publications. Clickbait is real, and a lot of talented writers are jumping ship for steadier gigs. It sucks, no two ways about it.

But Here's the Thing...

As long as people are passionate about music (and come on, that's not changing anytime soon), we're going to need people who can put that passion into words. Maybe it'll be more podcasts, or newsletters, or some crazy new platform we haven't even dreamed up yet.

The bottom line? Music journalism isn't dead. It's just... remixing itself for a new era.

So, what do you think? Has a music writer or publication turned you on to your new favourite artist lately? Or do you think it's all just noise at this point?

Rich Steve Beck is a UK-based Mastering Engineer and owner of Not Just a Plugin studio. He's a member of the Music Producers Guild and Produce Like a Pro. Beck holds qualifications as an Insurance Broker and Mortgage Adviser, bringing financial acumen to his music industry work.

Rich conducts university lectures on music industry networking and maintains a music business blog. He founded "Produce, Mix, Fix and Conquer," a Facebook group with 4,000 professional audio engineers and producers.

His interview experience includes over 15,000 public interactions from his finance career and conversations with more than 40 Grammy-winning and multi-platinum selling audio engineers.

Beck is married (to his wife, who he lovingly refers to as "The Boss"), with two children and has a cat named Luna who loves climbing onto his studio gear!