Nowadays, particularly with the rise of Ableton DJs and the cue & loop functionality of Traktor & Serato, creative DJs are looking beyond the simple mixing of one track into the next into the next (the 'traditional' way of DJing) and perhaps making mixes more creative - using loops, using intros & atmospherics over other tunes, sometimes almost remixing on the fly. The culture I grew up with which is/was buying vinyl, mixing on Technics etc. has been superceded by digital alternatives - a lot of kids grow up learning to mix on CDJs or PC + MIDI Controller instead of dodgy belt-drives!!
My question is this - Is there a potential market for digital DJs out there who would be interested in buying a tune as a 'pack' as opposed to just a single file? Perhaps a zip comprising full length parts like the drum track, bassline, pads/atmospherics, leads/hooks?? This would obviously open up tunes massively for the creative DJ, offering way more options to approach mixing in an imaginative way.
Naturally there are pitfalls, particularly in how the artist/label would feel about copyright, for example opening yourself up to thousands of unauthorized/unwanted mixes, theft of samples etc, but perhaps this could be overlooked due to potential benefits of new markets and encouraging creativity amongst a customer base? 99% of tunes are pirated within 24hrs of them being released nowadays anyway, would the tune being sold in parts matter that much more?
There are a thousand variables, from how you would package up, distribute and sell in a standardised format that would be attractive to both the wholesaler/retailer and the consumer, how you price it fairly, and so on. I believe this has been attempted by some labels/shops before, but not on a grand scale, and I think the market nowadays is much more open to this kind of thing than ever before.
So what do you think? Would you buy a product like this? How much would you pay? Do you see potential in your DJ set for this kind of thing?
). Wouldn't want it for all tracks though.
