Youtube and its Influence on the Music Industry

These days, seeing anyone on subway trains without a pair of headphones hanging from their ears is a rarity.

Teenagers tune into social media more often than they do to TV.

Youtube, in particular, has a profound impact on artists and anyone involved in the music industry. Artists become all the rage because of the channel.

Founded by Chad Churley, Steve Chen and Jawed Karim, Youtube appeared on the World Wide Web in 2005. The trio loaded the first uninteresting video, Me At The Zoo, on the mainly experimental platform.

The platform has hence experienced a tremendous growth rate by 2006, with traffic of 65 000 videos and more than 100 million video views per day This burgeoned further when Google's acquisitioned it in 2006.

Time Magazine cheekily dubbed it "Person of the Year", giving it maximum attention on its front page. Annual Youtube Awards are given annually to acknowledge the best Youtube videos.

Its wild popularity made it a must-go-to place to see and be seen. Advertisers use it to launch their brand.

More importantly, musicians use it to grab a little attention.

This is an ever-growing phenomenon. And it is easy to understand why.

a. It is the top search engine for music listeners.

Youtube, after all, is the top search engine for music listeners. The younger set, especially, finds this platform the most convenient and inexpensive way to listen to music.

Anyone can create a music playlist at the drop of a hat.

b. It is a convenient way to build a brand.

It is a convenient way for any artist to build his or her brand.

For now, load a music video for free and with ease. This, though, will change when it launches its paid subscription music service, an idea it developed with independent music labels.

c. It generates revenue and artists monetize their efforts with it.

In fact, musicians watch it generate revenue for their efforts, albeit slowly.

d. It is an easy platform from which to share media.

To add, sharing information has become a way of life. It is how we communicate with each other.

Youtube is the fastest way to become known as an artist because listeners share videos quickly. It is an effective way to make a bigger presence.

f. Discovery has become automatic.

The discovery of musicians is automatic. It takes no time at all for a video with many hits to go viral.

This, for the greatest part, is thanks to their easy accessibilty.

g. It is a way for bands to create a supportive community.

Another reason that Youtube has such profound influence on the music industry is that is allows musicians to create a go-to place for their listeners to connect with their latest works

h. Musicians can get proof of popularity.

Further, musicians can get immediate proof of their popularity. How popular an artist is depends on how many listeners watch or share his videos.

So saying, most stars of this era hav found their fame on what is the most popular video sharing platform in the world today.

Here are ten stars who can attribute their fame to video sharing on Youtube.

The teen sensation is probably the most reknowned of stars to have found fame on Youtube.

His singing endeavors began when his mother uploaded videos of him crooning covers of popular tunes when he was 12 years old.

After he was discovered by music producer Scooter Braun, young girls the world over caught Bieber fever. They include students of mine who decorated the back of my classroom a deep purple, apparently his favorite color.

Rapper Soulja Boy Tell'Em can credit Youtube for his success. In 2004, he posted his music on the website Soundclick. He created his own Youtube Page. Atlanta based producer recognized his talent. He went on to release Crank That, which earned him a grammy nomination for Best Rap Song.

Ellen De Generes was so impressed with the sixth grader's rendition of Lady Gaga's paprazzi that she got him to perform on her show twice. He was the first artist to sign on with her record label, eleveneleven.

This artist's cover of Rhianna's Umbrella on Youtube made her an Internet craze. Producers of MTVs The Hills featured the song, which Los Angeles radio stations played regularly. Hollywood Records signed her in 2005.

Journey, the 80s rock sensations who made Don't Stop Believin'the hit of the day, had to find a replacement for their lead singer in 2007.

After watching Pineda's cover of Faithfully, which he played with his band, The Zoo, Journey's guitarist Neal Schon recruited him immediately. He became the band's lead singer.

Of course, we mustn't forget Pocono Foothills, a Youtube loving Hibbing star who graciously shared insightful thoughts!

Music of the new millenium is simply not the same without Youtube.