Alex Seago to present at South by Southwest Music & Interactive Media Conference, 2011

07/02/2011

Neither Moguls nor Pirates: Grey Area Music Distribution

The debate surrounding music piracy versus the so-called collapse of the music industry has largely been bipolar, and yet so many other processes of music distribution have been developing. From online “sharity” communities that digitize obscure vinyl never released in digital format (a network of cultural preservation, one could argue), all the way to netlabels that could not care less about making money out of their releases, as well as “grime” networks made up of bedroom musicians constantly remixing each other, there is a vast wealth of possibilities driving music in the digital world. This panel will present key examples emerging from this “grey area”, and discuss future scenarios for music production and consumption that stand proudly outside the bipolar box.

http://schedule.sxsw.com/events/event_IAP7922

Alex Seago, Chair
Humanities, Social Sciences Richmond University

With an interdisciplinary academic background in American Studies, Cultural History & Cultural Studies, Dr. Seago has taught for a wide variety of American and British universities and colleges, including the University of Kansas, The Royal College of Art, Sotheby's Institute and the London campuses of the University of Maryland, University of Wisconsin and Syracuse University. Dr. Seago's research interests focus upon the area of cultural globalization - with particular reference to music, art & design.

He has published in a range of journals and article of his on global popular music in the 21st century was awarded the Stone-Suderman Prize by the Mid-Western American Studies Association. He has also recently been commissioned to write an entry on 'Globalization and Popular Music' in the five-volume ' Encyclopedia of Globalization' edited by Professor George Ritzer and due for publication in 2012. His book 'Burning the Box of Beautiful Things; The Development of a Postmodern Sensibility' (Oxford University Press) examines the relationship between art and design education and the rise of contemporary pop culture in the UK during the 1950s and 1960s. As an authority on the cultural history of this era Dr. Seago has featured in several BBC radio and television programmes . Dr. Seago has lectured and presented academic papers at a wide range of universities, colleges and national and international conferences. In March 2010 he was an invited speaker at the Salzburg Seminar’s international Study programme session on ‘Global Citizenship : America and the World’ while in September 2009 he was one of the main speakers at the Salzburg Seminar American Studies Alumni Association’ symposium on ‘Globalization and American Popular Culture’.

Dr. Seago is a member of the Editorial Board of American Studies : The Journal of the Mid-America American Studies Association. He is a member of the College Court of the Royal College of Art, a Fellow of the Salzburg Seminar ; UK representative of the Salzburg Seminar American Studies Alumni Association (SSASAA) and a member of the British Association of American Studies (BAAS) , the International American Studies Association (IASA) and the Association of Cultural Studies (ACS). He is also a member of Queens Park Rangers Football Club.

Link to this page: http://www.richmond.ac.uk/n/1040.aspx