Illmuzik is keeping the internet alive.

Fade said:

That's disturbing.

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I can't stand what the internet has become, and it's by design. If you're interested in nerding out, and while you still can, search up the term 'enshittification' for info. Sadly, I think we're in the twilight of sites like this one. I'm glad I found it before the fascio-tech-bros replace their shitty search engines with even shittier chatbots.

"Stop talking with each other and buy shit"

Do you guys ever wonder if I'll sell IllMuzik to a couple of tech bros and cash out for a cool billion?

Fade said:

Thank you for the kind words.

It's funny though, I was just reading about the Dead Internet Theory the other day and saw comments where people were reminiscing about the late 90's/early 2000's where it was mainly tech-savvy people online, not everyone's parents and grandparents. It was when the internet was shiny and new so there was tons of explore. Remember webrings? You could just go down this rabbit hole of personal homepages and forums, and make tons of online friends, some you would end up meeting in real life.

Forums are what really made things interesting because they're built as communities, which social media is definitely not. Even Discord is not even close because it's not formatted like a forum is, it's more or less a giant chat.

But of course like anything nowadays, money came into play and everything has to be monetized no matter what. Everyone wants to make money online now, especially corporations so this is where we're at now. So if that means that people and companies flood the internet with bots posting fake reviews, and people posting AI images and songs, that's what they'll do because they want to monetize it.

The spam has gotten so bad that a while ago I had to lock down the signups here. Now when someone signs up I have to manually approve them. You wouldn't believe how many spam accounts sign up here daily. It's really annoying and time consuming too.

I just wish everyone today would realize there are still forums around, not many, but they're there and they're special. There used to be a forum for any type of topic you were into but now it's so common for everyone to just search Reddit or YouTube for answers and not bother actually socializing with anyone online.

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FADE

Fade said:

Do you guys ever wonder if I'll sell IllMuzik to a couple of tech bros and cash out for a cool billion?

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Please don’t.

Leopard Cohen said:

I can't stand what the internet has become, and it's by design.

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It died with the intro of FB.

Leopard Cohen said:

If you're interested in nerding out, and while you still can, search up the term 'enshittification' for info.

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That shit is real and saddens me.

Been feeling this way for awhile too. I mean as far as the theory goes, I believe that it is more accurate than not. And real shit, ILL is one of the last imo that still has that same feel as back then when us more tech saavy peeps were finding/creating communities online. Its so watered down now, and it truly is a reflection of society. The sense of community is few and far in between even off the net. I mean yes, all things that have a beginning must end, but goddamn. I used to actively look forward to the time spent connecting with like-minded people thousands of miles away; discovering things, sharing knowledge. At least its still alive here.

I’m @Mike Chief secretly envious of anyone who had the privilege of working in a music scene (especially for Hip Hop) for any genre(s) in the pre Internet era.

I feel you on that. Shit, Im not even secretive about it. Twas a whole different game then.

But, I will say that the late 90's early 2000's (of course Im biased) was just a fuckin magical time. For those who really werent in a position to find gear or even really know where to start, could find similar individuals in the same boat and learn together. It was such an interesting space...gone were the days of relying on others to promote yourself and your music. I mean its a whole different beast now, but there are definitely some positives. Take a look at Alchemist who really is running his own ship without the need of a middle man. Thats the ideal spot to be in. The converse side of that is literally every fuckin body being a rapper or a producer/beatmaker, and then the ones who sell their shit at Wal-Mart prices that water down the whole fuckin business. As with anything theres a give and take.

Mike Chief said:

I feel you on that. Shit, Im not even secretive about it. Twas a whole different game then.

But, I will say that the late 90's early 2000's (of course Im biased) was just a fuckin magical time. For those who really werent in a position to find gear or even really know where to start, could find similar individuals in the same boat and learn together. It was such an interesting space...gone were the days of relying on others to promote yourself and your music. I mean its a whole different beast now, but there are definitely some positives. Take a look at Alchemist who really is running his own ship without the need of a middle man. Thats the ideal spot to be in. The converse side of that is literally every fuckin body being a rapper or a producer/beatmaker, and then the ones who sell their shit at Wal-Mart prices that water down the whole fuckin business. As with anything theres a give and take.

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Its same for visual arts too.

One of the issues is, and I always say it, quality control.

It's a double edged sword or a contradiction, because I love the fact that music and art is so much more accessible now (as opposed to having to be rich to get involved), however, the thing that is now missing as a result of the Internet, is quality control.

They'll let anyone on Spotify, and that's insane;

Having A&Rs, Radio Hosts DJs and producers, etc etc, this helped ensure that shit stayed where it's supposed to be. (And yes, fully get that there can be issues with that dynamic too),
But now you have 8 year old Bobby downloading some loops and throwing some poorly produced mushy mess of a mix ai mastered with his crusty gaming headset mic recorded vocals Mains hum getting uploaded on Spotify.

The issue is, respectfully, the public and general people DO NOT KNOW QUALITY, and I get that can sound arrogant and counterintuitive as the listeners/customers decide, but there is big truth to it.

Aunt Sally from the Suburbs who has no idea about how music is made will be impressed just because audio is recorded and put together. Same how you can impress unknowing clients or friends with poorly typeset/designed visual work - they know no better. And some clients are the same.

Usually these people won't win the big clients, or agents or management etc, however, they lower what's expected /acceptable... if Aunt Sally will pay to listen to Bobby's audio bullshit, why bother hitting that multiplatinum engineer for a mix/master? Why bother signing that ultra talented artist. Pay for shit and put out shit, cause people will buy it.

Today's Internet society, its created a generation of Attention Deficit kids. Even myself I'm guilty and victim to it - I used to love albums and play them relentlessly, go back to them, look out for new music; now I barely give a shit - Spotify goes on random play, I'll favorite some shit, if something really strikes me I'll check an album out, probably play it a few times and then completely forget about it (even if its damn incredible!)

So if that's me, imagine the kids of today/tomorrow... they just want the next exactly sounding the same trap track and dribbling questionable sexuality rapper. It's just all a homogeneous pile of low quality shit. And you're weird if you like anything else.

Today's Internet, Discord and Reddit seem to be the new version of forums, Discord seems to be like the old chat rooms- full of bullied, rejected emo/depressed girls and boys who have an unhealthy incel relationship with manga and anime. Seems to be popular with trans people.

I @Iron Keys miss quality control as the upside was artists could not just fuck around and waste studio time.

Iron Keys said:

I love the fact that music and art is so much more accessible now (as opposed to having to be rich to get involved)

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This is the part I am grateful for as I grew up thinking that music was solely made by prodigies and professionals and wasn't told anything different if I recall.

Iron Keys said:

They'll let anyone on Spotify, and that's insane;

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Did you hear about them putting lyrics behind a paywall?

Iron Keys said:

Having A&Rs, Radio Hosts DJs and producers, etc etc, this helped ensure that shit stayed where it's supposed to be. (And yes, fully get that there can be issues with that dynamic too)

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Underlying issue with that dynamic was the "quid pro quo" (think Puff Weinstein-Epstein) aspect of "gatekeeping" (peep Jessie Reyes "Gatekeeper" track) that people are now exposing.

OGBama said:

Did you hear about them putting lyrics behind a paywall?

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I don't understand... elaborate?