Project Zen

... because the site I want to post is pretty Afrocentric.  Still, I know there are probably people here who are quite eclectic. 

Most of all, I think these guys are doing a lot that the music industry NEEDS to do!

The RIAA and record companies complain that people aren't into music as much as they used to be.  But I say, if you want me to buy music, then offer me something worth buying! 

When I was a teen, I couldn't get enough of hip hop and rap, but these days it turns my stomach!  Nor am I interested in Britney or any of the boy bands.  Plus, every time I turn around I hear something about the artists themselves being abused.  Unless an artist somehow gains world-wide popularity, they usually aren't making a dime and even get into debt trying to make a living.

Because of all this I turned mainly to J-pop and anime soundtracks, which are really good, and I'd always liked rock, classical music and salsa.  Yet I still feel at times that I need a R&B or hip hop or jazz fix.

So, for that reason, I'm really glad these guys came around!    This website is run by a gathering of the artists themselves!  They handle all the recording and distribution and advertisement for their music.  They control the messages they want to send with their music, so they are never held back because something they want to say doesn't have enough violence to appeal to the lowest common denominator.

Instead of just 10% earnings (the average income for a musician signed to a record company), each artist gets 60% of all the earnings that their work pulls in.  They also get to keep ALL the rights to their music, whereas most music companies demand unlimited and exclusive rights for the artist's music.

Most songs on this website go for a dollar a piece and they have previews and samples of the artists' work on the site.  YOU choose exactly what songs you want to buy, they send you an ID and password that you can use to download the music via zip files. 

10% of all the company's annual profits go towards clean water and solar energy projects around the world!  And, best of all, the icing on the cake: all of it is guaranteed music that I can play around my little nephew with no worries about the real negative vibes and stereotypes that plague black music today.

I'm digging Kahil El'Zabar's jazz so far (especially 'Groove Allure'); and Khari Lemul's 'SpringTime Melodies' (a sweet R&B track).  I've seen Cassandra Wilson listed here as well!

If you like Jazz, hip hop, soul, funk, reggae or world music, check it out! 

www.Movementunes.com