Where are the Gatekeepers?

Joni Mitchell called it the “Starmaker Machinery,” the maddeningly complex world of music critics and publishers and agents who used to decide which artists would make the top 20 and which would remain obscure. Oh, there was corruption and injustice, to be sure: disc jockeys and program directors, unscrupulous music critics and record labels all playing payola, but some say the music was better. To be sure, it was more formulaic. Rock groups put out album after album of predictably safe, same-sounding songs, and even die-hard fans could mistake Badfinger for the Beatles. (Their smash hit “Come and Get it” was written and produced by Paul McCartney.)
Read more

Mouth Full of Crackers

Ask any of my clients, and you’re likely to hear about my penchant for analogies. Cognitive metaphors, as linguists call them, refer to understanding one conceptual domain in terms of another. When we use analogies, we help our audiences understand a “target domain” by applying their understanding of “source domains.” So, when we say things like “brands evolve,” we don’t mean they evolve in the literal sense, inheriting specific characteristic from their biological predecessors, over many generations; we mean that our understanding of the concepts fundamental to evolution (e.g., gradual change, inherent DNA, natural selection and extinction) are helpful in developing an understanding of brand.
Read more