Quick Update

Played around on our old page on awdio.com last night. If justcastlive doesn't come back online soon I'm considering this for our broadcasting alternative. Feel free to listen to the archived shows, there are two, the show I did last night and one of our previous broadcasts from when we did shows on there before so if you need your Indie Spotlight fix follow the link!

awdio.com/indiespotlightlive

Show Update and Justcastlive is still offline

I've been looking at other places and ways we can do the show, at least until justcastlive comes back online. I said when we switched to using justcastlive about this time last year that it was the last time that I was going to move the show and I meant it, and still do. I have to be honest, I can't keep asking you guys to "change your bookmarks and follow me to our new home" every 6 months to a year.

I just can't, that's bullshit. While I feel what we do, which is broadcast independent musicians that might not get airplay, is important, it's not so impressive that people will follow me to the ends of the internet or even go to a bunch of trouble to find my broadcast.

So, what do I do? I am looking at alternatives, both temporary and permanent. Right now I'm still all in with justcastlive, but not knowing how long they are going to be offline I wouldn't be a responsible host if I didn't look at the big picture and I need to be on a strong reliable site which until last week justcastlive has been. I really don't want to move the show again, I like and trust these guys and I have no doubt that they are working hard behind the scenes to bring the site back.

Not to mention how supportive they have been of show, we are the featured broadcast on there almost every week.

Now, with all of that being said (kinda rambling here I know) these are some of the alternatives that I am looking at;

YouTube;

I found last night that because the "Indie Spotlight" page on youtube is in good account standing that I can enable streaming. I did a one hour test show, loading a previous broadcast into XSplit and let it roll. Some of the things I liked were...
   a) You get live feedback from youtube on your stream, and they suggest what settings need to be changed, whether it's adjusting them up, or down.
   b) You can archive the show so people can replay them on demand later if they want.To me this solves the problem of people who want to hear past shows looking for a podcast, well, here is my youtube channel, watch them here.
   c) YouTube is a known brand
   d) Yes, they do have a chat that can be turned off, and you can embed the live show on another site, such as my previous site on webs.com.

The things that turn me off were;
   a) I can't embed statcounter so I don't know where my live hits are coming from.
   b) When I finished the test show the account was hit with 6 copyright claims, which is to be expected because this is youtube. We all know this is automated, and none of the claims affected the standing of the account because it was from all indie labels who just wanted to make sure that nobody except them and the musicians were getting paid for their work, and this enabled advertisements for where you can find and download links for the musicians. I'd rather have this amount of control myself since I often post links in chat as to where you can get the music, but at the same time I have to say that I do like that the system on youtube works and to be honest as long as it's ad's for the right musician and they get album sales and promotion, well that's why we do the show anyway. This one is a mixed bag.
  c) I might find myself with a renegade musician, and get hit with a copyright claim that isn't monetized for youtube that might decide to be an asshole that will not only kill my youtube account, but my show as well. Again, as a responsible broadcaster I have to consider this scenario. Right now my current format is all Creative Commons but when you go on youtube you really put yourself out there with your broadcast and my fear is that I might learn the hard way about how Creative Commons licensing works with someone who didn't understand what Creative Commons really means and find myself being the guinea pig in court sorting this out. No thanks, I don't make any money on broadcasting, I'm not in this to make money, it's to put the musicians out there and let them be known. I work a regular job, and am doing really well to pay my own bills. I don't need a lawyer bill on top of all that. When you go on youtube, you are broadcasting in a very public and traceable way and I really don't like that. I'm super careful with the videos that I put on there which is why I haven't done much with our youtube account lately.

Ok, next.....

Looking at awdio.com. Long time listeners and readers of this blog might remember that we've been there before. The biggest issue that I had with Awdio was the reliability. We did shows on there for 2 months and there was more than one occasion that I wasn't able to do the show because the site was down. Looking at it now, they have made a bunch of changes. While not my favorite option, it does remain an option because shows do archive there so people who miss the live show can listen to it later and their terms of service prohibit downloads. This is important to me for the simple fact that they expressly prohibit downloading shows. I like this because I'm in the business of promoting musicians, and not offering a platform where you can steal their music.


Here's the deal. I'm hoping that when I wake up tomorrow justcastlive is back online and I won't have to worry about all of this. Let's keep our fingers crossed that they get their current issues fixed but it has been almost 2 weeks...

So, the bottom line is I'd really rather not have to have yet another restart to the show, I have to be honest about it, if justcastlive doesn't come back online soon, I think that this time, I really won't be asking you folks to reset your bookmarks for another location yet again.

As much as I hate to say it, we've been broadcasting for 6 1/2 years, a damn good run by any standard. I just might take it for what it is, and say the hell with it and hang up my headset for good at least as far as live broadcasts go.

At this point I'm considering other options which are strictly podcast which would enable me to do the show, and let people listen to the podcasts and not worry about the live chat, as well as other surprises that happen at a live streaming broadcast. Just do the show and upload it somewhere, or do it live on awdio and just link the page on there where people can listen live, or stream the archive.

I'm not asking you guys to reset your bookmarks one more time unless it is something that is tangible and good for the show and the musicians. Moving away from the live broadcast format might be a better answer as far as both and just recording a podcast instead.

Stay tuned.

End of September Update

Hey everyone! I haven't posted an update blog in a while, and tonight I'm in one of those moods where I feel inclined to put my thoughts down in print so why not...lol

First it seems that they have some MAJOR issues happening on justcastlive. Monday night I was about to begin my broadcast like normal when I noticed the site wasn't loading and XSplit wasn't connecting to the server. A quick post to the justcastlive Facebook group confirmed that the site was down but that they were working on it. As I type this the site is still down, a message on the Facebook group would seem to indicate that the problem is with their hosting provider, that they are looking for a new one and that the site should be back up soon. I can't help but notice that they don't have an ETA posted on when the site will be back up which does concern me. To be honest about it, I don't see how a site that seemed to be working just fine could all of a sudden roll over and die, but at the same time I'm not the one trying to fix it, nor do I know everything going on behind the scenes.

I just know the site is down. I'm sure they are trying to get everything fixed, I'm just glad I didn't have a guest scheduled, and just as glad that Deb from Unleashed didn't have anything planned either.

And just to be clear I'm not passing blame either, there seems to be enough of that going around between the previous and current owners of justcast from what I see posted on Facebook anyway.

So needless to say I had to bag last week's broadcast, and the next upcoming one doesn't look good either for this reason, and another which I'll explain below.

Three years ago (well almost anyway) I was blogging about being under the gun from Hurricane Sandy. This time it's Hurricane Joaquin which according to hurricanetrack.com could easily be a historic storm. This one is unusual in the fact that we are only a couple day's out and they still can't accurately predict this storms path. Some of the weather models have it turning back out to sea, while others show my area getting a direct hit. This, and all the rain that is predicted for my local area make for a bad combination because the soil will be saturated from all the rain we are supposed to get over the next couple of day's prior to Joaquin's anticipated arrival. So I expect downed power lines and reading an old fashioned paperbook by candle light early next week instead of my usual show planning but I could be wrong.

I'll keep everyone up to date on our Official Indie Spotlight Facebook page! Maybe if justcastlive come's back online we can have an old fashioned hurricane party before the power goes out :)

Indie Spotlight Update Video

Update On the Unsigned Musicians Show

Longtime readers and followers of the live broadcast will remember when blogtv shut down that I promised everyone that I would keep everyone up to date on what was going on with my broadcast, as well as my friend Deb from the Unsigned Musicians show.

So, here is the update on UM;

Deb's new show is called Unleashed. The reason for the name change is so that she could branch out and do other types of special interest shows on the same channel, while at the same time still be within her direct licensing agreement with her musicians and play music as well.

The topic this week on Unleashed will be "Dogs Shot By Police"

Jeffrey Justice will be joining Deb this evening to discuss this tragic epidemic, what to do if it happens to your dog and if there are any possible ways to prevent it.

You are a law abiding citizen so you don't even need to worry about this, right? That question can be answered with three words, "Oops, wrong house!"

Please join us tonight, September 16, 2015 at 7:00 Mountain Time / 9:00 Eastern Time

http://www.justcastlive.tv/users/unleashed

Pete Berwick's Latest Album Now Available!

Pete sent me "The Legend of Tyler Doohan" a little over a week ago, it's lived in the CD player of my car since, yes it's that good and an 8 speaker Pioneer system doesn't lie.

It's been a pretty long drought since Pete released his last album, I always wondered if Give It Time was going to be his last studio recording which if it was would have been a shame.

I had the privilege of hearing Pete play live a couple of years ago when he was in D.C. and he played some of the songs that would later appear on his latest album. When I heard these songs live I kept thinking "Pete, if you ever go back into the studio please do this one" every time I heard a new song.

Don't worry, he did, in fact in his latest offering I think I heard them all.

First of all, getting a new Pete Berwick recording is like opening a fresh, ice cold brew. You know it's going to be good. Pete once told me that when he puts out a new CD there is a rhythm to it, every record has a beginning, a middle and an end.

First a little background. I'll save you the time of a Google search and drop a link about Tyler Doohan. This kid was a hero, in the words of Pete he really was too damn young to die a man. Pete was so inspired by this story (let's face it we all were) that he wrote a song about him. This is how the Legend of Tyler Doohan begins and to listen to the entire album it really is about tales of victory and defeat.

Long time follower's of Pete will notice one departure from Pete's previous albums, well at least I do anyway. Let's face it, Churchill was right, life is blood, gut's, toil and sweat, and more or less that has been a theme of Pete's previous recordings. His latest offering offers all the above, and an added attraction, victory. While not leaving behind his brutal honesty about life, Pete's latest offering is more optimistic than we've heard before, which is not a bad thing, it's nice to hear that we might win the battle after all.

After all, you really can't kill a man born to hang, I strongly recommend that you grab this album.

- Jack Simpson, host of Indie Spotlight Live

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Show notes;

Please like us on Facebook for the latest updates, I post on there much more often than I do on here anymore.

Broadcast Tips and How to Build Your Audience

I just hung out at the justcastlive meeting with the new owners and one of the things that came up during the show was how do you get more viewers to your show.

I guess I was a little more honest than I needed to be when I posted in the chat you gotta earn it but it's true.

So with that being said I would like to take a few minutes and offer some tips on how to build your online audience.

First off, I've been hosting an internet broadcast in some form or another since January 2008. I've had shows where we had over 50 people in chat, and I've also hosted many shows where I had no traffic. I have to be straight up it does suck when you put a ton of work into a broadcast and nobody shows up to listen to it. While helpful (I hope!) none of the tips I'm going to offer are going to be a magic bullet to bring an audience in but if you put zero effort into building your audience it's a good bet that zero is what you are going to get.

If you want to bring people to your online broadcast, you've got to let people know you're there, and build enough of an audience that will also let other people know about it.

Networking is key, so be shameless about promoting your broadcast, you really don't have any reason to be shy about it.

With that being said, here are some helpful tips to build your audience and viewership;

1) Social media is key, I can not stress this enough. Make a Facebook group and maybe even a Facebook page for your show. Get on Twitter, Instagram, wherever you can find people with similar interests that might like to check out your show. Whether it's music, beany babies, race cars or the Illuminati find groups and people who share interests similar to your online broadcast's content and promote your show.

2) This was brought up in the justcastlive broadcast and is a good point, I forget who mentioned it but want to give the proper credit because this is what I do..

Even if there is nobody at the show, act like you are doing a show with people watching. 

I'll add my own twist to this, have a beginning, a middle, and an end. If you don't have anybody come to the show consider it practice.

3) Just because you hit the start button and start a broadcast doesn't mean that viewers or listeners will magically appear. I still stand by my statement you gotta earn it.

4) Be consistent. Start your show at the same date and time every time you broadcast. If you own a date and time regular viewers will get into the habit of remembering when your show is on and popping into the broadcast to hang out.

5) Quality is key. I often post about how I'm still tweaking my settings. This is important because people will not have a whole lot of patience at a show with choppy video and garbled audio no matter what your content might be. Don't assume that just because you ramp up your settings to the max that it's going to work out. It depends on your machine, you're internet connection, and how you are broadcasting your show if you are using an encoder or your broadcasting sites broadcast tool. I will say that sometimes less is more, drop down to a lower setting and ramp up and see how it works.

6) Be interesting. I'll say it, unless you are a hot chick built like a brick shithouse people aren't going to hang around long at a broadcast where the host just stares at the cam and talks back at the chat.

7) Don't feed the trolls. Deb from Unsigned Musicians/Unleashed found that running a "no crap chat" has a benefit which is good people looking for a nice place to hang out online appreciate a fun chat, not a drama filled one.

8) Learn from your mistakes and grow from them. Everyone has growing pains.

9) Interact with your audience, talk to the chat, it lets people know that the host is happy they are there and draws them in.

10) Check out other shows. Hang out, get known, put your name out there. Even if you just hang out a another show on the same site you broadcast on for just a couple of minutes, it's a good way to make friends who might want to check out your broadcast in return.

Please feel free to add your own tips in the comments section down below!

Indie Spotlight July Update

The show is still going strong on Monday nights starting at 9 pm (EDT) on justcastlive. Apparently there are changes happening on justcast, I just hope that none of these affect the TOS and therefore the show. Hopefully things stay the same as far as that is concerned but anyway.....

It used to be that "New Music Monday" was kind of a big deal on the show but to be honest about it every Monday has been a new music Monday. We've added a ton of new music to the show and for those that haven't checked us out in a while I hope will do so. I know I had gotten stuck in a rut for a while with the music, in the time between the blogtv shutdown and the justcastlive revival I really hadn't added much in the way of new music.

That was then, this is now, new music Monday really isn't a big deal anymore because every Monday is a new music Monday so I hope that some of you folks that haven't checked out the show in a while will pop in, hang out, and enjoy the music.

I am still having issues with the video playback on justcastlive. I have to remind myself that it took a while to get it set straight when we were on blogtv and it will take time here as well. My biggest thing is the video settings. We're still having issues with dropped frames and users who connect on a wireless connection notice issues with the audio. However people who are wired in report no issues so I'm not sure if it's me or an issue with their connection. I think the jury is still out on this one but I'm still tweaking the settings on my end to try to ensure the best broadcast experience for everyone.

Musicfest15?  Still on the back burner, I'll be honest I'm not sure if it's gonna happen this year. I really want to get the bugs worked out of the broadcast first.

My other internet projects? Interesting question and I'm glad you asked!

I'm thinking of filming a documentary. Yes me. Tentatively called "Driving Jefferson Davis" and yes it's a take on Driving Miss Daisy. With all the tension regarding the Confederate flag it has come up in the news reports in my local area that there are people who think that the name of US Route 1 that runs through my home state of Virginia that is currently named Jefferson Davis Highway should be changed. For those who might not know Jefferson Davis was the president of the Confederacy during the Civil War. I think it would be a good idea to take a drive, stop at random places and see what people have to say about that. It could be interesting, it could be boring I really don't know. Right now I'm on a limited budget as far as getting a decent camcorder goes so we'll see if I can first find the way to have the equipment to pull this off, and the time. I'd really like to do this, just have to find a way to pull it off and produce at the very least, a watchable video.

As far as my other show ideas, I really just don't have time for them right now, in fact I feel like I'm doing pretty good keeping Indie Spotlight on the air. I really want to do the documentary though, I think it would be fun to put together so stay tuned.

In the meantime, Indie Spotlight Live is still going strong, Monday nights starting at 9 pm eastern U.S. and I hope you'll drop in and check us out! We are often the featured broadcast on justcastlive.tv when we are on.

http://www.justcastlive.tv/users/indie-spotlight-live