June 27, 2008
Girl Talk Feeds The Animals
Girl Talk, the performer name for Gregg Gillis, released his 4th studio album earlier in the week. The super sample is his latest mash-up featuring songs from Twisted Sisters, Michael Jackson, Jaz-Z, Radiohead, Heart, Public Enemy and more. Some songs sampled were only released a few months before his album was released.
You can download the entire album on Illegal Art’s website, Girl Talk’s record label.
So why plug this album release on WalkingManLive? In the spirit of free music and the future of the industry, Girl Talk is making major contributions to both. The album is being sold as a pay-what-you-want, and the indsutry is shaking.
Girl Talk is a laptop producer who takes pop songs, and mixes it with hip hop beats and vocals. Sometimes, only a few seconds long. At other times, almost an entire verse. Feed The Animals is rumored to have over 300 samples spanning 14 tracks. 300 unlicensed sample.
Feed the Animals is also being released on his record label’s website in a DRM-free music format. For years, the labels have resisted digital downloads, only to give into iTunes, and have resisted DRM free files, only to let Amazon have the largest DRM-free music library, with the majors. Now, Girl Talk went a step further and just said, take it! Take all you want, and if you like it, drop a few bucks in the jar. His pay-what-you-want format is further pushing the industry agaist the wall, and if they aren’t smart, eventually off a cliff.
Gregg is not the first to do this type of promotion, Nine Inch Nails and Radiohead have been in this territory before. And local musicians have been offering free music on their websites, myspaces, demos, anywhere they can for decades. What’s the big deal then? Girl Talk is the first major act to offer this and get the attention, and also the most independent act, never being on a label.
Girl Talk has done everything wrong, according to industry standards, yet he’s the biggest independent artist right now, playing sold out festivals, venues and clubs around the world. Maybe its time for some execs to learn a few things from him.
The revolution has been seeded by Radiohead, and Girl Talk is the piper with the followers dancing behind him all the way to the bank.
