upcoming adaptation of the hit British teen drama “Skins,” the network
wanted to try something a bit unconventional. So in October, the brass
at the network quietly launched an almost off-the-grid campaign in
which undiscovered artists could submit original tracks for the series.
“(We) sort of recognized the disconnect between the broader face of music and the changing face of
the network’s vice president of creative music integration. “There is
still a great music story to be told, but it’s simply grown from just
the music video. The question we were faced with was how do we take the
MTV brand, and all of its shows, and connect it to the music?”
Instead of rolling out a glossy promotion to tout the contest,
partnered with OurStage, a site that allows unsigned acts to promote
their music and enter monthly contests — past winners have gotten
opening slots for artists such as
Cuello said the network had been toying with the
idea of crowd-sourcing music for quite some time but that it had been
reluctant to utilize any one specific portal. “We have so many music
heads at
without any protocol,” he said. “(‘Skins’) as a brand already has this
incredible music sensibility established. It’s about independent music
and sort of left of center. In many ways it reflects the MTVU brand, or
‘120 Minutes.’
“It’s about really cool independent music that can
range from bands on independent labels or, in this case, artists that
are unsigned.”
The competition garnered more than 6,000 submissions before
The 21-year-old from
The series documents the uninhibited lives of a group of high school
friends traversing the ups and downs of adolescence; it aired in its
original form in the States on BBC America.
Chavez-Wright, who classifies his sound as “lo-fi,
electronic, chill,” admits landing the top spot was surreal. “I was
wanting to get it out there on some different sites, and I came across
the OurStage site. It asked me if I wanted to submit to a contest. One
was something with
and then there was ‘Skins,'” he said. “I said, ‘This is probably the
most likely fitting for my music.’ I never thought about it after that.”
version, the U.S. adaptation will have a teen advisory board that
evaluates and recommends music to be included in the show. One of the
teens will act as the show’s music supervisor.
The contest comes at a crucial time for
which has ventured further away from being a reliable destination for
music fans, as original programming such as “Jersey Shore,” “Teen Mom”
and a slew of other unscripted shows dominate the network. Recently,
the network unveiled, in beta form, the Music Meter, a site that offers
fans an easy-to-navigate interface where they can explore 100 of the
most buzzed-about, up-and-coming artists.
Though relegating clips from new and established
artists to the tail ends of its shows and relying heavily on playing
new tunes with the song’s complete info during episodes seems like a
passive way to showcase music, the network has proved to be a key
player in driving single sales.
When an October episode of “Teen Mom” featured A
Rocket to the Moon’s “Like We Used To,” the band’s single saw a 398
percent increase in sales. And for all of “Jersey Shore’s”
fist-pumping, tanning and drunken hookups, the hit show — which is
heavy on music, thanks to numerous club scenes — has drummed up
impressive sales for its soundtrack artists. The Midi Mafia saw an 874
percent increase in sales for its track “Last Call,” and
Cuello hopes
“The slate of new shows is weighted towards some
great scripted programming, which affords us the chance to connect some
pretty great music,” he said. “It works — we’re in the music business
that isn’t driven by anything primarily but good storytelling.”
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