Nancy Baym’s Summer Reading List

Nancy Baym is an Associate Professor of Communication Studies at the University of Kansas and author of the Online Fandom blog. Some readers will remember that she's been interviewed on here in the past.  

Here at Hypebot, we are rolling out our summer reading lists, written by some of the
leading thinkers in the industry. If you happen to be in that crowd and
want to join in the fun, or just happen to have a damn good list to
share, email me
five of your picks and reasons why the music industry should be
reading them.

Here is Nancy's
list:

Mashed Up: Music, Technology, and the Rise of Configurable Culture
by Aram Sinnreich

Sinnreich is one of the smartest people thinking about contemporary digital music practices, and this book, due out in August, is likely to have a big influence on how people understand what Lessig called "remix culture."

Fans, Friends And Followers: Building An Audience In The Digital Age
by Scott Kirsner

This is a how-to book aimed at musicians and artists looking to build an online following. It's got excerpts from about 30 interviews and is a pretty interesting read. 

Ripped: How the Wired Generation Revolutionized Music
by Greg Kot

This is an excellent very readable overview of changes in the music industry over the last decade.

Selling Sounds: The Commercial Revolution in American Music
by David Suisman

This is an historic academic tome about how music came to be a big business. I'm always eager to situate current trends in their historical context so I'm hoping this one helps with that.

The Music Industry: Music in the Cloud
by Patrik Wikström

Like Kot's book, this is a readable analysis of recent changes in the music industry, but where Kot focuses on case studies to make his case, Wikstrom offers a critical theoretically-grounded perspective and a rich analysis of the changing nature of the many industries involved in "the industry."

Personal Connections in the Digital Age
by Nancy K. Baym

Finally…  Ok, I'm not reading this one since I wrote it, but you should all read my new book about how new communication technologies affect our relationships to one another. It touches on music, but it's much broader than that.