First of all you really need to take a back seat in assessing the music 'market' in the Philippines. Who are the listeners? Who is/are your target market/s?
After a careful thinking of who or what clicks - you may want to ask the following questions:
- Who are the listeners? - general mass market; audio/music - philes; critics; radio-listeners; cd/dvd buyers; college/high school kids, etc, etc...
- Who ended up buying the music? - again, which one of the above.
- Timing is another important factor!
Then again you may one to ask the question - is it really the 'magaling' ones that get the mass appeal? or is it the 'saleable-to-the-masa/listeners'?
Often time you find that the 'magaling', authentic ones (the supposed deserving ones) that do not get the attention. Why?
You may argue that Flor Purim/Airto Moreira, Astrud/Joao Jobim, LAni Hall, Gracina Leporace etc. etc. are the starndard bearers...but who are these artists to the majority of listeners. In other words...the 'common listener' is not the 'afficionado', the 'common listener' does not really care if the pronounciation is Carioca or Italian or Frenchy. What do they care about; or what makes them listen.
Maybe Sitti had that 'voice-of-the-time' as did Barbie, Kitchie, or the girl of UP Dharma Down or the girl of MYMP. And it so happened that 'that voice-of-the-moment' was timely used in Bossa NOva.
I am a purist and a hard critic of artists BUT again, I do not follow the 'mass market' mentality. You may say that I would not be able to produce/choose a 'Nora Aunor' because I simple do not ride on that 'taste'. I go for the 'original' feel, for the 'pure' sound, and for this kind of taste/attitude, I will not be able to make the mass market like 'my kind of music'.
I may not be 'the market', you may not be 'the market'; bottom line is you'll make money IF YOU KNOW AND WILL SATISFY THE MARKET.
Do you know your market?
