Thomas Dolby is part mad scientist, part nature boy, and entirely moved by the power of music.
— Shawn Amos
When I started Amos Content Group in 2009, I made a simple bet: our handmade, contextual, and authentic content will stand out in an increasingly information-saturated world.
'Morsel' is a perfect word. Forming those six letters on the lips and tongue prompts an instantaneous physiological reaction. The mouth waters. The lips purse.
Men of my father's generation were perpetual hustlers, always on the make and always on the move.
Susan Boyle having a meltdown is not controversial. It's human for a 48-year-old recluse to get a little wigged out when she finds herself on the world stage overnight.
My stroller of choice is the Graco Classic. It's the '70s Buick of strollers, bulky with a complete absence of style. There are no good lines on the Graco. Yes, it has cup holders, like any self-respecting car or stroller does these days, but the luxuries stop there.
In Los Angeles, parenting is a competitive sport. From Beverly Hills baby boutiques to kids' yoga classes, L.A. fuses high style, industrial-strength materialism, and parental outsourcing into our own unique version of child-rearing.
I spent years shaking the damage that comes with being burned by living near someone else's spotlight.
Music and philanthropy have a long, benevolent relationship with one another. Record bins are rife with charity singles, and concert history is filled with benefit shows for every imaginable cause. Musicians like to give back.
We all know the record biz don't pay. All musicians have day jobs - no matter how big they are.
From their '61 Cavern Club debut to their last rooftop concert eight years later, The Beatles gave every serious artist in their wake the songbook and sound for their career. It's the musical trough from which nearly every musician drinks.
A few performances have been left out of the various Woodstock soundtracks and film edits over the years, most notably The Grateful Dead.
You can talk about Michael Jackson all you want, but John Hughes was the soundtrack to my 1980s life.
Memphis is the place where rock was born and Martin Luther King, Jr., was killed. It's full of contradictions, abject poverty, and riches that only music can provide.
Harlem's Apollo is probably the most well-known music hall in the world.
In the world of celebrity, there is one universal law: if there's a scandal or death, Al Sharpton will be there.
From chain gangs to folk songs to intelligent soul, America has created musicians dedicated to truth, justice, and a better American Way.
Early 1900s Hollywood was full of farmers battling to hold onto their land against a new influx of filmmakers who dug Hollywood's reliable weather and diverse landscape.
Despite all of our technological advances, content creation still requires time, inspiration, and a certain amount of sweat. There aren't any shortcuts. You can't write an algorithm for it. You can't predict it. You can't code it.
Just as many people flee Hollywood as those who flock to it. Hollywood can be an acquired taste.
The combination of cheaper and more widespread broadband and increased mobile usage is turning us all into independent viewers.
Rock stars should be able to tune their own guitars, apply their own eyeliner, and pick out their own leather pants.
I take my kids to a farmers' market each Sunday to buy organic produce.
Of course, screwed up families are not the exclusive province of the famous. Still, most families get to screw up in private.
While not a musician, my father was a music agent for years before becoming pop culture icon Famous Amos.
The late, great Janis Joplin could drink ten men under the table, then sing loud enough to shake the teeth out of their head.
If I were a rock star, I'd design my own clothes. I'd do it because that's the mark of a true rock star.
There's a reason for Art Garfunkel's oddly shaped hair. It hides a very big brain.
The Woodstock dove on the iconic poster is really a catbird. And it was originally perched on a flute.
Throughout the '50s, tons of unknown locals came through Sun to record their demos. Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee Lewis all made their first recordings at the former Memphis Recording Service.
Blues became rock, rock became soul, and all of it was colorblind.
New York City has more rock history in its 305 square miles than most of America combined.
Depending on your political orientation, the Dixie Chicks are either the great defenders of free speech or American traitors.
Protest is patriotic. Since the beginning of musical time, American singers and songwriters have used their talent and bully pulpits to show us America's strengths and shortcomings.
Fresh content doesn't exist to game the SEO system. It's the words, images, and stories that truly engage us, make us want to share with others, and creates a bond between us and a brand.
Technology has the benefit of being easily scalable. A few weeks or months of coding can result in solutions that reap huge benefits. The global success of Facebook, Twitter, and Google are all triumphs of technology.
As a child, I experienced black culture as many people did in America: on the TV, radio, and stages.
Like any self-governing group of people, the Recording Academy has made missteps over the years. Still, it has corrected course and done more to open its arms to the future than nearly any other industry group around.
Somewhere along the line, a concert became a variety show. It was no longer enough for four dudes to play together in front of some guitar amps. Costume changes, an army of dancers, and Broadway theatrics suddenly became standard for a 'concert.'
I live in the social purgatory of the San Fernando Valley, while my eldest daughter is bused to a charter school in the fantasy land of Bel Air.
I know plenty of Hollywood kids who still struggle with being whole. Their lives are never fully their own - always in the grip of a parent who put celebrity ahead of them.
At the height of his popularity in 1977, Cat Stevens converted to Islam and dedicated his life to educational and philanthropic causes.
Chrissie Hynde is the coolest woman alive, and no man can have her.
I get my clothes from three sources: Target, thrift shops, and friends. It's simple and it's cheap.
When Woodstock ended on Monday morning, over 600 acres of garbage was left behind on Max Yasgur's farm. It took over 400 volunteers and $100,000 to remove it all.
Woodstock was a business. A very poorly run business.
Many cities make music, but no city breathes music quite like Memphis. The songs and sounds that come from here are uniquely American.
Every single tune you know from the 1940s until the 1970s was written, arranged, and demoed in the Brill Building. OK, maybe not every song, but writers from Benny Goodman to Lieber & Stoller to Neil Diamond all kept offices there.
There was a time when a musician was forced to act in a video. Seeing a singer step too far outside of his comfort zone to pour all of his high-school-drama angst into a poorly scripted scenario was a sight to behold.
At its best, American music is the soundtrack of our long - and often painful - march toward a more perfect union.
