The upcoming Balloon Party sequel

[itroitnyah]

I think that we probably won't raise half the money needed to send the contest winning artists to any cons unless the only price would be a ticket because driving distance or something. Perhaps if this new balloon party sequel comes about, only pay for the top 5-10 songs from the album airfare (excluding repeat artist songs, ofc), and then donate the rest to charities.

[Mr. Bigglesworth]

I'm actually kind of disappointed that the majority vote is for Cons.

[FLAOFEI]

Since I am very unlikely to get one of the funded trips (and because I feel bad when I think about how privileged I am compared to some people) I cast my vote on Charity.
It also rhymes with Rarity, which is funny.

[eery]

I'm actually kind of disappointed that the majority vote is for Cons.

I dunno, I kinda liked that idea, it makes it seem more dreamy and kinda more appealing. Just that if you win you get to meet up with all the other amazing people who entered.

Idk, charity is probably more noble and everything, but I just think its a cool idea, especcially since the main idea for it is that its supposed to be very pro music, so people buy it because they want the album and the quality is like basically industry standard.

[ExoBassTix]

I think that it should stay as it was, with money going to BronyQuest, because a lot of money was raised before to get a lot of people to cons, so I think it will do so again (especially since stuff happens, and hopefully the BP and R&R reupload will attract more people to donate.

Also, just because charities exist, doesn't mean one should always support those. There's a time (and place) for guilt-trapping people. Such is not now (and here). At least, in my opinion.

And next to that, why the frick not. This forum is about friendship, and how better to improve friendly bonds than by meeting up?

[TWILICORN]

I am for all the money going to musicians to help them to go to cons but I think after the event further funds should go to charity.

[Injustrial]

I am for all the money going to musicians to help them to go to cons but I think after the event further funds should go to charity.

I agree

[JSynth]

I have to say I was not expecting this.

[azerty]

I am for all the money going to musicians to help them to go to cons but I think after the event further funds should go to charity.

An excellent compromise, and one I'd definitely promote, what with the vote being this close.
I'm super excited to see another one of these getting off the ground (and hopefully I can make a contribution this time around)!

[Callenby]

I am for all the money going to musicians to help them to go to cons but I think after the event further funds should go to charity.

How about that plus the musicians that this helps agree to use at least some of their time there promoting to-be-decided charities? Like a benefit concert or something, if possible? I don't see the two options as mutually exclusive.

There's already Bronies for Good and other altruistic initiatives, but not as many that help out musicians. And it's not like this is the only possible time we are able to donate to charities; that's always available.

[Injustrial]

I am for all the money going to musicians to help them to go to cons but I think after the event further funds should go to charity.

And it's not like this is the only possible time we are able to donate to charities; that's always available.

The con itself being a prime example

[Keen Blade]

I'd love to help some musicians get to a con. So my vote is there.

[Navron]

And next to that, why the frick not. This forum is about friendship, and how better to improve friendly bonds than by meeting up?

Maybe back in 2012, when all the musicians actually stuck together. Nowadays we've got out own music cliques and a whole bunch of e-famous musicians that won't bother to hang out with us, "lesser subscribed simpletons."

I don't really vote for either. I feel these albums have done nothing but create a further divide amonst the music community. Plus, the sad truth is that the money has to have some sort of priority funding, and I can't see the funding covering a relatively unknown artist as long as there's bigger names on the waiting list.

I don't think it should be for a general charity either. I don't want the great community efforts like Smile! or Seeds of Kindness being lumped in with the generally one-sided popularity contests that have been the past albums.

Perhaps if we had a more fair judging system that's less vague on their quality standards AND only allowed people who are actually active in the music community to participate? I'm personally sick of seeing big names breaking off from their stretch of doing non-pony music and ZERO participation in the brony community to suddenly rise from the grave and write their one pony song for this annual album, then request funds to go to a convention so they can bask in their own glory and ignore all the other musicians.

[CitricAcid]

And next to that, why the frick not. This forum is about friendship, and how better to improve friendly bonds than by meeting up?

Maybe back in 2012, when all the musicians actually stuck together. Nowadays we've got out own music cliques and a whole bunch of e-famous musicians that won't bother to hang out with us, "lesser subscribed simpletons."

I don't really vote for either. I feel these albums have done nothing but create a further divide amonst the music community. Plus, the sad truth is that the money has to have some sort of priority funding, and I can't see the funding covering a relatively unknown artist as long as there's bigger names on the waiting list.

I don't think it should be for a general charity either. I don't want the great community efforts like Smile! or Seeds of Kindness being lumped in with the generally one-sided popularity contests that have been the past albums.

Perhaps if we had a more fair judging system that's less vague on their quality standards AND only allowed people who are actually active in the music community to participate? I'm personally sick of seeing big names breaking off from their stretch of doing non-pony music and ZERO participation in the brony community to suddenly rise from the grave and write their one pony song for this annual album, then request funds to go to a convention so they can bask in their own glory and ignore all the other musicians.

I understand that this album will be a good traffic booster for MLR and the music community, though, so the album should probably still happen. If the proceeds aren't used for charity or bringing musicians to cons, what do you think they should be used for?

[itroitnyah]

Why not take a look at my idea and only fund a few select people from the people who made it on to go and rest goes to charity? The winners don't necessarily need to be the ones with the most epikz awsomz beatz, but they can be the ones who make quality songs and are active in the community.

[Injustrial]

Why not take a look at my idea and only fund a few select people from the people who made it on to go and rest goes to charity? The winners don't necessarily need to be the ones with the most epikz awsomz beatz, but they can be the ones who make quality songs and are active in the community.

I think that would be very hard to decide. Another problem I see with the funding cons route (which I personally don't have a problem with, since I have no illusions of being picked out) is that some really good people are living far away from the US.

In the hypothetical situation that I would be the favorite to be funded for BronyCon, I'd probably gobble it all up alone. Plane tickets from Norway to the US, and then again to Baltimore would be ludicrously expensive. As said, that's not a problem for me. I'd just want to make a killer track, submit it and hopefully be a part of something great

[ExoBassTix]

And next to that, why the frick not. This forum is about friendship, and how better to improve friendly bonds than by meeting up?

Maybe back in 2012, when all the musicians actually stuck together. Nowadays we've got out own music cliques and a whole bunch of e-famous musicians that won't bother to hang out with us, "lesser subscribed simpletons."

Face it, those famous people are turning the brony music scene into Canterlot. With the noble system and all.

Perhaps if we had a more fair judging system that's less vague on their quality standards AND only allowed people who are actually active in the music community to participate? I'm personally sick of seeing big names breaking off from their stretch of doing non-pony music and ZERO participation in the brony community to suddenly rise from the grave and write their one pony song for this annual album, then request funds to go to a convention so they can bask in their own glory and ignore all the other musicians.

Here we're arguing about how the e-famous musicians moved away from us commoner musicians, and then you are talking about excluding certain people from getting the possibility of going to a con (in the case that con wins (see how far we've sunken? In a few days we can say that the pro-con's have beaten the pro-charity's. Bravo.). Are we not being like those e-famous guys then? Do we really want to be like them?

[senntenial]

Honestly, I think it's fairly well split (at least as of today)... and a lead of one or two votes isn't really all that great IMO.
I'd still love to see money go to both causes.

That seems to be of similar discussion above, and I'd advise working out a compromise something like a 50/50 split, or a 30/70 etc.

[Evdog]

That's what I was thinking

[Gray Ham]

I don't think there'll be enough money to get many people to cons. I agree with Nav on the point about making it a charity album, but is there a way of putting these things on the same page or something? Maybe making an MLR compilation Band Camp, or maybe even just a website page with links to all these albums?
EDIT: I guess it could be worked in with FimMusic.

[ExoBassTix]

If you don't know yet, that's already happening. The old albums are getting reuploaded to a new MLR BandCamp page, and the new ones will find its place there too probably (as far as I know, correct me if I'm wrong).

And you have no idea how hard FiMMusic is working on this business.

[ChocolateChicken]

I'm actually excited for the new Balloon Party album; it will be interesting to see how this one will go and be put together considering it will be the first one without the direction of the first director/guy in charge, and I don't mean any disrespect to him.

As for giving the money towards cons vs charity, haven't they always been for cons? There are plenty of other brony charity events/albums/things for charity, but this has been for cons. I feel like when you give the option of CON OR CHARITY, and place "charity" right next to "cons," it makes people think they are choosing which is more important than the other, which shouldn't be the case.

[Gray Ham]

If you don't know yet, that's already happening. The old albums are getting reuploaded to a new MLR BandCamp page, and the new ones will find its place there too probably (as far as I know, correct me if I'm wrong).

And you have no idea how hard FiMMusic is working on this business.

I was being general, I meant stuff like Four On The Floor and stuff like that as well, not just the slightly more official MLR albums.

[Freewave]

And next to that, why the frick not. This forum is about friendship, and how better to improve friendly bonds than by meeting up?

Maybe back in 2012, when all the musicians actually stuck together. Nowadays we've got out own music cliques and a whole bunch of e-famous musicians that won't bother to hang out with us, "lesser subscribed simpletons."

I don't really vote for either. I feel these albums have done nothing but create a further divide amonst the music community. Plus, the sad truth is that the money has to have some sort of priority funding, and I can't see the funding covering a relatively unknown artist as long as there's bigger names on the waiting list.

I don't think it should be for a general charity either. I don't want the great community efforts like Smile! or Seeds of Kindness being lumped in with the generally one-sided popularity contests that have been the past albums.

Perhaps if we had a more fair judging system that's less vague on their quality standards AND only allowed people who are actually active in the music community to participate? I'm personally sick of seeing big names breaking off from their stretch of doing non-pony music and ZERO participation in the brony community to suddenly rise from the grave and write their one pony song for this annual album, then request funds to go to a convention so they can bask in their own glory and ignore all the other musicians.

I've wanted this year's edition to focus on those who remain in the community and make that music. I don't want proceeds to go to those who make one song to get a free trip to bronycon and then go back to working away from the community. That IS a real problem. I don't want to see musicians funded for a THIRD trip, i want to see people make their FIRST voyage to one of these conventions. I've been looking for that small chance to meet up with many of the people I've met over the course of 2+ years after having to sit out from these prior conventions. Since i don't charge money for my music and many people don't. I don't think we should have to turn the community into a bunch of people pushing paid music or begging for handouts to go. One event (BP) can fund all these people who can start a new bunch of friendships that can carry this community for the next couple of years. I also acknowledge that there's just as strong a chance that I could just as easily not be included because in the great scheme of things what I produce is not good enough to meet BP standards despite what i do FOR the community. That's one of the things i detest about this event, a hierarchy.

I've stayed out of this the last couple of days because i found this was getting very divisive and heated. Maybe we should change the concept of this thing so its a real fundraiser for both things. Both for a charity AND for musicians like it was before. I'm not not happy with the focus changing from what it was as that takes all wind from Seeds of Kindness's sails at almost the same time and cuts half the support for musicians but if we look at this as a real fundraiser (not just giving it away for free like last year) BOTH groups can all fight for it rather than have half of us fighting against it. Maybe many people were right from the beginning to share the proceeds and focus rather than make it two camps. If cfry wants to run this again and can listen and work with those things in mind it has a chance of working. He's the unknown part of this equation and he can just toss out what we decide anyway but i'd rather bend on my opinion then see this break. I just don't want to play pony politics with this event anymore or pit myself against kyoga or cfry's dream of the event; its just too divisive. The polls are rather evenly split on this and have been most of the time.

If splitting the proceeds will unite the event maybe that's the best option after all.

[Navron]

I'm not necesarily trying to get people heated about it. I just want to make sure people understand before they vote that:

1. Many musicians do break off from being inactive in the brony music community to make a track for the compilation albums, then request funding so they can attend a con to perform, and not hang out with other musicians or try to form new friendships.

2. The quality control was extremely vague in the past. Balloon Party was advised to be, "Hard and intense," yet the actual judging was more based on mixing quality, with lower emphasis on sound design and composition. Then of course there were those few tracks that had poor mixing, but ended up getting on anyway for some reason (suspicious those ones were by some very well-known musicians). Rainbow & Rooted was ever worse when it came to the vagueness of its standards. "Fast and stylish, with emphasis on DnB, drumstep, glitch hop, etc." The actual judging seemed to be inversely proportionate to the mixing quality, where those that put more effort into being more creative and stylish trumped those who actually followed the genre recommendations and mixed their tracks as high quality as possible. In the end, this mostly screwed over those of us who didn't get into BP because of mixing quality or being too creative, so when we made less creative tracks with more emphasis on mixing quality for R&R, we failed at that too, because the judges were looking for creativity and less emphasis on mixing quality. Really?

3. If a musician has a particular style, you will see them pull a 180 in order to get in. This becomes even more apparant amonst the popular crowd, because they already have an established genre they focus in (Ex: Why is a pop singer suddenly making that 1 dubstep song?) This one probably irks me the most, because it's not like they're experimenting with other genres, or branching off into a new direction. No, it's just that ONE single song that they break away from their own sound and style in order to fit the style of the album. Afterwards they go right back to making what they made before.

I understand that this album will be a good traffic booster for MLR and the music community, though, so the album should probably still happen. If the proceeds aren't used for charity or bringing musicians to cons, what do you think they should be used for?

If the proceeds are not directed towards the brony community and/or a con fundraiser, then it will not be a traffic booster for MLR. I personally think we should just make an album of awesome music that is completely free, with no fundraising incentive. Just high quality music.

Unfortunately, as evidenced by the many albums that have either been released in the past free of charge, or even the bigger charity albums I mentioned before, if it isn't for bringing famous musicians to the cons, the community doesn't care about it.

Don't believe me? Tell me where you see Aviators, Sim Gretina, Tombstone, Alex S, etc. on the big charity albums (Hint: They aren't there.)

I vote we market this as a sequel to BP to be released free of charge, for no fundraising or financial assistance, and focus on making a clear, distinct style with unbiased judging. We'll see how many people are interested in making a big community album that's simply about the music.