@kutless

RE:

 " Good morning group, 

God bless you. 

I am a part of an Army family. 

I am writing you not to inquire about tickets, however. I am writing to bring you awareness of an issue that I would hope many more be alerted to who are directly and indirectly impacted. 

For the past week, I had been attempting an mp3 download of one of your tracks, along with others. Most of my listening is Christian, and the majority of my selection for downloads were for Christain tracks.  I have a general go-to, as do most people for downloading music that I want. 

Due to some technical error, persisting for a week now, all download for music at the site has been halted. When going to see where else I might be able to locate your music, I realize a larger issue that I am now bringing to your attention. 

As you are likely well aware of based on where your music is mostly purchased, there is a monopoly on access to digital music. [What I would consider] a monopoly includes the current state of access to purchase of digital music mainly existing via personal accounts on either amazon or apple. There are several issues with this, reinforced by the culture around which personal music listening is generally undertaken. That is, where storage of music is concerned, digital music is the most accessible.

In addition, the method used for music storage allows for music listening in various settings, to which digital access is now the most popular. This being the culture, the newest vehicles and lap top models are no longer even being made with CD players.  All of this considered, while your music along with lots of other similar artists are still available on CD, the issue I am yet bringing to your attention is concerning access. 

The yet, perhaps even moreso, popular way to access music is to listen via live stream of a personal playlist.  If you are a person who likes to be unteathered from any level of 'G' connection and the implications involved for needing any reason to connect globally on matters such as personal taste for art while enjoying privacy, a logged-in status is not something that you're willing to deal with in order to have your playlist. 

Thus, the issue of access that I bring to your attention. In addition to going directly to your site page and seeing no direct access to music there, rather a redirect to one of the monopoly sites afore mentioned, I find it appropriate to consider this an issue that I direct to the cause of why you as a music group have made your work available in the first place. As Christians, we are in the world and not of it.  

Likewise, the 'many more who may be directly impacted' that I mentioned at the start are Believers.  Whatever the political agenda(s) which could easily thrive in the current monopoly on access to music, those agendas should not so easily be able to place music like yours, and likewise the related audience, at target. For God Who has seen to blossom the voice of His Believers in a world that desperately needs Him, no cap should be able to show on the fruits unless He would be the one to place it.

There are many innovative ways to ensure that the monopolies in industry do not have say over what you are producing for the Kingdom.  It is an interest that ministries of music should take a look into now. 

God Bless !  "