Phoebe, the fictional chantuese from hit sitcom 'Friends', famously performed her unique brand of music in the plush environment of the Manhattan coffee house 'Central Perk'. Now it appears that she may have been ahead of the curve as Starbucks announce that through their new record label, Hear Music, they will be releasing the debut album of 21 year old singer-songwriter Hilary McRae. According to Variety.com, "Hilary has a great soulful sound and we are excited to play a significant role in the launch of what will be a long and successful career," Ken Lombard, president of Starbucks Entertainment, said Tuesday in a statement. "Hear Music has a strong belief in fostering the talent of quality musicians and we believe we've found a gem in this artist."
How long before Irish based coffee retailers such as Insomnia and West Coast Coffee follow suit ? It's a pity that Bewleys didn't last to see this development. It would have been great to see a version of David Bowie's 'The Bewley Brothers' released under the Bewleys name.
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1999 - 'The eMusic Market', written by Gordon McConnell it focuses on how the internet could change the music industry. Boy was he on the money, years before any of us had heard of an iPod or of Napster.