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Q: What is Music Xray™?

A: Music Xray™ is a new technology that allows music professionals to see their music and their market in ways that were impossible until now. With these new insights, better decisions can be made regarding the potential market success of a given song. more…

Q: What do I get for $10 Music Xray™?

A: Click here for a Sample Report. Click here for a description of the service.

Q: Is payment secure?

A: Yes! Platinum Blue, Inc. utilizes encryption technology to ensure your personal, payment and song information is kept secure. Please review our Privacy Policy.

Q: What’s the difference between Music Xray™ and Other Market Testing

A: Focus groups and call-out research methods ask people to actively listen to music and to offer a statement of what they think of the song. Conversely, Music Xray has locked into that subtle way we hear and naturally respond to music. Optimal mathematical patterns are believed to be the properties that compel large market segments to want to hear a song again and again. These are the songs that become hits.

Q: Are there any success stories?

A: Last year, Music Xray™ predicted the success of Gnarles Barkley’s Crazy. When founding Platinum Blue’s executives were at their former company working with a similar technology called Hit Song Science the success of Norah Jones was predicted before she was on anyone’s radar. The service also helped Lee Ryan have a hit song in the summer of 2006 called Turn Your Car Around. These technologies have been used on countless other occasions. In accordance with confidentiality agreements, many of the success stories are not made public.

Q: How can a song be changed if it doesn’t score well?

A: Music Xray™ is a powerful observational tool. It can’t give any creative direction. However, since subtle changes in a song can make a big difference in the score, many artists find it useful to analyze several versions of the same song.

Platinum Blue also offers a more advanced Studio Service in which we do more complex analysis of songs. We determine which elements of a song may be negatively impacting the score (e.g. the bass line or certain mid ranges, etc). Then it’s up to the producer and artists to make any changes they wish. Platinum Blue can then re-analyze the song to see if the changes improved the songs chances. This process can be repeated until a version of the song scores well.

Platinum Blue cannot offer creative direction and does not infringe on the artistic integrity of the process.

Q: How Can I Use Music Xray™?

A: Unsigned artists can get a basic version of the Music Xray™ for a low price and use their scores as a validation of its worthiness. This Icon can be posted next to a song title on social websites and music portals (see example here). They can also use the reports to help open doors at labels, get the attention of top producers, talent scouts and booking agents.

Major labels can get more advanced reports that help them to better understand where their markets are (less obvious than you’d imagine), if a single is destined to fail regardless of the promotional efforts and if an album is likely to be a profitable project or not. For more information please contact us or click here for more information (info@platinumblueinc.com).

Producers and engineers can use Music Xray™ in the studio to help ensure a song that already sounds and feels like a hit, conforms to the mathematical patterns that will ensure market success. Please contact us for more information (info@platinumblueinc.com).

Q: How can Music Xray™ help?

A: The music industry has historically used two criteria to determine if a song should be promoted or not as a single:

1: Does the song sound and feel like a hit?

2: Can the song be promoted successfully as a single?

• Does the label have the market know-how?
• Is the artist appropriate? etc?

Using those two criteria the industry has had less than a 10% success rate. Evidence suggests a third criterion is necessary.

3: Does the song conform to optimal mathematical patterns?

Music Xray™ answers that third question. If the answer to all three questions is “yes” evidence indicates that the chances of success increase from roughly 10% to as high as 80%, making a revolutionary impact on the way music is taken to market.

It is important to understand that Music Xray™ does NOT answer anything related to the first two criteria. A low score does not mean your song does not sound like a hit. It simply means that the production of that song that was tested would be seriously challenged to perform well in the market. Similarly, a good score does not mean the song will be a hit. It must also sound like a hit and be promoted effectively.

Q: How does the Music Xray™ work?

A: About 60 unique patterns to which most hit songs conform have been identified. We can’t hear the patterns with our ears, much like a doctor can’t see inside a patient’s body without the aid of an X-ray. Similarly, our technology allows musicians and music industry professionals to see their music and their market in ways in which they couldn’t before. The new perspective enables them to see how their song fits into the market. They are then able to make better decisions and thereby dramatically improve business results.

Q: Should I order the Basic or Professional levels of the Report?

A: Typically, major labels, top producers and artists need a lot of in-depth market information for use in marketing and promoting a single or an album. Platinum Blue’s Professional Music Xray™ and Market Insight Music Xray™ reports offer that kind of information. Music industry professionals typically pay thousands of dollars to gain this level of insight. However, unsigned musicians don’t usually need that kind of in-depth information so Platinum Blue, the company behind the Music Xray™, created a basic version of its service and made it available to unsigned bands and solo artists for only a few dollars per analyzed song. The basic reports can be used to help unsigned artists open doors at labels, attract the attention of talent scouts on social networking sites like MySpace and MusicFreedom.com and in appealing to booking agents.

Q: What do I get with the Basic Music Xray™?

A: This service is designed especially for unsigned artists. Professional labels, producers are encouraged to use the professional versions of our service due to the fact that the basic reports don’t tend to offer the kind of information necessary to take a song to market I the tradition way.

With the basic online service you will receive a report that looks like this. (link to sample)

It consists of two scores: a Hit Grade and a Color Grade. more…

Q: What do I get with Basic Plus Music Xray™?

A: This service is also especially designed for unsigned artists. Basic Plus Music Xray™ is the same as the Basic Music Xray™ but also includes a Metal Grade ranging from Copper to Platinum. The Metal Grade is the ONLY score in our service repertoire that is subjective and not based on objective and mathematical scoring techniques. more…

Q: What is the accuracy of Music Xray™?

A: Most singles released by music labels sound and feel like hits but lack the optimal mathematical patterns. This is a main reason why the industry has less than a 20% success rate. Less than one in 5 songs that are released as singles and promoted iwth a significant budget actually reach the charts. By using Platinum Blue’s technology, hit rates can be increased to over 80% - four times the current industry rate - effectively providing a risk management capability that helps yeild significant improvement in return on investment.

Q: Who uses Music Xray™?

A: Music Xray™ is used by major labels in the US & UK, Grammy-winning producers and top artists. Each get different, yet important, insight and information from the analysis. A music label professional might use the information to help determine which single to promote first while a producer might use the information to edit a song. Thousands of unsigned artists also use it to determine if their songs have what it takes to make it in today’s music market.