The KRUU-crew!

We've been doin' some great things over at the 'Great Job, Sound Squad!', but we're reachin' out even more for the month of May :: Submit your latest, your best, or hell, your worst productions and we'll give it a shout.  Brap! and Tylias are amongst the artists that are scheduled to appear on the blog this week/end, but we're always looking for that perfect beat, and if you've got it, flaunt it.

CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com.
100.1 KRUU FM.

(catch us on the airwaves every Thursday from 5-6 p.m!  Incredibly humid right now, but that'll just make for an even hotter show.  Play that back on www.kruufm.com! xx

Social Media, Radio Tags, and What We've Been Doing

First off, apologies for the slowed posts. I [senior editor/regional board member Cameron M. Sales] have been taking a major focus in web design lately, and upon returning, it looks like Blogger has as well!  This new posting format is incredibly sleek, reminiscent of Wikipedia's template but combined with a better color scheme. 

Radio station tags, song submissions, original photographs and more -- keep 'em comin' at CaptainCaptainIndustries@gmail.com!  We are who we are strictly because of the support we're constantly getting from our community -- fans first, always.  Seriously, we're jumpin' all over these radio tags --  for more information on what you can do to regularly appear on our radio show, visit our previous post!  Casal from Believe did, and we're frequently beginning our programs with these, so of course we'll always accept those.

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In the spirit of today's NFL Draft, I wrote up a little somethin'-somethin' regarding the biggest busts in social media, a collaboration between school and work.  I promise, artists features are soon-to-come, but we'll be experiencing some upgrades of our own soon, including more original posts from the office here. 

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Brand recognition, a plethora of followers, and lucrative financial success; three components that solidify a social media giant. With millions (and almost billions) of available users practically sprinting to the latest expressive form of online-communication, the pressure to perform, innovate, and maintain is extremely high. That final point -- maintaining clientele -- eventually spelled disaster for many former web-based tycoons. Below, we'll examine a few of these once popular social media kings while also observing what could be learned from the fatal mistakes of these businesses.

1.) Google Buzz - Google Buzz, one of Google's three endeavors into social media, launched in late 2010. While Google Buzz had both the visual appeal and the flash-pan fan base, it didn't stick around for long, succumbing to the surrounding social outlets in a relatively shorter time-span. The 'failure' of Buzz prompted Google to launch the much more successful "Google+", quickly learning from the mistakes of their former project. Google+ quickly eclipsed Buzz, reaching the ten-million mark in the summer of 2011 and eliminating almost any hope of a "Buzz revival".

2.) Yahoo! 360/Pulse - Yahoo! has a history of complete misses in the social media world, with both Yahoo! 360 and Yahoo! Pulse providing distinct examples. Predating Google's attempts, Yahoo! 360 was unveiled in 2005. Crafting the early concept combining 'search engine community' and 'social media', Yahoo! 360 lasted all but two years and couldn't quite reach the high expectations that they'd set for themselves. Yahoo! Pulse, a conglomerate of Yahoo! applications, debuted in 2010. Using Flickr as the main drawing point, Pulse quickly had to add an additional Facebook application to ensure consistency amongst users. The dependence of the Facebook community stifled Pulse, and though it's still available today, numbers are declining rapidly. Yahoo's one major social media success, the 'ask' function of Yahoo!, continues to be a heavily-trafficked information resource.

3.) Bebo - Once an unchallenged empire, Bebo's fall from grace didn't happen overnight. Launched in 2005 by San Franciscan programmer Michael Birch, Bebo had an extraordinarily impressive run that helped pave the way for other media websites, notably Facebook. So -- what exactly transformed an up-and-coming prospect into an absolute disaster? Money, of course! AOL purchased Bebo for approx. eight-hundred-and-fifty million dollars in 2008, leading many to believe that Bebo was ready to expand into 'dynasty territory'. However, AOL's hefty purchase only allowed for tremendous budget cuts soon after, cutting Bebo's resources at an extremely vulnerable time. In the same time that Bebo was struggling, Facebook and Twitter exploded, etching Bebo into the history books.

4.) Friendster - Not necessarily a 'flop', Friendster was one of the original fathers of social media. Founded in 2002 by Jonathan Abrams, Friendster provided users with a bare-bones version of today's 'news feed'. Focusing on profile design and user history, Friendster 'peaked' in 2003. Friendster was considered the premiere social media website until around April 2004, about the same time MySpace was gathering a surge in traffic. The Friendster of yesteryear closed its doors in mid-2011, but relaunched as a gaming platform in June of that year. It is now highly popular in certain Asian countries, making up 90% of its demographic.

5.) Ping - Steve Jobs was a genius -- a man of his magnitude may never grace the technological world again. However, there was one territory in which Jobs could never conquer -- social media. Ping, an Apple-based online media service, focused on music-based discussions amongst users while also maintaining a user-artist connection. Launched in September of 2010, the service eventually garnered more than one million users. Highly considered a drawback to the service was the mandatory subscription to iTunes, which greatly limited potential newcomers. Also, the lack of moderation proved to be detrimental, and spam became prominent. A steady legal battle with Facebook throughout most of Ping's rise also proved to be a dark cloud, and was considered a 'flop' by the end of 2011.

6.) MySpace - Perhaps the 'Titanic' (or Donovan McNabb) of social media collapses, MySpace held such a strong grip of social media that many close competitors discontinued their services. Founded by Tom Anderson in 2003, MySpace connected users with other users, bands, cinematographers, and many other pop culture outlets. MySpace surpassed Google's previously unchallenged reign on the Internet in 2006, and held this title until late 2007. In April 2008, Facebook overtook MySpace in page views, and since then MySpace has dropped significantly. Tom Anderson sold the company in 2009, and has since been spotted on Facebook, amongst other social media outlets. In late June of 2011, pop star Justin Timberlake purchased the website for thirty-five million dollars. As of December of 2011, MySpace was ranked 138th in web traffic, and despite several redesigns, MySpace continues to sink in web traffic.

Senior Editor/Regional Board Member,
Cameron M. Sales

Notes

Ladies, Gents :

Excuse our unexplained hiatus -- those who follow us on Facebook know off-hand that we'll be experiencing some internet-related technicalities throughout the rest of February/early March. However, we'll be using this time to map out some new directions, including some new styles of musical production, new releases, (hopefully) some new connections, and well... if we told you all we had up our sleeves, we wouldn't have suspense on our side.

We'll be infrequently popping in-and-out throughout the next couple of weeks. Our posts may dwindle a bit, but the effort's still (mainly) there. We're taking interview applications, new artist affiliations and fan-suggestions! We'd love to hear some feedback from our faithful followers -- if we use your quick tips and hints (with your permission, of course!), we'll hit you up with some limited edition 'Captain Captain Industries' goodies. Questions/comments may be sent to CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com.



Oh, and one final note -- You've gotta check out our radio program (GREAT JOB, SOUND SQUAD!) on 100.1 KRUU FM. Locals can use their radio dials, but for our much larger international audience, feel free to visit KRUU FM's official website, and note the top-left-hand corner, where you can find a link that will sync our show with your iTunes, Windows Media Player, etc. Pretty fun stuff, and we jump at the chance to play YOUR music. Don't be shy :: we'd love to hear it! (tracks/artist info/'radio tag' submissions can also be sent to CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com)





From the desk of,
Captain Captain Industries

Reminder :: Quick Contest Updates ::

A quick reminder about all of our contests + interactive features. We're continuing to accept all submissions for the following :

1. A chance to appear on the radio! Would you/your latest project like an opportunity to be featured on the Midwest's only solar-powered radio station? Simply introduce yourself! State your name, what you're affiliated with, followed by one of these fine select choices :

1.) "and you are listening to 100.1 KRUU FM"
2.) "and you are listening to 'Captain Captain Industries on the radio'"
3.) "and you are listening to 'Great Job, Sound Squad' on KRUU FM"

Submit this audio clip (preferably .mp3) to
CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com.

2. Document yourself sharing 'Captain Captain Industries' in your neighborhood for a chance to win some quick stickers, possible CD's and other various prize packs. We realize that this seems vague, but it can be as simple as a 'Share' on Facebook, a 'shout-out' on a track, or even a quick stencil-tag? Anything really works -- just get a publishable documentation of yourself representing your favorite SE Iowa blog, amirite? These can also be sent to CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com.

3. Are you on YouTube? You could have a shot on our upcoming C.C.I. LiveStream TV station! Submit your original videos/links/etc. to CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com. If we feature you, you'll (more than likely) receive a quick C.C.I. booster-pack that should replenish any lack of Captain in your complex.

4. Are you a fellow Blogspot user? Haven't 'subscribed' to us yet? Well, it's paid off -- all Google Blogspot subscribers will be entered into a 5-draw raffle for some C.C.I. gear. Seriously -- our Facebook numbers have been doing substantially well, but Tumblr seems to have left a mark on the fellow Blogspot community, and we've felt it. Our traffic's doing well, but our Google Subscriptions have actually lessened. Crazy times, guys n' gals.

Any questions / off-record comments can be made to, you guessed it,
CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com.

xxxx

"Brief Notice"

GJSS Archive Tab

Have you checked out our new "GJSS Archive" tab? You can now find playlists from our radio program, 'Great Job, Sound Squad!'. We try to provide at least one link per track, making the process of finding new music an easier process. We always take fan requests, and those can be sent to our e-mail (CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com).

From the desk of,
Captain Captain Industries

:: Weekly Update ::

Good afternoon, all! Hopefully the weekend's going fine in your neighborhood. Let's take a couple minutes to recap this past week in the world of the Captain.

First off, many thanks are due to our Facebook crew, as they've been putting in some massive numbers in the past two weeks. We're well above 220+ fans, and we've made some great connections for our radio show (Great Job, Sound Squad! - Thursdays from five to six p.m. on 100.1 KRUU). We couldn't have done it without our blog, being older than our FB page by a good eight months or so. Major thank you's are due to the Blogger community as well! Since we have reached this milestone, we'll be more inclined to hold contests in the future.

Second, we had a major fire in our hometown! Located on 5th and Grimes,The Depot Building was home to eight tenants, several businesses, and many art studios. While the fire was tremendous, we're happy to report that nobody was (severely) injured. Take a look at these exclusive photos taken by our favorite photographer, Jessica Wood.




Finally, check out these tracks from Altariana, InDvisual, and an exclusive remix of an original track of ours from Arkitek Productions below :




Take Three Steps by inDvisual


Coastal Brake -Altariana Remix by Altariana

Click here for an exclusive download of
Arkitek Productions' remix of "Laid Over in Dallas".

That's all for now -- We'll be on a regular blog-schedule for the time being. We're having a solid November despite a decrease in post productivity. Thanks to all for being a part of C.C.I.!

Questions? Comments? Suggestions?
Hit us up at CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com

G.J.S.S. : Hip-Hop Edition

5-6 p.m. CTZ.
Thursday evenings

Today's show : All hip-hop. Different eras, too.
Definitely a lot of fun to make this playlist.
Hit us up in the studio : 641.209.1083
Listen in with KRUU FM.

New Thursday Afternoon Block

We're proud to say that the launch of "Ain't Nothin' But A 'G' Thang", the new four-to-five slot on KRUU FM, has fully basked in the ultimate glories of high critical acclaim as the newly confirmed Thursday Afternoon Dining Block openers played the likes of Thom Yorke and Radiohead, Blockhead, and a heap of tracks from [adult swim]'s Unclassified album. Our new season of Great Job! Sound Squad broke down the mental structures of many a listener, forcing said parties to vacate their previous lives, and restart anew, all while still wearing their seat belts.

It was nowhere near that dramatic, but we still have a good time. xx

THURSDAY AFTERNOON DINING BLOCK -

- 4:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. : Ain't Nothin' But A 'G' Thang (bread + butter)
- 5:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. : Great Job! Sound Squad (wine + cheese)
- 6:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. : Free Speech Radio News (meat + potatoes)
- 6:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. : Planet Erstwild (peaches + cream)

Only on 100.1 KRUU FM; the only solar-powered grassroots radio-station in the Midwest.

The Amazing World of Gumball x Prodigy

Gabe Bishop, frequenter on the Great Job Sound Squad, showed me this clip straight from 'The Amazing World of Gumball'. The peculiar thing is, this show's on Cartoon Network, and this clip is most certainly a Prodigy reference. +1 for creator Ben Bocquelet.

vs.

Another Little Something I've Been Working On

School starts the 29th, y'all. More graphics. More logos. More technical designs. More focus on the readers. More sponsorships!

Get at us for some ideas/collaborations/etc. You have a clothing line? We'd be so down to get a spot up here. Got a cool new tune? It'll probably get played on our show. Or at least mentioned on here. Blogger spotlighting probably could get turned up a notch. Tribute to the online-homies n' such. We're so close to doing prizes. I know. It's been in the works. We do have a growing swag pile building up.

Tomorrow! P.A.C. vs. Afroman in Burlington. Innovative local hip-hop + Grammy-nominated dank-rap. Sick stuff, dudes.

Great Job Sound Squad! Tonight, 5-6 (central) on KRUU FM.

What's up local bros? How've you been, online blog connections? Good to see you, new-blog-discoverererers.

Been a little bit, I realize. Got some nice news for ya', however.


Number One : C.C.I. favorites, the local live hip-hop pioneers known as the Purple Asteroid Cadillac, are opening for the ever-so-stoner-friendly Afroman (yeah, that Afroman) on August 26th @ The Washington in jolly old Burlington, IA. It'll be a show that you cannot miss. Point-blank. Like a game-tying free-throw with 0:01 on the clock. If your in the area, and can stroll into a bar, then be there.



Numbah' Two : Lane Weaver's stirrin' shit up and making some headlines! Dude's gonna try and break the world record for longest freestyle, previously held by the notable emcee known as Chiddy. Like the Chiddy Bang bro. Catch this head-turner September 3rd @ the Beauty Shoppe in Fairfield, IA. Most of you aren't Iowa-bros, I understand. So does Lane, as he's broadcasting the session LIVE on www.laneweaver.com. Grab some brews, watch some bars, nah'mean?

(World record : 9 hours and 19 minutes)

III : Captain's Quarters on KRUU FM has now been conquered by the Great Job! Sound Squad. Same time. Same 'site. More live stuff. More local features. Original artists should really get at us. We've been throwing that out sometime, and yet, little takers. Live radio play, throughout the interwebs, for thousands of peeps. Yet, slim-to-none.

Note : Great Job! Sound Squad doesn't bias against other non-musical artists. Have a project you'd like to see get a slick, free promo? Hit us up at CaptainCaptainIndustries@Gmail.com.


4 : I met Ron Paul the other day. His hands are too soft. That is all.


From the desk of,
-C.C.I. xxxx