Here in my basement, I'm sitting at a quad-core iMac, listening to traditional Zeuhl music on my ear buds. The giant, can-style earphones I have placed over my ears blasts "I Can" by Nas, which is hard to hear over the dub-step track bumping two feet away from my head on the studio monitors — it seems to have a similar bassline to the song in the movie I'm watching.

But at what point does having such easy access to art start to devalue it?

Recently, Duffy's Tavern, 1415 O St., in Lincoln, was named the best college bar in America by, the president or something. (Ed. Note: It was Complex.com) Duffy's was also named best college bar by a major music mag about 10 years ago. If this is truly a cornerstone for college culture, then why can't bands charge a cover when they play there? I think that if everyone had to drop even $2 to get in (as is the business model at the Replay Lounge in Lawrence, Kan.), the fishbowl crowd would at least want to get their money’s worth. They might even stop and check out a song or two on their way to the beer garden, allowing us artists to try and convert some of them into fans.

When you allow people to come to the shows for free, you instantly devalue the music in the attendees' eyes. People assume that if you aren't good enough to warrant a cover charge, then you probably aren't worthy of their attention.

Although illegal downloading is in someways directly stealing from an artist, I think it's important to examine the deeper implications of people not needing to pay for art anymore. Next time your friend has a show, try and shed all of this entitlement that you have been tricked into feeling — fuck the guest list — buy a ticket, stand in the front row, and just be a fan for a change.