Inspiration — by Guest Dad Ryan Wright

Music is the emotions business. I get paid to know what people want to feel. I'm not selling songs — I'm selling how you feel about the song when you hear it. And that emotion, whatever form it may take, must be powerful enough to make you want to SHARE it.

Expectations are very high. Every artist wants to be different — that's what keeps them relavent. I have to be constantly innovative, pushing the envelope, creating change without losing the emotion. It's a delicate balance. I've worked with both JT and Britney since they were 15. We've probably been through two dozen re-inventions since then (Britney obviously took re-invention a bit too far! Not my fault). And just as many with Christina over the past 5 years. I am constantly faced with finding new ways to be understood, new ways to deliver emotion, and new ways to engage.

I'm not always right. I swore that Il Divo would never see the light of day in America. Ouch.

It's not rocket science. I work almost entirely from intuition. I have no degree in marketing or music. My ideas are a collection of pieces stolen from my surroundings... inspiration is everywhere.

So what inspires me?

I get asked that a lot.

I find it mostly in watching people - both in quiet moments when people are more human, and in chaos, when the animal comes out. I find it in the arts — music, film & photography. I find it when I travel, in mis-translations and different cultures. And of course, I find it in my kids.

I also find a great deal of it on the world-wide-web. Where? Here are a few places I visit for inspiration on the web, as well as some of my favorite recent finds:

1. PopURLs There is so much information on-line nowadays... none of us have enough time. Enter PopUrls, a meta-site that summarizes up-to-the-minute headlines from the world's leading consensus filters, and top thumbnail images from the social sites Flickr, YouTube, and Google Video. Essentially, a collection of what the web majority thinks is either popular or interesting.

In five minutes I can scan 18 social site sources thoroughly. I get a strong feel for what is new, what people are looking at, and what is worth following up on. It's not just news, it's imagery, music, trends... it's stimulation and culture direction.

There's no better way to watch the world changing.

2. Beyond Madison Ave
I read a lot of blogs. Some random, some design, some political, others marketing and innovation based. BMA is a marketing blog that keeps me interested most days. For starters, it's a great place to find new TV or viral ads. They have a specific "Ads We Like" section that is updated regularly with creative & entertaining visuals. Here are some of my recent favorites:
3. 3 Billion
There are 3 Billion people under the age of 25 on this planet. That's over half the world's population. What are they doing? What fascinates them? What makes them tick? What are they buying?

3 Billion is a research group focused on decoding this fickle demographic. I'm fascinated by the research they do and their findings.

They recently released this video: The threebillion Random Youth Facts'n'Stats Video - Volume One
4. The Future According to Intel:
The future always inspires me...
5. Ted Talks
TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is a group for thought-leaders and movers & shakers, focused on the latest ideas in technology, entertainment and design. Once a year they gather together in California, hosting some of the world's most fascinating people to present, share and learn together.

TED has recently teamed up with BMW to share some of the most remarkable TED Talks online. Every week, a new talk is published on their site. Speakers range from Bill Clinton to Malcolm Gladwell.

You can also search through their archives or subscribe to the talks on iTunes as either an audio or video podcast. Perfect for long commutes, flights or anywhere your iPod goes.

Sir Ken Robinson discusses the state (or mis-state) of Education below. I like what he has to say: