Podfather Adam Curry Says Programmers Are The New Rock Stars
Jul 8th, 2010 | By James Lewin | Category: iPhone, iPods & Portable Media PlayersPodcasting pioneer and self-described “podfather” Adam Curry thinks app programmers are the new rock stars, so he’s positioning himself as the DJ of applications.
Here’s what Curry has to say about his new project, The Big App Show:
The concept of the Big App Show was really filling a void in the app market I identified as a frustrated user, who always wanted to find cool apps for my iPhone, but the process of discovery in the itunes store reminded me of wading through the racks in tower records, patiently waiting my turn for the store clerk to place my selected vinyl on the store turntable so I could listen to the tracks in sequential order.
That pretty much sucked, and of course radio back in those early days of FM became the music discovery mechanism of choice. Your favorite DJ would be your guide, a task I liked so much that I started my professional career doing just that, later moving into Music Television, and eventually became reasonably well known for ‘counting down the hits’.
Curry sees other correlations between the world of iPhone apps and the world of music:
Apps are today’s version of 45’s, and we in fact buy them in very much the same fashion. We even make our purchase of them in a store originally designed to sell the digital version of the single.
If my intuition is right, I think we might even see app programmers become the heroes of a generation, where fans can’t wait for the release of the next magical app their idol has become famous for.
The Big App Show (App Store link) is a free iPhone app that features a new app each day. In each “appisode”, Curry demonstrates an app in a short video.
If you decide you like the app, an option is available to buy it.
The show builds on Curry’s experience as a VJ on MTV and as a podcasting pioneer. It’s not a review show. Instead, Curry is acting as an “AppJ”, presenting apps that he thinks are cool and that you’re likely to want to buy.