Fred Wilson Weekly Roundup – Where Freddy Wilz at?

As discussed earlier this week, NYC venture capitalist Fred Wilson is a rather prolific blogger. But in this instance, “prolific” is not a euphemism for “TMI 4 Realz”. Which is to say, Wilson’s many posts are actually worth reading. It’s a rare thing. That’s why we’ve summarized the week in Wilson for your benefit.

March 11

Computers and Blues – As a child, Wilson fantasized about having all his LP’s turned into digital files. Then that actually happened. Cut to now, where he’s forced to illegally download the aptly titled new record “Computers and Blues” by the British rapper The Mike Skinner aka The Streets, because the record is not yet available in the US. Fred does not like stealing music. He just wants his jamz. Luckily, it turns out the album is coming out in the US next week. Wilson wishes record companies could coordinate worldwide release dates so music fans won’t have to resort to stealing. The post is followed by a long, and pretty interesting comment thread on music pirating. No mention of the Somali Pirates.

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March 10

Freakouts Should Not Go Viral – Freddy relates an anecdote about freaking out after receiving one of those vague “Call me—(click),” voicemails that’s so brusque as to seem urgent. The call was from a potential business partner. Turned out nothing was the matter. Luckily, Wilson didn’t tell his team about the call, and unnecessarily freak them out. The moral of the story is that you should keep your freakouts to yourself so they don’t “go viral.” Also, don’t leave vague phone messages.

March 9

The Thank You Economy – Fred recommends a book called “Crush It” that will inspire you to quit your job and start a startup. He also recommends a book called, “The Thank You Economy” by the same author -- Gary Vaynerchuk – about the power of social media. Sounds like a must read.

March 8

The Hashable Pivot – This post isn’t about smoking hash and pivoting. It’s about a company called Hashable Wilson’s investing in that is, “The ultimate networking app. Exchange business cards, make easy intros and 'check-in' with people to track meetings and calls." Look out for it.

March 7.

Kik – Wilson discusses his investment in a company called Kik that he thinks will replace SMS text messaging. You can read our take on it here.

- Adam Wilson