Major Labels Vs Independent Artists
80Major Labels Vs Independent Artists
Let’s face it. When you hear the words “independent artists” the first thing that comes to mind is: they won’t sound as good as a major label artist. The second thing that comes to mind is: they’re not making any money. The truth is: wrong on both counts. Then you ask the question, “So if they’re so good and they’re making money, why aren’t they signed to a major label?” Good question. The answer can be as complex as a Mozart Symphony or as simple as Chop Sticks. In truth the question is quite subjective. “Give me a break, “ you say. “Subjective, schmabjective.”
The Major Labels
Here’s what it boils down to: when a major record label like Universal Records or Warner Music Group signs an artist they are essentially hiring that entity to do a job for them. They see that you can do a type of music well, maybe write some good, catchy songs, and so they “hire” this band to make a profitable and exploitable piece of merchandise. This is called “work-for-hire.” This is where many an artist’s ego will get in the way - more often than not, because the record company is catching the bill for this, the artist has to do it the label’s way. For example - let’s say I hire you to mow my lawn. I tell you I need an even cut, that the sidewalk and driveway need edging, that the bushes need to be shaped a certain way, and please don’t look like a homeless person while you’re doing it. Don’t have enough equipment? I’ll get it for you. But if I do that, then I need you to really take care to make the lines this particular way. For all that, I’ll give you $100. If you do a great job, I’ll tell all my friends and I’ll probably hire you again. Of course, now that I’ve invested money, time, and equipment into you, I need to make some of that back. So how’s this - I’ll get all my friends to hire you to mow their lawns and I’ll get a cut. I just want to recoup what I paid into this, and if I can make more, where’s the problem with that? That’s fair, right? I know what I want my yard to look like and I’m willing to pay someone who knows how to do it well. But it’s still on my terms.
You gasp, asking, “But isn’t that selling out?” Absolutely not! You’ve got a skill and an employer willing to pay you to use your skills to benefit them, which often benefits you too.
“Ok, ok, ok, “ you say. “Does this mean, like, that all these little artists that moan and groan and really get mean about major players, I mean, aren’t they being a bit weird and selfish?” Well, kinda. Most of the people in that boat want their cake and to eat it too. They want it their way, right away. Most of those doing the bemoaning are just failed producers or musicians anyway, and they’re pissed off that they were asked to do something other than what they wanted to do. But those aren’t the ones that make the Independent Scene so important - those aren’t the ones I want to talk about.
The Independent Artists
What I want to talk about are the skilled craft men and women who are wise enough to know when they’ve got a special talent not just for music, but as a business person. As an entrepreneur. People who are so dedicated to the entire process of making a career out of their musical art form that they become entrenched in every process. Promoting some music is just as fulfilling as the creation process - pouring hours into Photoshop to generate the little buttons for websites, the album cover, the CD label itself and totally loving the tediousness of it all. To be able to say at the end, “I made this. Every bit of this is mine.”
The most successful Independent Artists treat their craft as a business. It’s not just about writing up some tunes and posting them online for your friends to (sometimes) listen to. It’s about creating a brand for your project. A look. A feel. Let’s face it, the way a project presents itself plays almost a larger role in getting attention then what it actually puts out. You have to have a gripping picture to capture the listeners eye, provide enticing music for them to listen to, give them something to feel and touch (both physically and emotionally), then figure out how to reach their senses of smell and taste. The more senses you can excite, the more a listener is apt to be not just an occasional listener, but an avid fan.
Successful Independent Artists are over-achievers. They learn the (expensive) art of promotion - we’re talking press kits, hundreds of CD’s, postcards, merchandise and lots and lots of stamps. On the promotion side of things, none of that makes the artist any money directly - it actually costs them a ton. They learn how to manage their business with savvy. They become experts of words and emails - always treading that fine line between spam and welcome communication. These artists scour the Internet for all the exposure they can get for free, as well as what can fit inside their budget. They’ve learned how to get their names into search engines. They teach themselves how to reach to radio personalities, DJ’s, and to their audience - talking to their targets in words those people will understand. They know that at that point, it’s not about them anymore, it’s about making the audience feel they own a part you. And if they’re anything like me, that’s not enough. I’m the kind of artist that wants to know HOW my equipment works, WHY it makes the sounds that it does. I ask, “What CAN’T this do?” I want to be able to look at a picture and know how many layers of masks it took to make the final product. When I listen to a vocal, I want to know exactly what that compressor is doing, what is the signal flow from point A to point B, from input to output, that makes that vocal track sound so even and polished. It’s only after one has explored every nook and cranny of every single tool at one’s disposal does he or she learn how to effectively use those tools.
So, when the whole thing comes together, and the artist has an album, a single, some t-shirts, a method of reaching out to an audience, promotional materials, cool graphics and logos, the whole deal, and they did it on their own, the Independent Artist OWNS it. Anyone who takes up these lofty goals comes out a better person. There are now a slew of skills in the old tool belt. They own a business with a product to sell. Sure, it’d be cool to have big names to throw around, but there’s a price to pay for that and, in the end, it’s totally unnecessary.
The Major Labels
Here’s what it boils down to: when a major record label like Universal Records or Warner Music Group signs an artist they are essentially hiring that entity to do a job for them. They see that you can do a type of music well, maybe write some good, catchy songs, and so they “hire” this band to make a profitable and exploitable piece of merchandise. This is called “work-for-hire.” This is where many an artist’s ego will get in the way - more often than not, because the record company is catching the bill for this, the artist has to do it the label’s way. For example - let’s say I hire you to mow my lawn. I tell you I need an even cut, that the sidewalk and driveway need edging, that the bushes need to be shaped a certain way, and please don’t look like a homeless person while you’re doing it. Don’t have enough equipment? I’ll get it for you. But if I do that, then I need you to really take care to make the lines this particular way. For all that, I’ll give you $100. If you do a great job, I’ll tell all my friends and I’ll probably hire you again. Of course, now that I’ve invested money, time, and equipment into you, I need to make some of that back. So how’s this - I’ll get all my friends to hire you to mow their lawns and I’ll get a cut. I just want to recoup what I paid into this, and if I can make more, where’s the problem with that? That’s fair, right? I know what I want my yard to look like and I’m willing to pay someone who knows how to do it well. But it’s still on my terms.
You gasp, asking, “But isn’t that selling out?” Absolutely not! You’ve got a skill and an employer willing to pay you to use your skills to benefit them, which often benefits you too.
“Ok, ok, ok, “ you say. “Does this mean, like, that all these little artists that moan and groan and really get mean about major players, I mean, aren’t they being a bit weird and selfish?” Well, kinda. Most of the people in that boat want their cake and to eat it too. They want it their way, right away. Most of those doing the bemoaning are just failed producers or musicians anyway, and they’re pissed off that they were asked to do something other than what they wanted to do. But those aren’t the ones that make the Independent Scene so important - those aren’t the ones I want to talk about.
The Independent Artists
What I want to talk about are the skilled craft men and women who are wise enough to know when they’ve got a special talent not just for music, but as a business person. As an entrepreneur. People who are so dedicated to the entire process of making a career out of their musical art form that they become entrenched in every process. Promoting some music is just as fulfilling as the creation process - pouring hours into Photoshop to generate the little buttons for websites, the album cover, the CD label itself and totally loving the tediousness of it all. To be able to say at the end, “I made this. Every bit of this is mine.”
The most successful Independent Artists treat their craft as a business. It’s not just about writing up some tunes and posting them online for your friends to (sometimes) listen to. It’s about creating a brand for your project. A look. A feel. Let’s face it, the way a project presents itself plays almost a larger role in getting attention then what it actually puts out. You have to have a gripping picture to capture the listeners eye, provide enticing music for them to listen to, give them something to feel and touch (both physically and emotionally), then figure out how to reach their senses of smell and taste. The more senses you can excite, the more a listener is apt to be not just an occasional listener, but an avid fan.
Successful Independent Artists are over-achievers. They learn the (expensive) art of promotion - we’re talking press kits, hundreds of CD’s, postcards, merchandise and lots and lots of stamps. On the promotion side of things, none of that makes the artist any money directly - it actually costs them a ton. They learn how to manage their business with savvy. They become experts of words and emails - always treading that fine line between spam and welcome communication. These artists scour the Internet for all the exposure they can get for free, as well as what can fit inside their budget. They’ve learned how to get their names into search engines. They teach themselves how to reach to radio personalities, DJ’s, and to their audience - talking to their targets in words those people will understand. They know that at that point, it’s not about them anymore, it’s about making the audience feel they own a part you. And if they’re anything like me, that’s not enough. I’m the kind of artist that wants to know HOW my equipment works, WHY it makes the sounds that it does. I ask, “What CAN’T this do?” I want to be able to look at a picture and know how many layers of masks it took to make the final product. When I listen to a vocal, I want to know exactly what that compressor is doing, what is the signal flow from point A to point B, from input to output, that makes that vocal track sound so even and polished. It’s only after one has explored every nook and cranny of every single tool at one’s disposal does he or she learn how to effectively use those tools.
So, when the whole thing comes together, and the artist has an album, a single, some t-shirts, a method of reaching out to an audience, promotional materials, cool graphics and logos, the whole deal, and they did it on their own, the Independent Artist OWNS it. Anyone who takes up these lofty goals comes out a better person. There are now a slew of skills in the old tool belt. They own a business with a product to sell. Sure, it’d be cool to have big names to throw around, but there’s a price to pay for that and, in the end, it’s totally unnecessary.
Kris
Kris "Halo" Pierce
Haunted Echo on Facebook
- Haunted Echo on Facebook
The electronica project by Kris "Halo" Pierce
