Possibly of some interest to all...

Independent Labels

By Diane Rapaport

Virtually every town in America and Canada has at least one

artist or band that puts out their own CDs. Artists with

local and regional followings can sell as many as 5000

recordings a year at performances; artists with followings

in several states can sell many more recordings.

Record labels that focus on particular genres of music can

have gross incomes of up to several million dollars a year.

According to SoundScan, sales of indie recordings in the

United States accounts for over a billion dollars annually

or approximately 15% of the sales of all recorded product.

The actual income generated by sales of indie recordings may

be much higher. Many indies do not bar code their

recordings because they sell them at performances, by mail

order to fans and on the Internet. And, SoundScan

statistics do not include sales generated in many nonrecord

retail stores.

If you add consumer purchases of concert tickets for indie

performances and sales of promotional merchandise, it is

easy to realize why independent recording is a multi-billion

dollar industry.

Other benefits for indie artists and labels:

Training Ground for Major Labels

Artists, such as Loreena McKennitt, bands like Pearl Jam,

and whole labels, such as Windham Hill and Interscope have

signed deals with major labels. Indie labels have spurred

major labels into marketing genres of music they previously

spurned, such as hip-hop and Latin.

Control of their Careers

Artists that make and sell their own recordings profit from

their careers, without surrendering their passion and

artistic control.

Revitalization of Regional Economies

Indie labels hire employees, contract services from local

vendors and buy or rent musical and audio equipment from

local retailers. As artists expand sales beyond their

communities, they import money, which further increases the

community's economic base.

Indies Under Siege

For all its successes, the indie record industry is

increasingly under siege.

- Competition for the Leisure Dollar

Consumers are bombarded with advertising, largely from

business giants, for an array of entertainment and leisure

products, which compete for their leisure dollars. Indie

recordings have difficulty competing for consumer attention.

- Control of Access to Popular Media

The large conglomerates that own major labels, television

networks, popular magazines, publishing companies and many

heavily trafficked Internet sites are exercising increasing

control over popular entertainment media. Many people are

exposed only to the music and videos that these

conglomerates own.

- Retail Store Consolidation.

The increasing consolidation of retail stores and the loss

of mom-and-pop stores make it difficult for indie artists to

have their products available. Moreover, major labels pay

stores for floor, wall and bin space and for selections

featured in listening booths and in-store play. Few indies

can afford to pay the prices.

The Internet: A New Ally

The Internet is an ideal medium for serving niche interests.

Accessibility to hundreds of genres feeds a public that is

increasingly interested in music that is not available on

popular, large entertainment mediums. Although there is a

great deal of hope that the Internet will compensate for the

increasing consolidation of retail stores and radio stations

and help indies expose and sell their music, there are some

potential pitfalls.

The proliferation of Web sites means that indie artists and

labels must find methods for getting people to them and

returning. The competition for audience share and the

increasing presence and dominance of large Web sites by

entertainment conglomerates does not make this an easy task

for indies. Their sites can easily get lost in cyberspace.

Indie labels have spurred a music renaissance and

revitalized music by enriching and widening the spectrum

that is available to the public. The advantages that indies

have are their decentralization, flexibility and small

scales of operation. While the major label industry

continues to homogenize and narrow its focus to only a few

musical genres, the independent label industry has

diversity, passion, vitality and creativity.

Nevertheless, new strategies must be adopted to maintain and

increase the gains indies have made. By taking steps to

counter the new challenges that confront them, independent

bands and artists can continue to prosper.

Excerpted from Diane Rapaport's book, A Music Business

Primer, published by Prentice Hall. © 2003 by Diane

Rapaport. The book is available on Amazon.com and at major

book stores.

interesting stuff! im waiting to see how napster type sites affect indie labels...hoping the increased availability will help them, if they can push thier music onto the major downloading sites.

support your local revolution!

Great post.....I really need to keep hearing this stuff......

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