The Music Industry- Who Do I Trust?

This is an important (but often disheartening) question.  The answer is complicated but generally the same whenever anyone asks me.  The answer is (unfortunately) hardly anyone.  I always think of the famous lyric line from Metallica “you know it’s sad but true” when I think about it.  Some music industry executives and businesses have questionable practices to put it mildly.  There is one thing that remains a constant in the music industry – money.  I know, shocker, right?  As with most things in life money often becomes the main motivator with commercial – and now more than ever – non-commercial original music.  Streaming profits for the artist are very askew.  A glimmer of hope is the new Music Modernization Act singed in to law in October of 2018.  The aim is to modernize the copyrighted-related issue for music and audio recordings due to new forms of tech like digital streaming.  You can read more about it here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_Modernization_Act  It has the potential to be a lifeline to songwriters and composers everywhere in the United States.

With the rise of digital and online music distribution, a relatively unknown musician or lyric writer can have success now.  Once this happens, you can be certain there will be an industry person following their career trying to work with them to capitalize on their art.  Sometimes, unscrupulous people in the industry will tell them they need to pay a monthly fee to procure their services for the marketing, managing, booking, etc.  Often times they are blowing smoke by promoting themselves as the “best in the industry” without a lot of proof of their accomplishments.  It is rare that an artist makes the lion’s share of any profits from the music they create.  This is why the “do it yourself” career path of YouTubers has been so successful.  They do not have to deal with music industry folks if they don’t want to.  In 2016, Chance the Rapper won the Grammy for Best Rap Album - the first Grammy for an unsigned artist.  It was the first “streaming-only” album to win a Grammy – and a game changer.  He and his team utilized social media and worked everything from the marketing standpoint themselves.

Here are some titles of business people in the music industry:

• Talent Scout (commonly referred to as an A&R person – arts and repertoire)

• A record industry executive

• Music Business Consultant

• Managers

• Booking Agents

• Entertainment Lawyers

• Tour Manager

• Publishers

• Producers

… just to name a few.  All those people are paid.  Some are paid well. 

“More than any time in the last 100 years, musicians and bands MUST learn how to promote, market, and sell themselves mainly to a focused or niche group of music fans that might enjoy their unique style of music”. – Christopher Knab (MusicBizAcademy.com)

The good news is the music industry has changed a ton over the past 20 years.  There are many different ways to build a “do it yourself” fan base, and to gather followers on social media.  There are many, many, ways to market your own music. It is literally taking the record companies out of the equation (somewhat).  If you have the right team working with you on your original lyrics or music you can make a dent, and with some luck, do well. 

You never know what can happen in the music industry of today – without having to trust anyone but yourself.