A NEW ERA OF MUSIC
It's a wonderful period in time to be a creative professional! The evolution of the internet has turned so many creative industries upside down. It has become an era where music and art are the new "Wild West". We've seen a rise in internet personalities building fanbases through social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and many others.
In regards to the music industry, we've seen artists who were passed by labels then only to find success through alternative means of self promotion. Using social media, we've seen countless artists break through the mold and reach levels of success that we used to believe were only possible through label support. The old model is dead. No longer do bands need a label to find success. This is great news! If you're willing to learn business and marketing strategies, and are willing to put in time, money, blood, sweat, and tears, you can very well take your music from the garage to the big stage!
Like most startups, running a band is much like any other startup venture. Investing not only your time and imagination into writing great music, we now must focus much of our energy into the business side. The artists that are blowing up without traditional label support have figured out strategies that work well for them allowing them to push through the mold. Just like the days in the "Wild West" those willing to think outside the box and try different approaches will find methods that work, and methods that fail.
One elemental thing I've learned about running my own business is that I've always been able to rebrand my studio when I found myself in a plateau. Business can be forgiving if you're willing to let yourself fail in the process. Don't let fear take hold and keep you from working hard for the things you desire.
It's time to stop looking for labels to perform the undesirable tasks of the industry and work harder than ever to make our dreams come true. It's up to us to push forward and find success! In the process, our generation is paving the way for a greater future for music! It's very common for labels to dictate the end product of an album. So why seek for their approval when we can bypass them altogether and stay true to our music? So many platforms exist that make it easier than ever to distribute music such as CD Baby, Tunecore, EMU Bands, etc. In fact, you have to sign up for these platforms to submit your music to stream on Spotify!
Let's step up our game and push ourselves to work harder everyday and change the industry to what it was always meant to be! We need to stop letting the idea of an old model dictate how we think about our future in music. I know for myself, signing to a label was a big goal which I never achieved, which made me feel like a failure not good enough musically to continue pursuing. That's ludicrous! A label doesn't determine our worth nor does it determine how good we are as musicians, singers, or songwriters. The market place is the ultimate test in our efforts and it's easier than ever to self release our music and reach the world! So go out and record your next album or EP, develop your new business and marketing strategy, tour (if you want to), and execute! Let's pave the way for the new music industry. It's A NEW ERA OF MUSIC.