In the 20th-century music industry, a record contract was like gold dust. It was a mark of success. However, in the 21st-century music industry, you don’t need a record label, and in this post, I will share with you why you don’t need a record label. I am going to take this from my own experience. Therefore, you are learning from someone who has experienced the music industry in the 21st century.
Why You Don’t Need a Record Label in 2023
A record label is no longer necessary in 2023. Sure enough, if you have no time and would hand all the marketing over to the record label, that is your choice. However, if you have a little time that you can use to market your music, you are far better off going alone and doing your own thing. I am happy to share different apps; indeed, you will find them on Krannaken.com. Record labels aren’t all bad, and I aim to give you the advantages as well as the disadvantages of being signed to a record label.
The Advantages of Being Signed to a Record Label
Labels aren’t all bad. There are some great things about them. Perhaps the best thing about having a record label is that they tend to have contacts with key industry figures. They can also give you added exposure.
However, you end up paying them more than they are paying you. Therefore, I don’t believe a record label is worth the hassle. Everhald and I have been involved with two labels in the past. These have been friendly people who have provided us with added exposure. However, they have taken more money from us than we have had coming in. Therefore, it is not worth it.
The Advantages of Going It Alone
Here I will share why you don’t need a record label. There are essential things you can do with your music.
Firstly, it is essential to note that writing and recording music doesn’t necessarily bring in money. It is like writing a poem on a sheet of paper and trying to promote it and make money from it. Nothing stops you from monetizing your poetry in specific places if it is good enough. You might have written it for the benefit of other poets. What if you have written a how-to article? You can’t monetize it if you don’t do anything with it.
The value of music is minimal. This is especially if you don’t enjoy the genre. However, there are plenty of things you can do with it. There are also plenty of ways to monetize it. You could submit it to production music libraries for the use of video creators, TV production companies, video game companies, radio stations, etc. These people will be happy to pay for your music. This is stock music licensing, representing your most straightforward and quickest route to profit with your music.
A record label won’t typically submit your music to a production music library. That is another reason why you don’t need a record label.
The Worst Thing About Record Labels
These days record labels will be more likely to offer you a place if you already have an audience and a social media following. Therefore, if an artist has minimal talent but a big social media following, they are more likely to get a record label contract because they have the following. Therefore, if you have a little social media following but a lot of talent, you stand less chance of landing a record deal. A label wants to tap into your pre-existing audience. They are effectively stealing your audience.
A Major Reason Why You Don’t Need a Record Label From My Own Experience
Everhald and I have been involved with two labels. They helped to gain a little exposure. However, they also charged us, and we didn’t see any financial payment in return. This is all too common with labels today. They are businesses, and so they make their money one way or another. They didn’t give us very much exposure.
The old model of a record label was that they paid you money as a commission for an album. You then had to do the work, and they would make their money back from the sales of your music. Then if there’s anything left over at the end of the day, the artist could expect another bonus payment.
These days, the artist has to pay the label upfront. The label does little promotion work, and the artists see no money.
If You Don’t Need a Record Label, How Can You Go It Alone?
There are plenty of services that you can use as an independent artist. For a much more in-depth view of what services you can use as an independent artist, I highly recommend you get your copy of my free book. The Complete Guide to Music Marketing is updated annually. It follows the trends and includes all the best ways to make money with your music in 2023. However, there are some services that I will mention here.
You Don’t Need a Record Label if You Have Hypeddit
Hypeddit is a music artist’s dream. It is inexpensive yet very powerful, and you can build your social media following with Hypeddit. If you use the Hypeddit Promotion Exchange, you can use Hypeddit to develop your social media following and email fan base. You can even ask for a financial donation.
These Days Microcontent is the Way to Gain Exposure
I use a service called Vista Social to send microcontent out to my TikTok, Instagram and YouTube accounts. These will allow me to share video clips of my songs with my audience.
Conclusion: Why You Don’t Need a Record Label
You can access my book here if you want to learn how to market your music in today’s music industry. The book is updated annually, and my email list is always first to get a free copy. I know you will get a lot of benefits from using this book.
Thank you for reading about why you don’t need a record label. My last post about the connection between mental health and music composition is here.
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