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The industry or the artists?

Question by New Moon Daughter: The industry or the artists?
Who’s to blame for the current state of the music business?

On the one hand its easier for the people with the money to make the rules and set the standards. But on the other side of the coin record labels can’t sell units unless they have artists willing to work with them.

I’ve read many articles about the record making process and business and it seems to me that in most cases the artists will almost always get an unfavorable deal in the beginning. Only after an artist has made the label millions will they get a better negotiated contract.

The labels claim that they have to recoup expenses invested into an artist. Now while this seems fair, it should be taken a step further and the artist should have more of a voice in determining what is spent on their behalf. Afterall they are the ones who are ultimately paying for the promotion, videos and other expenses in the long run. The label may pay for these things upfront, but when the album begins selling and the artist is only recieving a few cents per copy guess who’s paid for all of those photo shoots and promotional tours.

Basically I just want to spark some dialogue on the current practices of the industry.

Should up and coming artists accept the terms of the labels?

Should more established artists work with newer ones in perhaps an indy type of arrangement?

Or should there be a record industry lockout? Should current artists refuse to sign new contracts with their labels? Or better yet maybe they should expose the truth about the industry the same way Metallica put energy into working against Napster?

Best answer:

Answer by THE SAVIOR HAS LANDED.
A generation is to blame. You can’t completely blame the industry because they don’t exist without the artists and you cant blame the artists for trying to get in where they fit in. The blame is one that is shared by many. I’m not saying good things don’t exist in Hip Hip but stuff has gotten real superficial lately and its not just a coincidence bro/boo.

You broke that down to a science Chuck.

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