What makes a label independent

Independent record labels have been around for much longer than most people think. In fact, some of the first indie labels were started in the post-war era. Traditionally, many of these labels worked with artists who were not considered mainstream.

For example, independents like Sun Records, which was founded in in Memphis, signed country and rock artists. A lot of independents still operate that way — signing on talent that may be on the fringe. Britain was a hotspot for the independent scene, leading to the creation of several popular labels like Triumph and Chrysalis Records. The latter didn't fare so well and closed in As time went on and more people grew to understand the music and record industry, newer labels were coming to the limelight.

In the 80s and 90s, rap artists were gaining notoriety after being signed by independent labels like Def Jam and Bad Boy. Madonna — whose first label was Sire Records once an independent itself — helped other new artists on her own independent label, Maverick Records. Independent record labels are not necessarily profitable on their own. But according to Digital Music News, independents now outshine the major three record labels when it comes to revenue.

Universal brought in Independents as a group also accounted for the most physical music sales when compared to each of the big three. There is no way to pinpoint how many independent record labels there are in existence. This is due to the rise in popularity of digital music, which allows people to create their own labels easily.

Indie labels have more freedom to pick and choose which artists they sign. If they decide to sign with you, it's because they like your music and your taste. They are less likely to insist on changes to your sound or image than major companies.

That means you will have more creative control with an indie label than with one of the Big Three. There is also a bigger likelihood you will own the rights to your own music. Indie record labels are often founded by resourceful music artists driving their own success. Independent labels generally work closely with the artist at every stage of the release. Check out our interviews with DIY labels and artists here to discover more about life running, and releasing under, an independent label.

Since , RouteNote has been helping indie labels and independent artists get their music onto streaming services and digital stores such as Spotify and Apple Music , free of charge. RouteNote offers unlimited music uploads from unlimited artists on one label.

We also help labels and artists get their tracks on social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram , as well as monetising music on YouTube.

Starting an independent label? Find out more about RouteNote music distribution here. New Song Start series from Spotify tells you exactly what you need to make music, with production tips from artists including Phoebe Bridgers. Your email address will not be published. Skip to content Madeleine Amos in. But then you see artists who are locked into a five-album deal, and this would be a deal made five years ago or more when the music industry was still at a low point.

Those are usually the ones that are angry. There are not many artists signed 10 years ago who have much money now, because the deals were so bad. Artists are looking at independent companies and methods for ways to keep a lot more revenue. Our angle as an independent company is that we should do the same as a label, only artists are going to keep a lot more revenue. So we give them back anywhere from 80 to 90 percent of their royalties. Has Chance raised the profile of independent music companies?

Are artists more interested? But has that created problems in itself? Our main problem is that [indies] build up artists and then the labels will just give them unlimited money and lose money to get them on their book.

Someone like Ed Sheeran will upload to me before a record label knows who that is. So my main competition now is from the major labels copying my business, which is ridiculous, because we only started it to be different from the labels. How knowledgeable are artists about all of this? When I was a musician in , the only way I could get music out was signing a record deal with a label. In the Nineties when an artist got signed, it was seen as a massive success.