Independent Or Major Label? Which One Is Best For You? Pt 2

Yesterday we began discussing the differences between deals with major labels and independent labels. Many solo artists and bands will have to spend some time carefully considering their goals and their priorities in order to make an informed decision on which type of label is best for them. Here are a few other issues to consider when deciding whether you’d like to sign with an independent label or a major label.

Ownership of your music

Ownership is one of the primary determining factors that contribute to a solo artist or band’s decision to sign with a major or independent record label. When signing with a major label, the label generally retains ownership of the masters in exchange for financing the expenses associated with producing the album. Some independent labels however allow artists to maintain ownership of their masters.

Advertising and marketing your music

Independent labels often don’t have very large budgets for advertising and marketing, which means that you’ll need to work diligently to promote your album yourself, outside of the label’s efforts. Lack of advertising and marketing resources can be a huge barrier to revenue when signing to an independent label.

Tracking your record sales

While major labels will send you an accounting statement approximately twice a year to track your record sales, many independent labels allow artists to track sales in real time. This can be extremely helpful for a band that is heavily involved in their marketing and promotional campaign as they can gauge which marketing strategies have the biggest impact, quickly and easily.

In the end, signing with a major label means an opportunity to get your music out to a larger consumer-base, quickly. While signing with an independent label means you’ll probably have to settle for a smaller fan-base initially, with fewer sales, but you’ll maintain more control over your music.

Before you begin submitting your package to any label, make sure you call or email them to make sure that: 1) they accept unsolicited demos; 2) they are interested in your style of music; and 3) that you have the correct mailing address for their A&R department.

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