What is the difference between major and independent record labels?

What Makes a Record Label ‘Indie’? While major labels are global and operate their own publishing and distribution companies, indie labels work with other smaller companies, either in long-term partnerships or in smaller contractual relationships for their distribution and publishing needs.

What are the 4 major music labels?

Nielsen SoundScan in their 2011 report noted that the “big four” controlled about 88% of the market:

• Universal Music Group (USA based) — 29.85%
• Sony Music Entertainment (USA based) — 29.29%
• Warner Music Group (USA based) — 19.13%
• EMI Group — 9.62%
• Independent labels — 12.11%

What do major recording companies do?

Often record companies manufacture bands through TV talent shows and private auditions. Record companies will own copyright in the music a band or artist produce and they, in turn, will pay the band or artist royalties which is a percentage of the profits from music sold to fans.

What do major labels offer artists?

Major Label ‘Standard’ Record Deal In this deal, the label would be part of the artist development, recording, pressing, distribution, and marketing. And in most cases, the label would pay the artist an advance. Once the advance is paid off, artists commonly receive a royalty rate of up to 15% of revenue generated.

What is the risk for the artist signing to a major label?

A Record Deal Can Make COST A Fortune. When you sign a major label record deal, you are often signing away the possibility of making any money off of record sales. Seems kind of backwards, right? According to TheRoot, for every $1000 in music sold, the average contracted recording artist makes about $23.40.

What are the advantages a major recording label has over independent labels?

There are certain advantages with a major label deal. A major has more financial resources than an independent, more support staff and leverage in the marketplace. On the other hand, some new artists may feel that a major label is not paying enough attention to them and offers less creative freedom than an independent.

Why are major record labels good?

Because they have higher revenue than smaller labels, they have more cash on hand to spend on promoting your record—which is exactly what you want. It also means they may be able to offer you a large advance and invest in better facilities and equipment for recording, touring, video shoots, and other opportunities.

Who are the 3 major record labels?

The 3 major record labels are:

• Universal Music Group.
• Sony Music.
• Warner Music Group.

What happens when you get signed to a major record label?

In most cases, when signing with a “Major” record label, the label will offer you a large cash advance that can be used for anything and everything in your music career. Meaning that if they never recoup what they’ve invested in you, then you will never see any of the money that you’ve made on your own music.

What are the major record labels in music?

Major labels Warner Music Group EMI Sony Music (Known as CBS Records until January 1991) BMG (Formed in 1984 as RCA/Ariola International) Universal Music Group (Known as MCA Music until 1996) PolyGram

What is the difference between independent record labels and major labels?

Record labels may be small, localized, and “independent” (“indie”), or they may be part of a large international media group, or somewhere in between. As of 2012, there are only three labels that can be referred to as “major labels” (Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, and Warner Music Group).

Do record labels still have a role in music distribution?

Record labels had the power to make or break artists, depending on the amount of money they invested in promoting their music. The internet has freed artists from dependence on record labels, and many artists market and distribute their music independently through social media and streaming platforms at a much lower cost.

What do record labels control?

Record Label Control . Record labels typically set the terms and conditions of artist contracts in their favor. In the case of newly signed artists, record labels can control the type of music they record, which can include everything from the way the music sounds to the song lyrics. They also control album cover art in most instances.