By Nick Krewen
Derek Sivers may just be independent music's
ideal hero.
As the founder, president and programmer
of Portland, Oregon's CD Baby
he's built a democratic system that not only treats all artists equally, but
actually pays them.
Weekly.
And according to Sivers, business is
booming.
"Our physical CDs sales were up
30% from last year," claims Sivers. "And
currently we're paying artists almost $1
million a week."
Sivers represents the bright end of the
spectrum: he says he's making more than
ever and doesn't understand the talk when
the music industry complains of a downturn.
And while most of the panel gathered in
the Ballroom for this overview of the current
independent scene don't rely on the democratic
retail and Internet model that Sivers has
been able to invent and prosper from; fellow
indie artists and label heads Jenny Toomey,
Tom Silverman, Sander Shalinsky, Janie
Duquette, Jeffrey Remedios and Richard
Reines all agree that there's reason to
be optimistic.
"When you frame the future of the CD from the perspective of the dictating
major label industry, it's quite negative," says Toomey, executive director
of the Future Of Music Coalition.
"When you frame it from the perspective
of an independent artist, it seems pretty
exciting,"
The reason life is so exciting? Independent
labels like Tommy Silverman's Tommy Boy
Records are growing and expanding.
"The independent market share is increasing while the major market share
is shrinking," says Silverman. "Tommy
Boy's digital market share is 37%.
Meanwhile, independent labels like Janie
Duquette's Deja Musique have had to rely
on innovation and a different approach
in order to adjust to the quickly changing
times.
"You have to go a little further," explains Duquette, a Montreal-based
entertainment lawyer who founded the label and serves as its president.
"We're becoming more of an active
artist service. We're thinking out of the
box and we're even producing a movie this
year. We're definitely more flexible."
Toronto entertainment lawyer Sander Shalinsky
agrees that independent labels have to
diversify in order to survive and profit
in today's music market.
"The reality is that a music industry person can not get by CD sales alone," says
Shalinsky. " (Arts & Crafts Records President) Jeff (Remedios) (Tommy
Boy Entertainment Chairman) Tommy (Silverman) learned this awhile back. The major
labels, if they have figured it out, can't move fast enough. The independent
community has figured it out."
Shalinsky says independent labels "should be in every aspect of your artist's
business" and argued that money was the best tool to penetrate the market.
"The only way that you're going
to be an artist to get that money is to
share some of your rights with the company," argues
Shalinsky. "Companies
are also going to need to share their rights
in other areas to move this forward."
However, CD Baby's Sivers disagreed with
that assessment.
"I think one of the beautiful things
about an independent is that they often
don't rely on money," says Sivers. "It
forces them to think more creatively, and
to me, marketing is no more than finding
creative ways to be considerate."
Sivers suggested that are simple ways
to gain an audience as an independent artist
that don't necessarily involve a huge expense
or cash outlay.
"It's a better time than ever to be niche," Sivers explains. "There's
a woman from Halifax named Eileen Quinn that is a full-time sailor and
she writes songs about sailing. She has six albums out and all of them are songs
for sailors. She sails around the world and once a year records an album about
sailing and the West Winds and yo-ho-ho, whatever.
"Whereas an artist eight years ago probably wouldn't have made a living
at it, this woman is making $50,000 a year just selling physicals CDs and downloads
to sailors.
"Probably the smartest thing to do
as an artist is stop waiting for the mainstream
and proudly embrace your niche, target
it even sharper. Sharply define who you
are and you'll find you'll cut through
easier."
Sivers also suggested that an artist
cover a popular song that hasn't been done
to death.
"Do something that hasn't been covered yet, so when somebody goes to iTunes
and searches for a version, they'll see
the original and yours," he states. "The
cover song is the beacon that furthers
you."
Sander Shalinsky suggested that your
strongest career move might not even involve
music, but merchandising.
"It could be something as mundane as a slogan on the back of your t-shirt," he
suggests.
Many of the questions posed by the audience
during the session were about obstacles
they were facing in capturing the attention
of the major media. How do they get newspaper
and magazine coverage? How do they get
radio airplay? How do they get their music
played on MuchMusic?
"The media needs a story, a spin," replied Shalinsky. "Words and
music and a three-minute single aren't enough for them.
"But maybe you're asking the wrong
question. The question isn't, 'How do I
get on the radio?' The question is, 'How
do I sell records.'"
Overall, the panel ranging from Drive-Thru
Records' co-president Richard Reines through
Tommy Boy's Tommy Silverman agreed that
the D.I.Y movement is currently enjoying
an upswing with plenty of room for growth.
"It's never been a better time to be a musician or a music fan," says
Arts & Crafts' Jeffrey Remedios.
"Fans now have real choice." |
