Niche is music’s new mainstream, writes MIDiA analyst Mark Mulligan, which means that in the brave new world of music marketing, targetting trumps reach. "Instead of blowing a huge budget on carpet bombing TV, radio, print, online artists and their teams are finding their exact audiences, writes Mulligan, "focusing on…
Category archives: Indie Labels
Indie Labels Beat Sony, WMG For UK Market Share [CHART]
Independent record labels grabbed more market share so far this year than major label groups Sony Music and Warner Music in the UK, according to new stats from the Official Charts Company. Universal is winning the race so far in 2019, up 2.3% year-on-year and the indie sector is second,…
NMPA Backed Mechanical Licensing Collective Wins Battle To Administer Music Modernization Act
The US Copyright Office has named the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC) as the official entity tasked with licensing and administering rights under the new Music Modernization Act (MMA). The MLC was backed by many major industries organizations including National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA), the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI), and…
Unified And Together: How Diverse, Inclusive Is The Music Industry?
In part one of this two-part analysis, Ben Gilbert speaks with a variety of people working within the music business, in an effort to assess the state of diversity and inclusivity within the industry right now, and whether or not it’s representative of society as a whole. ______________________ Guest post…
Defining ‘Indie’ As A Genre: What Is It Anyway?
The term ‘indie’ is often tossed around when describing a certain genre of music, but what does it actually mean? Back in the day, it referred to an artist who was unsigned, but with major labels acts still retaining the ‘indie’ moniker, what does the term actually suggest? Here, Chris…
BUSINESS OF INDIE: India’s Indie Scene • AIR Awards’ Indie Nods • AWAL Nabs Cold War Kids • More
This new edition of the Business Of Indie includes news from India’s growing independent music scene, the AIR Awards indie label nominees, AWAL’s partnership with Cold Water Kids and a whole lot more. Like Hypebot’s More News section, The Business Of Indie is nestled under its own Indie tab at…
Monstercat, Sansar Partner For Virtual Reality Concerts In Second Life
Social virtual reality company Sansar and EDM label Monstercat have partnered to launch Monstercat: Call of the Wild, a collaboration that is expected to create VR concerts, meet-and-greets and giveaways. The experience officially launches July 12 with an “epic virtual bash” to celebrate Monstercat’s eight-year anniversary. Free and premium tickets…
Rolling Stone Launches Music Charts That Are Updated Daily
Rolling Stone has launched five music charts powered by analytics firm Alpha Data, formerly known as BuzzAngle Music, which the magazine acquired last year. The debut comes almost two months later than originally planned. Taking a stab at the iconic Billboard charts that its hopes to dethrone, Rolling Stone says…
Metadata For Musicians: What It Is, Why It’s So Vital
Given its critical role in providing info that impacts how your music is stored, sorted, and identified, if your metadata isn’t in order, your music simply isn’t ready for public release. Here we break down exactly what metadata is, and why need to get it in order before dropping new…
Big Machine Records Inadvertently Promoted Label Services Deals [Mark Mulligan]
The very spat between Taylor Swift and the head of her former label over control of her hit masters is far from over. But whatever "truths" are revealed in the coming days, one thing is certain, writes MIDiA analyst Mark Mulligan, the dispute provides a cautionary lesson to artists and…