A Few Insights Into Modern Music Business

 

Modern Music Business vs. Traditional Dimension

Today we talk about the modern music business and how it is different from the past. This is most often to do with streaming. Streaming has become the word of today, not only economically, but also a target for promotion. The higher the streaming numbers, the better it naturally is. One of the desired conditions is to improve the ratings on the various playlists. Also, to be quoted, numbers must support the promotion arguments. It is strategically interesting whether the artist or artist management takes a stand on the artist’s success or does the artist gives others to make a number on it. The question is what kind of statements you make regarding your career.

The current state gives the artist the opportunity to test and learn – better than ever before. They can structure their story and interact it with  the public in a way previously impossible.

Everything has become more transparent. The artists have better access to the information. It is not necessary to have the recording agreement or other industrial arrangements to be seen. This, of course, does not mean they are unnecessary. No, it is not the purpose. The purpose is to update the situation with its new opportunities.

Earlier, the record company was an enabler, the gateway through which the music was made available to the public. This affected the management – their biggest challenge was to succeed in the contract negotiations. This also impacted the artist’s career plans. The first-phase goal was to have a recording contract. The same is still true – albeit somewhat differently and with reservations. The starting point seems to be how far the artists can reach on their own. The recording company becomes topical only after the growth is no longer possible without them.

As a result – the record company is expecting the artist to be ready. It is often required to have a level of fan base and active social media following. Only after meeting these demands, the company sees the artist worth investing. They don’t have to spend their money and time for the tasks the artist can handle better. Ok, it isn’t this black and white, but as the management earlier prepared mainly for the contract negotiations, today it is about making the artist attractive through social media visibility and popularity metrics. Negotiations cannot begin before they are backed up by those numbers.  Another consideration is the weight those readings should be given. For some artists it is good to get a recording agreement right from the start, while for others, independence is the thing.

About Search Engines

Streaming success usually requires well-designed playlist positions – we all know that. Let’s take another perspective here and revisit SEO as it may well have indirect effects to support the success.

The role of the artist is to provide the story root. The root of the story is the thing that is required if you want to be an artist. It is good to note that search engines start working on the day one. The process begins when you make your first release. After that, search engines begin to form an impression about you as an artist.

When remarkable streaming numbers are the goal of today, one dimension is easily overlooked. It is consistency. Search engines rank hits based on their weight, public reliability, and popularity. If the early career promotion is aggressive, it will probably scale the search engine hits. It is not irrelevant what the search engine first offers. Even though the artist’s website should be the first hit, where it lead us, should be another. What is the first thing your website tells from you. If your music and being an artist is not yet public knowledge, the first definitions will be attached based on these general weightings. To learn more about the topic, read this article.

Content of the Story

Strategically interesting is how you communicate with all the audiences. Read more here.

If the artist’s story mainly reflects the streaming numbers to get a recording agreement, the artist will certainly be assessed this way. It is a meaningful thing what kind of claims the artist make at various stages of their career. One good advice is to include at least some kind of reservations for the potential failures. These reservations are also a safeguard for the situation when something starts repeating the same old pattern and it has a negative impact. These reservations can be brought along with keywords and back links, for example. The more consistent they are, the easier it is to use them. In addition, search engine artificial intelligence may realize the same.

It doesn’t need much to change the perspective of the story. It is about finding a meaning and context for the content. If the artist, music and the story is of interest, active and successful promotions result in a passive income stream. This is the point where the artist’s activity is of industrial importance. The better the artist perform here or the higher the expectation value, the more likely they succeed in the contract negotiations.

Hence, the artist’s story contains two main story lines. One that is independent from the financial result. The artist’s real story, and how it is actually understood. The other half of the story focuses on the economic essentials, the priorities that have an economic significance. Both of these stories should be in line with each other. When the artist makes a claim on something, it should in itself take note of its economic impact and vice versa.

To be continued..