Part 2:

Independent record labels—How labels support artist development

Amadou & Mariam

Key Takeaways

The independent label model

Song_about_summer/Adobe Stock

Recorded music can create and sustain careers, but it requires six key ingredients: ability, continued investment, partnership, expertise, time, and community engagement. Independent record labels have a track record of providing all six. In doing so, they create and sustain music scenes and, with them, jobs and skills in communities around the world.

LØLØ with Tobin

Independent labels take an artist‑centric approach to development and career support. They pride themselves on building trust with the artists on their rosters, fostering their artistic independence and creativity, while providing the resources and expertise needed for them to develop sustainable audiences and careers.[9]

While this definition may sound like it applies to all record labels, it is the specific ways that independent labels go about these collaborative relationships with artists that is important to note. Independent labels are fairly unique in their commitment to supporting artists over a long time horizon, and ensuring that they have the expertise, resources and support to develop their craft and careers, even when immediate commercial success is elusive. This approach emerges from the relationship between independents and artists, where both parties are mutually invested in and reliant on the other’s success. Independent labels succeed on the basis of their artist curation and development, and aren’t in a position to take endless risks on short‑term artist development. For this reason, the model of artist development practiced by independent labels tends to be steadfast in identifying talented artists early and nurturing them to career and financial sustainability. The value of this long term approach and the trust cultivated between independent labels and artists is validated by the fact that 77% of artists signed to independents choose to renew their contracts, and continue their career journey with an indie.

  • Here, we also want to highlight the essential role played by managers in supporting artist development. Managers are the primary day‑to‑day partners and advocates for artists, and support them across everything from handling personal matters (tax filing, calendar management, etc.) to artistic and music creation (listening to and dialing in demos; setting up collaborations, booking studio time, etc.), career development (strategic decision making; partnership development; negotiations; business administration, etc.), and more. The role of managers as partners and confidantes to artists should not be understated.

Felipe Pelaquim/Unsplash

Independent label support for artists generally begins at the very early stages.

“Indies are the first people to invest in an artist. Not just the first label to invest. They're usually the first party to invest anything significant. So when a band is just starting out, the indies are there to take a chance to invest some capital," explains Ian Harrison, General Manager of Hopeless Records.[10] Indies are particularly invested in supporting artists who are pushing musical boundaries and working in niche genres that might not yet have found a mainstream or multi‑territorial audience. They are known for taking risks on emerging sounds, and in the process, play a crucial role in cultivating audiences and markets for these innovative musical expressions. One needs to look at the role of independent labels in the birth of hip‑hop or punk rock to see their impact. Notably, major labels often ultimately benefit from the early investment and momentum generated by independent labels, as they frequently invest in deals with artists who have already generated career momentum from the initial support and groundwork laid by the independents. In this way, independent labels play a very positive role in the music industry, as a supportive pipeline for artists towards achieving international scale.[11]

Authentic partnership and collaboration are at the heart of how independents operate. Independent label deals share profits from the royalties of master sound recordings, and indies are known for their flexibility in meeting the specific needs of artists. This dedication to equitable deals is cemented through institutional commitments. Much of the independent music sector adheres to global values, such as those set out by the Worldwide Independent Network (WIN)[12], that place artists first and provide them agency over how their work is released. Independents also understand that the music industry is in constant flux, and that deals must evolve with the times. To this end, many have pledged[13] to ensure artists receive equitable treatment as emerging technologies generate new revenues from sound recordings. Similarly, independent labels have been on the forefront of advocating for fair licensing deals, as artists’ music has been increasingly integrated into emerging tech services, like licensed music‑based AI models and ‘moment economy’ platforms, like TikTok[14].

Music and artificial intelligence

Artificial Intelligence has been an integral part of the music sector’s work for years. With the rise of generative AI, new opportunities as well as new questions and challenges arise, including the legalities of music‑making AI, how AI models are trained, and the licensing obligations of AI companies. Independent labels play a key role in this world, in terms of using AI in the creation of music and other creative works, calling for responsible frameworks to ensure transparency and licensing obligations are clear, and underlining the need to maximize collaborative commercial opportunities.  

The independent label sector has proactively led discussions and advocacy around the ways that AI might be used in music to benefit artists and the industry, while protecting the rights of creators. WIN recently launched its Principles for Generative AI, which lay out a comprehensive vision for the fair and equitable use of AI in music. Independent music trade associations including WIN, IMPALA, and A2IM have also all signed on to the Human Artistry Campaign, which sets out seven core principles for AI to protect human creativity. In Europe, the independent sector, including IMPALA, has been instrumental along with other stakeholders in securing the adoption of the world’s first framework AI law, the EU AI Act, with clear transparency and reporting obligations, as well as clarity that normal copyright rules apply. In the US, A2IM has been active in legislative and regulatory development around AI, including engagement with the US Copyright Office to help them achieve a balance between protecting creators and enabling innovation and opportunities for artists to benefit.

Independent labels are also distinctive in their artist discovery process and continue to put creativity first in their decision‑making. While much of today’s artist signing activity in the music industry is driven by data points—for example, an artist getting huge visibility through TikTok views—the discovery process for most independent labels purposefully looks beyond the data. “When we're A&R’ing [scouting new artists], we're looking for a point of view that's honest and that people will connect to,” says Zena White, COO at Partisan Records. “There are certainly times where data helps. Data usually points to some kind of momentum behind the act. However, if you're signing something purely because the data says that people like it, versus whether you inherently believe it has potential, that can lead to a feedback loop of the same type of things being signed.” 

Importantly, independent labels are not simply financial investors and service providers, but strategic partners who help artists find their footing and develop revenue streams beyond recorded music. Once an artist joins an independent label, they find a collaborative environment where creative freedom takes precedence and where the label pledges resources—financial, time, mentorship, emotional support, and expertise—to bring an artist’s vision to life. The comprehensive support of independents extends to financing and facilitating live touring, merchandising, marketing, and developing sync opportunities (see: The Diversity of Services Offered By Record Labels in Part 1), as independents re‑invest revenues into their artists. “Two‑thirds of our business is geared towards artist development,” says Ian Harrison of Hopeless Records, “Most of what comes into this company goes back out into developing artists, signing new artists, and promoting.” This holistic strategy not only enhances artists' chances of success, but also creates a mutually beneficial partnership. Facilitating artists to develop a loyal following and expand their reach drives revenues back to the recordings.

“Indies are the first people to invest in an artist. Not just the first label to invest. They're usually the first party to invest anything significant. So when a band is just starting out, the indies are there to take a chance to invest some capital.”

Ian Harrison, General Manager of Hopeless Records

  • Alongside direct label investment, some countries, like Canada, the UK, and many European countries, also support early career development for artists via grant funding models.

  • Artist development pathways do, of course, vary. For example, in many European countries publishers also play a key role in the early development of artists. Likewise, the artist development path for genres including jazz and classical often differs from the label‑led development of popular genres like rock, hip hop, and others.

  • The Global Independent Values is a set of ten core principles representing the collective position of the global independent recorded music sector, first published by WIN in 2012 and renewed in 2024.

  • The Fair Digital Deals Declaration is a commitment made by independent record label signatories around the world to treat their artists fairly in agreements relating to digital exploitation of their work in recorded music agreements with third parties, launched by WIN in 2014.

  • European independent music trade association IMPALA has, for example, called out TikTok for the increasing value gap between the licensing rates that it pays for the use of music on the platform, and the value that music brings to its service.

While small teams are not exclusive to independent labels—majors also have smaller imprints under their umbrellas that are run by focused teams—it is not uncommon for artists on independent labels to know, interact with, and learn from the entirety of the label’s staff, from the marketing intern to the founders, especially with smaller independent labels with fewer team members.

In addition, data articulates, through surveys of labels, that indies retain personnel continuity across time. According to WIN, 42% of staff at independent music companies have worked there since the launch of the label, a stat made more impressive by the fact that the average independent label is 14.9 years old. This length of tenure is demonstrated in surveying ORCA members. The independent label group Beggars, founded in 1977, is still led by its founder Martin Mills, who currently acts as the company’s chair. The same goes for Swedish label Playground Music, launched in 1999 and still chaired and owned by founder Jonas Sjöström. Megan Jasper, the CEO of Sub Pop Records, has worked with the label in various positions since 1989, starting out as an intern. For artists, the continuity of the people at independent labels encourages the development of longer relationships, which supports trust and understanding.

Beyond the myriad supports offered by independent labels—the financial risk taking, investment, knowledge, stability, collaboration, experience, hands‑on support, and more—it is the unique ethos, value and identity of indies that ultimately resonates deeply with artists. As European Indie trade body IMPALA describes it, there is an all important “‘belonging’ or identification with what a label stands for” that adds huge value to creators. This might also be thought of as the brand value of independent labels, which is attractive to artists themselves, as well as to music fans, who respect the artist‑first approach and thoughtful curation of indies. This value is also attractive to businesses who use music and see labels as a trusted source when deciding which music to feature (e.g. for a playlist or other). This value is also evident in the numbers. In the European music sector, for instance, small, medium, and micro labels collectively account for over 80% of all new releases—a testament to their pervasive influence. And demand from artists to release on indies continues to grow. Despite the many options available for artists to release music today, independent labels are solicited by artists more today than ever before.

Nguy/Unsplash

Shay

Ability.
Continued investment.
Partnership.
Expertise.
Time.
Community engagement.

Adele. Bjork. FKA Twigs. Christine & The Queens. Run the Jewels. The National.

These artists’ global careers have flourished through the investment, partnership, and time provided by independent labels.

In a world where most recorded music releases struggle to find an audience, it is this long‑term, patient, and targeted approach that fosters jobs, skills, and careers. Martin Mills, founder of the world’s largest independent label group, Beggars Group, points to the Grammy‑winning rock band The National—signed to Beggars’ label 4AD—as an example of how a patient approach can pay long‑term dividends:

“They had a small following worldwide, and we worked with and invested in them, supported their touring and their recordings. And they have gradually built a career to the point where they just sold out Madison Square Garden. They just headlined a 15,000‑person show in Amsterdam.They've never released a pop single, but they've developed a fanatical following across all age groups.”

Case Study

///////

Case Study ///////

Playground Music x Smith & Thell
Investing in longevity

Smith & Thell

Smith & Thell began their career as a new wave‑influenced band in the early 2000s. However, it wasn’t until they stripped back to basics to focus on the core songwriting and stunning vocal harmonies of members Maria Smith and Victor Thell that their music found its audience.

This transformation from dance‑pop to harmony‑laden indie‑folk didn’t happen overnight. The patient development approach taken by their label, Sweden‑based independent Playground Music, gave them the room to find their “voice.” Label founder Jonas Sjöström describes the process of providing space for the band to locate their sound: “We saw the potential in the songwriting and in the voices immediately, but the first years were not very successful. After several releases, it came to them that their voices and the songwriting were the main things, and the sound they were trying to go for was not as important.”

In 2014, the band released ‘Hippie Van’, a shift in style from dance to folk‑pop, leading to a string of successful charting hits. “Since then we've been building them as that sort of band, and they've been really successful.” explains Sjöström, noting the focus is on local development to produce a sustainable base from which the group can grow. Sjöström estimates that around 75% of the band’s revenues come from Scandinavia: “It's very much a local thing, but they're up to 600 million streams on Spotify alone.” 

Along the way, the investment of Playground has been essential to Smith & Thell’s success, which includes winning a Swedish Grammy Award and earning Platinum certifications for singles in Sweden. “Since 2014, we’ve invested about $600,000 in production costs,” saysSjöström, acknowledging that investment in the form of support and expertise far exceeds the financial outlays. Many hours have been plowed into promotion, including pursuing festival and touring opportunities to expand the band’s audience. They now perform 20–30 gigs in Sweden and Norway each year, averaging audiences of 1,000–3,000 per show. The band also uses the label’s in‑house studio facilities. Smith & Thell have also written songs for established pop stars, including Jennifer Lopez and Alan Walker, and their songwriting revenues form a key part of the mix that supports their career.

“We saw the potential in the songwriting and in the voices immediately, but the first years were not very successful. After several releases, it came to them that their voices and the songwriting were the main things, and the sound they were trying to go for was not as important.”

Jonas Sjöström, Founder of Playground Music

The band has also ventured to grow beyond Scandinavia and Europe. Playground supported them in developing an international licensing deal with Sony sub‑label Arista who sought to build on the base established through Playground’s initial investment. Despite providing significant resources, the deal with Arista did not yield the international success expected.

Sjöström explains that this demonstrates how difficult it is to achieve massive‑scale success in the music industry, while also pointing out how Smith & Thell’s trajectory reveals the valuable role of independent labels in providing foundational early support. While the band did not achieve the massive scale required to stay with a major label, they still have a viable and sustainable career that was incubated and remains supported by Playground: “It shows that the independents who work long‑term can get an artist to a point where they will have a stable local market and a full‑time job as a result.”

This deliberate and gradual approach to nurturing artists underlies Playground's enduring success. Now in its 25th year in the industry, it has a team of around 50 employees, an equal number of active artists, and contributes to Scandinavian economies. Playground brings in average revenues of over $11.5 million annually. It reinvests over $1 million a year in new productions across more than 20 releases, contributing to a thriving music ecosystem in Scandinavia and beyond.

The economic, social, and cultural benefits of independent record labels

ververidis/Adobe Stock

The value of the recorded music industry and independent labels goes far beyond the music itself.

Investing in music and supporting independent record labels, along with the wider music industry, generates various outcomes that improve communities and society.

The impact that independent record labels have on supporting a few of these key outcomes is explored in detail below, including how they catalyze economic growth, enable social mobility, support diversity and representation, and ultimately create and nurture culture worldwide.

The Economic, Social and Cultural Benefits of Independent Record Labels

Gorodenkoff/Adobe Stock

Economic development

Independent labels are job creators and skills development hubs. Their work and investments contribute directly to economic development and growth.

This is true not only of music but also of everything labels engage with, from recording studio service providers to tour bus companies, equipment manufacturers, hotels and tourism businesses, retailers, and more. Without the support of labels nurturing recorded music, there would be a much smaller output economy and a narrower supply chain across the music industry.

This is why, in aggregate, independent music businesses, including labels and service companies, represent approximately 40% of the global music industry. And their share is increasing steadily. Independent label revenues grew by 7.1% in 2022 and are part of—and complementary to—a wider positive upswing across the music industry. Major record labels, music publishers, and the live sector are also seeing annual growth, which is to be celebrated.

Independent labels create economic growth in many ways. The most visible way is the direct financial impact on artists through advances[15] and on the employees they hire and support (more on this below). But there is also additional investment that supports artist development including the creation, marketing, and release of each sound recording, spread across a wide variety of sectors and vendors. Ian Harrison, General Manager of LA‑based Hopeless Records, says: “We can confidently say we contribute well over $6 million a year supporting small businesses within our orbit. This spans recording studios, pressing plants, producers, mixers, mastering engineers, graphic designers, photographers, rehearsal spaces, equipment, rental houses, directors, editors, and more”. Add external marketing, business affairs support, content production, distribution, and other investments, and the economic impacts produced by independent labels become abundantly clear. All this investment by independent labels supports local communities around the world.

Martin Mills, founder and CEO of Beggars Group, estimates it supports 80 active artists (not including an extensive catalog) on its roster at any time. This means releasing around 35 albums per year, spending an average of $200,000 per release on production, marketing, and distribution, and supporting jobs in the process. And Beggars Group and its sub labels[16] represent only a few of thousands of independent labels worldwide.

The jobs that labels support reverberate across communities. A 2020 report commissioned by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) estimated that for every $1 of revenue generated in the US music industry, an additional 50c was created in adjacent industries. With their substantial market share, independent labels drive a significant portion of this value. Artists and their teams hire contractors to work on creative projects, support logistics, and meet travel requirements. When an artist tours their recorded work, they eat in restaurants, book travel, stay in hotels, manufacture merchandise, ship materials, and perform in music venues, which shows that they—the artists—are economic hubs supporting multiple jobs. This ancillary spending in communities supports hospitality, transit, and other sectors. Mini‑economies are created by each artist, beginning with their relationship with the label.

  • ‘Advances’ are zero‑interest and non‑returnable artist payments that support recording, livelihoods, and development while music is being produced. These payments are made by the label at their own risk and are recouped, in part, only at the point that revenues are generated from the label's collaboration with the artist.

  • Beggars Group sub labels include 4AD, Matador, Rough Trade Records, XL Recordings and Young.

Social and economic mobility

Independent record labels not only nurture sustainable careers for artists, but also contribute to the social and economic mobility of skilled professionals, who, in turn, support and benefit the communities they live in.

Independent labels create a distinct value‑add around social mobility owing to their approach to developing knowledge and skills among their employees across their careers. Indies place a distinct and substantive emphasis on selecting candidates who demonstrate a passion for music and the business of the artists they will be working with, rather than prioritizing individual skill sets or educational backgrounds. This is not to say this isn’t the case across the wider industry, but it is a stated priority for independent labels. Charles Caldas, a partner at Exceleration Music, sums up the approach of independents as empowering individuals “to translate a passion into a profession”. This is exemplified in how independents hire staff at entry‑level positions and support them into higher‑level management roles. “We generally start with raw material and train people towards a whole career in music,” says Martin Mills, founder of Beggars Group, noting that the majority of its senior management, including CEO Paul Redding and Director of Global Commercial Strategy Simon Wheeler, “started at the bottom” working in the warehouse. Louis Posen, founder of Hopeless Records, similarly explains how they develop careers by promoting internally: “When we hire someone into their first job, we know they aren’t experts, but we train them, show them how the business works and continue to invest in training them as the industry changes, so they remain up‑to‑date.”

Hiring staff at entry level creates long careers within independent labels, by enabling them to build strong internal cultures around music and community. Justin West, founder of Secret City Records, explains the value of selecting “the person who’s passionate about music,” describing it as “a really important piece of the DNA of a record label. We want that kind of culture and those kinds of people around. They drive the companies and the business”.

“When we hire someone into their first job, we know they aren’t experts, but we train them, show them how the business works and continue to invest in training them as the industry changes, so they remain up‑to‑date.”

Louis Posen, founder of Hopeless Records

Martin Mills by Tim Soter

This directly relates to another way that independents support social and economic mobility: they train their staff across a wide range of skills.

As small and medium enterprises (SMEs), independent labels must offer many services, meaning staff must have broad abilities. West notes how entry‑level positions at Secret City come with the guarantee that “you're going to do everything”, with employees learning the full scope of the business, from how to develop a release campaign and use digital marketing tools, to the intricacies of rights management and royalties collection. Hopeless Records’ Posen similarly emphasizes how the size of independent labels fosters expansive knowledge development: “If you go into a giant company, the amount you're going to learn may be narrowed because your job will probably be specific. It may be easier to grow your profession at independent labels because—out of necessity—you're learning more varied tasks.” 

Independents, like the majors, have also expanded the variety of roles in which they are developing expertise—transforming as music has transitioned to a digital‑first industry. Zena White of Partisan Records explains that to execute an effective album campaign in today’s music industry requires a diversity of assets and approaches and, accordingly, more investment in staff: “Each release needs more and more content to support it to reach a wider audience. We’re finding that the budgets have to be increased to pay for that content at a high level of execution…We're a medium‑sized independent label, and we now have 37 employees.”

Mills echoes this sentiment, noting how Beggars has expanded to support digital capacity: “We now have a department of a dozen tech people who are building and maintaining our systems, and managing our data, which simply didn't exist pre‑digital. We also have people who maintain relationships with digital services, either in terms of business and negotiation or marketing and promotion. We now have teams of people in roles that didn't exist before.”

This knowledge base pays dividends across the careers of those trained at independent labels. The workforce at independents not only excels within these companies but also brings their refined skills to other roles both within and outside the music industry. Skilled individuals trained at independent labels frequently move on to higher level and leadership roles at distributors, major labels, rights management organizations, or in different industries such as hospitality, marketing, and entertainment. They leverage their extensive industry knowledge to succeed in these new environments. As Posen notes: “What you're going to learn at an independent label is going to allow you to get your next job with that label, start your own label, or get a job in other businesses across media, entertainment, and marketing.”  In this way, the training provided by independent labels collectively benefits the industry and the economy.

SUCHI by Iga Drobisz

Diversity and representation

Increasing diversity and representation remains a significant challenge in industries worldwide, and the music industry is no exception. Supporting representation in music is important to ensure that the industry reflects society, but also because the increased diversity leads to more music that reveals a wider array of experiences, perspectives, sounds, and styles.

The music industry has a long way to go[17] when it comes to creating a fairer and more diverse playing field, and independent labels recognize that they can and must do more to play a major role in supporting representation. Over the past 15 years, digital distribution and streaming services have made it much easier for artists to release and have their music heard worldwide. However, access to digital platforms alone is not enough to ensure that a diversity of artists find their way into the ears of global audiences, and have a chance of generating successful careers. A recent UNESCO report, for example, points to a resource gap, noting that streaming models favor “artists who already have access to robust financial resources or who have large fan bases.”

This is where independent labels come in. With their long‑term approach to artist development, independents are well‑positioned to invest and take risks on artists across communities and genres that might not otherwise receive support. Charles Caldas of Exceleration Music says: “Independent labels find underrepresented artists… and we identify potential and find connections culturally, musically, territorially of where we think that music can fit. We actively work to help those artists develop themselves, their music, and the way they present themselves, to maximize their chances of finding the audiences we think they deserve.” Independent labels provide an infrastructure and the expertise to support these artists to effectively grow and have a fair chance at success.

Kingfish

Independent labels are a vector for cultural diversity, through the development of niche artists and musical communities, the expansion of local markets, and the promotion and scaling of local culture, globally. The sheer volume of independent labels located worldwide means that they are positioned to be attuned to local cultures and musical ecosystems, with labels maintaining expertise and supporting local artists through active involvement in their regional music communities, whether through promoting local shows or maintaining locally engaged operations and staff. For independent labels, an important part of their approach to A&R and signing new artists is understanding and working with the talent that is bubbling up from the communities in which they are located. This impact is particularly important with respect to how independents support regional cultures and language. Labels like Everlasting Records, for instance, play a role in supporting Spanish language artists, and providing them with opportunities to bring Spanish music and culture to a global audience. The same effect can be seen in Quebec, Canada, where independent labels provide an important vector for the proliferation of Francophone music in Canada and beyond.[18]

Louis Posen of Hopeless Records explains how his label supports a wide spectrum of artists: “We understand who our audience is, who our artists are, and the world they both exist in. And we look to reflect that.” The label operates on a set of clear company principles which include to “fight systematic injustice and lift up underrepresented voices”, and this is demonstrated in its roster where over 50% of artists are led by women and more than 40% either hail from international origins or are first‑generation immigrants to the US.

The proactive approach taken by Hopeless is reflected in initiatives that span the broader independent music ecosystem. Independent record labels recognize their social responsibility to make the music industry more diverse and representative, and frequently work through their major trade associations and other music organizations on initiatives that can produce broad impacts. IMPALA, which represents independent music companies in Europe, has developed a Diversity & Inclusion Charter to hold itself and its members accountable through a series of measures to increase equity and diversity in the industry. This includes providing training and other programs to support members as they implement structural changes, collecting data to measure outcomes, and reporting annually on progress towards increased diversity. IMPALA’s annual Changemaker Award also puts the spotlight on the sector’s projects that inspire change. Likewise, the independent music trade associations in France (FÉLIN) and Germany (VUT) are founding partners for MEWEM[19], the Mentoring Program for Women Entrepreneurs in the Music Industry, a European-wide training initiative to support women to increase leadership positions in the music industry. In the UK, the Association of Independent Music (AIM) has launched the Amplify Apprenticeship Scheme, a partnership with Women in CTRL and Amazon Music to foster women and non‑binary talent in the music industry, through paid work opportunities and mentorship. AIM has also established an Equity, Diversity and Inclusion training program that is free to all members. Similarly, Merlin, the digital licensing body representing independent labels, distributors, and rights holders, launched the Merlin Engage mentorship program in 2023, which tackles gender representation in the industry by pairing emerging female leaders with executive‑level mentors.

“We understand who our audience is, who our artists are, and the world they both exist in. And we look to reflect that.”

Louis Posen, Founder of Hopeless Records

Independent labels have a significant impact on promoting representation due to the diverse range of indies worldwide. Thousands of independent labels of various sizes and genres span different cultures and regions. This extensive network creates opportunities for artists from underrepresented regions to gain global recognition. Independent music companies collaborate, often through their diverse trade associations[20], to support capacity‑building across markets. For instance, WIN provides resources to help independent music businesses  establish their own trade associations and coordinates regional working groups like the LatAm Network, covering Latin America, and the APAC Alliance, covering the Asia‑Pacific region. WIN’s Foro de Independientes de Latinoamérica (FILA) initiative focuses on supporting capacity‑building and economic development for independent music businesses in Latin America, with projects in the Southern Cone and the Andean Community. Together, these networks enhance the capacity to invest in diverse artists across different geographies, communities, and genres.[21]

Many other initiatives are also working to address systemic discrimination in the music industry. The independent sector is not the only sector that needs to change and is addressing systemic challenges, but the aforementioned models, and reach, demonstrate replicable and applicable initiatives that are working towards collective change. Still, there is much more to do to improve industry diversity and representation, including among ORCA members. This includes increasing opportunities for neuro‑diverse and disabled artists and workers, upgrading studio and office facilities to meet accessibility needs and standards, creating products for hard of hearing, D/deaf, blind, and visually‑impaired audiences, and ensuring that the industry's workforce and artists reflect their communities. The importance of these efforts is underscored in the charters mentioned earlier, and the need for this work reflects a clear social and economic benefit in investing in such initiatives.

As an organization, ORCA also needs to become more diverse, to ensure that it represents the views and perspectives of labels from around the world, and serves to platform the voices of marginalized and underserved communities. Future ORCA-supported initiatives will emphasize working closely with the independent trade associations towards expanding its membership and the perspectives it captures in its work, as well as include research—with qualified partners—to better understand best practices towards promoting and accelerating diversity in music in all its forms, to further increase the economic, social, and cultural value of the entire sector.

  • There is a large and growing body of research pointing to challenges around diversity, equity, and inclusion in the music industry. A few notable resources include: Black Lives in Music research reports; USC Annenberg ‘Inclusion in the Recording Studio’ and ’Inclusion in the Music Business’ reports; UK Government ‘Misogyny in music’ report; and, The Pudding ‘Visual essay on women songwriters’.

  • In addition to being naturally attuned to local cultures, the key role of independent labels in promoting cultural diversity and championing local culture in global markets is also supported by the fact that many indies focus primarily on servicing emerging artists and new releases, as well as the ability of independents to take advantage of structural funding, like grant subsidies, to support local musical niches (for e.g. government support for Francophone labels and artists in Quebec, Canada).

  • MEWEM also has several other founding partners from across Europe, including French (Le LABA), Belgian (Wallonie-Burxelles International), Austrian (Music Austria), Romanian (Raw Music) and Spanish (Mujeres de la Industria de la Mùsica) organizations.

  • As an example of the level of diverse representation within independent music trade associations, the board of the UK’s Association of Independent Music (AIM) is 65% female and 30% diverse by ethnicity. Its board members are executives of UK independents and voted into place by AIM’s membership.

  • There are countless other examples of independent music trade associations undertaking programming and projects in support of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the music industry. A few examples include:

    In Chile, IMICHILE promotes dialogue with the First Nations and the Pan-American circulation of Mapuche and Rapa Nui music through the initiative El Águila y el Cóndor (“The Eagle and the Condor”). A fundamental aspect of the annual Fluvial conference, this initiative combines panels, workshops and showcases of Indigenous artists, as well as collaboration with Canada’s International Indigenous Music Summit and other First Nations projects. IMICHILE is also a member of ROMMDA, a collaborative space addressing gender disparities in Chile's music sector, with several partners and over a thousand members spanning over 20 countries.

    In Canada, CIMA was a founding partner for Breaking Down Racial Barriers, a roundtable series on anti‑Black racism in the Canadian music industry. The initiative produced the BDRB Report and continues to influence positive change through ongoing activities and its BDRB Declaration, which has been signed by over 450 music companies.

Ramones

Artistic and cultural good

For decades, independent record labels have played a significant role in influencing global artistic and cultural movements, both in and beyond the realm of music.

The birth of hip hop, which commemorated its 50th anniversary last year, was championed by labels like Def Jam and Death Row Records. Similarly, independent labels like Blue Note and Prestige played pivotal roles in shaping jazz, while the origins of grunge were fostered by labels such as Sub Pop. Simply put, most transformative music that has impacted culture over the past 50 years originated from or was propelled by independent labels.

The fact that artists on independent labels have influenced global culture is partly due to their unique artistic investment and development model. As small‑ and medium‑sized organizations, independents have more autonomy to take calculated risks on emerging sounds and unconventional genres than large corporations. Zena White, COO of Partisan Records, says: “Our model revolves around taking risks and casting a wide net to uncover artists who may not receive recognition or investment elsewhere.” The results of this focus on lifting up the new and unique can be seen, for example, in Partisan championing artists such as experimental jazz quintet Ezra Collective and supporting them as they grew from their local roots at a London youth club, into a Mercury Prize‑winning act recognized for breaking new ground in jazz.

Conversely, this model of nurturing diverse new talent also has the positive effect of attracting emerging artists to seek out independent labels to support the release of their music. Artists aspire to be signed to the labels that represent the artists that they look up to. They notice the communities of innovative and exciting artists that form around these labels, and want to be a part of that.

The foundation of many independent record labels within regional communities is instrumental in their ability to support pioneering artistic talent from local scenes to global recognition. For example, in Iceland, independent labels have incubated a huge variety of global stars. Bjork and her earlier critically beloved projects, like The Sugarcubes, emerged with support from a fertile scene of independent labels, including Smekkleysa (“Bad Taste Records”), which cultivated a community around alternative rock music in Iceland. The label became a steadfast part of the country’s music ecosystem, supporting waves of emerging artists, and later helping initiate the success of artists such as Sigur Rós, who went on to achieve global success within the post‑rock genre, and whose career was also supported by the independent label [PIAS] and their joint venture, FatCat Records. In Montreal, independent labels like Constellation, Secret City, and Arbutus Records helped generate worldwide attention and provided launching pads for globally successful acts like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Patrick Watson, and Grimes, among many others.

The effects of this success go way beyond the art. Music promotes talent attraction and retention, tourism, and inward investment, as well as contributes to export economies for artists and labels that ultimately drive global recognition and revenues back toward domestic music ecosystems. For example, Iceland Music, the national level body that partners with and promotes Icelandic artists, independent labels, and events, offers a variety of programs that recognize the value of and boost Iceland’s music‑based economy. This includes funding for marketing and travel, to support Icelandic labels and artists to export their music abroad, as well as programming to draw in investors and visitors in the form of a 25% tax rebate to record in Iceland.

The effects of indie‑label investment in music influence fashion, art, politics, film, brands, youth culture, and more. “Where we come from goes all the way back to the Sex Pistols, where fashion was at the forefront of music,” says Louis Posen of Hopeless Records, speaking to the influence that independent‑created punk culture has had outside of music. The cultural influence of punk on fashion extends from its origins to the present, as labels like Hopeless have helped fuel a new wave of artists in the genre. In turn, successful stores like Hot Topic were born from this resurgence of punk, catering to fans eager for their fashion to reflect their musical identities. Likewise, the recent genre trend, hyper‑pop, offers a very up‑to‑date example of independent music’s deep influence on culture. Grown from independent labels such as PC Music and XL Recordings, the genre has gone global by pairing maximalist electronic music with progressive politics and providing a safe space for its audience of young LGBTQIA+ fans to assert their musical identities.

Case Study

///////

Case Study ///////

Because Music x Christine and the Queens
Nurturing Creative Vision

Christine and the Queens

From the beginning, the partnership between the globally acclaimed pop artist Christine and the Queens and the independent label Because Music revolved around providing the essential infrastructure to support Chris’ creative vision. Because Music spotted a rare artist whose approach to music was creatively groundbreaking while also being accessible, and with the potential to attract a global audience. What was needed to achieve this global success was strategic planning, artistic support and financial investment to help the project grow.

This came in the form of a patient approach that put long‑term development ahead of immediate success. To this end, the label spent almost four years promoting Christine and the Queens’ debut album, Chaleur Humaine, executing a planned rollout that ultimately translated into the album reaching number two on the UK charts, being the biggest‑selling independent debut album in the UK that year and breaking into the Billboard Hot 200 chart. The album was first put out in France in 2014, before being released for an international audience a year and a half later, along with reworked English lyrics. This phased approach not only facilitated the development of a strong regional base from which to expand, but also allowed the label space to collaborate with Chris on crafting a captivating live show.

Moreover, Because Music developed strong creative partnerships with DSPs, including Apple Music, YouTube, and Spotify.  For Apple, the collaboration included a live‑streamed bespoke performance, exclusive session content, and creating long‑ and short‑form documentary content.  For YouTube, there were multiple live performances and an exclusive short film produced for the ‘La vita nuova’ EP, and for Spotify, there was exclusive session content in the form of Spotify Singles, as well as both interview and other short‑form content. These creative collaborations provided vital storytelling opportunities across all priority platforms, ultimately contributing to the development of Christine and the Queens’ profile across all major markets.

“It was very important, and we put a lot of energy and investment into the live team.”

Emmanuel de Buretel, founder of Because Music

“It was very important, and we put a lot of energy and investment into the live team,” explains Emmanuel de Buretel, founder of Because Music. By the end of 2016, Christine and the Queens had played Coachella and Glastonbury, sold out 15,000+ seat venues across the UK, and garnered praise from superstars including Madonna and Elton John.

“The success stemmed from the team we put around Chris to enable him to achieve his vision,” notes de Buretel, emphasizing the strategic guidance the label provided and the significant financial resources invested in developing the project, which generated 1.5 million album sales.

Since Chaleur Humaine, Christine and the Queens’ music has continued to evolve. Chris has released three additional albums and one EP with Because Music. The success of the debut album fostered a robust fan base that has allowed Chris to explore a more experimental approach, including delving into operatic songwriting and creating an alter‑ego, Redcar, for live performances. Throughout this artistic evolution, Because Music has consistently demonstrated its reliability as a guiding force, emphasizing a balance between steady growth and preserving artistic freedom.

This ability to support an artist to fully execute their vision while also looking out for their career sustainability characterizes what independent labels do so well.

NDABCREATIVITY/Adobe Stock

Contents