Auralize this...

The FTC blesses this...

and aids the major-label music industry in its continued self-destruction.

Finally forced to pay this...

Recording Companies Agree to Pay $50M
New York Times - May 4, 2004

NEW YORK (AP) -- Major recording companies have agreed to return nearly $50 million in unclaimed royalties to Sean Combs, Gloria Estefan, Dolly Parton and thousands of lesser known musicians under a settlement announced Tuesday.

A two-year investigation by New York state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer's office found that many artists were not being paid royalties because record companies lost contact with the performers and had stopped making required payments. [full story]

Yeah right. Show me one record label that doesn't know how to find P. Diddy and I'll show you a label that shouldn't be in business.

Trust me when I tell you, there is no effort to pay royalties. In fact it is standard practice in the industry not to pay royalties until someone comes looking for them. And even then it is challenging unless you are persistent, knowledgeable about your contract and know the proper channels to navigate.

I have recovered over $120,000 in royalties from major labels for clients and I enjoyed every moment of it (not to mention the commission).

Why does it take a legislator to force a major corporation to enforce their own contracts? Part of the reason is because several record companies would go broke if they paid out all royalites due. The rest of the reason is because they're greedy.

Re-labeling this...

For several years, the music industry was defined by the six major record labels known as "The Big 6." They were: EMI, Sony, BMG, Polygram, WEA and MCA.

Then there were 5... In 1998, Seagrams, which already owned Universal Music Group*, bought Polygram and the labels were merged. When the merger was complete, the labels were defined much as they are now. On the east coast: Universal/Motown and Island/Def Jam; on the west coast: MCA Records and IGA (Interscope/Geffen/A&M**); as well as many smaller genre and affiliated labels.

* One of the brighter moves in industry history: When Seagram's brought Doug Morris in as Chairman of MCA at the end of 1995, the label underwent a major image change. MCA, the once prestigious Music Corporation of America, had become more popularly known as the "music cemetery of America" and was clearly in need of new branding. Although MCA lived on, a new east coast label, Universal Records, was literally birthed overnight and the group of labels became known as the Universal Music Group.

** One of the dumber moves in merger history: In the Universal/Polygram merger a decision was made to retain the Universal subsidiary, MCA Records, but eliminate the Polygram subsidiary, A&M Records. The move not only raised questions about the direction of the company, but also breached a contract that came back to bite them in the ass. Adding insult to injury, they sold the historical A&M studio lot to Henson. The MCA brand never recovered from it's tarnished image anyway and continued to lose millions and ruin artists careers for several more years before it was finally laid to rest in 2003.

Then there were 4... In 2003, Sony and BMG announced a merger. Details still unfolding and I'll be back with many of them and the dumbest move ever made in the history of the music industry.

New Zealand Googled this...

"major label" "the big 6"

(Originally posted on Answer this... Reposted here cause it's of interest to my aural readers.

The right way to fight this...

George Michael now free AFP - Mar. 11, 2004

British singer George Michael said today he was retiring from the music business and intended instead to put all his future songs on the Internet - for free.

The 40-year-old pop star told BBC radio he would never make another album for sale in record shops, because he did not need the money and wanted to be less famous. [full story]

And the RIAA can't do shit about it. And no one is getting ripped off.

It's fortunate that George Michael is in a financial position to be able to create and entertain for free. Most artists and musicians are not. Most rely on royalties that they rarely saw before download generation and now will never. About 10 years ago about 9% of major label artists were profitable now it's more like 5%.

But as much as I feel for these artists, most of them know what they are getting into before they sign and they CHOOSE to go for an upfront advance and the big money marketing/promotion team. They are often dumbfounded later if they do have commercial success and they don't get any royalties because they have to pay the label back for all the money it forked out.

People need to start changing their perception of what the record industry is. The record industry is no longer just the Big 6 5 4. Independent distrubution has gotten so much better and there are so many other ways to get music out than signing to a major label. Reminder: A record label is not much more than a bank especially considering that they are not even obligated to market and promote an artist once they are signed.

I encourage all artists not to sell out and sign with a major label. You are only selling out yourself and your future. It's time for the artists to take the power back, find alternative ways to get the music out and always make sure you have a legitimate, trustworthy lawyer.

A growing list of links for the independent artist:

CDBaby
Links from studioexpresso.com