The death of the music business as we know it…2,700 record stores shut down in the last 4 years…more than 5,000 record company employees laid off since 2000…blah, blah, blah. You’ve heard it all a thousand times. (And if you’re an up and coming artist you might be freaking out and rethinking those college plans.) But before you crank up Timbuk 3’s gloriously ironic anthem “The Future’s So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades”, ask yourself if you’ve seen/heard anyone proposing solutions or positive alternatives to this mess. Not really, right?
Rolling Stone got five industry people to weigh in on where they think the business is headed and how labels can survive in this brave, new, digital world. One of these options is downright scary for artists—labels also managing your career and taking a piece of your gigs and merchandising revenue is almost like Major League Baseball revoking free agency or worse—but see for yourself.
