The music industry consists of the companies and independent artists that earn money by creating new songs and pieces and organizing live concerts and shows, audio and video recordings, compositions and sheet music, and the organizations and associations that aid and represent music creators.
Knowing music or being a singer doesn’t mean you understand the music business. This is why those artists who might not be the most talented, make more money than those who are very talented but lack an understanding of the business aspect of music. Being talented and understanding the music business is a huge plus.
In an African scenario, it is very common for artists and label companies to fall out and most often, this always happens in a disruptive manner, never fun. What mostly accounts for this is because record label owners mostly do their homework and artists hardly do. Most record labels take artists from scratch to a certain level of attainment and the artists in return is expected to pay the company back by selling the company’s name and making money for that company sadly many pay more than they are supposed to.
Most issues that almost every label has faced have come from contracts. No company will give out a contract which favors the artist more than the label itself. In some cases, many artists who will suffer in this case are upcoming artists who have little or no say, they surely just need some funds to kick-start their careers; no attorneys no backup even if they are trampled upon by their labels. For some established ones who have already assessed their value, they might call the shots and decide what the company would offer them.
Funny enough, artists treat their contracts like Facebook terms of services. They just click yes, without reading, after all, they want to get a deal real quick. Many artists won’t read their contracts thoroughly to understand what’s being demanded from them and they forget that the contract is like “marriage” itself. Once you put pen to paper, even a divorce sometimes might not be helpful.
Take a look at some artists who amicably parted ways with their labels, even if their contracts were not favorable. They either had a mastery of their contracts and knew what they were going in for or they understood that they made a mistake that only the end of their contracts could solve, so they hung in there till it was time and they bid a farewell.
Taking a keen look at African artists like Locko (Big Dreams Entertainment) Mr. Leo (Alpha Better Records), they have amicably parted ways with these companies and have established their own companies after making mistakes and learning from them. Leo is the CEO of Lionn Productions and Locko owns Yema Prod. Their parting ways with their old labels was simple and clean, no burning of bridges and no tarnishing of anyone’s image. They know that no matter how bad they were treated as many always make it seem, there was a time in their careers when they needed that treatment.
Pit Baccardi, JOVI , Salatiel, Wax Dey, Nabil Fongod, have raised giant musicians in the country and many of these have been bullied for exploiting artists. Their labels are business oriented like every other business venture. Empire Company has managed if not bigger artists and the network has been linked to Universal Music Africa.
You might have noticed that the new norm is for artists to create their own record labels.Why is it so?
This is because as an independent artist, they think having full control of their sales, licensing, distribution, endorsements and other bonuses that come with having a label will make them richer. as they can cut out the middle person who would typically take a larger share of the profit.
Every label is out to make money, and they will even use an artist to make more if they don’t know how much they make for the said label. Understanding the dynamics will save you some stress and help you know what you’re getting into.
Very few business owners will tell you the secrets of their business and sales tactics. This is why “seller A” can buy shoes at a cheaper price and sell it to a customer at a higher price resulting. If the customer desperately needs the shoes and can afford it, he/she will buy it at almost any price resulting in a high profit margin for the seller. When the demand is more than the supply, the product or service comes with a bigger price tag. The same customer who bought the shoes from seller A will surely not buy the same shoe from seller A if the customer looks for and finds the same shoes for a much cheaper price, as the buyer now has more options to chose from and is more informed.
No business wants to lose money for customers to benefit from it. A business’ goal is to make as much profit as possible. This is no different with record labels. If an artist is noht informed and knowledgeable about the the music business, how will they know what is good for them from a contractual perspective? How will an artist know what to bargain for from a record label if they do not understand what they should be getting as an artist to begin with?
Many artists have learnt from the mistakes of their colleagues who signed their lives aways with long-term contracts they did not fully understand and rather than going in for full term contracts, they prefer partnership deals or starting their own record labels. Being a free artist can save you from a lot. Regardless of the path you chose as an artist, make sure you have a lawyer who understands the music and entertainment industry read all your contracts.
