artist, betting the audience will love them. If they do, they buy CDs, tickets to concerts
and various merchandise. In return, the label takes the lion’s share of the profit.
In the past, an artist or band had little hope of making it big without being discovered
by an A&R person working for a label. A&R stands for artists and repertoire. In some cir-
cles, mostly musicians, it stands for attitude and rejection. These are powerful people in
the record industry. They scout talent and sign the winners. They also nurture the band,
aid in song selection, finding the right producer and act as the liaison between all the var-
ious departments within the record company, among other tasks.
When an artist is signed, the full fury of the label is unleashed. Marketing plans are
developed; public relations efforts are launched; distribution channels are arranged; radio
and other broadcast media are wooed. Then there are the more mundane tasks involving
legal issues, bookkeeping and finances. And, of course, there are the tour booking ar-
rangements made either through an in-house department or by contract with an outside
booking agent or agency.
The point here is that all of this takes money. Lots and lots of money. After everybody
takes their piece of the revenue pie, unless they become a platinum superstar, the artist is
often left with a royalty that might just be enough to buy a burger and, perhaps, some
fries.
All this worked fine for years. At least it worked fine for the record companies. As for
the artists ... well ... it didn’t always work out so great for some of them. But, that’s an-
other story.
Bloated and huge things tend to move slowly. Therein lies the problem with mono-
lithic record companies. With the advent of the digital age, the Internet, mp3s and the