By now every musician knows the impossibility of getting a record deal...or radio airplay. But it seems, as history repeats itself, things are about to change. The decades of major record label deals that left artists with a hit record and no money may be coming to an end as artists and Internet radio step up to the plate.
Even as the royalty collection and licensing agencies (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, Sound Exchange) are attempting to put the squeeze on Internet Radio, the door is swinging wide open. Just as Elvis ushered in a new age of independent recording studios, Indie record labels like Chess, SUN, Atlantic, and Stax records in the 1950's and 1960's left the "major" record industry in their dust. Internet radio is poised to bring an end to the dynasty of terestial AM/FM radio and mega radio broadcast networks like Clear Channel, Cox Radio, and others.
Already, a major player has arrived by the name of Renegade Radio in Nashville. http://renegaderadionashville.com/ It is perdicted that, by the end of 2012, they will be the #1 Country Radio Station in the world. They are an Internet or Webcast radio station broadcasting worldwide on the Internet. They are not an AM of FM station! They are the toast of Nashville country music because they are actually "breaking" new artists by playing them on the air, which is almost impossibel to get done at your local FM country giant station. Ever get tired of hearing the same 20 tunes played over and over for months while great music by new artists is ignored.
So how do Indie artists make it in the record business. Ken Dardis of Audio Graphics has it figured out. His company supplies FREE Indie music for radio airplay to Internet radio stations. (http://www.rradiomusic.com/) The music is broadcast worldwide on hundreds of Internet radio stations who play the songs, but the songs are not downloadable. The songs are offered for sale by the artists themselves with Ken's help and at much greater profit than normally garnered.
Acording to Mitch McCracken, well known Memphis DJ and radio personality, "If the Indie artists don't sign with ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and Sound Exchange (unless or until they get a mega music deal with loads of cash upfront), then they can offer their music to Internet Radio and have hundreds and thousands of stations playing their music online. It will enable them to sell their product and quit giving away free downloads on MySpace and social networks just to get attention. It will enable them to become known and be able able to book even better venues."
"At the same time, Internet radio, by making deals with Indie record labels, do not have to pay any of the restricting licening fees to ASCAP, BMI, and the rest. They will nave the opportunity to be financially stable and economically viable", he added.
As all new automobiles are soon predicted to have 3G and 4G capability built in (many already do), then these new stations and artists will be heard everywhere. As many are reporting, this could be the end of an era of radio. http://www.markramseymedia.com/2011/02/the-end-of-the-radio-industry/
Every few decades radio changes. The zenith of the "Golden Era" of radio in the 1940's gave way to movies in color and the new kid, on the block Television. Teenagers getting their own cars in the 1950's brought a new style of radio and a new music to the forefront, Rock & Roll. The British Invasion and Stereo FM killed AM radio, but radio grew stronger. So now perhaps it is Internet radio, a radio controlled by the people (did you know that the FCC has no jurisdiction over Internet radio?) and fueled by musicians fighting to be in the music business, that will now take the stage.
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