Singer-Songwriter Nina Nesbitt Shares the ‘Honest Truth’ Of Starting Her Own Record Label (Guest Column)

Songwriter. Musician. Singer. Producer. Creative director. Social media expert. Videographer. Editor. Marketing department. Digital department. Product manager. Data analyst. Label owner.  

These are just some of the job titles that can apply to an artist in 2024 — a whirlwind of adventure, experimentation and exhaustion. Throughout my career, I’ve been signed to a major label, indie label and recently just started my own. Maybe you’re an aspiring artist, you listen to my music or you’re simply bored and scrolling. Here’s what I’ve learnt, what I’ve loved and what I’ve struggled with. 

How I Got Here 

In 2012, I was a 17-year-old girl from a small town, equipped with a guitar and big dreams. I released my first official EP, The Apple Tree, which shot into the top 10 on the iTunes chart. The lead single, “The Apple Tree,” then became BBC Radio 1’s “Tune of The Week” and I subsequently signed a five-album record deal with Universal’s Island Records. I desperately needed the money and I also naively thought they were going to make all of my dreams come true. After battling to find my identity on their roster and trying to hone my craft as the musician I wanted to be, I released my first folk/pop album, Peroxide. It charted at No. 11 on the UK’s Official Albums Chart Top 100, missing the top 10 by a small amount of copies. After this was classed as a disappointment, I was promised another shot and they picked up the option for a sophomore album. However, after two years of making that album, it became clear that I had in fact been shelved and was later dropped — the night before a music video shoot for the first single. It was brutal and mortifying.  

I threw myself into songwriting for others and, after having some success with that, I wrote my second album, The Sun Will Come Up, The Seasons Will Change. I had written the majority of the album before I signed to an indie label at the end of 2016, writing and recording the demos in the bedroom of my London flat share. I couldn’t afford to pay producers after being dropped, so I taught myself how to do it until I found a few passionate collaborators. I still had this gut feeling that my time as an artist wasn’t over. I felt like I had something to prove. My manager and I sent the demos around to most of the labels, including “The Best You Had,” which eventually earned us our first silver record and a spot on Taylor Swift’s playlist. However, at the time, everyone passed on the songs except a handful of indie labels. 

I met with Cooking Vinyl and although they had no one else like me on their roster — it mostly consisted of older, hugely established artists with decades of releases under their belt — I liked what they stood for. I felt like it was a place I could have full creative control and I knew they already liked the album. It was a risk for them and it was a risk for me. I released my second album through Cooking Vinyl in 2019. Overall, my indie-label experience was a very positive one and just what I needed to restore my faith in the music industry. They helped me build a long-term career and I’m forever grateful for all the work they put in to take me to the next level. I then released my third album, Älskar, on Cooking Vinyl in 2022, written mid-pandemic. This is when I felt everything start to shift. The world changed. The music industry changed. Social media changed. I changed. 

After the success of my second album and a grueling touring schedule — once being on two tours on different continents at the same time — I felt completely burnt out. Mentally, creatively and physically. It wasn’t a sustainable way of working. I felt like I had to say yes to everything in case it was my only shot. Then the pandemic hit and we were all forced to slow down. Things became increasingly online and the rise of TikTok began. Suddenly, unknown artists were having top 10 hits almost overnight, and artists that had been dropped were having their big breakthroughs. For a time, I felt like it started to give power back to the artists and fans. It was something I would’ve dreamed of when I was a teenager starting out, coming from a small village with no industry contacts or financial backing.  

However, as time went on I started to feel like it was becoming a competition for the viewer’s attention. Social media felt oversaturated with everyone trying to do the same thing, and there seemed to be an overwhelming amount of music being released. According to Luminate, an average of 103,500 tracks were added to streaming services daily in 2023. I started to miss some of my favorite artist’s albums coming out because I didn’t even hear about them.

I was encouraged to reduce my songs to 10-second clips, to try to start trends with certain lyrics, or do something that demanded the viewer’s attention within the first few seconds. But I felt like I didn’t fit into this new world. I’m not shocking. I’m not extroverted. I don’t think I’ve just written the song of the summer. Like most of my fellow musicians, I’m full of self-doubt and anxiety. I wanted something more than virality and views. 

Why I Decided to Launch a Label 

In 2023, I took some time out to write for other artists and reassess what I wanted to do. After some time away, I started to write music for myself again. I was fully independent at that point. After the pandemic and how everything had changed, I just wanted to create something that set my world alight because the rest felt so uncertain. Over the course of three months, in the mornings and evenings, I wrote my latest album, Mountain Music. It’s a folk album and completely different to anything I’ve released before. After playing the demos for my manager, Vicky Dowdall — who has managed me since the 2012 release of The Apple Tree EP — we decided to send it to some labels.  

I was unsure what a record label could offer us in 2024. My last album campaign with Cooking Vinyl felt very social media heavy. Of course, I always want to be the one running my social media, but it is a lot of work when you’re also trying to juggle the music side of things. It made me question: If it’s mostly on me to get this album out there, do I really need a label? Vicky and I have always been proactive with every album release. She and I are lucky to have relationships with passionate people who work at streaming services. Vicky has always been the one to book meetings with the likes of Spotify, Apple, Amazon, YouTube, etc. She has always been the one to do the meetings. Vicky has secured me playlists and billboards around the world for my releases and I trust her fully to get my vision across. I started to feel like the traditional support a label could offer us seemed slightly redundant in 2024. Everything now feels so social media-based, and I believe it really does have to come from the artist. People want to see behind the curtain. They want to know who they’re listening to. I thought, why not fully embrace that? 

Off the back of receiving some offers from labels, I told Vicky I’d rather start a label with her. After a decade of going from label to label, leaving large gaps between releases while we figured out the next deal, I wanted to create our own home. Momentum is so important in an artist’s career, and I’ve found that switching between labels and the lengthy waits during these contract negotiations can really affect it.  

The other thing for me was that typically, an artist manager works for 20% commission and only gets paid once the artist gets paid. The chances of the artist actually earning money from an album is slim. You have to really believe in it and be willing to initially work for free, as does your manager — but in the end, they will only receive 20%. These days it feels like so many managers are also taking on the roles that a label used to. Vicky and I were in agreement that we would start our label as co-owners. We couldn’t do it without each other. We decided to call it Apple Tree Records, as a homage to our first release together. It was a time when anything felt possible, when we were two young women in the music industry on a mission. I wanted to weave that ethos into our label and remember that feeling with every release. 

How I Launched My Label 

I’m not ashamed to say, I had absolutely no idea how to go about starting our own label. I had no idea what it would look like or what it would require. Vicky took the first step to secure a distributor who would help fund it. We went with FUGA as I loved their passionate team and how they also provided an audience service, which meant they’d help with the social media and the digital side of things. Distributors typically sign labels, not artists, so we formed our company and the rest was history.  

It was then time to decide what kind of team we needed. We initially kept it very small, with a few people consulting on marketing. Over time we started to hire services such as radio, PR, TV and more. We hired people coming from all different areas of the industry — some with decades of experience, some with much less. I think everyone can offer different perspectives which feels important, especially in an industry that is rapidly changing. We also had to find someone to help with invoices and legal contracts — the boring part that I like to pretend doesn’t exist!  

There’s definitely a lot more to setting up a label than I first thought, but it felt empowering making these choices by ourselves. I loved handpicking our team, people who were truly passionate about the project. As an artist signed to a label, sometimes the person leading your campaign will leave and then someone else will inherit you. It can work out, but it can also be detrimental if that person doesn’t click with your project. It was incredible to feel supported by a group of mostly women, as it reminded me how much times have changed since I first started out. 

The Good Parts 

I’ve loved waking up every morning thinking, “What can I do to further this project today?” 

I’ve enjoyed being part of a team, not just being the artist. Working side by side with my manager and making all the decisions together. I’ve loved having absolute free reign to do niche creative things, such as creating a microsite where listeners can visit a map, get access to exclusive content and follow along the journey while listening. Making sure every single aspect of this album campaign has been carefully thought out has been so fulfilling. From the colors and stories associated with each vinyl to the way we address my listeners in each mailer, making them feel like they’re going on a road trip to the mountains.  

I’ve received so many lovely messages from my listeners telling me they’ve really enjoyed how interactive and creative this project has been. It’s also been interesting to see where our spend has had results and where it hasn’t. It’s been a learning process about what is worth investing in and what isn’t. Every artist’s project is completely different and there’s no right answer for everyone, but I think the main thing this campaign has taught me is how important your audience is. Of course, they’ve always been the most important thing, but they now also hold the power to break you as an artist. In the past, it was the audience who bought the songs that ultimately broke an artist, but it was often the result of extensive radio play or a massive TV slot.  

These days it feels very direct. Artist to fan. I believe investing in your listeners is more important than any influencer campaign, radio play or TV show. So I’ve constantly thought: What can I do to add value to their lives? How can I help them to feel understood? How can I connect my songs to their own experiences? How can I reward them for their support? I can see my audience slowly growing and that’s more important to me than any chart position or industry win.  

The Not So Good Parts 

Artists tend to be quite sensitive and I’m definitely no exception. I found it difficult in the beginning to be comfortable with ad spend being put behind my videos on social media — especially when I received trolling for it. I guess my agenda as an artist is to always let things grow organically and hope for the best. But of course, the agenda of a label is to get you out there in front of as many people as possible and sell albums. There are financial targets and money that needs to be recouped. It’s becoming increasingly harder to even reach your own followers, so online ads do feel like a necessary evil these days. I initially found this tricky and pushed back multiple times, having lengthy chats with my team. As someone working at a label, I assume you don’t feel the mental effects of being the artist, putting yourself out there to millions of people. However, wires cross when you’re the artist and the label. What’s in the best interest of you personally and your mental wellbeing can be quite the opposite of what’s best for your album campaign and career.  

I think a lot of us artists are desperate to be seen but also terrified of it. I’ve had to try to work through this and really seize the opportunity that I’ve been given to get my music heard. It’s become easier as time has gone on. When I was on a major label things were very much filtered down to me. It’s very common for the artist not to attend or be allowed into meetings about the campaign so people can speak freely. However, when running your own label, you have to be aware of everything, good and bad. This has definitely been hard at times. I also found direct-to-consumer (D2C) a bit of a minefield, having to try and guess how much stock to order, not wanting to be left short but also not wanting to over-order. 

Touring is very tricky. I know many artists are struggling with this right now, as I don’t have the traditional major label tour support and everything is currently self-funded. Lastly, I’d say one of the most challenging things was knowing what roles we needed within the label. Whether it be a product manager, marketing, digital or just overall consulting. You can start by thinking you know what you need, but as time goes on and the campaign develops, sometimes it becomes clear you need to adapt. I’ve learnt, much like making music, that sometimes fewer people can be more, as decisions can be made quicker and communication can be more efficient. It’s also just a really difficult time to try and break as an artist; sometimes the team can be doing all they can, but you still need the stars to align. 

The Takeaway 

Releasing Mountain Music on Apple Tree Records has been a stressful, intense yet incredibly rewarding and empowering experience. In an industry that has so often sunk its teeth into young female artists, attempting to mold and manipulate them, it feels like I’m finally in a safe place where I can lock the doors and take a deep breath. Starting your own label is by no means a walk in the park. It requires a village. I couldn’t have done it on my own. I’m grateful to have shared all the big decisions with Vicky and had the support of a team around us. I’ve learnt to trust my gut instincts and to also question what’s actually just my own fear.  

Personally, I’ve felt even more pressure to deliver compared to when I was signed elsewhere. On a big label, you know you’re one of many and could be dropped at any time. But when it’s your own, you see firsthand how hard everyone is working. It’s made me want to succeed not just for Vicky and me, but for everyone else too. From my own experience, I wouldn’t advise an artist to start a label without a strong support system around them who is willing to share the workload. Starting this label has been very different from just releasing something independently through the likes of AWAL or Platoon, partly because of the length of this particular album campaign and partly because I’ve signed as a label, not an artist.  

I should also state that I’ve been in a privileged position to not rely on the advance that you get from signing to a label as an artist. I did not receive any personal income for signing as a label. It’s not something I could have financially done at the beginning of my career and I realize most new artists rely on this to sustain them for years to come, much like I did. Despite the uncertainty of everything in the industry right now, it feels comforting to know we have our little slice of home. Something I can grow over time with a person who shares my vision. It’s hard to find and I feel so lucky to have a partner to go on this journey with. I hope in time we can sign other artists and be the label I wished I’d had. 

Nina Nesbitt is a Scottish singer-songwriter who has released four albums to date. The most recent of those, Mountain Music, arrived in September via her own label, Apple Tree Records.

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