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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.
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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.
Neon Gold and Avenue A Records have joined together to create Futures Music Group, a tech-forward collective of indie labels with an artist-first mentality.
Distributed through Virgin, Futures was co-founded by Neon Gold’s Derek Davies (Charli XCX, Tove Lo, Marina & The Diamonds, Passion Pit, Matt Maeson) and Avenue A’s Dave Wallace (Barns Courtney, Blossoms, Palace, Self Esteem) in early 2024. When the label group’s first release as Futures, “Home” by Good Neighbours, quickly went viral in January, the song quickly put the band on the map and served as a proof-of-concept for the Futures model. Perhaps the biggest debut single by any artist this year, “Home” was certified platinum in less than nine months.
The Futures roster also includes Phantogram, The Knocks, Barns Courtney, Palace and Mt. Joy, the latter of which was signed through a joint venture with the band’s own Bloom Field Records. (Good Neighbours first EP, including “Home,” are also through Futures until the band’s deal with Capitol/Polydor kicks in January 2025).
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Over time, Futures Music Group will grow to include more indie labels (and artists) under its umbrella. It also intends to build an internal team for digital marketing, sync licensing, sales, content production and more that can be shared between the individual labels.
At Futures, artists are signed to license-based deals, keeping master ownership in the artists’ hands, and the royalty split is kept equitable between the label and artist. In some instances, the split moves further into the artist’s favor after certain profit thresholds are met. This allows for what Davies calls “maximum incentive alignment” between both parties, and it rewards the artist for success.
The deal terms and options are “shorter and less onerous than most competitors,” Davies adds. “Our thing is if we do a great job, then we hope people will just keep rolling through and working with us,” says Wallace. “Keeping artists happy is the name of the game. We don’t want to work with an artist who is only working with us because of a contract. There are not many successful record campaigns that come out of a relationship where the artist is unhappy,” adds Davies.
The company also wants to do right by songwriters. The label group has pledged from now on to give points on every master to any non-producing and non-performing songwriter from the label’s share. (Exact deal points for this are handled on a case-by-case basis).
Along with their commitment to artists, Davies and Wallace of Futures have also spent the last few years studying and investing in how new technology will disrupt the music business. Davies, for his part, co-founded the start-up Medallion, which helped artists like Santigold, Greta Van Fleet, Tycho and more build and own direct relationships with their most passionate fans using web3 technology. The co-founders have also been strategic investors in Big Effect, a digital marketing platform founded by Spotify and UMG alum Mike Biggane, and Notes.fm, a royalty management platform from Stem co-founder Tim Luckow.
“We believe the future of the music industry has never been brighter for artists and the independent sector,” says Davies. “The industry has reached what we believe to be the largest inflection point in the history of the label system, as we are moving into a new music economy that is rightly trending towards artist ownership. We believe there’s a meaningful opportunity for a well-financed and resourced label group with a proven track record to deliver major results for artists on indie terms, which is what we’ve set out to build with Futures.”
The founding team includes: Davies (co-CEO), Wallace (co-CEO), Sarah Kesselman (CMO, general manager), Nicky Berger (COO) and Jeff Lin (CFO).
Attorneys for Jay-Z are now sparring with lawyers for New York City over whether he can use copyright termination to retake control of his debut album Reasonable Doubt – a crucial question ahead of court-ordered auction of Roc-A-Fella Records co-founder Damon Dash’s one-third stake in the label.
The city’s child services agency, which wants to collect the more than $193,000 that Dash owes in unpaid child support, warned a federal judge in court filings last week that Jay-Z was using “false” threats of an approaching termination to drive down the price of Dash’s stake in his company.
“Jay-Z’s statements to the press have poisoned the environment for the auction,” wrote Gerald Singleton, an attorney for the city. “Those statements are false and extremely damaging to the City’s interests in ensuring that the auction will generate sufficient funds to satisfy all existing child support arrearages and secure future child support payments.”
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But on Monday, longtime Jay-Z lawyer Alex Spiro fired right back on behalf of Roc-A-Fella, saying neither the rapper nor his company had issued any such statements and that there was “no merit to NYC’s accusations.” But he also confirmed that Jay-Z was in fact seeking to use termination to take back the album, Reasonable Doubt, in 2031 – and that prospective buyers could make up their own minds about what that means.
“Potential bidders have every right to assess whether they believe the notice of termination would be effective in 2031,” Spiro told the judge.
As early as next month, the U.S. Marshals Service will sell off Dash’s 33.3% interest in Roc-A-Fella Inc., an entity whose only real asset is the sound recording copyright to Reasonable Doubt. Though the court-ordered auction was originally intended to pay off an $823,000 judgment in a civil lawsuit, New York City jumped into the case over Dash’s child support debt. The state of New York later did the same, claiming Dash owes more than $8.7 million in back taxes and penalties.
The owners of the other two-thirds of Roc-A-Fella — label co-founders Jay-Z (Shawn Carter) and Kareem “Biggs” Burke — have already attempted to stop the auction, including making changes to the company’s bylaws and intervening in the lawsuit. But a federal judge rejected such opposition in February, and the sale could take place as early as Oct. 21.
As the auction approaches, a minimum purchase price has been set at $3 million. But it has remained unclear what exactly a potential winner would be buying.
Streaming and other royalties from Reasonable Doubt would likely provide a buyer with a revenue stream; since its 1996 release, the album has racked up 2.2 million equivalent album units in the U.S., according to Luminate, including 21,500 units so far this year. But the eventual buyer also would be a minority owner in a company controlled by hostile partners, with little ability to perform typical due diligence on the asset they’re about to purchase.
Another key question mark for buyers – and the source of this week’s dispute with NYC – is just how long Roc-A-Fella will continue to own its only real asset.
The termination right, a provision created by congress in the 1970s, empowers authors to reclaim ownership of copyrighted works decades after selling them away. If Jay is eligible for it, termination would allow him to win back the rights to his sound recording of Reasonable Doubt roughly 35 years after he released the album, meaning 2031.
But in their court filing on Friday, attorneys for New York City child services said Jay-Z was not, in fact, eligible for termination. They argued that he had created the album as so-called “work for hire” under a written contract with Roc-A-Fella – meaning the company had always been the legal owner of the copyright, and there were no rights to Jay to take back in the first place.
“He has claimed that he has a termination right under the Copyright Act and that the rights to Reasonable Doubt will revert to him in six years,” wrote Singleton, the NYC attorney. “In fact, he has no such termination right and RAF is entitled to the renewal term [and] will own the copyright rights until the year 2098.”
To address the problem, the city asked the judge to issue a definitive ruling on whether Jay-Z is eligible for termination – and to postpone the auction until he does so.
But in his response Monday, Spiro argued that the city “has no right to seek such a ruling.” He said the demand was premature, since Jay-Z will not formally take back the album until 2031, and that a city agency had no legal standing to raise such questions in court.
“Put simply, this is not the appropriate time, forum, or case to litigate any issues relating to Jay-Z’s notice of termination,” Spiro wrote. “This Court should therefore reject NYC’s request for an impermissible advisory opinion as to the effectiveness of Jay-Z’s notice of termination.”
Tucker Wetmore has inked a record deal with UMG Nashville, in partnership with Back Blocks Music. Wetmore is managed by Back Blocks Music and is signed to WME for global booking representation.
Earlier this year, Wetmore broke through with the hits “Wine into Whiskey” and “Wind Up Missin’ You.” “Wine Into Whiskey” earned Wetmore his Billboard Hot 100 debut in March, while both songs reached the top 20 on Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart.
He follows with his latest release “What Would You Do?” while “Wind Up Missin’ You” will go to country radio with an impact date of June 10, via EMI Records Nashville.
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“Before I moved to Nashville, I sat down and made a list of goals for myself,” Wetmore said in a statement. “And for the last four years, I have been working toward them every single day. Today I have checked off one of the biggest I set for myself… signing a record deal. My new family at UMG Nashville checked all of my boxes. The drive, dedication, love and respect we all have for each other outside of music is the real reason why I’m so proud to now call them partners, along with my team at Back Blocks Music. With the fire that has already been started, I couldn’t pick better people to pour gasoline on it. I couldn’t be more excited and confident about this next chapter in my career. I love you all, thank you for continuing to make my dreams come true. God is so good.”
“The world has only seen a glimpse of what Tucker is going to do for country music,” UMG Nashville Chair & CEO, Cindy Mabe, said in a statement. “His strong connection to his purpose shines a light on what has helped build him: his family, his faith, his team and his fans. Representing country music from the Pacific Northwest, Tucker’s distinctive sound, soulful lyrics and his instantly likable personality bring the perfect ingredients to nurture and grow a lasting career. UMG Nashville is so honored to work with Tucker, Rakiyah and Back Blocks Music in building the next era of country music history.”“I’m honored to continue working with Tucker as he expands his team with the brilliant minds at UMG,” shared Back Blocks Music founder/CEO Rakiyah Marshall. “What Tucker and our Back Blocks team have built together in less than three years has been incredible, but it’s just the beginning. I am blown away by the character, talent and work ethic that make up who Tucker is as an artist and human, and am so thankful to be on this ride with the newest UMG Nashville artist.”
Wetmore, who was named Billboard‘s Country Rookie of the Month for May, recently opened shows for Kameron Marlowe‘s Strangers Tour and is set to join Luke Bryan‘s Farm Tour in September. Wetmore also has two songs featured on the soundtrack to the movie Twisters, including “Already Had It” and “Steal My Thunder” (with Conner Smith).
Country music duo LOCASH has launched Galaxy Label Group in partnership with Studio2Bee Entertainment, founded by veteran Nashville music executives Skip Bishop and Butch Waugh.
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BBR Music Group/BMG Nashville will distribute the label, Billboard can reveal.
LOCASH’s Preston Brust and Chris Lucas celebrated the newly-announced venture on Wednesday evening (Feb. 28) during an event in downtown Nashville, just as radio programmers descended on Music City for the annual Country Radio Seminar.
“We’re all blessed to be part of this music business and we have a chance to do what our passion is, and to have Skip and Butch back on the team with us, it’s great,” Lucas tells Billboard during a Zoom call with LOCASH and Bishop.
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In launching the label, LOCASH, who formed in 2008, draw on nearly two decades of experience as artists and writers. In 2016, they earned a top 5 Country Airplay hit with “I Love This Life,” and followed with the chart-topper “I Know Somebody,” top 20 song “Ring on Every Finger,” and in 2019, earned another top 5 Country Airplay hit with “One Big Country Song.”
“We’ve talked about doing a label for years,” Lucas says. “Some of the best success we’ve had was when were have been more hands-on with it.”
Bishop and Waugh had previously worked on the campaign for “I Love This Life,” and the full-fledged staff that Studio2Bee has with marketing and radio reps, “seemed like a perfect match,” Bishop explains.
A nod to the label’s name, Brust says the ideal artist roster will include genres beyond country, though they haven’t signed additional artists just yet. The hard lessons LOCASH has learned along the way as artists and songwriters influence the business model for the new label.
L-R: PETER STRICKLAND, GENERAL MANAGER, BMG; KATIE KERKHOVER, VICE PRESIDENT, A&R, BMG; SKIP BISHOP, STUDIO2BEE ENTERTAINMENT; PRESTON BRUST, LOCASH;
CHRIS LUCAS, LOCASH; JON LOBA, PRESIDENT, FRONTLINE RECORDINGS, NORTH AMERICA, BMG; QUINN BAUDUCCO, SENIOR MANAGER, BUSINESS & LEGAL AFFAIRS, BMG; JOJAMIE HAHR, EVP, RECORDED MUSIC, BMG NASHVILLE
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“The main thing that we’ve seen on some bigger labels is that sometimes some artists would be to the side because another artist was hot at that moment,” Brust says. “We’ve always talked about that and how it’s not fair, because there is so much talent in this city.”
Galaxy Label Group will also serve as home to LOCASH’s new music; BMG Nashville’s Wheelhouse imprint had previously released their albums. The duo has been in the studio working on their upcoming album, with their first single, “Hometown Home,” expected to release in the spring.
“This song just stepped into the roots of what Locash is about,” Lucas says. “It’s about hometown love and being the guy who says, ‘We could go anywhere in the world and start a new life together, but if you want to stay here in our hometown, that’s good with me too, because I just want to be with you.’ It’s one of those messages that is relatable and hits you in the heart.”
Beyond signing artists, Galaxy Label Group aims to aid songwriters. The duo says Galaxy Label Group will give songwriters a percentage of the master royalties (out of the label’s share) on every recording for the label, including Locash’s upcoming album. The commitment could mean a boost for songwriters, whose incomes have seen significant, negative impact in the steaming era. When physical albums sold regularly, songwriters would be paid on each album sold, earning a solid income regardless of whether their song was picked as a radio single. But with streams comprising the bulk of music consumption, songwriters are increasingly dependent on radio hits, losing out on the valuable income avenue physical records once provided.
The commitment follows in the footsteps of some smaller indie labels such as Facet Records and Good Boy Records, as well as individual artists such as Kip Moore, who in 2017 pledged an annual bonus for songwriters.
“We want to be fair,” Lucas says. “It’s one of those things where if we sit down and before the album comes out, we say, ‘This [percentage] seems fair.’ We could get down the road and if the single just goes into another realm, who knows? We could change a percentage at that point.”
Ultimately, Brust says, they hope to “create new revenue streams in this the industry.” He adds, “Nashville is built on the song. The best songwriters in the world—I would put us up against anyone. Nashville has it, period. There’s no one better than that. We want songwriters to have a fair chance. If someone’s getting 700 million streams and the songwriter’s barely seeing a dime, that’s not fair. We want to get a part of this ahead of the game and get a fair percentage for them. That’s what we’re most excited about right now—giving back to the community that has been there for us.”
On Friday (Jan. 5), the band’s fans began expressing concern online upon noticing that its website and socials had been wiped clean. As a source confirms to Billboard, the fresh start follows the expiration of the band’s 20-year contract with Atlantic Records in late December, meaning the Hayley Williams-fronted group is now a free agent. […]
Kevin “Chief” Zaruk and Simon Tikhman, co-founders of entertainment and talent management company The Core Entertainment (TCE), have partnered with Universal Music Group (UMG) to launch the global label venture The Core Records. The label venture will sign and develop new artists, working with UMG’s global network of labels. Tikhman and Zaruk, who were both […]
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Nicki Minaj plans to level up on an executive level in 2023. The Queens rapper has announced she is launching her own record label.
As spotted on Complex the rapper’s return to Queens Radio not only released her newest single “Red Ruby Da Sleeze” but also made a major reveal. While sharing some updates she said “there’s a big announcement coming. Well, I have a record label now,” she explained. “I believe so strongly in loyalty, and because I’ve spend my whole life giving to others that turn around and sh*t on me.”
She went on to give some detail on her conversation with Republic Records’ co-president Wendy Goldstein who she was texting during the show. “I said, ‘Wendy, we got to do this big. I’m a female; you a female, mamma. You got to do this right. We gotta do it right. I don’t want no little itty-bitty ting ting. I want to do it right,” Nicki Minaj said. The “Bang Bang” MC also made it clear that her unnamed label will be very diverse and confirmed her starting artist roster of Nana Fofie, Tate Kobang, Rico Danna, and London Hill.
In discussing her newest venture she recalled her early days at Young Money Records and how that pushed her to start a label. “When I came in this game, I didn’t have no paperwork with Lil Wayne” she said. “But he had us on tour, he had us in a studio, he was getting on my mixtapes.” She added, “I understand the importance of having somebody else doing the heavy lifting for you. I understand why people are coming out and they’re so, you know, microwaveable and they’re here today and gone tomorrow, because there’s no structure.”
At this time there is no date on when she will release the label’s first project.
Photo: Bernard Smalls
Nicki Minaj is officially launching her own record label.
The superstar rapper announced the big news during her Queen Radio show on Friday (March 3), revealing that the new label’s artist roster includes Nana Fofie, Tate Kobang, Rico Danna and London Hill.
“I have a record label now,” Minaj said, teasing that the company’s name will be revealed at a later date. “When I get behind an artist, y’all know how I do s— for people that’s not even signed to me. Imagine what I’ma do for the ones that’s signed.”
Minaj said that her longtime affiliate Patty Lauren (aka Patty Duke) will serve in an A&R role at the new label.
The Queen of Rap’s first single of 2023, “Red Ruby Da Sleeze,” dropped Friday through Young Money/Republic. It marks her first solo song since last year’s Billboard Hot 100-topping smash “Super Freaky Girl.”
On Friday’s Queen Radio show, Minaj told listeners that she was texting with Republic Records co-president Wendy Goldstein, who was encouraging her to make the label announcement during the program.
“I said, ‘Wendy, we got to do this big. I’m a female; you a female, mamma. You got to do this right. We gotta do it right. I don’t want no little itty-bitty ting ting. I want to do it right,’” the rapper said.
Minaj added that her new record label will feature a variety of musical acts. “Don’t think my label is just rap, or Black, or anything,” she said. “We got some other genres of music.”
Minaj also touched on the influential role Lil Wayne played early in her career, and how she hopes to do the same for up-and-coming artists on her label.
“When I came in this game I didn’t have no paperwork with Lil Wayne. But he had us on tour, he had us in a studio, he was getting on my mixtapes,” she said. “So I understand the importance of having somebody else doing the heavy lifting for you. I understand why people are coming out and they’re so, you know, microwaveable and they’re here today and gone tomorrow, because there’s no structure. There’s no real person that believes in them. That’s like, ‘Nah, I’m gonna make it my business to see you shine.’”
Listen to a replay of Queen Radio through Amp, and check out in-studio photos from Friday’s show on Minaj’s Instagram below.
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