Streaming sites VS record labels.

Streaming sites are a convenience that most people use to have an endless amount of their favourite music at the end of their fingertips. For example, Spotify is one of the biggest names in the current market with over 100 million people using its service. With a catalogue of over 30 million songs that users can listen to anywhere, at any time.

Even if you don’t use Spotify, Apple music, Deezer, or any other well-known streaming site, they have not shied away from the headlines. In comparison to album sales, or radio, streaming sites are well known to be a little stingy when it comes to giving the artists the well-earned money they deserve. However, disregarding some of the negative press surrounding it, companies have gone from strength to strength.

It is in recent years streaming sites such as Spotify and Apple music, have cut out the middle man in the form of record labels. They have signed exclusive deals with artists, paying for their music videos, and in return giving the artist one of the biggest platforms in the world.

…but where does this leave the future of record labels?

I think everyone who owns an iTunes account remembers waking up in 2014 to a random U2 album, that most people had no idea how the hell it got there. Most people were quite rightly annoyed that music they most likely didn’t want in the first place had appeared, and when on shuffle made its unwanted appearance.

Although annoying to the large majority of people, it was in fact a very clever move made by Apple. In today’s society, we have a handful of very similar companies offering very similar things, all shouting pick me, pick me!! By doing this Apple done something, that no other company had done… maybe for good reason. However, it got everyone talking about the company, which primarily was what they wanted, and the old saying goes, ‘bad press is better than no press at all.’

Other companies have followed in their footsteps, offering their users exclusive content in the aim to draw in more listeners. Artists are more drawn to the idea as it gives them more creative control. As we develop into a more head strong world, where people no what they want and often don’t want to back down, having a streaming site represent you, and offer a place where millions of people can hear your material isn’t a bad idea.

On the other hand, record labels provide something for artists that streaming sites could never give. Labels often receive bad press… and maybe rightly so in some cases, for squeezing an artist into a commercialised shiny bubble, where they just become a means of financial gain. However, saying that not all labels are guilty of this. Some labels provide creative support that will boost artists to their full potential.

Netflix, the film alternative to a music streaming site, has banished the days of going to blockbuster on a Friday night. Now flicking through Netflix for an hour before deciding you have seen them all is a daily routine. This is mirrored in music streaming. With an endless amount of music, it’s almost too much to take in, and you can spend hours flicking through recommended playlists. Personally, the novelty of going to a record store and finding an album that you love is slightly more rewarding, and can make you appreciate the music more.

Unless you have a crystal ball, and are able to see into the future, it is difficult to predict how the future of music publishing is going to turn out. However, with the world of technology forever evolving and the way society is changing, you can predict massive change in the next 10 years of how the music industry will keep spinning.

From what can be seen now, labels will have to morph into something slightly different to keep relevant to artists, and not let companies that are only really interested in the money artists can provide take over the industry.