"...musicians will have to increasingly rely on touring, merchandise sales and endorsement deals to make up for lost album sales." Yes, yes they will, just like they've always done because of how RIAA members take the large part of the profits from record sales. Again, the only ones for whom anything changes are RIAA members.
yes, that’s largely true. and i’d say the extent to which labels profited over artists historically is pretty fucked-up. but, riaa itself aside, labels do serve a real purpose and are a valuable player in the space, like them or not.. and going from having the labels asymmetrically commanding industry profits (largely derived from record sales) to artists now doing the same (largely derived from other streams like touring, merch, …) may feel like ‘justice’ but isn’t an optimal state. they may have excess profits to coast on for a while but, in the long term, if both artists and labels can’t monetize the end result is less good music out there.
this disconnect in the market has hindered progress for too long (and i do blame the labels for it), but the solution should be shifting to a more equitable split of overall profits that reflects the value record companies generate in building-up an artist’s brand..
labels do serve a real purpose and are a valuable player in the space
I have no disagreement with that. The problem is that the RIAA, and by extension the labels, make it really hard to sympathize. I have a long list of things that aren't much individually, but it boils down to not treating customers with contempt. Logically, I know that labels offer value in the market. Emotionally, I view them as greedy bastards looking to screw everyone from artists to end-customers, as long as they get theirs. Emotion overwhelms logic, and the manifestation of that is when I see a chart such as the one in the article, I just can't bring myself to care much.
yes, that’s largely true. and i’d say the extent to which labels profited over artists historically is pretty fucked-up. but, riaa itself aside, labels do serve a real purpose and are a valuable player in the space, like them or not.. and going from having the labels asymmetrically commanding industry profits (largely derived from record sales) to artists now doing the same (largely derived from other streams like touring, merch, …) may feel like ‘justice’ but isn’t an optimal state. they may have excess profits to coast on for a while but, in the long term, if both artists and labels can’t monetize the end result is less good music out there.
this disconnect in the market has hindered progress for too long (and i do blame the labels for it), but the solution should be shifting to a more equitable split of overall profits that reflects the value record companies generate in building-up an artist’s brand..