When I first got into music over a decade ago, my idea of success was to get famous and have a video on BET. My understanding of the music industry was pretty juvenile–the only people that I knew who earned a living doing it were mainstream artists who solidified a recording contract with a major label. To be fair, at the time it wasn’t as easy to make it as is today, especially independently, so the sentiment wasn’t all that far from the truth. Nevertheless, getting famous and working among the company of your favorite recording artists is certainly not the only way to achieve success throughout your career, and in fact, there are easier and more sustainable paths one can take. So despite all the emphasis on needing to go big time, this is really an overrated thing. Here are a few reasons why

The Rise Of Independent Artistry

The primary reason working with labels is overrated is because it is easier to make a living as an independent musician. It used to be that it costed a fortune to cut an album or have your songs put on the radio, but now it’s possible to record and publish your own music for pennies. Thus, the need to have a big label budget is gone and with them is the need for the big recording labels and studios. Nowadays many of the large format studios and record companies have all but gone by the wayside while DIY artists and home project studios are filling in their place. The reality is that the power of big labels are dwindling fast and their importance is becoming increasingly less relevant. Today, independent music is the future of the industry and is really where money is to be made.

Publishing & Management

Oftentimes when you work with a big label you will end up having to sign a publishing contract in exchange for their services. A publishing contract is an agreement between an artist and publisher to publish your writings or compositions. In exchange for your copyrights, the company will license your compositions for a price and will give you a cut of what is made, usually in the form of royalties. These royalties may take a long time to get back to you, so even though you’re working hard in the company of the biggest names you will not have the income to show for it. As a writer, your publishing rights are arguably your most important asset and should not be given up unless an exceptional deal is offered to you. It is probably wiser to maintain total control over your music by keeping your full publishing rights.

It is also customary for labels to assign you a manager that works for the company to organize your affairs. This could potentially mean that you will have less freedom to control the direction of your career. Working independently allows you–not a label–to be in control of your career.

Less Creative Freedom

When you involve a label in the production process they will want to have a say in the direction of the project you are putting out. This means that there will be several people from executives to producers all wanting to have a say in the process. And they will want to steer you in the direction of what they think will sell the most rather than delivering the best quality music you can create. Such limitations on what kind of music you can make may leave you feeling creatively stifled by the process.

Questionable Pay

You would like to think that working with the big money makers in the game will mean that you will get paid the big bucks. No doubt this can be a reality, but getting paid by labels isn’t always that simple. This can be a process that involves a lot of red tape. Believe me when I say that these individuals won’t be in any rush to pay you. Oftentimes a label will offer to pay you in the form of an advance, which is essentially a loan designed to keep you in debt with their company. They may also pay you in royalties that only kick in after a certain amount of sales are made. And even then, it isn’t uncommon for a label to delay these payments, or even worse, never compensate you for the work you’ve done. This is a risk you take working with any client whether it is your favorite artist or aspiring star, but it’s much easier to make sure that you will get paid for the work you do in a timely manner when you deal with clients one-on-one.