Make a Joyful Noise!
by Kenny Love

Free At Last?  Free At Last!  Thank Technology, I'm Free 
At Last!  I can only imagine this becoming the standard 
battle cry of many a major label recording artist in the not-
so-distant future.  A cry in response to he or she regaining 
his or her "civil" rights , are freed from slavery by Master 
labels and, subsequently, gain enough self-esteem and 
confidence to go it alone.  Brrrr…


Don't believe me?  Then, witness such superstars as 
Prince, Madonna, and a myriad of others quickly realizing 
that trimming the excess fat by cutting out unnecessary 
"middlemen," or "middlewomen," as the case may be, 
ain't such a bad deal.


I remember "back in the day" (1970's-1980's) when being 
an independent recording artist was a joke!  You led as 
lonely an existence as the neighborhood crackhead.  No 
one in the industry took you seriously!  Sure, you could get 
the money and have a professional state-of-the-art 
recording, and top graphic design for your 12-inch vinyl 
cover.  But, so what?


What upstanding music director or disc jockey would put 
his or her reputation on the line by playing your stuff?  
Once they realized that the return address did not say 
Warner, RCA, MCA, Capitol, Motown, or some other big 
shot label, your goose was cooked.  There went wasted 
time, money, and effort…right down the toilet…literally.


How on earth could you ever hope to have any of the major 
daily newspaper music editors or major trades such as 
Rolling Stone, Spin, or Musician review it?  Perhaps worst 
of all, you could kiss organized network distribution 
goodnight without expecting a morning wake-up call.


Yes, indeed, you were ultimately reduced to sticking your 
records in the trunk of your car, then peddling them to as 
many small out-of-the-way stations as possible.  And God 
help you if you were trying to "break" your record in 
Texas during the summer months.  As hot as Texas gets, 
perhaps that is from where the cuddly name, 'wax', was 
derived when referring to vinyl.


But, indies are having the last laugh.  I double over 
laughing at the 180-degree turnaround.  Somewhere, at 
some point, there were enough rejected musicians who got 
finally fed up with receiving rejected product months later, 
perhaps even years later (I am one of them).  Rejected 
enough to begin a formal independent movement, which 
spun into many difference micro-movements and 
networks, to arrive at the independent environment that is 
so prevalent today.


Today, the Record Pool Directors, Music Directors, Disc 
Jockeys, Press Editors, and Distributors couldn't care less 
what the return address says.  If it is produced well, fits the 
format, can be supported with a convincing enough story, 
along with a track record (pun intended), you're in like my 
man Flint.


In fact, today, the majors have, for the most part, 
surrendered in the war of "breaking" records, opting to let 
the indies wage it among themselves.  When the smoke 
clears, and depending on who is still standing among the 
indies, they swoop down and scoop up like the Red Cross.


Much of this independent success can be attributed to the 
affordability of technology to the consumer combined with 
the communication power and speed of the Internet.  
Distribution, traditionally, the most difficult aspect to 
attain, is now an option as the capabilities to download 
music files and purchase directly online grows more 
appeasing every day.  And, Major label artists are also 
recognizing it and following in hot pursuit.


Perhaps, this article was meant to only serve as a pep talk 
to those indie artists who may feel they are alone in their 
quests.  Trust me…you are not alone.  Thousands of 
musicians across the world, at this very moment, are 
working on their projects.  And, somewhere in that 
independent haystack are, at least, one Gold, Platinum, and 
Multi-Platinum needle with Grammy thread through the 
eyes.


Who knows?  Yours just may be one of those threaded 
needles.  Now, if we can only get musicians and their 
managers to start forcing those club managers into a 
contract for "live" performances, we will have truly 
reached The Promised Land.


Editor's Note:  A man whose biggest fear is being aboard a 
non-stop flight from New York City to Manhattan, Kenny 
Love is also a National Record Promoter and Press 
Publicist.  Promoting all genres of music, he works with 
"indies" on a "back-end" deal, saving them enormous up-
front service fees.  Get complete information on his 
services by sending an Email request to 
sachjainfo@smartbotpro.net.