Some of the biggest names in artist and label services have set out the decisive factors behind the rise of the dynamic and competitive sector.
The booming segment takes centre stage in a special report in the August edition of Music Week, which reflects on its recent success, analyses the main talking points and look ahead at what's next.
Roo Currier, UK general manager of Paris-headquartered independent digital distributor IDOL, said that while labels will always be essential to the ecosystem, some acts are looking for additional control over their budgets, release schedule and artistic direction.
"It’s important that these alternatives are available," said Currier.
The company's roster includes City Slang, Erased Tapes, Fire Records, Full Time Hobby, Glitterbeat, Gondwana, Hassle Records and Kitsuné.
“There is a misperception that a distributor is passive in making a release plan and generally doesn't add value to the process," added Currier. "As a rule, we only agree to work with music we are passionate about and when we’re confident that we can add value to the great work they are doing. This is a cornerstone to our ethos.”
Finding the right home, and the right team with the set-up that works for the artist at that stage is the key to success
Vanessa Bosåen
Elsewhere, Vanessa Bosåen, president of Universal Music Group’s global label services and distribution division Virgin Music Group, said that "choice" is at the heart of any decision made by an artist or label.
"Different deals suit different artists at various points in their careers, and it’s a brilliant thing that artists today have so much choice in how they want to partner," she said. "Finding the right home, and the right team with the set-up that works for the artist at that stage is the key to success."
The firm works with artists including Beabadoobee, Tom Odell, Clairo, Underworld, The Kooks, Van Morrison, Richard Ashcroft and St Vincent.
"Trust, relationship, and communication beat everything else, always," continued Bosåen. "Once you have those as a foundation, creativity will be braver, ideas will flow, and results will compound."
Back-to-back Music Week Award winners The Orchard UK, meanwhile, boasts clients such as Big Brother Recordings, The Other Songs Records, Boy Better Know, Xtra Mile Recordings, Blossoms, Jack Savoretti and Raye.
"Clear, strong and consistent two-way communication is imperative to optimise reach and influence in such a congested market," said Jasmine Bodkin, VP label management at the Sony-backed business. "The 'glue' is passion for the music, collaboration and relevant expertise to achieve success. The question then becomes what does success look like? Is it a chart position, revenue, followers, increased fanbase, conversion of casual consumption to the creation of superfans? This takes this back to implicitly understanding the vision.
"And finally, as with any meaningful long-term partnership/relationship there must be an element of compromise, especially as the plans and goals evolve."
Whatever the nature of the partnership, our artists and labels can rest assured that they will always remain in control of their art
Nichal Sethi
TikTok entered the fray in 2022 by launching SoundOn, an all-in-one platform for music marketing and distribution designed to help artists and labels share and promote their music to TikTok’s global community – and to all major music streaming services worldwide.
In its first three years it has made a chart impact with tracks including Pink Lemonade (Str8 Reload) by LeoStayTrill & Mr Reload It, Abracadabra by Wes Nelson feat. Craig David and Show Me Love by WizTheMC and Bees & Honey.
Head of SoundOn EMEA Nichal Sethi described SoundOn as “the perfect fit” for artists whose audience is primarily on TikTok, or who want to grow their audience on the platform.
"All of our artist and label service deals are tailored to being extremely friendly to both artists and labels while still giving them the support necessary to propel them forward in their career," said Sethi. "That can be in the form of a springboard to launch as an early-stage independent artist releasing music for the first time – like Charlie Jeer – or providing a full suite of services across promotion and marketing for more established artists like Tion Wayne, or working with labels on their content and release schedules and putting together writing camps with the likes of Tribal Trap.
"Whatever the nature of the partnership, our artists and labels can rest assured that they will always remain in control of their art while not being tied into long exclusive deals, and all at a very friendly rate."
Paris-based global digital music firm Believe works with labels such as Fabric Records, Rinse Hospital Records, Bella Union, Young Poet, CR2 Records and Mahogany Records, alongside artists including Mura Masa, Grace Davies, Potter Payper, Rhys Lewis, Craig David and Strandz.
Believe's director of label & artist solutions Panos Polimatidis said the services sector has been able to flourish because "artists want to own their masters, understand their data and build a career on their own terms".
"These are essentially partnerships that allow artists to retain control while accessing scalable services like global distribution, marketing and real-time data insights," added Polimatidis. "As artists seek more autonomy and tailored support, we're seeing this model become more and more popular and one that many global players will have to adapt to."
As an artist and label services partner, we are also here to add value our clients may not be able to find on their own
Liz Northeast
Berlin, London and New York-based !K7 was acquired by Create Music Group (CMG) in April this year. The independent music company is home to imprints such as !K7 Records, Strut and 7K! and partners with labels including International Anthem, David Byrne’s Luaka Bop in New York and Bradley Zero’s Rhythm Section.
“Create Music Group’s recent acquisition of !K7 has given us access to significant new funding and advanced technology platforms, allowing us to grow on our own terms,” said head of artist & label services Adrian Hughes. “This enables us to build on and expand our services while developing more flexible deal structures tailored to what individual artists and labels actually need.”
Across Downtown-owned Fuga and Downtown Artist & Label Services, clients include Insomniac, Naxos, Better Noise, Marathon Artists, Mascot, Armada, Nina Nesbitt and André Rieu
"Ultimately, we are a service provider, working in service – and partnership – with and for our clients," said Fuga’s SVP, EMEA, Liz Northeast. "When we sign a deal, we sign it because we have a shared vision, passion and drive for success. A successful partnership should involve open and transparent communication, shared ideas, collaboration, flexibility and adaptability.
"As an artist and label services partner, we are also here to add value our clients may not be able to find on their own – global teams, creative services, deep data and cutting edge technology. We deliver all this so our clients can focus on what’s most important for them – developing their talent, and music."
Subscribers can read the full special report here.
