Major vs Independent

Major vs Independent

Who are the big 4 music labels?

The big 4 music labels who dominate the industry are; Warner Music, Sony BMG, Universal and EMI (which is no longer a major record label as it has been bought out by Universal.

How do they function?

Record labels are the companies that market recorded music and recorded music videos. Record labels engage in a wide range of functions in the music industry including new artist recruitment and development, music publishing and copyright enforcement.

What are Subsidiary Labels?

A subsidiary label is a label which is owned by a bigger and major record label and receives the money from the major label in order to sign deals with artists and market their music. An example of a major record label with many subsidiaries is Universal Music Group. Their subsidiary labels include;

• Interscope Records
• Geffen Records
• A&M Records
• Capitol Music Group
• Republic Records
• Island Records
• Def Jam Recordings
• Caroline Records
• Universal Music Group Nashville
• Universal Music Latin Entertainment
• The Verve Label Group
• Universal Music Enterprises
• Eagle Rock Entertainment
• Universal Music UK
• Universal Music France
• Universal Music Japan
• Universal Music Sweden

Some of these labels also have subsidiary labels who are owned/created by major artists such as The Weeknd and Eminem.

Independent Labels

Independent Music Labels are labels which are not back by a corporate backer and fund themselves and there are some notable differences by independent labels and major record labels, such as;

• Major labels wont let their artists keep rights or control over their music, whereas independent labels do, meaning they can sell it to adverts, film, television etc.
• Most major labels give their artist 10-15% royalty of their music whereas independent labels give them 40-75% in royalty.

An example of a very successful record label which is independent is the Domino Recording Company. This company is based in London and have artists such as the Artic Monkeys signed to them. They are in fact the longest running and most successful indie label. They have had artists with albums and singles reaching number one in the UK's charts.

Another well known independent music label is Boy Better Know. This label was created in 2005 by JME, Wiley and Skepta, who have all gone on to be very successful grime artists. They have also attracted the attention of worldwide star Drake and have previously collaborated with them.