So You Want To Sign With a Label…

Seldom does a week go by on Quora without someone wanting advice on how to get signed to a label, how to approach a label, what labels look for, or some variation of those questions. What’s interesting is how many people still see a label as 1) a necessity and 2) a symbol of having “made it” as an artist. If you’re one of the many working towards a label contract there are a few things to keep in mind. Let’s go over them:

Be clear about your definition of “label”

When you talk about wanting to sign with a label, what exactly does that mean to you? A label can be anything from a kid in his dorm room with nothing other than a website with a “Dusty Possum Records” URL to a huge indie label like XL to a gigantic corporate entity such as UMG. It’s important to know what a label is, what the differences are between the majors, the big indies, the small indies, and the itty bitty “are you sure you’re really a label?” labels. Becoming knowledgeable about the differences between them is the first step in knowing which may best suit your needs.

What do you want from a label?

If you’re a solo artist, be very aware of what you want from a label and consider which type of label may best provide those things. If you’re in a band, it’s time for a band meeting. Everyone needs to have a say and agree on what will suit your band’s vision and where you see yourselves going. Do you want money for recording? Do you simply want to be able to say you got signed? Do you want the power of a big marketing machine? Do you want a label who will give you more freedom to run things your own way? Are you interested in a label with artists similar to you so perhaps you’ll be put on a bill with them? Would you prefer being the only act in your genre on a given label so you stand out more? Smaller labels may be more willing to give you more artistic freedom and allow you to create on your own terms but bigger labels have a great deal more money to spend on promotion, recording, touring, and the incidental expenses that undoubtedly come up. Caveat: As nice as that money is, it does come at a price. Recoupment is a word artists learn very early on. Think long and hard about how much money you want to owe a label and for how long. If that doesn’t sound appealing to you, add it to the list of considerations.

Consider This

A few random points:

1) The cycle used to go something like this: A & R guy/label would hear a band -> sign them -> give them money to record -> band would tour and do press to support album. Through that process the band would acquire its fanbase and over the course of a year or two each tour would get bigger and bigger.
Now the band must already be established, must already have a fairly big fanbase, must already have a strong social media presence, must already have a manager or be really efficient at self-managing, must already have an album recorded, must already be filling good-sized rooms in multiple cities, all before a label will even consider speaking with them. Does that sound like you or do you still need to become a bit more established?

2) A label you speak with, seriously speak with, will want to know specifics of your social media reach, how many actual human bodies come to your shows in each city, and how much merch you’re selling. Sure, it’s great that you have 175k Facebook likes, but Facebook likes don’t bring in revenue necessarily. Be prepared to show that your support is offline as well as online. Boring, business-y things like spreadsheets may be asked of you; be prepared.

3) There’s very little chance an artist signing a modern-day record contract is not signing a 360. Most 360s give the label a percentage of income from touring and merch. Some can give the label a cut of essentially everything including endorsements, album sales, appearance fees, sound recording rights…pretty much everything. 360s can also give the label more creative control over artists than they previously had. Things like website design and album artwork are often (though certainly not always) signed away to the label in a 360. The chance that you can negotiate a more equitable 360 is greater with a smaller label. The chance that you can negotiate the 360 away entirely is almost non-existent (but it can’t hurt to try).

4) The music industry of 2016 is a fairly a la carte affair. There are managers, booking agents, people to help with PR, marketing, social media, design, distribution, merchandise, and pretty much everything else you can imagine. A lot of artists find a great deal of frustration in how inaccessible labels can be; even smaller labels. Successful acts with chart success and a history of playing festivals aren’t immune to the defeat that can come when labels don’t reply to correspondence. That may be disheartening but keep in mind it’s not only possible to build a viable career sans label, for a number of artists at this point, it’s preferred.

You Still Want a Label?

If you’re still interested in pursuing the label route the individual label websites are the best places to go for information on whether or not they accept unsolicited submissions. The industry contact books are great but don’t always have the most up-to-date information on submission policies. Typically in the “Contact Us” or “About” sections you’ll find the label’s policy on accepting submissions. If they accept submissions, be sure to pay attention to any specifications mentioning MP3 or SoundCloud preference, the name of the person correspondence should be directed to, any blackout dates, or any other relevant information. Details matter and you want to make a good first impression. Following simple instructions on their website is a good start. *If it says they do not accept submissions, DO NOT SEND YOUR MUSIC! You will not look like career-driven go-getter. You’ll look like an unprofessional idiot who doesn’t pay attention.

There are so many types of labels it can be a bit daunting determining which to pursue. Submitting your music to many can never hurt but if you don’t hear from them, don’t lose heart. Labels are swamped with submissions so keep going about your career and if you hear from them, great; you’ll be an even stronger artist than you were in the material they heard. If you don’t hear from them, it’s not the end of the world. Labels aren’t a necessity anymore and you can assemble a team and run your career on your own terms, no recoupment required.