Beat maker explains how the music industry is changing over time and how new opportunities are opening up both for artists and producers. This is a great article for music and hip hop publications.
A lot of producers are really struggling right now to sell beats,
but honestly you can make more now than at any other point in history... Plus, you can do it a lot easier and without nearly as much of your time being wasted!
I understand that the music industry seems to be going down the pothole, but I wouldn't get caught in the hype. I can see as well as you can that the major labels are selling less and less records, even with big names like 50 Cent and Eminem selling half as much as they used to.
I don't disagree that the major labels are definitely declining in terms of success. This, however, should not be used as an excuse to cover up the truth about music in general. It depends on where you're standing, believe me... Though the major artists are falling off, the independent music world is booming.
For instance, from where I'm standing I can tell you that records are still flying off the shelves in the form of digital downloads from services such as iTunes. There is also hope for producers in this industry, because beats are selling just as fast as well.
The traditional way of doing things has definitely flown out the window, but there is still plenty of hope alive and well. One thing that's changed the game dramatically is the fact that computers have made everything way more competitive. Any half wit can purchase an affordable beat making program and call themselves a producer, but that doesn't mean you can't succeed with flying colors.
If you're willing to take the risk of starting a small business online, then you may just have what it takes to run a small beat selling website. It might interest you to know that it won't take very many dollars to get yourself in business, so there's not a whole lot of risk involved. This is one of the benefits of online business in general. You can start with a few bucks in your pocket.
How about you start thinking to the future... Why sell beats to major record labels if they're all crashing anyway? Wouldn't you rather be a part of a business that is rising instead of falling? Have you considered that there are hundreds of thousands of rappers who are independent and need beats? Why not sell to them?
Let's get past the obvious... Yes, record labels pay more per beat and that is why you think it's a better deal. The bigger company's have more money to blow and so it's quick cash in the scheme of things. But with beat selling online, you don't need to sell Exclusive Rights. You can sell Leases again and again to the same beats without ever giving up ownership. This means every beat could make 100 sales instead of just 1!
If you're looking to make money this way, you need to get involved in the online communities for beat makers. Out of all the websites online today, the best place to sell beats remains to be Soundclick. If you start a strong campaign on that website you will surely start racking in some serious change. Soundclick is full of rappers and producers alike, so get your feet wet and join in.
