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For some of the best independent music from artists you need to know, click, listen and follow https://spoti.fi/3td3Xol. Listen to the song in the number one spot this week from Mercy Club Help Me to Love. Know any Indie artists that need to make the list? Send them to me, if we dig ‘em, they take the number one spot.
This week, 360 Record Deals - Let’s go -
360 Deals, also called multi-rights deals are exclusive label deals where the label takes a percentage of all, that’s ALL of an artist's revenue streams. This could include publishing, live concerts, merchandise, endorsements, books, movies, ringtones, babysitting, dog walking - EVERYTHING! 360 deals have become increasingly common in major label contracts because sales of recorded music ain’t what they used to be, especially post internet take-over and recently even worse since the pandemic. So the two sides of this is, in a traditional deal (especially back in the day), if worst case scenario your records didn’t sell, you would get shelved, and eventually dropped. However in this multi-rights deal the label might say, you let’s put you on tour, or with a nice size social media presence we can sell a good amount of merch, or maybe you have a few songs on TV shows, now the label can see a ROI on their investment, and you make money as well, therefore everyone is happy - or at least they are.
Those that say 360 deals are positive say it’s good for artist development. According to Lyor Cohen, former head of DefJam and now Global head of music at YouTube, having a 360 deal with artists allows a label to sign fewer acts to the roster, which means more time and energy can be invested into each person so it’s only fair that the label also takes a percentage from additional revenue streams. Steve Rifkind, another powerful label executive who founded Loud Records, kind of agrees but with the caveat that he believes he should only take a piece of what he helped to create saying; “If I get them a brand deal, a tour, [a] publishing deal, then I feel I deserve a piece. I don’t feel as if I deserve anything if I don’t bring anything to the table.” Therein Lies the biggest issue with the 360, profiting off of what you didn’t earn. There was a time when being both label and management was considered unethical, not illegal, just a huge conflict of interest. So in these 360 deals labels “say” they will commit to bigger and longer promotion periods, act as management, conduct artist development and look for out of the box opportunities IF they can get a bigger piece of the pie. Ultimately you and your lawyer must decide what is in your best interest, because isn’t that what we all really want - a bigger piece of the pie? 🥧
This week's #IAOTW - Independent Artists Of The Week is Mercy Club - former funk songwriters, producers and band members now doing the Lord's work. Get more info when you click on the blog.
For more information on this or to hire Unda The Hat as your brand or label consultant send a message via undathehat.com. See you next Tuesday.