1. How Skrillex, OWSLA Records Are Helping Porter Robinson Make An EDM Name For Himself

    October 04, 2011 4:30 PM EDT Watership Get-Down: The Owsla label, co-owned by Skrillex, just dropped its first release: Porter Robinson's "Spitfire" E.P. Ever wonder how a 19-year old DJ/producer from North Carolina could reach the top of Beatport's Electr ...

  2. This Week In Music: Darius Van Arman of Jagjaguwar

    September 19, 2011 5:16 PM EDT This Week in Music features an elucidating conversation between Topspin Media's Ian Rogers and Darius Van Arman owner of the Jagjaguwar label. Based out of Bloomington, IN, the indie label's formidable roster includes Bon Iver, Okkervil ...

  3. Business Matters: Rock City Club Joins Long List of Services For Indie Musicians

    September 15, 2011 6:18 PM EDT Rock City Club Joins Long List of Services For Indie Musicians -- Rock City Club launched Thursday, making it the newest music service aimed at helping independent artists further their careers outside of the traditional music industry infrastruct ...

  4. This Week In Music: Dropkick Murphys' Ken Casey, Dangerbird Records' CEO Jeff Castelaz (Video)

    September 06, 2011 5:33 PM EDT On This Week in Music, Topspin Media Ian Rogers sits down with Ken Casey of the Dropkick Murphys and Jeff Castelaz, the band's manager as well the CEO of Dangerbird Records. Here Casey discusses how his band managed to sell four million recor ...

  5. Bjork, Domino Records' Laurence Bell To Receive AIM Independent Music Awards

    August 24, 2011 2:08 PM EDT The Association of Independent Music has announced that Björk and Domino Records founder Laurence Bell will each take home the inaugural Independent Music Awards at a ceremony this fall. Björk will receive the Outstanding Contribution to Music tro ...

  6. Billboard Pro's D.I.Y. 50 Indie Labels (Part I)

    August 15, 2011 12:19 PM EDT Just Give Me Indie: Culling the list down to 50 American indie labels was no easy task... Trying to get signed? Universal and Sony laugh you out the door? In Billboard's second-annual DIY Manual, we listed 20 great indie labels along with str ...

  7. Billboard Pro's D.I.Y. 50 Indie Labels (Part II)

    August 15, 2011 12:00 PM EDT This is part II of our 50 Best Indie Labels in America piece. To read part I, click here. Indie-tastic: Billboard Pro breaks down 50 American indie labels. 26. RVNG Intl. Pronounced "revenge," this boutique electronic label drops careful ...

  8. Indie Labels Calculate the Damage From Sony's London Warehouse Fire

    August 10, 2011 5:30 PM EDT The Sony DADC warehouse in Enfield, England, after Monday night's riots (Photo: David Goddard/Getty Images) As the United Kingdom endured another night of civil unrest and rioting yesterday, the country's music industry begins to access ...

  9. LabelLove Campaign Launched to Raise Money for Labels Affected by Sony Warehouse Fire

    August 10, 2011 7:40 AM EDT A campaign has been initiated to raise money for the labels that were affected by the fire that destroyed Sony's distribution center in London Monday night, according to The Guardian . The LabelLove website allows fans to donate money to the ...

  10. Sony Distribution Center Destroyed by London Rioters, Indie Labels 'Devastated'

    August 09, 2011 7:14 AM EDT A London warehouse containing stock for a number of U.K. independent labels -- including XL Recordings, 4AD, Beggars, Domino and Rough Trade - was destroyed by rioters during a third night of unrest in the British capital. The three-story building ...

  11. What Exactly Is An Independent Label? Differing Definitions, Different Market Shares

    July 18, 2011 6:28 PM EDT Back in 2007 (June 30, Billboard) when I asked what is an indie, I got a multitude of answers. Today, that question evokes even more complex answers because the landscape has not only changed dramatically but is still changing. Over the last 15 ye ...

  12. Merlin Sues LimeWire, Seeking at Least $5 Million

    July 15, 2011 3:40 PM EDT Merlin has filed a lawsuit against LimeWire, charging that the shuttered peer-to-peer software company has failed to fulfill an agreement to reach a settlement with the indie international music rights group. It is seeking at least $5 million. Ear ...

  13. U.K.'s AIM Announces Inaugural Independent Music Awards for November

    July 04, 2011 9:00 AM EDT The Fourth of July might celebrate the United States' liberation from its original U.K. masters, but Independence Day today sees the unveiling of the AIM Independent Music Awards, the first-ever dedicated ceremony hailing the U.K. indies sect ...

  14. Rich Bengloff, President of A2IM, Answers Six Questions

    June 22, 2011 2:23 PM EDT The American Association of Independent Music is holding its sixth annual Indie Week, June 20-23, with labels flying into New York to participate in educational seminars and good-old fashion brain-storming sessions. The not-for profit trade organi ...

  15. Billboard Pro, RootMusic, and Topspin Party Tonight in Los Angeles!

    June 15, 2011 10:47 AM EDT On the heels of last week's RootMusic-Topspin-Billboard Pro mixer in Nashville, we're doing it all over again: this time in the City of Angels. Billboard Pro will be holding court with our partners RootMusic and Topspin for a night of me ...

  16. Domino Recordings Launches Pop-Up Internet Radio Station

    June 06, 2011 5:44 PM EDT In this tech age where radio is supposed to be as relevant as a 78 rpm record, Domino Radio today launched a one-week-only online station which you can tune in at http://dominorad.io and can also be heard in the terrestrial world in London (at 87. ...

  17. Merlin Boasts Indie Labels' Digital Stats in Bid for Equal Terms

    May 23, 2011 1:19 PM EDT Among all the talk about the major label deals struck-and not struck-for cloud music services from Apple, Amazon and Google, it's easy to forget where the indie labels stand in all this. Typically, independent labels are the "easier" ...

  18. U.K.'s Indie Label Heads to Sell Music at Inaugural Independent Label Market

    May 20, 2011 3:45 PM EDT Independent Label Market - vol.1 Mix by Independent Label Market Mingled amongst the fresh fruits, vegetables and general goods filling the merchant stalls tomorrrow (May 21) at London's Berwick Market will be the owners of such storied U.K. ...

  19. Kickstarter Helps Musicians Raise $13 Million in First Two Years

    April 28, 2011 1:50 PM EDT In its first two years, Kickstarter has helped musicians raise $13.1 million in fan funding for their projects. This and other stats were made available in a company blog post celebrating its second birthday. Film is the category with the most ple ...

  20. Rethink Music's 'Financing Creativity' Panel Explores Concept of Fans as Patrons, Not Consumers

    April 26, 2011 3:05 PM EDT A major theme at the Rethink Music conference taking place in Boston Tuesday (April 26) and Wednesday, musicians and industry professionals are exploring how the industry can adjust, adapt and survive amid the encroachment of technologies that hav ...

  21. Billboard Pro Launches: A Career-Building Service For Developing Artists

    March 29, 2011 1:05 PM EDT Billboard is very excited for today's official launch of Billboard Pro, a subscription-based service for developing and independent artists, as well as the managers, labels, promoters and other entrepreneurs who support them. Billboard Pro ( ...

  22. Artists, Music Execs AT SXSW Discuss How Crowdfunding Helps Sustain Artist Careers

    March 17, 2011 12:05 PM EDT At a time when many traditional musical revenue steams are failing, crowdfunding has provided a way for artists to raise funds for various projects. Successful companies utilizing it are Kickstarter and Rockethub, whose co-founder Brian Meece mode ...

  23. Arcade Fire Manager Responds To Steve Stoute, Explains Grammy Appearance

    February 23, 2011 6:30 PM EST Marketing and music executive Steve Stoute posted a long letter criticizing the Grammy Awards in the New York Times on Sunday that singled out Arcade Fire -- who performed two songs during the show and capped off the night by winning Album of the ...

  24. Uncharted Territory: Traphik, Tyler Ward, Teen Hearts and More

    February 18, 2011 4:00 PM EST Five weeks in, Southern California rapper Traphik is still not budging from the top spot of Uncharted , Billboard's weekly ranking of emerging artists who have yet to appear on a major Billboard chart but are mapping new territory in online f ...

  25. Reinventing Music Biz Panel @ MIDEM Says Industry Failing Up-and-Coming Artists

    January 22, 2011 12:00 AM EST CANNES, France -- small and emerging music companies accused the more established music industry of failing up-and-coming acts during a session at this year's MidemNet, the digital-music forum held at Cannes Jan. 22-26 during international MI ...

  26. Billboard Launches Uncharted, The First-Ever Ranking Of Undiscovered Artists

    January 20, 2011 12:00 AM EST In an unprecedented move to recognize new and developing artists who do not have the volume of sales or airplay that have traditionally defined success, the all-new Billboard Uncharted ranking brings undiscovered talent to the revered Billboard ch ...

  27. Billboard Launches Uncharted, The First-Ever Ranking Of Undiscovered Artists

    January 20, 2011 12:00 AM EST In an unprecedented move to recognize new and developing artists who do not have the volume of sales or airplay that have traditionally defined success, the all-new Billboard Uncharted ranking brings undiscovered talent to the revered Billboard ch ...

  28. Bob Geldof Announced as South By Southwest Keynote Speaker

    January 12, 2011 12:00 AM EST The annual music confab South By Southwest announced its 2011 keynote speaker, Bob Geldof. The former Boomtown Rats frontman will also be a showcase performer at the music portion of the conference, which begins on March 16 in Austin, Texas. Appro ...

  29. What Merlin's Deal With Rdio Means for Indies

    January 12, 2011 12:00 AM EST At Billboard's Music and Money conference two years ago, a spirited discussion erupted on a panel when experts debated whether indie artists should strike lowball deals with emerging music streaming sites. Some came down on the side of playin ...

  30. Analysis: eMusic Gains Universal and Sony Frontline, Loses Three Indie Heavyweights

    November 17, 2010 12:00 AM EST Late Tuesday night, digital retailer eMusic sent an e-mail to its subscribers, alerting them to the fact that content from indie heavyweights Domino, Beggars and Merge will be gone from the site effective Nov. 18. While providing the basic factual ...

  31. @Billboard Touring Conference: How to Tour and Make Money

    November 04, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Touring executives sat down today at Billboard's annual Touring Conference and Awards to give advice to up-and-coming artists about the basics of touring. Here are some excerpts from this afternoon's panel, How to Tour and Make Money (Ev ...

  32. Dangerbird Links With Fontana

    November 02, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Dangerbird Records announced it will now be distributed via Fontana Distribution, the indie distribution arm of Universal. Dangerbird Records artists include Silversun Pickups, Canadian alternative rock band Hot Hot Heat, Seattle's Minus the ...

  33. Richard Ashcroft Signs With Razor & Tie

    November 01, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Following the brief reunion of British alt-rockers The Verve in 2008, frontman Richard Ashcroft has signed with Razor & Tie for the North American release of "The United Nations of Sound," his fourth solo album produced by No I.D. (J ...

  34. Andy Kotowicz, 1972-2010

    October 28, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Sub Pop Records VP of sales and marketing Andy Kotowicz died in Seattle from injuries sustained in an Oct. 21 car accident. He was 37. Since arriving at the label in 2000, Kotowicz served as A&R rep for such acts as Mudhoney, Wolf Eyes, Pissed ...

  35. Roadrunner Records To Re-launch A&R Crowdsourcing Project

    September 28, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Roadrunner Records is relaunching its “SignMe to Roadrunner Records” crowdsourcing A&R process on Oct. 4. The site, which originally went live last year, allows artists to upload their music to a Roadrunner-branded social network, which other ...

  36. Billions Corporation, Constant Artists Touring Merge

    September 10, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Boutique booking agencies the Billions Corporation and Constant Artists Touring have merged. Beginning Sept. 13, Los Angeles-based Constant Artists founder Ben Dickey will begin working as a booking agent for Billions. Dickey brings with him an ei ...

  37. Will American Apparel's Financial Woes Hurt Indie Merchandisers?

    August 23, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Check the neck of almost any indie band's t-shirt, and there is a decent chance you'll see an American Apparel tag. Now best known for its colorful CEO, gold lame bodysuits, and retail outlets in hipster neighborhoods the world over, Ame ...

  38. @New Music Seminar: 5 Must-Know Tips For New Artists

    July 21, 2010 12:00 AM EDT This year's New Music Seminar in New York wrapped today after a series of panels which included "The Creative Conundrum - Increasing Your Odds With Radical Differentiation," a 90-minute no-bull look at how new artists can break thei ...

  39. Business Matters: Live Nation, EMI, CAA and more

    June 17, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Follow Billboard senior editorial analyst Glenn Peoples and Billboardbiz on Twitter. LIVE NATION CHATTER OFF TARGET -- Pop music critic De Rogatis is stretching when he tries to link this summer’s spate of cancelled concerts and weaker-than-expect ...

  40. UK's Plastic Head Opens Doors In Philly

    June 10, 2010 12:00 AM EDT UK distributor Plastic Head Records announced the launch of a North American office today, in partnership with EMI Label Services/Caroline Distribution and Candlelight Records. Currently ranked England's seventh largest distributor, Plastic H ...

  41. Nettwerk Signs With ADA

    June 09, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Yet another label has left a major distributor and struck a deal with an indie. In the wake of Robbins Entertainment’s departure from Sony and subsequent agreement with RED, Nettwerk Records has announced it has departed from Sony and inked a new ...

  42. Neon Indian Signs To FADER

    June 08, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Chillwave artist Neon Indian, aka Alan Palomo, has found a new home, FADER Label, Billboard.biz can confirm exclusively. The eventual home of the artist was the subject of speculation following a series of breakout SXSW performances, with rumors o ...

  43. OK Go Forms New Label, Signs With RED

    June 03, 2010 12:00 AM EDT In the wake of their departure from EMI, OK Go has formed a new label, Paracadute Records, and signed a distribution deal with RED. The band’s latest album, “Of The Blue Colour of the Sky,” which was originally released on Capitol in January 2010, ...

  44. Jingle Punks Music Closes Round

    May 25, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Jingle Punks Music LLC, a music publishing and technology company founded in August, 2008 by Jared Gutstadt and Dan Demole, announced today that it has completed a substantial equity financing. A handful of private investors put together by Hammer ...

  45. Van Fletcher Launches Hybrid Label, App Developer

    May 11, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Music industry veteran Van Fletcher is launching a hybrid record label and mobile application development firm called Chasin Music Group . The company is still working out its message, it seems, but the press release announcing the move points mor ...

  46. E1 Acquires IndieBlu

    April 29, 2010 12:00 AM EDT E1 Entertainment today acquired the rights to more than 25,000 master recordings as well as a publishing company with the acquisition of IndieBlu Music Holdings. IndieBlu’s roster includes Artemis, V2 (North America), Light Records, Compendia Musi ...

  47. Business Matters: Live Nation, IODA, Google, Android Market and More

    April 27, 2010 12:00 AM EDT -- Live Nation will get a second ruling from the UK's Competition Committee as early as next week, reports Bloomberg. The Ticketmaster-Live Nation merger was first approved by anti-trust regulators in December, but a tribunal ordered a review ...

  48. Mathias Anderle, Kicking Daisies Onboard With Bazooka Push

    April 19, 2010 12:00 AM EDT Razor & Tie artist Mathias Anderle and Go Entertainment’s Kicking Daisies will be the centerpieces of a new Bazooka campaign focused on the Baby Bottle Pop candy brand. The campaign kicks off this month with national TV ads starring the 16-yea ...

  49. Concord Group Acquires Rounder Records

    April 14, 2010 12:00 AM EDT The Concord Group, which owns Concord Records, Concord Jazz, Fantasy, Stax, Milestone, Riverside, Specialty, Telarc, Peak, Heads Up, Prestige, among others, announced it has acquired Rounder Records. Forty year old Rounder’s roster includes Alison ...

  50. Business Matters: The Orchard, YouTube, Devo, Sirius XM and more

    March 18, 2010 12:00 AM EDT - The Orchard unveiled a new online data analytics tool for clients that compiles weekly sales activity from the various digital retailers it supports, including iTunes, eMusic, Verizon Wireless, Deezer and YouTube . The tool includes a geolocatio ...

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