Who Needs Music Labels? Last.fm Starts Paying Royalties To Unsigned Artists (opens in new tab)

I tend to think record labels aren't entirely worthless, though the barrier to entry is getting quite small. They serve to promote bands and act almost like vc's by taking a risk and funding the bands that can't afford to get a good sounding record made. This isnt just a software problem. It involves using good equipment, having rooms that don't destroy the sound of the instruments, etc. It costs money.

Do you think the price-it-yourself model Radiohead used could work for other bands? Radiohead was already huge, thanks to the labels promoting their previous work.

I don't mean to undermine the efforts of last.fm. I just wantto point out how sensational the post's title is.

Even though the payments are very very small, this is still a great step in the right direction. The real challenge is finding these bands, and convincing the user to do the same. The user is flooded with options when it comes to what to listen to and sadly it's much easier to stick with what's in the Top 40 or a big label musician.

Pandora is pretty good with recommendations, but doesn't include all the "long tail" bands. Something is missing...all of this needs to be integrated somehow.

This looks like an interesting new way for indie artists to make some dough, but like someone already pointed out, they still need money for decent equipment, studio time, and mixing and mastering (at least) before their stuff is even worth listening to. This isn't a problem software or the internet can help with.

People seem to think labels are pointless with the internet now, but without a respected label backing you, good luck getting into a real music festival, good luck getting attention from pitchfork, tv shows, magazines, etc, and good luck getting to tour with other good bands.

MySpace will only get you so far.

Last.fm is a really great value website for users and producers. They are the best at what they do and are not letting up.