The True Cost of Corporate Dominance in the Music Industry (Guest Post)

Rev. Moose is founder of Marauder, which helps companies, organizations, and government entities develop strategies and in-person events that drive change and foster growth within the independent music sector. An industry veteran with experience in artist development, marketing, advocacy, non-profit management, and international program development, he is the founding and emeritus executive director of the National Independent Venue Association (NIVA) and National Independent Venue Foundation (NIVF), as well as co-founder of the Association of Music Offices (AMO).

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With Halloween nigh, the music industry might heed some warnings from horror films. As the lore goes, vampires are only allowed to enter a home once invited in.

This is exactly what we’ve done by permitting massive corporations to dominate what could otherwise be a competitive, independent music industry. Decades ago, independent powerhouse labels like Atlantic and Virgin called their own shots; today those same companies along with the vast majority of their peers fall under only three umbrella companies. Seemingly indomitable, these conglomerates lease out their proprietary distribution channels to independent artists and labels, feeding even more life to the gluttonous monster under the bed. What isn’t outright owned, is still dominated by these same forces, regardless of opposition.

Fear isn’t just a movie trope; it’s a controlling force of the music business. With market consolidation being what it is, taking a vocal stand is likely to echo through empty halls. All of the major artists that withdrew their music from Spotify over Joe Rogan’s misinformation campaign in the post-COVID years are back on the platform; Spotify showed no meaningful adverse effect from the calls-to-action. The band Lawrence, who testified in front of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee about Live Nation’s monopolistic practices, announced a tour exactly one year later largely promoted and hosted across Live Nation and Ticketmaster venues… not that they had a choice if they hoped to perform in rooms of a certain size.

Collaborating with these huge multinationals is accepted as a necessary evil in order to make it in this business. As Ellie Goulding’s lawsuit against her former management demonstrates, the argument that working with one sector of a conglomerate means the rest of the machine will be leveraged in an artist’s favor is outdated. The more power conceded, the fewer options an artist has in the future to make independent choices of who to work with and under what terms.

This gradual consumption of the marketplace is how we ended up with an indefensibly small number of companies controlling every major sector of the music business: touring, recording, publishing, media, distribution, management and more. Most of these companies have heavily overlapping interests. This leaves multiple, conflicting revenue streams in the hands of a few decision makers that only have their own interests in mind (oh, and the closing price of their stock).

It’s harmful to our communities that a handful of companies control the very mechanisms for art to reach an audience. In my TEDx Talk, “All Music Is Local,” I said that artists have little say over working with these massive corporations if they want their music to be seen, heard, or paid for. It’s not that independent options don’t exist; numerous independent record labels, managers, agents, publishers, distributors, venues, promoters, and media outlets show up every single day. Yet how visible can an artist realistically be without getting into business with one of these core gatekeepers?

In the fright flick that is today’s music industry, many independents are running through the woods just trying to survive while the publicly traded behemoths lumber behind with brute force and a steady gait. Quarterly reports bragging about job creation and economic impact have no mention of the local, independently owned businesses squeezed out to make room for them, or the voices actually from local communities silenced by default for not fitting a globally marketable ideal.

While Live Nation claims billions upon billions of dollars in earnings, nearly two-thirds of independent venue operators lose money just to stay open. Is one company really that much better at operating a business, as they claim to be, than thousands of others, or is the market intentionally skewed in their favor? Live Nation’s recent claim touting positive economic impact in local communities was refuted by a report showing taxpayers have been subsidizing one company at the expense of locally owned and operated businesses. None of this even mentions the silencing of cultures within these communities, with origin stories being thwarted due to a lack of local representation.

The music industry has been and continues to be taken over by a small number of companies whose only goal is complete and total dominance. The entire independent music community as well as the European Union rallied against Universal Music Group’s acquisition of Downtown for a reason. What’s more terrifying is that the age-old path toward an independent success story seems out of reach, at least not without major financial backers. Bandcamp, a platform founded on artistic control, should have been the case model for financial independence. Instead, it was sold off to a gaming company then staff drastically reduced by the next owners. Here we are, yet again bemoaning a company once built on audiences and ideals.

Change starts by making conscious decisions with which partners we work, which platforms are kept viable by our advertising dollars, how we prioritize ownership structure in our teams, where we provide access, and, ultimately, who benefits when fans buy tickets or enjoy music. This isn’t just idealism, these are very real steps we can each take the next time we’re reviewing a tour routing, or ad buy, or deciding which contract to sign. To be clear, this is not about passing judgment on those working with massive corporations; when there is only one show in town (often, quite literally), compromise is coercion, not submission.

Things won’t change overnight. Systemic shifts start with intentional moves, just like you would check a child’s candy trove for razor blades. Or, to quote “Night of the Living Dead,” the most terrifying film ever made, “They’re coming to get you, Barbara.” And we all know how that ended for Barbara.