Did you know that Canadian artists account for roughly 23 percent of the Canadian market? Did you know that the annual royalty loss attributable to music downloading in Canada is about $540,000 (12 per cent of $4.5 million)? With this being said it’s easy to say very few bands become substantially successful in Canada. With the Canadian recording industry sustaining significant financial losses in recent years due to decreased music sales how do you feel about getting your music out there? The music industry in Canada has always been tough to break, would you say it’s even tougher now? You can find an in depth story on the decline of music sales in Canada through CRIA. The losses have materially harmed Canadian artists.
Information for this post was derived from the CRIA website as well as The Star, Michael Geist, Canada’s Research Chair in Internet and E-commerce Law at the University of Ottawa
Comments (3)
Although the Internet has made the traditional path to a successful musical career very difficult, I think this only demonstrates that times have changed and that musicians need to follow modern business models. File-sharing has made it more difficult for musicians to sell records domestically, but it can also be used as a powerful international marketing force.
I think the one thing that hasn't changed in the industry is that a creative approach to business is the best way to get noticed. The current uncertainty in the music industry is frightening, but means that now is a good time for innovation.
Posted by Jack | December 8, 2006 3:56 PM
Posted on December 8, 2006 15:56
The canadian music industry is effected as well as the rest of the world in music.... we see bands that are getting upset over all there hard work and its being downloaded for free. I think we need to take a different approach about marketing ourselves because the ways of accessing music for free is so much easier now, we need to be creative in finding ways to make the consumer want to put their money back into the industry.
Posted by April | December 21, 2006 12:42 PM
Posted on December 21, 2006 12:42
I have noticed a few things lately with how the times have affected the industry:
1) I have seen a lot of websites for artists that read more like a technical manual than an informative location to promote the artist. They spend more time trying to impress people with how many websites and different kinds of technology they use so that you can get their new album than trying to convey what kind of band they are.
2) From a personal level, I find I have to remind myself why I make music. Artists spend so much of their time trying to please the industry that they forget to write from the heart. My attitude now is to write first and worry about what people will think later. This may sound simple, but when artists are faced with such high expectations just to get heard or noticed, then it becomes hard to remember why we make music in the first place.
Posted by Dreamer | January 19, 2007 1:37 PM
Posted on January 19, 2007 13:37