Social Policies of Music essays

Social Policies of Music essays Social Policies of the Music Industry: Record labels come in all sizes and shapes. There are large, well-funded labels, organized and run by major corporations such as Sony Music and Capital Records. The more money a label has the more people they can hire to handle the various responsibilities in running a label. Smaller, grass roots agencies organize the work of promoting, selling and publicizing their releases by individually taking on multiple tasks. These smaller labels have a challenging job of marketing their records because the organization itself may only consist of two or three employees, including the label owner. A group that small has the duty of talent scouting, calling radio stations for airplay, working with distributors, following up with music retailers, as well as coordinating publicity efforts. Finally, it is the responsibility of a record label to deal directly with its artists and bands, helping them find performances and create tours. The best way to describe a record label is to compare it to an extremely well organized assembly line. Every department at a record label plays an essential role in the success or failure of the company. They are team members, working together toward the goal of selling records, cassettes and CDs as one synchronized machine. There is a very specific pattern of events that have to take place in order for a label to succeed in creating its final output. The result is music, and the following essay is an inside look into the workings of both major and smaller run record labels. My intention is to categorize and break down the various tasks and lines of communication with outside media that exist in maintaining a successful label. As one will see, the larger record labels have the luxury of having several different departments and dozens of employees to carry out the many responsibilities involved in running a label. The smaller companies that have the same amount of wor...