record companies and organic and synthetic music

there are four major multi-national corporations;

Universal

     Kanye West
    Fall Out Boy
    Krept & Konan








Sony Music

                                                            A$AP Rockie
                                                                                                Nothing But Thieves
                                                                                               ODD FUTURE
                                                                                   
















Warner Bros                                                                           PartyNextDoor
                                                                                               Greenday
                                                                                               Prince

EMI

       Bastille
      Jake Bugg
      Circa Waves

• These are referred to as ‘The Majors’. The majority of these are backed by conglomerates with stakes in other industries such as; Film, TV and Electronics.

• Most of these ‘Majors’ own, or license, a series of smaller subsidiary companies in order to reach different kinds of audiences in different kinds of genre.
• Columbia
• Island
• Syco
• RCA
• Virgin,
• These companies are known as ‘major-independents’.

  Independents

• There are a huge number of small companies with little or no financial connection to the majors. These companies often concentrate on a small number of acts, within specialised niches in the industry. These are called ‘Independents’. An example of a highly successful independent  is ‘Domino Records’. It is often that record labels begin as independents, but then are bought by a major and then become major-independents.

Domino records are an independent British record label located in London, There is also a wing of the label based in Brooklyn, New York that handles releases in the United States, as well as a German division called Domino Deutschland and a French division called Domino France. It founded in 1993 by Laurence Bell and his partner Jacqui Rice. 

One of the most successful artists singed to Domino records is the Arctic Monkeys, they are a popular band that is listened to around the world. 

There are two types of artists that can be divided into two groups;

• Synthetic
• Organic 

   Organic 

• The term ‘Organic’ is used to describe bands where the music comes first, they make the kind of music they want to make and then the record labels (if signed) try and sell this music to the correct market segment.Organic’ music often appeals to a niche, but can appeal to a mass audience too. The Beatles / Radio head are a good example of an organic band. The Band members knew each other and had a shared love of music. The music came first – then the fame!

Synthetic

• The ‘Synthetic’ refers to ‘manufactured groups ( ‘X Factor’ methodology), and it is the record labels that sit in the driving seat.A gap in the market is identified, and then it is exploited by the development of music, and often the artist, to suit this gap.Money is the ultimate goal in this operation. Acts such as “One Direction” / “The Spice Girls” are a good examples of “manufactured” artists.