Music’s influence on social, cultural, and political life is growing louder and more visible. Musicians can amass more social media followers than movie stars, politicians, or talk show hosts. And yet, global music sales don’t come close to matching music’s own popularity.
If barking can scare off thieves, why are you being asked to bite?
Sales have been declining and then stagnating for over a decade. It’s like a dog whose bark can be heard across the whole neighborhood — but can’t bite.
In Indonesia, the music industry generates just 1% of total creative industry revenue. A tiny slice, considering music is literally everywhere.
A Copyright Model That’s No Longer Relevant
For companies outside the music industry, there are more and more reasons to avoid the recording-based music business. One major reason is the complexity of licensing. The copyright model, once the primary guardian of creators’ rights, has now more often become a barrier.
The 1%
There’s a small group who fall into the 1% — those who can actually sell music and live well in the recording-based industry. These are the artists we see in the media every day. How many Taylor Swifts are there in the world? One. How many Adeles? One. The top 1% of artists control 77% of all artist income worldwide. What are the chances you become one of them? Almost none.
What About Becoming a Professional Runner?
Creating music and performing will always be the most fundamental identity of a musician. But that doesn’t mean it has to be your sole source of income. More opportunities are emerging because music is more exposed than ever before in human history.
As Peter Drucker put it: There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.
So there’s no other way but to first identify your strengths. If you can bark loudly, become a professional barker. Not every dog’s strength is its bite.
Image: Lianne Viau (CC BY-ND 2.0).