Like it or not, but musicians need labels. They don’t necessarily need the major labels, but a band without a label, or a giant stack of cash, is a local act. Not a national one. Sure, bands can upload their songs to iTunes by themselves, but no one will buy it if they haven’t heard about it.

Todays bands need labels for distribution, advertisement, network marketing, and funding that three month trip to the studio. I personally think that there are some indie labels out there that look far more lucrative than the major ones, but these are the basic requirements that bands need labels to meet.

Can Taco Bell provide the correct marketing drive that bands need to succeed? Maybe but they will, but they basically have to put together their own Music Department, which will really be a record label.

From the US Side of things, I have yet to encounter a ¨team¨ at one of the EMI labels that is worth a penny and I do hope it folds, new models wether we agree with them or not should be up to the artist not the labels. EMI´s Capitol Music Group (us side) for are run by complete idiots with no taste in music or care for the artists whatsoever. They have cared about themselves and living their own ¨rock star¨life. I feel bad for the people that are below the VP level since they probably are the ones that do care about the music but for those, they still have a future. VP´s and their imediate underlings are being well compensated for sitting around stroking eachother, sometimes literaly, while the artists have suffered. So i look forward to the demise of US EMI Specifically Capitol and the artists should use Guy´s suggestions and use their mangement team to get their own sponsorship at least they will be able to pick and choose who they want to sell ¨Their own Souls¨ to and profit directly - not giving their own profits away to some marketing nit wit higher up who´s worried about their own bonus checks more than their artists eating. By the way HOME RUN ON LENNY CAPITOL good job idiots! Guess Janet wasn´t enough of a disaster you just had to prove your marketing team really had no talent or leadership. Guy is not nuts he just realized that non of you know what your doing anymore and somethings got to give even outrageous ideas such as this one.

I hope EMI does get into A&R. what bands really need, is a small amount of financial support, not millions, just enough to pay the rent on a $900 a month flat, a small car for the girlfriend/boyfriend to drive around while the rock star is on tour and a small retirement package. that’s it. not millions. bands just want to write good music, and good music should be supported. a rocker can’t write a great song while clocking 40 hours a week at McDonald’s because the other time he has needs to be spent enjoying life, not writing songs. writing songs is hard work. EMI should give small amounts of financial support to lots of bands, based on songwriting, not image and profitability.

The possiblities for such a greedy, capilalist system are endless:

the Taco Bell- Red Hot Chili Peppers

Pink-Tampax

Wo w, such a terribl idea. One would think that the best way to improve sales would just be to RELEASE BETTER MUSIC, but I guess just paying someone to use their logo is a better way.

Death to these moronic, idiotic, greedy, artless, major labels. Their death is going to be spectacular, as they try to toss the blame on the fans, artists, without ever accepting any for themselves.

I’m going to start donloading again (after a couple years off) just to stick it to them.

Fuck em…support the artists!!

Record companies have had their fun, now its our turn. Fuck the music machine like it has been doing to us for decades. It’s their fault, now let them suffer in the mess they have created.

Oh, and Coldplay totally sucks ass! Whoever unleashed this crap on the masses (and those that bought it) should be publicy thrashed. Good god, they make me puke!

EMI are a bunch of Wankers.

I can definitely see a future where bands are their own corporate entity, signing giant deals with sponsors who will in turn give them worldwide marketing and advertising. The irony is that the labels will be nudged out completely. Let’s face it, I don’t think the labels today are any more in touch with the current record buying public than say, Dr. Scholl’s.

Since the sales of physical CD’s are dying a rather quick death, record labels simply have no more place in the industry…any band can make their songs available for download through their own website or iTunes, they don’t need to give 88 - 100% away to a floundering music corporation intent on cannibalizing itself to maintain it’s CEO’s year-end bonus. Artists aren’t going to stop making music, but they have every right to be concerned with how their parenting company is going to exploit their lively hood.

I feel to see how this helps anything. It’s a slight advertising opportunity, but it does nothing to address the underlying issues.

I bet 6 months to a year before EMI folds completely. Dr. Scholl’s presents Coldplay!