28
Jul 2024
SIRIS – Proud To Be Independent
SIRIS – Proud To Be Independent
Throughout our career, we’ve proudly carried the banner of being independent artists. Back in the early days, when we were presented with opportunities to sign with record labels, we always ended up choosing our independence instead. We discovered no matter how exciting or enticing the prospect of signing with a label was, the lack of control, no matter what the price, wasn’t worth the aggravation. The simple answer for us was logical. We’d just start our own label and release our own music, no matter how difficult it might be. We developed our own label, our own brand and we never looked back.
There’s nothing better than knowing you own and control the music you created. That’s true self empowerment; and there’s a great deal of freedom and satisfaction that comes with it. For many mainstream artists, their huge success comes at a huge price. Contracts signed usually ensure the label owns their recordings.
For years, we’ve all heard of the frustrations of well-known mainstream artists not owning their publishing. Signing on the dotted line for big advance money and the marketing muscle of major labels was the holy grail for most musicians. But it came at the cost of giving up the rights to their music and recordings.
Then one day, the internet came along and changed everything. In many ways it helped level the playing field. Now, everyone has the opportunity to release their own music under their own terms. Yes, there’s still artists out there who sign with labels, but they can now better leverage their independent success by licensing their music rather than just giving it away. More power to them!
For an artist, success cannot be measured in only dollars and cents. It’s measured in how your art makes you feel. It’s also measured in how your art makes others feel. Isn’t that the reason why we create music in the first place? It’s a beautiful artistic expression that comes from authentic real-life inspired experiences. It’s an extension of the soul. It’s a process that money can’t buy. Making money from it is a commercial byproduct of that process, but it’s not the reason why true artists create.
With all that said, as I look back at the course of our career, there were challenges along the way, but we never wavered when it came to our principles. In terms of our music, artistic expression was always at the forefront of everything we did and still do today. In a nut shell, staying true to ourselves and staying independent was the best decision we ever made!
~SIRIS (Michael Maley)