Appeal to Mainstream and Independent labels

1. TARGET AUDIENCE APPEAL: MAINSTREAM VS
INDEPENDENT
BY KENNY EKUNDAYO
VS

2. MAINSTREAM BAND – ONE DIRECTION
 Signed to Syco and Columbia Records
 These labels sign various genres and artists such as Little Mix, Fifth Harmony, Olly Murs, Ella Henderson
and Diamond White
 According to YouGov profiler, the target audience for One Direction are females from the ages 18-29.
However, I personally think that in London, the target audience is young pre/teen females from the ages
of 10-16.
 One Direction have an online store where fans can order merchandise such as t-shirts, jewellery and
other endorsements.
 On the website, they have a tab called ‘Music’ that takes you to another page containing all of their
albums. Alongside information, videos, photos and a list of their singles, the website allows you to
purchase their songs/albums.
How to purchase
music on the One
Direction website

3. THE BACKSTORY OF ONE DIRECTION
 One Direction, made up of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson and former member
Zayn Malik, is a pop boy band
 They were formed on The X Factor in 2010 and finished in 3rd place
 Some of their hit singles include ‘What Makes You Beautiful’, ‘Live While We’re Young’ and ‘Story Of My
Life’
 The original band made 4 albums from 2011 to 2014 and after Malik’s departure, they made another
album called ‘Made In The A.M’ in 2015
 They are currently on a hiatus

4. INDEPENDENT BAND – LANTERNS ON THE LAKE
 Signed to Bella Union a British Independent record label founded in 1997 and currently run by Simon
Raymonde
 Bella Union specialise in Indie Rock (like Lanterns on the Lake), Alternative rock, Folk, Experimental and
Psycheldic. Other artists signed to their label are 2:54, Dirty Three and Van Dyke Parks
 As Lanterns on the Lake are a small independent band, they’re mainly known locally and nationally.
They’re target audience are teens ranging from 16 – 25 from both genders
 On their website they sell merchandises such as lyric art, t-shirts, posters and even vinyl copies of their
songs
 Also, you can purchase their singles and albums on the website by heading to the ‘discography’ tab and
clicking on any of their album covers. Lanterns on the Lake’s songs are available on CD, vinyl and free
downloads

5. THE BACKSTORY OF LANTERNS ON THE LAKE
 Lanterns on the Lake are a band made up of 4 main members:
 Hazel Wilde - Vocals/ Guitar/ Piano
 Paul Gregory - Guitar/ Production
 Ol Ketteringham - Drums/ Piano
 Bob Allan - Bass
 And additional/associated member Angela Chan who plays the violin/cello/ viola
 Formed in 2007 and released two EP’s and a single before they were signed to Bella Union
 Their song ‘I Love You Sleepyhead’ featured in the film ‘Where Soldiers Come From’
 They have three albums

6. BEING SIGNED TO AN INDEPENDENT LABEL
Advantages
 Creative freedom – more of a say in what you
can do and who you work with
 Better working relationships as the staff is small,
allowing you to connect personally with people
 Less long term contracts
 Artists get the rights to their songs
 More respect for music than profit
Disadvantages
 Not much funding – not many
promotions/synergy deals to promote artist
 Less press deals
 Label doesn’t have much influence in the music
industry

7. BEING SIGNED TO A MAINSTREAM LABEL
Advantages
 Large financial budget – more money can be
used to promote the artist
 More connections – chance for cross media
convergence and synergy deals for adverts,
radio etc. which will help you reach new
audiences
 Solid reputation and audience – other artists are
more willing to collaborate with a new artist who
is signed to a respected label
Disadvantages
 Major labels tend to sign more than one artist or
group at a time, meaning that you’re not a
priority to them
 Less freedom and flexibility – most likely signed
for a multi album contract and your producer
gets creative control
 Artists don’t have the right to their music
 Focus more on making money than creating
good music

8. IMPORTANCE OF MERCHANDISE/ANCILLARY PRODUCTS TO A
BAND’S SUCCESS
Mainstream Label
 Merchandise and ancillary products play a part
to a mainstream band but are not the only thing
 Label has an abundance of money used to
promote the band through adverts, posters and
interviews
 Money made from products adds to the amount
of money they have made through other
platforms
 Quite important for a band’s success
Independent Label
 Merchandise and ancillary products are a key
factor to an independent band’s success.
 Profit they make from the merchandise
increases their income
 Helps promote them and get’s their name
around – appealing to a newer audiences e.g
band tee’s
 Very important for a band’s success

9. WAYS FANS CAN ACCESS INFORMATION ABOUT THE BAND
ONE DIRECTION
 On their official website
 Wikipedia
 YouTube
 On Television (e.g. interviews, adverts, tv shows)
 Magazines, posters, meet and greets
LANTERNS ON THE LAKE
 On their official website
 Wikipedia
 YouTube

10. PERSONAL OPINION
 Taking all things into consideration I believe that either mainstream labels and independents can be best
for an artist, depending on what they’re aiming to achieve
 If an artist would like more creative freedom over their song and only cares about the music being
produced, despite the income then I would suggest being signed to an Independent label
 However, if the artist would like to be famous, have the potential to make a lot of money and is flexible
with their image, audience and genre, I would recommend being signed to a Mainstream label