Start your own damn label; Bandcamp

A major force moving us toward a post-mega record label, artist selling directly to the public, world, Bandcamp has set the bar for music downloads and ease of use.  With no set up fees and the ability to download your music and artwork with the greatest of ease Bandcamp has created a super user friendly experience for the artist ready to release his or her own work on their own time table when they the work is ready.  With a fee structure that is easy to understand and pays the artist first Bandcamp is by far the service that puts the most money back into a musicians pocket.   Let us break it down, Bandcamp collects 15% for the service they provide so when you sell an album for say $10, then they generate a $1.50 credit to Bandcamp and you get the $10 deposited in your paypal account.  This process continues until the amount you owe bandcamp and a sale match up.  So once you owe them $10, you make that $10 sale the money stays with Bandcamp.  On top of that once you reach $5000 a month in sales that percentage reverts to 10% and it isn't per band but per account.  So you labels with several artists get an added benefit by sticking together.

      Once you get your account, set up is a whip.  You will need wav files of your songs, some artwork to upload and paypal account and you are ready to go.   At this point you add as much information as you would like and set your price.  The best part of deciding what your work is worth is the name your price function which allows listners to pick the amount they pay.  You can simply set a minimum or not, per the Bandcamp home page "On name-your-price albums, fans pay an average of 50% more than the minimum."  My own experience with Bandcamp bears this assertion out.  You also have the option of up to 200 free downloads you can give to fans in exchange for an email address or just the desire to get the music out there.  The interface is easy to use and the statstics are meaningful and easy to interpret.  So musicians, no more excuses, no more waiting for the label to come rescue you. Let the world know what you to offer, start your own damn label.  Bandcamp

Featured Bands and Label:
My Kickdrum Heart
The Demigs
Spooky Folk
Seryn
Centromatic
Dang! Records