You are an artist and you want to get your music to your fans. Do you want to choose the more traditional route - the record label and physical distribution of CDs, or perhaps a nontraditional more innovative approach? Although numerous contemporary artists have made a name for themselves through online popularity and social media sites, generally, artists still dream of the traditional record deal. They have many opportunities with a record company. Other artists take a more modern approach with the use of the Internet and social media sites. One band named Panic! At The Disco never played a live show before they got signed to a record label. They posted songs to their MySpace page. There are different websites available that allow a band to upload the their music and not going through the hassle of signing pages in a contract. One website is called cdBaby. They are an independent music site, that allows bands to upload albums to the site for fans to download. For just a minimum cut, the artist can upload their works and share them with the fans.
The nontraditional approach to distribution is extremely beneficial to artists because they are able to get their music out to more fans for a cheaper cost. The artist can send their album to cdBaby or a similar site. The website will take the album and distribute it on to the online database where more people will be able to access it around the world.
The artists on these sites are not looking for a lot of fame. They just want their music to be heard. If it is picked up along the way then so be it! Many opportunities open up for the artists as their fan base grows. Who knows they could be the next Panic! At The Disco!