Free Enterprise and Government Control/Regulation in the Music Industry

     The government has a large influence one what occurs within the music industry. With musicians and record companies, there are many contracts and legal agreements which all find their way back to the government. Many record labels can sign new, upcoming artists and take advantage of them. Artist are forced to create music based on regulations set by the label that they are signed by. Record labels get their authority from the legal contracts made between them and the artist which is then held up by the government. The government is able to create a lawsuit against artists if they are not holding up their end of the contract with a label. Many record labels will choose to take advantage of inexperienced artists and force them to abide by the companies' rules. The label will choose all of the music that an artist will make and can be corrupt with how much an artist is actually paid from the sales made by the music.
     Furthermore, the government can create laws concerning the censorship of music. Whether it be on the radio, in live performances, or on recorded albums, the government can dictate what content must be censored. Censorship can be created based on content or language that is consider explicit or offensive. Artists are not at liberty to publicly display their true art anywhere they choose while under the control of the government. This can be positive or negative depending on whether the government is using this authority to benefit society or to take advantage of it. The government also has authority to provide benefits to artists such as copyright laws defending artists against piracy of their original music. With so many new advantages in technology and the internet, stolen music has majorly increased in the past decade.The government can be seen as a threat to artist to take away their rights and bring overbearing lawsuits against them, but it can also insure their security and protect certain rights. Artists want to be protected from the threat of stolen music and many will run to a label and the government in order to create laws and provide them with the security needed.
     Free enterprise can be seen in the music industry with artists becoming increasingly separated from major record labels and becoming independent artists. Bands will create their music and produce all aspects of it and then distribute it and create tours based on income from sales. All of this is done without the help of a record label and bands and artist taking this route are directly interacting with their fans to make a living. Artist will create and provide new music for fans, and with the sales of albums and purchases of tickets, the free enterprise system of the music industry continues to increase. Many new artists are unsure about the future and cannot predict whether they will be successful or not, but sometimes separating from labels and governmental control can be beneficial in the aspect of being at liberty to create the music that you want to create.

Introduction Economics Blog

My name is James Patrick Austin. I am a missionary kid living in Peru for the last 7 years. During the time I have spent living here, I have encountered a growing interest that I have for music as well as surfing. While I believe that both can go hand in hand in many situations, my love for music has always been present and will continually grow as I proceed with my life after high school. I will be studying audio production within the music industry as a major at Middle Tennessee State University. I have found a way to pursue my passion for music and because of that I choose to study the field of economics within the music industry for this blog project. I will research the management aspects as well as how economics plays out with the role of artists and their record labels.