Music Record Deals and Labels Quiz

• Traditional record deals are between the artist and the record label, in which the label claims the rights and ownership of the artist’s recordings for a duration of copyright.
• In return, the artist or band is given a monetary advance against a royalty in connection with each sale the recordings make.
• There is no guarantee of success, so the company will be taking a very significant risk in distributing and marketing the music made by the artist or band, while recouping the costs of executing these tasks and the initial advance given to the artist or band from their royalties.
• In the event that the artist or band releases a project that performs underwhelmingly in the market, and also has a successful hit project as well, the record label can also recoup the costs of making the least successful projects from the income made by the hits.
• Distribution deals didn’t used to be available to just any artist. They used to be handed to labels, until the advent of digital distribution via aggregators.
• 360 deals originated when the marketplace started transitioning from physical sales to digital.
• Production deals are usually composed of individuals with some resources and connections who are interested in financing the production of records for an artist or band in order to shop them to a major record label.
• Major labels provide larger advances to artists than independent labels.
• Independent labels typically provide smaller advances to artists than major labels.
• Independent labels typically provide more artist-favorable deals than major labels.
• An advance is a financial payment that an artist receives before their album is released.
• Major labels typically provide larger advances to artists than independent labels.
• An advance is a financial payment that an artist receives before their album is released.
• Independent labels typically provide smaller advances to artists than major labels.
• Independent labels typically provide more artist-favorable deals than major labels.
• An artist's royalty is the percentage of money the artist receives from sales of their album.
• The split of costs and profits is a calculation that determines how much of the profits an artist receives.
• An artist typically owns copyrights to their music.

Test your knowledge of traditional record deals, distribution deals, 360 deals, production deals, and the differences between major and independent record labels. Explore the concepts of advances, artist royalties, and the ownership of copyrights in the music industry.