Resources

The mission of djedna.org is not simply to provide software for the independent artist or label, but also to serve as an information hub covering the changing landscape of the independent music industry. We’re big fans of artists taking control of their own business, but with daily changes in the industry and large amounts of RIAA misinformation it can be a daunting task to keep up. Since the djedna.org team lives this stuff, we’ve created this page of articles, links, and resources that we think will be helpful to the independent musician, whether you use djedna to power your own digital distribution or not.

If you have some links that you’ve found useful and would like to share, send them to thomas@djedna.org and he’ll add them to the page.

Articles

  • When rockers cut ties from labels
    • A good overview of the recent trend for artists to take control of their own business. Covers some of the fee-based alternatives to a djedna installation that are available to artists.
  • The DRM Manifesto
    • An alternative take on the anti-major-label vibe that you may get from this site. However, his point about large tech companies ( as opposed to community-driven open source projects ;-) ) being just another middleman looking to profit from artists’ work is an insightful one.
  • New Label Models: Which Will Survive?
    • A short blog post listing the potential new models available to artists in a Music 2.0 world. Obviously, we here at djedna.org are big fans of the DIY model.
  • Latest US Digital Music Forecast
    • Some hard numbers (ok, statistics) you can use to convince yourself, your parents, your significant other, and/or your band mates that yes, indeed, the industry is changing.
  • The Secret Strategies Behind Many “Viral” Videos
    • It’s not always just about the music. Even the DIY musician isn’t immune from needing some good imagery to go along with their sound.
  • The Problem With Music by Steve Albini
    • An excellent narrative of how a band is lulled into acceptance of an artist-unfriendly contract by record labels. It lays out in a spreadsheet where all the “hidden costs” add up to the band making “about 1/3 as much as they would working at a 7-11.”

Blogs

Web Sites

  • Rocketsurgeon’s Music 2.0 Directory
    • An exhaustive list of companies and services that are participating in the “new music revolution.” We hope to see djedna.org on that list soon.
  • 25 Tools For The Independent Musician
    • More “tools” for the independent musician. Keep in mind that many of these tools are actually services provided by companies using the “we get a cut of all your sales” model.
  • Question Copyright
    • A site that explains the history of copyright and shows why artists aren’t the ones who were intended to benefit from copyright in the first place.

Books