agutierrezb
Well-Known Member
I've been fantasizing for a while about local independent artists getting the chance to release their music on vinyl. There is so much talent in Mexico and all of Latin America, however, their music is rarely available on vinyl, except for a couple of big names. There are jazz, electronic music, hip hop and folk acts who have a solid base of following, and have played on important stages both around the country and abroad, but not a single physical copy is available at their shows.
So, last week I found about @soulsteprecords , and was excited to find that this is basically the sort of platform I've been dreaming about creating for Latin American artists. It ecouraged me to find that this kind of model (release vinyl pressings of independent artists, cut the profit 50-50) is sustainable when done right, although the context is quite different: vinyl sales in Mexico are smaller than in the US, there are not as many record stores, and the public is not used to betting on local talent when they can grab the new Kendrick album for the same price.
That being said, I've been thinking about this idea all week, and I wanted to reach out to you guys and gals in the forum to see if anyone has any experience pressing and distributing/selling vinyl. I know is a pretty crazy enterprise to embark on, and given my rough estimations, profit for me would be pretty slim at the begining, specially considering the huge amount of effort and time that production, distribution and selling requires. However, I've never thought of this as a means to make any money, I would just like to support local talent, help them get their music on vinyl, on the shelves of record stores, and on people's turntables. If I could put out 3-5 records by artists I believe in, help them make a couple of pennies, and sell enough copies to have a small profit that justifies some of the pain in the a$$ that this whole thing would be, then I could quit this whole thing satisfied and move on in case it is not a really profitable buiseness.
So, what do y'all think? Is this not feasible? Anyone has any experience with this sort of things? Is it worth the effort?
So, last week I found about @soulsteprecords , and was excited to find that this is basically the sort of platform I've been dreaming about creating for Latin American artists. It ecouraged me to find that this kind of model (release vinyl pressings of independent artists, cut the profit 50-50) is sustainable when done right, although the context is quite different: vinyl sales in Mexico are smaller than in the US, there are not as many record stores, and the public is not used to betting on local talent when they can grab the new Kendrick album for the same price.
That being said, I've been thinking about this idea all week, and I wanted to reach out to you guys and gals in the forum to see if anyone has any experience pressing and distributing/selling vinyl. I know is a pretty crazy enterprise to embark on, and given my rough estimations, profit for me would be pretty slim at the begining, specially considering the huge amount of effort and time that production, distribution and selling requires. However, I've never thought of this as a means to make any money, I would just like to support local talent, help them get their music on vinyl, on the shelves of record stores, and on people's turntables. If I could put out 3-5 records by artists I believe in, help them make a couple of pennies, and sell enough copies to have a small profit that justifies some of the pain in the a$$ that this whole thing would be, then I could quit this whole thing satisfied and move on in case it is not a really profitable buiseness.
So, what do y'all think? Is this not feasible? Anyone has any experience with this sort of things? Is it worth the effort?
