The Internet - Saviour of the artist?

I was listening to BBC Radio 4 this morning, to the Today programme and an interesting article came on about how the internet is changing the music industry. listen here

The Arctic Monkeys and Lily Allen (hailed as the "Success of the My Space Age" by many), both use My Space to promote their music, but there are literally millions of bands and solo artists out there, nearly half a million in the Rock category alone.

And it isn't just musicians either. Writers, artists, photographers, film makers, designers, to name but a few, are all getting in on the act, finding a way to bypass the censorship of the commerical giants who pull the strings and decide what Jane and Joe Public will be listening to/reading/watching/wearing etc. Even independent book shops are being bought out by huge chains -You know who you are - so that only the safe bets make it to the 3 for 2 tables. It's getting harder and harder to get a foot in the door if there's any hint of you being a financial risk.

It doesn't really matter that artists on My Space can send out 'friend requests' to all and sundry, inflating their figures to perhaps look more popular than they really are because the proof of the pudding will be in whether or not they make any money (selling cds/tickets/books/etc). The beauty of the internet, it seems to me, is that it gives us, the public, more choice to decide. As Sir George Martin, producer of The Beatles, points out, it's not an individual decision anymore as to who gets their wares promoted, but an army of people.

So if you have something to share with the world, and you can't get the attention of the Big Boys, then the net is probably the best place for you!