Young bands necessarily go through three stages of preparation: holding concerts, recording demos and hiring a manager. These three steps are aimed at achieving a single goal - signing to a music label.

Despite the development of the Internet and the changed approach to distributing music, a music label remains the surest and most reliable way to show your creativity to the world and make money from it.

What is a music label?

Music label or record company is a company operating in the music market. The main activities of music labels are the contracting and promotion of artists, as well as the production, recording and distribution of music products.

Music label device

Organizational structure of a music label (record company).

Record companies are nesting doll corporations with many smaller companies inside them. It turns out to be such a conglomerate of dozens of companies specializing in music of different genres. The conglomerate is headed by a parent company, which is subordinate to a galaxy of large and small subsidiaries.

Among the many record companies, the Big Three labels are usually distinguished. It includes the largest companies in the music market: Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment (Sony BMG) and Warner Music Group. Together, these companies control 85% of the US music market and about 70% of the global music market.

Each Big Four company includes a huge number of smaller labels in the US and other countries around the world. Warner Bros. Records Inc, the parent company of Warner Music Group, owns Reprise Records, Maverick Records, Rhino Entertainment, Atlantic Records Group and dozens more. The Japanese-American Sony BMG unites more than 200 record labels, including Columbia Records, RCA, Arista Records, Epic Records and many other companies.

How many music labels are there in total?

Music label sizes vary. There are both small record labels run by one or two musicians, and huge corporations with thousands of employees.

According to Billboard magazine, there are more than 2,000 registered record labels in the world. The number of independent and small labels is even greater.

The music business is huge. Successful records sell millions of copies and bring companies billions of dollars.

In the hierarchy of record labels, at the very top is the CEO. (from English: Chief Executive Officer - chief executive officer or simply director), managing all processes and departments of the company. Each label within the corporation has its own leader, reporting to the CEO of the entire conglomerate.

Each manager has several deputies responsible for specific departments of the company. Major music labels usually have 11 such departments:

1. A&R department
2. Art department
3. Artist Development Department
4. Sales department
5. Company Relations Department
6. Legal department
7. Marketing department
8. New Media Department
9. Promotion Department
10. Public Relations Department
11. Sales department

The structure of a music label varies from company to company. Labels can become simpler or more complex, especially when a label is acquired by a major record company.

A&R department/Performers and repertoire department

A&R department (abbreviated from English Artists and Repertoire) is looking for new talents. This includes demo recordings of bands and performers. If an interesting musician is found, employees must persuade the company management to “sign” the new artist.

In addition to searching for talent, the A&R department strongly supports performers with whom contracts have already been concluded. The division's employees decide who will produce the band's album and where it will be recorded; looking for suitable poets and composers, compiling tracklists of records. Additionally, the A&R department selects songs for rotation on radio and television and monitors the success of the musician’s promotion.

A&R work is considered the most prestigious in a record company. People in A&R are the link between the musicians and the entire record company.

Art Department

The art department of a music label is responsible for the design of albums and promotional products. Designers work here to develop the design style for all musical and souvenir products of musicians.

Artist Development Department

Department employees plan development strategies for artists signed to the label. They accompany musicians throughout their entire creative journey, choosing the course along which the performer’s career moves.

In the 21st century, most music labels have no artist development departments left, according to Music Biz Academy. The formation of an attitude towards musicians as a product led to the fact that such divisions were renamed “Product Development Department”. At the same time, the nature of the department's work changed.

Label executives believe that the development of the Internet and changes in the way music is consumed makes it impossible to engage in long-term planning for artists' careers. Unlike the mid- and late 20th century, today planning development strategies is required at the start of a musician’s career. Labels try to get an artist to the top as quickly as possible and attract attention to him in order to recoup the investment.

With the right start, the public retains interest in the performer for quite a long time. Therefore, planning for long-term development is no longer so important.

Commercial Department (Business Affairs)

The financial side of the music industry. Employees are responsible for the accounting, accounts and finances of the performers and the company.

Label Liasons

Usually consists of several people. These people are the link between the record company and the music stores.

In addition to monitoring the flow of music into retail outlets, department employees analyze the market and choose the most appropriate time to release the album on sale.

Legal Department

Lawyers are responsible for contracts between a music label, artists and other companies. Any legal disputes, even between artists and the label itself, go through this department.

Marketing Department

Department employees create marketing campaigns for each label release. They help coordinate the activities of the promotion, sales and public relations departments.

New Media Department

The department is responsible for any new aspects of the music business, including producing and promoting artist videos on YouTube.

The division's employees also help performers maintain accounts on social networks. Additionally, their responsibilities include the development of new multimedia platforms and technologies that help promote musicians.

Promotion Department

The main task of the promotion (PR) department is to make sure that the musician is broadcast on the radio. Department employees receive new songs from artists and send them to radio stations, which is the key to the future well-being of the record company.

Other departments inform the department about selected promotional strategies and advise how best to market the artist. Together with the new media department, promoters participate in the distribution of music videos on television and Internet platforms.

Public Relations Department

The people who work here make sure that new and old musicians are talked about in the media. The public relations department prepares and places publications in newspapers and magazines and controls the coverage of performers on television and radio.

Many musicians additionally attract their own journalists and writers who write about their work and work in collaboration with this department.

Sales Department

Music distribution. Sales staff communicate with record stores and venues and bring new releases to store shelves.

Sales actively cooperates with the promotion department and public relations department, choosing the best time to start sales.

Music market volumes

The global music market is divided between the Big Three labels and a group of independent music companies.

Since 2005, the music market has been declining. According to the analytical company IFPI, in 2005 the market volume was $20.7 billion, and in 2015 it decreased to $15 billion, losing more than 25% of the volume. In 2016, the music market amounted to $15.7 billion.

The reasons for the decrease are obvious - the emergence of many new ways to distribute music.

Volume of the music market in 2005-2016

How a music label finds new musicians

Every music label has an A&R department, which serves as a gateway to the music industry. A&R is considered the most prestigious and important department of any company. To appreciate the importance, imagine being the first to introduce Madonna, Aerosmith, or Britney Spears to the world.

The abbreviation A&R means “Artist and Repertoire,” although musicians joke that it is more correct to decipher the acronym as “Attitude and Rejection,” that is, “Relationships and Refusal.” You can only sign to a music label if you come to the attention of this department - there are no other ways.

Before the development of the Internet in the 2000s, musicians sent recorded demos on cassettes and discs to label A&R departments. Department employees, in turn, listened to the sent recordings in the hope of finding a new talent.

Today, when the number of demos sent daily amounts to hundreds, this practice has come to naught. The chance that a disc or flash drive with the songs of a new musician will come to the attention of the label’s bloodhound is zero. A&R employees themselves rely more on the opinions of friends, agents, managers and other industry workers who hand over records to them personally.

Each employee has his own approach to finding new names. Tom Devine, who has worked in A&R for Columbia Records for more than 20 years, says he listens to demos from trusted sources like friends and business partners. Due to his long stay in the industry, it is easier to attract Devine’s attention - you just need to find someone who knows him and interest this person.

Max Huss from Epic Records prefers to independently study the music industry for free niches in the market that can be filled. Huss notes that he is more interested in looking for performers doing something new rather than working with already established niches.

Getting the A&R department interested is half the battle. Each bloodhound is personally responsible for the new musician, so the failures of the performers can cost the employee his position. Performers need to not only interest the search engine, but also convince him of their success.

Getting into the music business is very difficult, especially for a band that doesn't have connections in the industry. Having someone who can vouch for you makes it easier to get signed to a label. Only after an employee of the A&R department shows interest in the artist and convinces management of the need to sign him, the label involves all other departments in the work.

How does a band or artist get on a label?

Let's see what will happen with the group "Square Circles", who want to sign with the label. Before musicians sign a contract with a record company, they must be noticed by representatives of the label.

Search engines from Balls Records go to a concert where our band is performing. Having enjoyed the band's performance, the A&R department employees convince the label management to sign a contract with Square Circles. This starts the process of introducing the group into the music industry and activates all other divisions of the record company.

The next step for the group is recording an album. The head of the A&R service finds a producer, with whom he develops the concept of the album and selects songs for the record. Balls Records allocates a budget to the group, which pays for the work of studio engineers, sound engineers, session musicians, as well as the rental of the recording studio itself. In turn, the A&R representative plans the recording schedule.

In parallel with this, other departments of the record company are involved in the work. Balls Records allocates a budget for advertising, album artwork, publishing and media coverage. While designers, copywriters and artists are working, the A&R specialist, together with the marketing, sales and public relations department, is planning the album release date.

It is important for the music label that Square Circles are properly represented at the federal, regional and local levels. The Artist Development Department books concert venues and schedules performances. At the same time, a promotional tour is being prepared, during which the musicians are scheduled to appear on television and radio. The scale of preparation and frequency of musicians’ appearances on air and in the media depend solely on the budget.

As the album's release date approaches, the company's departments are actively working with the press. At this stage, it is important for the label to ensure that the release of the record is properly covered. All departments work as a single mechanism aimed at ensuring that the future album of Square Circles sells the maximum possible number of copies. Sales directly depend on how harmoniously and efficiently all participants in the process work: from the musicians themselves to radio stations and music stores.

What makes up the price of a song, single or album?

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), many factors influence the final cost of a song, album, single, or entire disc. Compared to the cost of producing music, printing a batch of CDs costs next to nothing.

Signing an artist involves a large amount of varied work. The music business isn't all about parties and rock star get-togethers.

Why labels aren't going anywhere

Despite the rise of streaming services and ongoing stories of changing music consumption, labels are here to stay. The music industry is designed in such a way that all participants have an interest in each other's existence.

Labels live by distributing music: the greater the number of distribution channels, the greater the profit. Radio stations and streaming services rely on advertising to survive. To sell advertising time, platforms need listeners. Regular and new listeners will not appear without playing new music.

At the same time, without radio stations and streaming platforms, listeners will not learn about new releases and artists. And without this, you won’t be able to sell albums.

When a record company releases an album, it buys radio airtime. Purchasing airtime guarantees a certain number of broadcasts of songs from the released record. In order for an album to sell and make a profit, it is important for the label to get the songs aired as often as possible. Therefore, companies are ready to do anything to increase sales.

Music label giants and independent players

The more difficult it became to get signed to a major music label, the more independent record companies developed. However, there are not many independent labels.

Opening your own label is not difficult, but developing it is much more difficult. Finding new artists, recording music, developing promotional concepts and marketing strategies, and communicating with media representatives is incredibly difficult when you only have a few people in your company. Often in small record companies, the functions of several departments are combined by one employee.

That doesn't mean an independent music label won't be successful. It will just take a lot more work to achieve it.

According to the website Record Labels & Companies Guide, indie labels can find success by focusing their efforts on a specific music genre or local market. Oftentimes, big labels may not pay attention to interesting local artists, which opens the way for indie labels.

Independent label SubPop found success by focusing on Seattle punk and grunge. GoKart Records capitalizes on the same scene in New York. Alligator Records only deals with blues, while Moonshine Records specializes in electronic dance music.

The development of the Internet also plays into the hands of independent companies. Small record labels sell music online without resorting to the more traditional methods of distributing releases through record stores.

At the same time, it becomes easier for musicians to distribute their music with the support of even the indie labels they work with online. Sites like College Music Journal provide a platform that connects independent labels with up-and-coming musicians.

The recording market has come a long way from sales of gramophone records with compositions recorded on them to sales of artist albums in online stores and music services.

The site's observer understood the main trends and learned about the work of record companies in the world of developing technologies.

The Birth of the Recording Market

The late 19th and early 20th centuries forever changed the way we listen to music. If earlier performers could be heard in concert halls, clubs and philharmonic societies, then at the beginning of the 20th century radio broadcasting became widespread.

Then another revolution in the recording market happened - the emergence and mass availability of gramophones. Gramophone records allow everyone to hear this or that composition an unlimited number of times at any time convenient for him. This period is the starting point of the history of record labels: Columbia Records, Decca Records, Edison Bell, The Gramophone Company, Invicta, Kalliope and many others.

As time passes, some labels merge with larger companies, while others remain independent, relying on a small audience of loyal listeners.

The most successful artists create their own labels. Stars such as The Beach Boys, The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Eminem and many others opened their own record labels.

Click to enlarge

By the end of the 1980s, the so-called "Big Six" record labels - EMI, CBS, BMG, PolyGram, WEA and MCA - began to lead the industry. By the end of the 20th century, PolyGram and Universal Music Group merged, as well as Sony Music and BMG. The Big Six become the Big Four:

• Universal Music Group;
• Sony Music Entertainment;
• Warner Music Group.

Until 2012, this group of companies, according to various estimates, controlled from 70% to 88% of the global recording market.

Record labels in the Internet era

In the early days of the recording market, a contract with a well-known label was a necessary condition for the success of artists, because the likelihood of becoming known to a wide circle of listeners was low even for the most talented performers. Signing a contract, in addition to high-quality recording at the studio, provided the artist with an impressive advertising campaign and access to retail stores, and the studio itself with copyrights to the recording.

However, with the advent of the Internet, the development of peer-to-peer networks and freedom of information, netlabels (Internet labels) and record labels have become increasingly popular.

Netlabels developed with the advent of digital formats (MP3, WAV, FLAC and others). The use of these formats involves the creation of music recordings of acceptable quality and small size. Netlabels rarely promote the group, organize concerts and protect rights. The owners of these companies focus on distributing products via the Internet and refusing to produce physical media.

Open-source labels release music products under a copyleft license, which, unlike copyright, allows free distribution and modification of tracks.

The most famous file-sharing service of the late 20th and early 21st centuries was Napster. Founded in 1999, the file-sharing network changed the music industry forever and ended its existence two years after its creation.

Unlike other similar peer-to-peer networks, Napster had a central server and was easy to use. The server contained only information about the files, and the files themselves were downloaded directly from users’ computers.

These advantages quickly brought it popularity, and in February 2001 the number of unique users reached 26.4 million. However, such success was not a reason for joy among the creators of the service.

Napster was first accused of copyright infringement by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) back in December 1999. What was fatal for Napster was the Big Four lawsuit, known as A&M Records v. Napster. Despite the name, the plaintiffs are all members of the RIAA. The case was the first major application of copyright laws to peer-to-peer file-sharing networks.

The court ruled that Napster should be held liable for copyright infringement. To comply with the ban, Napster shut down the service on July 1, 2001. During the bankruptcy proceedings, the company changed hands and today has become part of the Rhapsody music service.

Despite all the opportunities that new technologies have presented to artists, the balance of power in the global recording market has remained the same. But major labels could not avoid losses due to piracy and the development of digital formats. So in 2007, sales of physical media fell by 17%, and the income of Universal Music and Sony Music by 11.7% and 27.7%, respectively.

The development of the Internet has revolutionized the way music is distributed. In 2004, revenue from digital music sales was $400 million, and in 2011 - $5.3 billion. However, this does not mean that the old formats will soon cease to exist.

A great example is vinyl record sales. In 1997 they amounted to $144 million, in 2006 they reached a minimum of $34 million, and in 2013 they received an unexpected increase and reached $218 million.

Indie labels

To mark this day, labels and artists are creating special releases that will be available in retail stores. This holiday is celebrated on all continents except Antarctica. If you find a store that supports the holiday on the list and go there, you can get to performers’ performances, as well as their meetings with fans, DJ sets, battles, body art festivals and outdoor kitchens.

Dave Grohl (former Nirvana drummer and Foo Fighters guitarist-vocalist) drum solo at Record Store Day

The holiday appeared in 2007 at a meeting of owners and employees of independent record stores. On April 19 of the following year, Metallica opened the party at Rasputin Music in San Francisco.

In 2008, the USA and Great Britain took part in the holiday, but the following year the holiday became truly international. It was supported by stores in Ireland, Japan, Canada, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Germany and other countries, including the US and UK. Universal Music sales manager Mark Faidherb called Record Store Day "the best thing that has ever happened to independent record stores."

However, there is another side to the coin. Some performers and public figures have criticized the holiday for initially being a focus for indie labels and now being taken over by major record labels.

Howling Owl and Sonic Cathedral - British independent labels - have teamed up to oppose Record Store Day. In a story entitled “Why Record Store Day is Dying” on the Sonic Cathedral website, the companies explain their position: “We can't compete, so we won't compete. The holiday has turned into a circus, and we will be the clowns there.”

The Entertainment Retailers Association, the company behind Record Store Day in the UK, responded to the criticism by saying: “Record Store Day has always had as its main aim to support independent record stores, not independent labels. In addition, three of the four releases sold at Record Store Day were from independent companies. This can hardly be called a betrayal of the indie labels. We know we're not perfect, but hell, even what we have right now is a lot better than a world without Record Store Day at all."

The holiday is celebrated annually on the third Saturday of every April and in 2016 is scheduled for April 16.

The Big Three Record Labels

The year 2012 was remembered by the global recording market for the bankruptcy procedure of EMI. EMI Group was sold to Universal Music Group and EMI Music Publishing was acquired by Sony Music Entertainment. The Big Four became the Big Three.

Universal Music Group

Universal Music Finland office

Universal Music Group is an American-French media corporation that is owned by the French media conglomerate Vivendi SA. It is the leader among the Big Three labels.

The history of Universal Music Group begins with the founding of MCA (Music Corporation of America) in 1924. Just five years after its creation, MCA becomes the largest agency in the world, with more than 700 clients: film actors, performers, radio stars, producers and directors.

Ten years later, another future “parent” of Universal Music Group, Decca, opened its branch in America. The company quickly gained popularity even during the Great Depression thanks to its roster of signed artists and its price of 35 cents per recording.

In 1962, MCA merged with Decca, which owned a controlling stake in Universal Pictures. The company is headed by Lev Wasserman, who became famous for his contracts with such stars as Lana Turner, Cary Grant and Alfred Hitchcock.

This year for Decca, in addition to the successful merger with the MCA, was also remembered for listening to The Beatles, which would later be called one of the biggest mistakes in the history of popular music. The audition was scheduled for January 1, but due to heavy snowfall the road was very long. In addition, upon the group's arrival, the representative of the department responsible for performers and repertoire, Mike Smith, insisted on using Decca equipment, assessing The Beatles' equipment as poor quality.

The band played 15 songs over the course of an hour. Despite everything, the members of The Beatles and their manager were confident that the contract would be signed, but were refused. The official reason for the refusal was that "guitar bands are going out of fashion." These words became infamous for Decca, and Dick Rowe himself (head of the department responsible for artists and repertoire) was remembered as “the man who turned down The Beatles.”

In 1995, Seagram acquired MCA, and in 1996 changed MCA's name to Universal Studios, and its music division MCA Music Entertainment Group became Universal Music Group. In 2012, following approval from the European Commission and the Federal Trade Commission, UMG acquired EMI. Another Big Three label, Warner Music, competed to buy EMI, but the long-awaited merger did not happen either in 2006 or 2009.

Universal Music Group revenues from 2004 to 2014 in billions of euros

Universal Music took part in the UNICEF Imagine Project in 2014

Loud controversy and criticism

Bribes on the radio (2006). UMG was accused of bribing a radio station to play songs by Nick Lachey, Ashlee Simpson, Brian McKnight, Big Tymers and Lindsay Lohan. The company paid $12 million in compensation

Abuse of digital copyright (2007). UMG is accused of abusing digital copyright law, following which the company tried to remove a video with Michelle Malkin. In this video, Malkin criticized Akon, calling him a misogynist. In the end, UMG backed down from the claims, but the video turned out to be unavailable for 10 days.

That same year, UMG was sued for indiscriminately deleting a 29-second home video of a child dancing to a Prince song. The court's decision determined that the video did not violate Universal's copyright.

Abuse of digital copyright (2011). In December, the website Megaupload published a video in which Kanye West, Snoop Dogg, Alicia Keys and Will.i.am praised the resource. UMG blocked the video on YouTube, citing digital copyright laws. A Megaupload representative stated that all necessary filming agreements with each performer have been signed. By court decision, the video was returned to the resource for lack of reasons for deletion.

Low fees for performers (2015). UMG is being sued by 7,500 artists, including Public Enemy's Chuck D, Whitesnake, Black Sheep's Andres Titus, The Temptations' Ron Tyson and Motels' Martha Davis, for unfairly low royalties since digital sales began. The company paid $11.5 million to settle the dispute.

Artists who worked with the label

• Akon;
• Amy Winehouse;
• Duran Duran;
• Guns N' Roses;
• James Blunt;
• Johnny Cash;
• Kanye West;
• Maroon 5
• Rihanna;

Sony Music Entertainment

Sony Music Entertainment Headquarters in Los Angeles

Sony Music Entertainment is an American record company and is the second most influential of the Big Three.

The history of Sony Music Entertainment begins in 1929 with the founding of American Record Corporation (ARC). During the Great Depression, ARC acquired small companies at bargain prices to gain access to their music catalogs. This strategy, coupled with sales of three records for $1, resulted in sales of 6 million music units per year.

The site's commentators decide who rules the rap game.

Since the commentators on the site are themselves and even, it’s time to give them the right to vote in serious matters.

Today we decided to find out with their help which label rules the rap game in Russia.

Who has the most serious reputation?

Who gives artists' careers a boost (or a kick?)

Who, in the end, is simply everyone's favorite?

It's okay that you don't understand all this accounting. There are fingers, there is a keyboard - let's comment!

Respect Production

Notable artists: Casta, Max Korzh, Zhara, Chayan Famali
In a nutshell: Max Korzh, in alliance with them, became a “stadium” artist.

Gas holder

Notable artists: Basta, Tati, Smokey Mo, Triagrutrika, AK-47, Slovetsky, Tony Tonite, Skryptonite
In a nutshell: they shot a full-fledged feature film with themselves in the roles and organized a tour in support of it, which had never happened before.

Black Star

Notable artists: Timati, L’One, Kristina Si, Mot
In a nutshell: In a couple of years, they helped L’One become one of the most popular rappers in the country. They made it so that Christina C’s new video gets over 200k views in a day.

Notable artists: Guf
In a nutshell: Single artist label? Why not. No one is stealing attention and resources, you can concentrate.

Phlatline

Notable Artists: Schokk
In a nutshell: The latest successes are not in the area of ​​producing artists. But let's not forget that these people had a hand in the careers of L'One, Nel and ST.

Invisible Management

Notable artists: Noize MC, Kravets, Anacondaz
In a nutshell: Noize MC released two albums a year ago, and this year they will release another album and one film. Anacondaz also increased in popularity, and now Kravets, with the participation of this company, will also try to restart his seemingly stalled career.

Notable artists: Ptah, Basota, many others
In a nutshell: A lot of young artists have signed recently - someone will shoot.

Azimuth sound

Notable Artists: Slim
In a nutshell: Slim is extremely careful in his language, preferring not to use the word "label". Let it be a “creative association”, what difference does it make?

Booking Machines

Notable artists: Oxxxymiron, Harry Topor, Lupercal
In a nutshell: We know this is not a label. But the world is changing - the day before yesterday everyone was releasing CDs on labels, and tomorrow everyone will need only booking and nothing else. Well, in general, it will be interesting to see how many will vote for Oksimiron.

Due to the growing interest in battle rap and the entire hip-hop industry in general, we present to you a detailed conceptual apparatus (rap dictionary) on Rap so that you can understand what MCs are talking about in their battles.

Autotune– Voice processing and correction program, used to correct the performer’s singing according to notes. It has become a household name in rap and identifies all voice correction programs.

underground(underground - underground, underground) - a number of artistic movements in contemporary art (in music, literature, cinema, fine arts, etc.), opposing themselves to mass culture, the mainstream.

Acapella- Text recorded on a microphone, separately from the minus.

Battle- Competition between rap artists is usually accompanied by humiliation of the opponent. A battle track is often nothing more than a diss on an opponent. Battles are divided into online battles (take place on the Internet) and live battles (everything happens live).

Beat- Drum-bass line minus. Previously, they read to a percussion part created by beat-boxing or tapping objects. This word was originally used as a beat in rap music. At the moment, any music that is rapped to is called a beat.

Beatbox- A beat created solely with the mouth, without the use of musical instruments.

Beatmaker– A person who creates beats in specialized programs such as Cubase, FL Studio and others. A good level of beat making is to use instruments recorded live and not use samples.

Biff(Beef) - Enmity between rap artists, parties or labels, accompanied by diss and frequent live showdowns.

Bootleg(bootleg) - a pirated collection of tracks that the artist may never even know about.

Becky– An additional recorded audio track, where the performer usually pronounces only the second part of the line or highlights rhymes and phrases.

Backing vocalist– A person who helps the performer on stage. As a rule, he pronounces the second part of the line so that the performer has the opportunity to draw air at this time.

Versus() - One of the two most popular live battles in Russia. Based in St. Petersburg.

Ghostwriter– A specialist who writes texts for money.

Double time- Reading is twice as fast as the rhythm of the music. Prominent representatives of this style are Ceza, Tech N9ne, FIKE, Dom1no and other performers.

Double rhymes(Double-rhyme) - The end of a line has two words at once, which will be used to rhyme in the next line, also in two words. That is, if the first line ends with “brain and heart,” then you will need to select a consonance for the word “brain” and a separate consonance for the word “heart.” For example - “a poster for the door” (with the brain - the poster, with the heart - the door).

Diss(diss, disrespect) - A track aimed at another artist or someone or something with the goal of “bringing him down.” In such tracks, obscene speech, swearing at the opponent and his relatives, threats, below-the-belt jokes, etc. are practiced. Diss are often used in beefs.

EP- A small album, usually up to 7 songs in size.

Sound engineer– A specialist who mixes and masters tracks.

Indabattle(Platypus) - Battle taking place on the portal indarnb.ru. The second largest battle in Russia. It bears the slang name “Platypus”, because the father of the main organizer of the battle (Snake) is the owner of the Utkonos chain of stores.

Instrumental- Synonym for the general meaning of the word bit

Cover(cover) – A new version of a track recorded (reread) by another artist.

mouth guard- Slang name for the word “acapella”.

Square rhymes- Rhymes in the text are added at the end of the line, and rhyming words have the same endings. An example is “hand is flour”, “mountain is time”. This is considered to be the easiest way to rhyme.

Concert director– Specialist responsible for organizing performer’s concerts.

Crank(Crunk) - a style of southern rap music, with repetitive phrases and fast dance rhythms.

Live(live) - Audio or video recording from a performer’s concert. As a rule, the “live” mark is placed in the title of the track, so that it is clear that this is not a studio version, but a recording from a concert.

Label(label) - 1) Abroad, a label is a record company that has the rights to release and distribute performers’ albums. 2) In Russia, a rap group is called a label. Often this group is primarily united by the studio.

Mike– Microphone

Mastering- the final stage of work on a song, which is designed to make a well-mixed mix louder, brighter, cleaner, more transparent and put it on the same level as popular commercial tracks in terms of volume level. Also at this stage you can correct minor errors made during mixing.

Mix(mix) - several pieces of music (tracks) arranged in a continuous sequence. As a rule, mixes are compiled by DJs for various purposes (for example, for inclusion on the radio in thematic programs). Typically, mixes consist of tracks that are similar in genre, mood and other characteristics. On average, the duration of a mix ranges from 25 to 74 minutes.

Mixtape(Mixtape) - 1) In foreign rap, this word means a release made from remixes or mixed tracks. 2) In Russian rap, a mixtape is a collection of tracks recorded on backing tracks illegally taken from other people’s tracks. As a rule, mixtapes in Russia violate the copyrights of performers. A mixtape is also a collection of tracks recorded on minus, posted by beatmakers for public use.

Minus- A synonym for the general meaning of the word bit.

Independent battle- A battle taking place on the website hip-hop.ru, organized not by the forum administration, but by the forum members themselves.

Noname(Noname) - An insufficiently popular or unknown performer who does not have a “name”. A relatively objective indicator in this aspect can be the amount of audio in VK and the number of concerts, as well as the number of visitors who came to the concert.

HP(New Rap) - The largest news rap public vk.

Newschool– A new style of hip-hop, the distinctive features of which are the use of fast flow, dashes and various plugins and effects, such as melodin and autotune.

Old school(Oldschool) – An early style of hip-hop, also called old school. Prominent representatives of this style are 2Pac, Wu-TangClan and Onyx. Often this is a measured presentation without the use of many effects and fast flow.

The official battle is a battle taking place on the website hip-hop.ru, organized by the forum administration. The largest battle in Russia.

Punch, punchline(Punch) – This is a laconic phrase/line designed to hook an opponent. This can be either a vivid metaphor or a joke below the belt. “The presence of an opponent is not necessary. It's like finishing off a joke. Just a catchy phrase or line"

Part– Written part of one artist on a joint track.

Dashes, acceleration- The fundamental part of fast flow. Increased text reading speed.

PR– Distribution of the artist’s creativity or any information and offer of services.

Innings- The emotions invested in the reading, the placement of intonations, the way of pronouncing words, the use of vocals, dashes, acceleration and other specific rap techniques.

Producer– A specialist who is fully involved in the promotion of the performer, dealing with all legal and financial issues. Often, producers register the performer's name (nickname) in their name, and when the performer changes producer, he is forced to change the nickname, since all rights to the old nickname will belong to the old producer. For this reason, Loc-Dog was forced to change his nickname to Loc Dog.

Promo(promo) - a release to familiarize yourself with the work of a certain artist.

Release- Premiere of an album, track, video or collection

Remix(Remix) - New arrangement of an already released track.

Rapcore- a subgenre of rock music characterized by the use of rap as vocals. Rapcore combines the instrumental and vocal properties of such genres as punk, alternative rock, and hip-hop.

Mixing- the stage of working on a song, during which the recorded audio tracks (instruments, main vocals, takes, etc.) are combined into one audio file using various devices and techniques, such as equalization, compression, volume manipulation, placement in space, adding sound effects. Note: vocal correction, synchronization of takes and backings is a process not included in mixing, it is a precursor
note installation stage.

Swag(swag) – An expression of coolness and individuality.

Skiles(Skills) - Presentation and various types of rhyme construction.

SlovoSpb() - One of the two most popular live battles in Russia. Based in Krasnodar.

Compound rhymes- The end of the line in the next line rhymes with several words at once. Example: “Apocalypse - While you are healing”

Storytelling- a track that sets out a story, while consistently describing the events, actions and deeds of real or fictional characters.

Sample– A relatively small fragment of melody (music), taken as the basis for creating a minus. Beats are applied to the samples.

Take– recorded fragment, attempt. Example of use: I wrote it all down in one take, i.e. in one try.

Track(Track) - A synonym for the word “song” in rap.

Triplet- this is a musical size. In rap, it is now customary to call a rap with broken chips, like tanguist, acceleration, etc.

True(True) - A performer who reads the truth, that is, what he really thinks, does and what happened in his life.

Platypus- Slang name for Indabattle.

Fastflow(FastFlow) - A serving style built on dashes and accelerations.

Fit(ft. or feat) - Indicates that this is a joint track of two or more artists

Flayva(flave) - Party, company, group or label.

Flow(Flow) - Execution speed.

Freestyle(Freestyle) - Improvisation in rap. Reading text composed by the performer on the fly.

Fake(Fake) - Performers whose lyrics are based on lies. Their characteristic feature is considered to be the ability to “responsible for words.”

Hype- enthusiastic rumors, often deliberately inflated for marketing purposes.

Hustle- Any type of income related to rap or breaking the law (selling drugs, etc.)

Hater- A listener who condemns any creativity and has an acute dislike for it.

Homey(Homie) - Friend or loved one.

H.h.ru(persimmon) - One of the most popular forums dedicated to hip-hop culture, hip-hop.ru.

Yourselves lovers!

Label - what is it? Definition, meaning, translation

Label is a company, engaged in searching for talented musicians, producing music and releasing albums. In Russian, a label is a “recording company.”

Word Label translated from English means “shortcut, label”. This “shift” in meaning is due to the fact that the name of the company releasing the album used to be printed on the labels of gramophone records (Record Label) or CDs, and in the era of the Internet, most music labels simply disappeared, and those that remained sell music digitally format, because the current generation of music lovers practically does not buy music on physical media.

Today in the global music industry there are only three major labels, called in English Major Labels. The vast majority of popular musicians today release music on one of these Big Three labels:

1) Universal Music Group
2) Sony Music Entertainment
3) Warner Music Group

Label is in the list:

Did you find out where the word came from? Label, its explanation in simple words, translation, origin and meaning.