What is going on with record labels? I'm starting to ask this question myslef now that I am seeing reports all over the place about how losing your job in the industry is becoming more and more common.

I completely understand that the industry is in a very difficult position since the internet plays a major part in how people are receiving their music and as a result, album sales are on a steady decline. However, with this issue at hand you would think there would be a few someone's in the industry who would formulate some creative ideas to combat this.

Many efforts have been made to stop people from illegal downloading copyrighted music. However, has this effort made remotely any difference? Part of the problem is that artist are putting out less quality cds that tend to only have a handful of good songs and the rest album fillers. Needless to say, why would anyone want to spend money on something knowing that there are only a couple of songs they really want to hear. It would make sense that more and more artist start flocking to companies like iTunes where people can sample tracks and purchase only the ones they want.

Apparently the lack luster sales of the industry are taking their toll and it has become more and more obvious. In May it was reported by billboardbiz.com that "Geffen and Interscope Records cut approximately 15 staffers spanning all departments. The cuts are the latest in a string of major label layoffs, which included Island Def Jam and Sony BMG earlier this month." More recently they reported that "rumors have been flying that Island Def Jam is laying off roughly 40 individuals by week's end".

According to Perezhilton.com: "About 60 people lost their jobs at Interscope and Geffen Records on Thursday when both labels merged into one. Many of those laid off had been there for years. The biggest reason for the merger and cutbacks, we're told, is the huge failures of the Will.I.Am, Nicole Scherzinger and Eve albums, the last two which aren't even out yet."

At this rate and about 5 years from now will record companies even remotely exist? Clearly it is a big problem and not just for artist trying to be signed to labels but also for the people behind the artist who run the company. Clearly the issue is not only illegal file sharing but also the fact that people have become so arrogant with music that they feel they can throw out a couple of good singles and the album will fly off the shelves. It takes much more than that these days and due to the fact that this information is so readily available to us you would think that people would work on making the best album possible.

Another problem is the amount of money labels are spending on the production of an album. When the albums don't sell like expected (see above for reason why) there is a bunch of money wasted (usually millions) and people loose their jobs. My question is this; can a quality cd be made without having to spend millions of dollars to produce it? My honest answer would have to be a resounding yes.

You cannot count on the fact that you spent $250,000 on a beat from Timbaland (yes he has charged that much) to automatically mean your album is going to blow up like Justin Timberlake's did. There are plenty of "Timbalands" out there making beats that wouldn't cost nearly as much. Yet it's all about the marketing. You give people a higher expectation of your album when you're using the Timbaland's and Darkchild's and Pharelle's of the music industry. Maybe it's time for the industry to start rethinking the old strategies that worked in the past but seem to be failing in the present.

"I'm just saying"




Aaron Fields is the Sales Marketing Coordinator for KSTW-TV in Seattle. All opinions expressed in this column are strictly his.