We are witnessing so many young people finding their own path in creating, distributing and marketing their own music. The Punk ethic gone global so to speak. Meanwhile established artists are also finding their own way, be it Simply Red, Paul McCartney or Prince. Some are of the opinion that such artists are past their prime, so have no choice but to find alternatives to the record label support. As Naresh Ramchandani suggested:

Prince is doing what every artist formerly known as good has had to do. He's selling out, and it's never pretty.

However, I think he misses the point. Prince is not formally good. Joni Mitchell is not formally good. Music is about sharing with a community, about story-telling, about sharing life experiences, about representing the community. That is what these artists still do in their own way. These artists are exploring new directions of communicating with their community. They are glorious in their bravery, and should be heralded for trying. Anyone in the music world, be they label, manager or artist, should be cheered for trying new things. If no-one takes risks, the music industry will continue to struggle. Critical to risk-taking is understanding your audience. John Sinclair might not have had all the answers in the 60s, but his view that music binds communities together was bang on. By better understanding the community that the artist connects with will help the artist and their representatives. Some artists take risks and benefit, others are less brave. Part of the bravery of trying something different and exploring their relationship with their community is understanding HOW the artist connects. Over the last few decades, this connection has been driven by the recorded song. As my friend (and honorary citizen) Gauti Sigthorssen pointed out, are we not merely reverting back to a time when the live experience was more important, before vinyl transferred the communal experience of music into a commodity? Many people are looking for a greater emotional connection with artists, not just a throwaway flirtation. The sense of community is stronger than ever. Artists (and brands) that understand their community are the brave ones.