Modern Artist Management: Building Sustainable Music Careers in 2025 and Beyond

Overview

In my day-to-day conversations with music creators, two primary concerns consistently emerge: building an audience and generating sustainable income.

In reaction to these problems, a common line I hear is, "I want a label to do it for me." While traditional labels play a vital role in artist development, the landscape has evolved. Modern labels look for artists who demonstrate not just raw talent, but also business acumen and audience engagement potential.

This is, therefore, the basis of modern artist management: developing business acumen and building repeatable systems to drive fan engagement.

The Market Reality

The recorded music market has become increasingly segmented. According to recent industry data, while global recorded music revenues reached $28.6 billion in 2024, the top 1% of independent artists account for nearly 35% of all revenue. Among major artists, the gap increases to just 1% of artists accounting for up to 80%.

But the challenge for emerging artists isn't simply oversupply – it's about value differentiation. Major artists continue to see growth through sophisticated monetisation strategies. For instance, top artists typically earn 60-80% of their revenue from touring and merchandise, while emerging artists often rely heavily on streaming revenue, which averages just $0.004 per stream.

The problem is that new artists are trying to build careers in the way they see major artists doing it without recognising everything behind the scenes.

The Creator-Performer

Successful modern artist management blends creator and performer skills, adapting the approach based on their career stage and market position.

Consider artists like Jacob Collier, who blend creation and performance seamlessly. They create semi-educational content, behind-the-scenes material, and production videos while maintaining high-level performance careers. This hybrid approach allows them to build multiple revenue streams while developing their artistic brand.

Building Repeatable Systems

Successful artist development requires systematic approaches to both creation and marketing. Here's what this looks like in practice:

• Content Strategy
  • Primary content: Music releases, performances, music videos
  • Secondary content: Behind-the-scenes, informational content, lifestyle content
  • Community engagement: Live streams, Q&As, exclusive content, etc.
• Marketing Infrastructure
  • Email marketing system with segmented lists for different audience types
  • Retargeting frameworks using pixel tracking across platforms
  • Content calendar aligned with release schedules and evolving audience data
• Revenue Optimisation
  • Tiered memberships
  • Direct-to-fan merchandise
  • Licensing and sync opportunities

Implementation Strategy

While building an artist career is incredibly specific in every case, the key to implementing these systems lies in strategic audience building. Start with a core offering – whether that's production tutorials, performance videos, or original music – and build systematic ways to:

• Capture audience data (email addresses, engagement metrics)
• Track conversion rates across different content types
• Calculate customer acquisition costs and lifetime value
• Optimise marketing spending based on performance data

For example, if you're releasing an album, your system might include:

• Pre-release: Educational content about the production process
• Release phase: Behind-the-scenes content and live performances
• Post-release: Community engagement and exclusive content for superfans

Conclusion

Success in today's music industry requires understanding both art and commerce. While talent remains fundamental, building a sustainable career demands systematic audience-building and revenue-generation approaches. The goal isn't to replace artistic creativity with business systems but to create frameworks that support and amplify creative work while building sustainable income streams.