The term ‘indie’ originated to describe artists releasing music on independent record labels without mainstream funding. It became a catch-all term in the US and UK in the late 70s for guitar pop-rock, post-punk and new wave music.
Today, it encompasses everything from chamber pop to chillwave to shoegaze. In 1978, Factory Records, Mute, and Rough Trade were founded, changing the landscape of music for the better, forever. The notable artists springing up out of the fanzine DIY culture included Dinosaur Jr, the Jesus and Mary Chain and the Cocteau Twins – but that didn’t stop Johnny Marr from informing the world that the Smiths invented indie.
Thanks to online streaming, the modern increased accessibility of the industry and the opportunity to use social networks, indie, as a genre, remains mostly underground. However, the earnings of indie artists surpassed those signed to major record labels. By the end of 2020, indie artists had earned over $2 billion in streaming revenue alone.
Indie artists are quickly becoming the future of the industry, and we’re here to help more artists succeed and help to dominate the market share.
About Us
A&R Factory was founded in 2012 to help industry professionals discover new independent artists from across the globe. We have become one of the most respected A&R blogs in the UK and internationally.
We have worked alongside rising indie-folk-rock star Joe Astley; his single, ‘Mean Streets’, garnered critical international acclaim and charted in the UK iTunes Alternative charts at number 6 in 2021.
Other successful artists that we have helped along the way are Manchester’s Heavy Salad, their debut album, ‘Cult Casual’ was produced by Ross Orton (Arctic Monkeys) and it wasn’t long before the record took pride of place in record shop windows. We are also proud to have supported the sensational Jacob Leventhal. With his 2020 release, he quickly amassed over 100,000 streams as an independent artist.
Whether you are working with a Grammy-award winning producer or going solo and producing from your bedroom, we are here to help you expand your reach and tick off those bucket list band goals.
What We Are Looking For
We are looking for indie artists unafraid to stake their original claim in the industry. If you stay true to the expression-over-profitability ethos and are keen to share your music with eager fans looking to invest in indie artists, we want to hear from you.
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