How independent can you be? An investigation of independent musicians on social media

Amy Chu

Chapter 9 in Digital Globalization of Creative Industries, 2025, pp 158-173 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter investigates how musicians utilise content creation-based social media platforms to become independent. Although the digitalisation of the music industry has seemingly eliminated the need for gatekeepers like record labels, musicians face challenges in being independent in reality. While past research focused on how streaming platforms enabled musicians to generate revenue in the digital era, this chapter focuses on other overlooked content-creation-based social media platforms, which, in fact occupies significant roles in facilitating independence, such as attracting and engaging with audiences, self-promoting, and enabling collaborations. This chapter contributes to the discussion of how musicians navigate the challenges and opportunities of these platforms and how independent they can be while utilising them, using a non-participatory netnography approach. The findings suggest that although social media's features enable independence, becoming independent depends on additional skills and mental capacities beyond the role of music creators, as well as navigating external factors like obstacles brought by online gatekeepers, access to resources, and power imbalances.

Keywords: Independent musicians; Social media; Music industry; Digitalisation; Netnography; Creative industries (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035314768
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