production and distribution costs are negligible nowadays. record labels are marketing powerhouses that can push their product (music and the artists) through t

production and distribution costs are negligible nowadays. record labels are marketing powerhouses that can push their product (music and the artists) through traditional channels like radio, concert tours, and other partnerships. independent artists have a harder time since there's no equivalent marketing vehicle for discovery. and many don't have a chance with the major labels since not every artist has the labels' definition of mass-market appeal. some of the smaller labels (at least in EDM) are more forward-thinking and push out music via podcasts, exclusive tracks on social networks, etc. but it's not solving discovery: finding great music from artists i've never heard about. once you have that, you can start building artist-specific apps and so on. related: i'm building a minimalistic music player (for Mac initially) that helps you make playlists from SoundCloud tracks and other sources. if you have suggestions about the discovery angle, i'd love to hear them! email in profile.