THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE US MUSIC INDUSTRY
AND THE OVERSEAS MARKET

The music industry is in a state of complete disarray. There, now we've said it! And we all know it's true. Over the past 10 years the major record labels have been forced to cut expenses drastically.
One major label has been forced to cut over 40% out of it's annual operating budget
(Billboard, Jan __ 1999).

Between these cuts, reduction in profits, mergers with larger, more dollar-conscious conglomerates and watchful stockholders, every label has trimmed back in every department, including the A&R department.
This has made the evaluation and development of up and coming artists nearly impossible, all this is an era when there are more artists looking for recording contracts than anytime in the past 12 years.
It has always been a difficult connection for the artist to reach an A&R representative.

However, the issue is not getting the record label to listen to the songs, the issue is getting the material to the label! Most A&R and label personnel realize that their livelihood depends on signing new artists but they do not have the time nor the resources to spend every day listening to tapes and every night in clubs trying to find those artists that match their current roster need, demographic profile and talent level.

This ongoing method of business has created a double-edged sword: A&R reps cannot accept unsolicited material, or they would be inundated with hundreds of thousands of tapes and CD's, most being inappropriate to their current needs. It is unrealistic to think they could listen to half of those submitted, let alone all of them. Chances are very good that they will miss the exact artist and style they were looking for. On the other side of the sword is the artist. They have no idea who to submit their songs to, what style of music the label is currently looking for, or how to ensure their material doesn't wind up in the garbage can.

Is this any way to run a business? We think NOT! Sing Clear and the founders of Unsigned America have all been a part of this seemingly endless circle as artists, producers, A&R representatives, publishers, engineers or musicians. We have all seen a great song go unnoticed, a great artist struggle for years and record labels desperately searching for the next big thing. That is why we created Unsigned America.
It is a company that creates the link between the artist and the record label. By harnessing the incredible marketing power of the Internet along with our vast contacts worldwide we can connect thousands of artists and A&R reps. A&R reps and Supervisors let us know what there looking for and select an artist or song that suits their needs and forward it to them.

Sing Clear and Unsigned America's services do not just benefit the A&R professional. We offer support services to the artist that can be found no where else. Our award-winning, experienced staff of audio industry professionals can help an artist refine their songs, provide any needed musicians, vocalists or songwriter / collaborators, record their material in a state-of-the-art digital 24 track studio, arrange for producers and engineers, duplicate their CD's and even create unique artwork that will set their material apart from the pack.