You probably know about a web site called "MP3.com," either because you frequent it or due to the lawsuits filed against it that have made the news. What you may not know is that they've dedicated an entire section of their site to promoting female independent artists. This includes biographies, pictures, discographies, and, of course, music files.
MP3.com's commitment to the promotion of independent artists comes through loud and at a high bitrate. A "Favorite Song of the Week" contest lets listeners vote for the independent artist(s) they support. In depth and touching articles, such as the story of one female artist's struggle to overcome a divorce, a custody battle, and a pair of car accidents, let visitors know just how committed some musicians can be.
And lest you think that only no-names and wannabes are taking advantage of the Internet, there are artists such as Rosie Gaines, who was the main female back-up singer for Prince during the early 90s. Now she's started her own music label, Dredlix Records, a company that distributes exclusively over the net. Why would someone like her, who obviously has connections in the big corporate music machine, decide to switch to digital? Her first album, "Closer than Close," was released by Motown records to critical acclaim, but when Polygram bought out the company, she and several other artists were never released to the general public. Her second attempt became mired in legal complications, after which she took a vacation from the music scene entirely.
Now she's back, and she has advice for her fellow rebels: "It's better...to try and be as independent as you can. With most of these record companies, there's so much politics that goes down with it, they don't care about you as a human being-you're just a number. As soon as your numbers drop, they drop you." Other groups, like the Rebecca Hart Project, are going digital to spread their message about equality between the sexes in the field of music: "There is this palpable anxiety that is raised in people at the idea of a woman in popular music...people assume right away you will only appeal to a certain market." At MP3.com, the visitor determines what they want to see. Both male and female groups have risen equally in the online arena, proving that the best way to judge a musician is by the content of their compositions.