Indie Culture and the the Internet

                   The idea of being indie has been around for a long time.  Its roots date back to the proto-punk greats of the 60’s and 70’s including The Velvet Underground and The Stooges, followed by many sub-genres that could take a whole day to explain.  There is much to say about the ambiguity over what it really means to be indie but for the sake of simplicity we will define it as an artist who does not belong to a major record label.  There was always an avenue of listeners but the 2000’s saw indie artist rise in popularity.  Thanks to the internet, the distribution and exposure for alternative/indie artists was much easier.  What followed was a much more proud and interactive audience who were actively searching for new and non-mainstream artists.  This phenomenon extends more than music as the internet and e-commerce have reshaped fundamental business models.  It is known as the Long Tail and describes the idea of having a wide dispersion of unique, niche products rather than having a few popular items with a large quantity in stock.  This led to websites and digital downloading programs like iTunes carrying much more independent artists’ music because people were purchasing niche or “indie” music over the internet.  Stores like Wal-Mart saw the rapid decline in CD sells while distributors like Amazon.com experienced an increase in the sale of various underground and alternative artists.  Thanks to the internet, music and the artists themselves are more liberated than ever.