For the past couple of years the music industry has been topsy-turvy as the digital age continues to slowly but surely erode the traditional model of business.  While major labels are thrown off their axis many new businesses have cropped up with the goal of becoming leaders of music’s digital age.  One of the most promising companies to emerge in this pursuit is UrbMob Records, Inc. 

The company focuses on emerging web 2.0 technology platforms and mobile music distribution.  Recently they launched Urbmob.com which gives emerging artists the power to mobilize their original work and get a chance to get famous and earn money from doing so. 

Sixshot spoke with co-founder and general manager, Robert Delamar about how his site aims to change the game and more.

Sixshot.com:  What inspired you to launch the project?

Robert Delamar:  It was inspired by the change in the music industry.  With the death of the traditional CD there is a huge business opportunity to help artists build their careers outside of the traditional label system.  This is a personal passion ‘cause I've been in bands and management so it’s something I care deeply about.  We wanted to marry the best in technology with this new business opportunity. 

Sixshot.com:  There was a time when labels would ac tually develop an artist but now the artist has to come in with everything polished and ready to go. 

Robert Delamar:  In order to get signed to a major label now you need to have a fan base.  Whether or not you're a prospect for signing depends on how many friends and plays you have on MySpace.  So there is absolutely no appetite with major labels and some of the bigger indies to manage you because there’s no financial incentive for them to do so.  They can’t make it up on the second or third album ‘cause nobody buys CD’s anymore.

Sixshot.com:  Some people think that is an unfair situation that will eventually lead to less artistic music being produced.

Robert Delamar:  There are gonna be winners and losers as a result of the change.  I think artists that were focused purely on craft without business savvy will lose out in this new model.  That may be bad for art but it may not be, especially in the pop music space there’s been a marriage of art and commerce.  You have to be successful at both.  Those that have that ability will make more money than they would have in the past.  There are a lot of young hustlers in the game who see this as a way for them to build a career in music.  They’re looking beyond the music at models like Diddy and Jay-Z where guys turn themselves into brands and build successful businesses on top of their success in music.

Sixshot.com:  How is your company different from MySpace or other competitors that also offer exposure and the opportunity to make money from sales?

Robert Delamar:  The first way is that we are focused as a mobile music distribution company.  In the future we believe there will be no division between the internet and mobile.  The two will be joined through devices like the iPhone, but they are still on separate networks.  So we enable an artist to navigate between those two worlds of web and mobile phones.  On our site you have full mobile distribution in the U.S. and that’s massively different than MySpace.  There re other competitors that do some of that stuff but nobody offers that comprehensive vision.  The second thing that’s different is we pay our artists so the revenue share is much higher.  Plus should you want to sign to a record label we also have that offering.  So it’s a complete offering.

Sixshot.com:  This sounds like a great concept.  Why focus solely on hip-hop?

Robert Delamar:  We will be opening it up to other genres with a punk/indie/hardcore label where we will sell content to that world.  We started with hip-hop because there’s a custom of hustling in the urban community that is perfect for what we do.  We give artists the tools to hustle and make real money.

Sixshot.com:  Some of the criticism with sites like yours is that as the site grows it becomes hard for artists to stand out and not get lost in the shuffle.  So is there anything in place to avoid that?

Robert Delamar:  One of our advantages is that the tools we built are for artists and they have the ability to grow themselves.  So if they got lost it’s a responsibility thing.  We are not as active as some of the other sites but we’re all about giving the artist the tools and letting them grow.

Sixshot.com:  What does the future hold for UrbMob?

Robert Delamar:  Our goal was to create a business model and distribution model that could replace the traditional music business.  So our goal is to be the next Universal Music Group.  We want to be number one in the new age of digital distribution, and have a business model that enables us to attract talent and attract a musical offering to fans.

For more information please visit:
www.urbmob.com

PR Contact:  Toni-Mateo (CEO & PR Executive Rep)
Phone: 516.298.3633
www.pr-franchize.com