Equity Investment
With
Imogen HeapA look at where artists can find investment in the music industry, from record and management companies backing you to setting up your own company.
What's in the course
44 lessons (2h 11m) · 1 free
Lesson transcript
Investment in the Music Industry
So you can get investment in the music industry from:
- People inside the industry
- People outside the industry
Key Sources of Investment
1. Industry Insiders
The most typical type of investment, which is often not recognized, is from other people in the music industry investing in you as an artist.
- Record Companies:
- A record company or a management company is the most likely entity to take a risk and invest money in a new artist.
- They are really important to know about.
When they're investing in you, they're taking a risk, and you don't have to repay them, apart from your hard work.
Best Type of Investment
- This is actually the best type of investment for a young artist to focus on: working with people in the industry.
2. Setting Up Your Own Company
If you are setting up your own company and you want investment, consider:
- Successful Industry Figures:
- Reach out to other people in the industry who may be very successful.
- They could be an artist or someone who is experienced in running their own company and understands business.
Finding Investment
- Seek out investors within the industry; they are likely the next most probable source of funding.
For particularly young managers, finding other management companies that admire their roster or their act and may be willing to engage in a joint venture deal is probably the most promising way to secure business investment.
Higher Levels of Investment
One of the difficulties with higher levels of investment is that you are dealing with very sophisticated investors.
- Complications Increase:
- The higher up the food chain you go, the more complicated deals and the legal aspects become.
- Additionally, the more return those investors will expect for their money.
This complexity is why it can be challenging for artists and small companies to navigate these waters.
CDIS Scheme
However, there is a scheme called the CDIS scheme, which can be very valuable for those starting small companies or running relatively small enterprises.
- Tax Breaks:
- This scheme offers significant tax breaks to investors who are investing in startups and are willing to take that risk, joining you on that journey.
Conclusion
I would emphasize that unless you're at a stage where you intend to set up a substantial company, it is much more beneficial to understand the ways to secure investment from within the industry.
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Meet your guru
Meet your guru
Imogen Heap is a Grammy-winning English singer, songwriter, producer and technologist whose influence runs through two decades of pop, electronic and film music — and through much of the technology modern artists now take for granted.
Born in London in 1977 and classically trained on piano, cello and clarinet, she released her debut album 'iMegaphone' in 1998 before forming the duo Frou Frou with producer Guy Sigsworth, whose song 'Let Go' reached a global audience through the film Garden State. Her self-written, self-produced album 'Speak for Yourself' (2005) delivered 'Hide and Seek', the a cappella landmark that later powered Jason Derulo's chart-topping 'Whatcha Say' and Ariana Grande's 'Goodnight n Go', and continues to find new generations of listeners.
'Ellipse' (2009) won the Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical — recorded and engineered in her own home studio — and she went on to co-write and produce 'Clean' on Taylor Swift's Album of the Year-winning '1989'. She also composed the score for the stage play 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child'.
A relentless innovator, Heap developed the MI.MU gestural gloves — recognised with three honorary doctorates — and founded Mycelia and The Creative Passport, initiatives building a fairer data ecosystem for artists. In 2024 she returned with 'What Have You Done to Me?', created with her AI vocal alter ego Mogen, while a viral resurgence of 'Headlock' brought her music to millions of new fans.
