"One format doesn't really replace the other.". Small labels and artists find more freedom with MP3, but what does it mean for the consumer? According to Chuck D, it means the end of highway robbery. He says that CDs are made for eighty cents by major labels and sold to consumers for $14. "You'll see $3 albums, which artists won't mind if they're getting money," he said. "The true revenge will come when the major labels start dropping their prices.". What's more, groups will be able to release their work at a faster pace without censorship and interference from the major labels. "Streaming" media technologies will allow groups to perform live without interference from broadcast networks. Mike Diamond echoes Chuck D's enthusiasm for that idea, saying that artists can control their content and a group's direction if you cut out the middlemen. "We can shift direction very quickly," Diamond said. "If the market changes radically, we don't need a national sales force trying to make sure our records are in stores in the middle of Iowa.". Yes, someone in the middle of Iowa will only need to go out to the Web to find the latest in the hip-hop world. The control that labels had as the gatekeepers of popular music is slipping away. Small labels no longer have to go hat in hand to distributors, and artists can communicate directly to their fans. It's a nightmare for an industry that used to be able to dictate who would be big and who was too radical, too different, too free-thinking to be considered. Still don't think this is a big issue? In a world where it's conceivable that media organizations can own the entire artist-to-consumer process, MP3 is as close to free expression as we are going to get. ...
