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Is UMG’s TikTok Standoff Creating More Opportunities for Independent Artists?

TiKTok music might benefit indie artists following Universal Music Group's banning the app.

While there are opportunities for increasing numbers of independent artists to gain greater traction on TikTok during the platform’s impasse with UMG, “it’s important for artists to use the opportunity to focus on their own art instead of chasing trending sounds or being the one-millionth person to cover a hit song,” says Jody Whelan of independent record label Oh Boy Records, which was founded in 1981 by the late singer-songwriter John Prine and which now represents music from Prine, Kelsey Waldon and Arlo McKinley, among others. For many contemporary acts, TikTok is a key component of their marketing plans, with labels and managers urging artists to create content in hopes of driving listeners to streaming platforms. Even with stats like these, Whelan says the TikTok/UMG battle should serve as a cautionary tale to realize how even so-called independent artists can get caught in the ban’s web because of an affiliation with UMG or UMPG.

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