Screen test for indies

A few months ago, singer-songwriter Emilia Dahlin received a phone call from a stranger offering her $15,000 to promote her music - no strings attached.

"I was sure it was too good to be true," said Dahlin, of Portland. "I went over the contract with a fine-tooth comb and put my trust in a friend who endorsed the whole thing."

She is glad she took a chance on the stranger who was prepared to do the same for her.

Now, Dahlin is one of 19 artists, five from Maine, whose music videos are being broadcast on a Time Warner Cable music station - not MTV or VH1, but one more suited to the independent music fan. The TV channel, which launched at its test site in Austin, Texas, in March and soon spread to Waco and San Antonio, is called Publik Music On Demand.

The channel is a wing of Portland-based Publik Music, a music management company that launched in March, which funds and broadcasts music videos of independent recording artists.

Publik Music, which also promotes the indie artists at www.publikmusic.com, discovers American indie pop musicians on the Internet and through word-of-mouth. The only prerequisite is the musicians have an existing album with an independent label or on their own.

A decade ago, before the Internet fueled the success of struggling musicians, the odds were against a lone artist succeeding in the recording industry. But as the Internet became popular, cumulative sales of independent music labels grew and major label sales declined.

According to the Future of Music Coalition, a nonprofit collaborative whose members work in the fields of music, technology, public policy and intellectual property law, the independent music community now represents more than 80 percent of music released in the United States.

"It's a pretty new concept as far as spotlighting new independent artists goes," said Roger Heaney, director of public affairs for the Austin division of Time Warner Cable. "Most people are directed from the channel to the Publik Music Web site to buy the artist's music."

With private funds, Publik Music spends about $15,000 to create and broadcast each artist's music video, along with a face-to-face interview, while the artist doesn't pay a penny. The Web site sells CDs and MP3 files.

"There is no ulterior motive," said Dan Crewe, the stranger who approached Dahlin and is Publik Music's chief executive officer. "When we approach the artists they're either extremely excited or skeptical. There are so many people out there trying to get something from someone."

The young company emerged from a boardroom discussion with a small team that included producer Patrick Tourville and Crewe, co-founder of Gateway Mastering Studio, a major recording studio in Portland, and founder of Baystock Music Festival. Its pairing with Time Warner resulted from Crewe's longtime connections in the music industry.

"Musicians should forget about becoming the next Beyonce, Bon Jovi or Madonna. The secret is, don't look for that pie in the sky," said Crewe.

For each artist it works with, the small start-up company contracts out to film each music video on their set: a backdrop of the city of Chicago, which is becoming its trademark of sorts. "Austin is one of the music capitals of the world," said Heaney, the Time Warner executive. "Publik Music is a popular channel so far."

Publik Music and the musician split all profits gained from Web site CD sales - a sum that looks pretty good against a major label's usual 15 percent.

Crewe's business goal is to ride the popularity of indie music and maybe help musicians like Dahlin eke out a decent wage.

"The Internet is going to become the traditional way to promote music," said Dahlin, a classically trained, up-and-coming artist. "Publik Music gets listeners interested and gives them a taste."

The company also takes on more-established artists like Cindy Bullens, a two-time Grammy Award nominee who, after a hiatus, returned to her music career in the 1990s.

"It's an incredibly innovative idea and I wanted to be part of it from the beginning," Bullens said, adding that Publik Music has provided her with the exposure to continue a successful and respected music career. "It is one of the most professional and creative things I've been involved with."

Though the channel doesn't generate advertising revenue now, Publik Music hopes to survive by utilizing what Crewe calls "a new growth area" for TV advertising. He plans to pitch running non-interruptive commercials during regular Publik Music On Demand videos to advertisers. For example, an ad for a beer company would scroll across the bottom of the screen during regular programming.

He envisions it recapturing some of the TV ad revenue lost to On Demand and TiVo - a similar service that automatically digitally records, fast forwards, stops and rewinds programs and commercials.

In the near future, Crewe plans to pitch the non-interruptive advertising model to executives at Time Warner. If they bite, he feels Publik Music will generate enough advertising revenue to extend its On Demand channel to Time Warner Corporate as well as Comcast and Cox-TV. Only then, when he hopes they are thriving, will they be able to take on more indie artists.

In the meantime, with a little help from Publik Music, Dahlin will soon begin a tour across the Midwest. Now she's the one who endorses Publik Music: "I'm just honored to be a part of this whole project. I'm incredibly fortunate they were willing to take a gamble on an emerging artist like me," she said.

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