Balancing Creativity & Commerce. Marketing Strategies in the Music Industry

The music industry is characterized by a continuous dichotomy between commerce and creativity. On one hand, it is a highly organized and commercially exploitative industry and on the other hand, it is a rich source of meanings and provides an arena for creative expression and person identity. In order to research this ongoing tension between music’s role as a form of cultural expression and music’s position within an economic and industrial context, this thesis examines the marketing strategies of the music industry. The research question central in this thesis is: Is the marketing of music the same as the marketing of commodities and to what extend does the symbolic, cultural value of music influence the marketing strategies of the music industry?