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As a current full time musician (meaning I have no other source of income aside from music), I believe I offer a valid perspective. I love music. I love performing it, I love writing it. No, I am not backed by a major record label who gives huge advances to artist that cover their living expenses, touring expenses, etc. (Advances are like loans that you owe the record label back when you start making money. In most cases, artists never can pay back the label (recoup), therefore never making any money of their own.)

The cold hard truth is, artists on major labels barely make any money selling their cds: its only pennies compared to dollars that go directly back in the label's pockets. Think about it. $13 for a cd, and the artist is only getting pennies of that (less than $1).

That said, as an independent artist selling my music is an important part of my income. But I also understand that file-sharing is an excellent promotional tool to gain more exposure and new fans. Because of this, I'm all for file-sharing when its used to discover new artists, especially independent artists who aren't backed by the monopolizing muscles of a major label.

Ultimately, I believe file-sharing is a good thing. But if you really enjoy an artists' music, you should buy their album, go to a concert, and tell all your friends!

Learn more about this author, Bethany Bombara.
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