How to Support Independent Artists (And Why It’s More Important Than Ever) In 2021

Being a champion of independent artists doesn’t have to be laborious or expensive — and ultimately, it’s much more rewarding than passively being drip-fed Justin Bieber.

HYENAZ performing at COVEN at the The Underdog Gallery

In many ways, it looks like there’s never been a better time than now to be an independent artist.

The internet with its multitude of tools and platforms is at our fingertips as creators, and it’s easier than ever to self-publish and distribute music, podcasts, image and written words. If you want to launch a radio station or virtual gallery, you’ve got it, it can go live later today. The cost of entry is pure desire and hard graft. And luck. And a certain measure of struggle. And any spare cash you can throw into the campaign.

While navigating the constant onslaught of content in which we’re tasked with making ourselves seen and heard — often in competition with label-backed artists wielding actual marketing departments — we’ve also got to keep a side-eye on any new legislation or developments that might help or hinder our progress. Here in the U.K. certainly, a number of new initiatives are bound to turn the path for independent artists into more of an uphill experience in 2021 and beyond:

• The U.K.’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson declining visa free tours of the…