London music
fromPitchfork
12 hours agoLorde Leaves Universal Music Group
Lorde became fully independent after her Universal Music Group deal ended in 2025, seeking creative freedom before potentially signing with another label.
In a series of posts on X, formerly Twitter on Tuesday (20 January), 33-year-old "Broken" singer Kim Petras stated that she had officially asked to be dropped by her record label Republic Records, a brand owned by Universal Music. "I'm tired of having no control over my own life or career. I want to continue to self fund and self curate my own music. This is why I have formally requested to be dropped by @RepublicRecords," Petras wrote.
Before art dealers entered the scene in the 19th century, artists would mostly sell their work to patrons without the aid of a middleman. Michelangelo spoke to his small but powerful group of patrons directly, while Rembrandt organised his own commissions and sold his art from a "shop" next to his studio. Today, as the art market's power dynamics continue to evolve, an increasing number of artists are once again taking a more independent approach to the making, marketing and selling of their art.