Ever wonder what it would be like to have a successful, independent artist? You know the type of artist you see on TV all the time who’s just starting out. They’re playing small venues with only a few people in attendance. The band is barely making enough money to cover their basic living expenses. But they don’t care because they believe in themselves and their music so much that it doesn’t matter if no one else does. Well, today we’re going to explore 10 famous artists that started as indie musicians before blowing up.
If you were told that one of the most famous musicians in pop music history was once just playing small clubs before he blew up, who would it be? Well, Prince is actually one artist who started as indie! He played local shows until his first album sold out so quickly they rushed to make another which also became successful. From there he never looked back and continued making albums through Warner Brothers Records for many years, releasing some of his best work while still managing to keep control over all aspects of his artistry along the way too. This makes him not only a talented musician but a savvy businessperson at heart too!
Elvis Presley is known as one of the biggest rock stars in history. But he didn’t start out like that at all. Elvis was playing small clubs and bars before being discovered by a record producer, signing to his label and becoming famous for music. It may have been different if he kept going indie though, because many believe him sticking with a country sound would’ve made him more popular than what happened.
You may not know that Elton John used to be an indie musician too. Just like other artists before him, he played small venues and was living a meager life just trying to make ends meet until fate stepped in and gave him the opportunity of his lifetime when executives with Liberty Records saw one of his performances and offered him a contract within days. From there things took off for this talented singer-songwriter who went on to have a long career full of successful albums performed around the world night after night while still making time for solo projects as well.
The Chili Peppers are one of the most well-known rock bands on the planet, but they didn’t start out that way at all. Anthony Kiedis and Flea (the band’s founding members) were living in Los Angeles as aspiring musicians who barely had enough money to cover their basic needs. They would play small venues for whoever was there or busk until someone walked by so they could earn a few dollars. But it wasn’t long before fate stepped in again when some executives with EMI Records saw them performing and offered them a contract which turned into their first album ever!
Also Read: Best Red Hot Chili Peppers Songs
Radiohead may be one of the most popular bands today, but before they started making albums in 1993, Thom Yorke was just a singer/songwriter. They released their first album independently on May 12th through Parlophone Records and amazingly it reached #12 on the UK charts!
The Foo Fighters are an American rock band that we all know and love…or do we? It turns out that Dave Grohl’s very first group was actually called “Paperville” after his hometown, Papervile, PA. And while you may not have heard of them outside of this small town Pennsylvania suburbia, it turns out that these guys were pretty successful with their independent releases too-they even won a WAMI Award for “Best Independent Album” in 1994!
Before Beck was the popular singer/songwriter, most know him as a DJ. His very first album came out on August 13th 1993 and it was called “Golden Feelings.” But what’s interesting is that while his musical style may have changed over time, he still has quite a few connections with independent musicians-he even released an EP of songs about other indie artists through Record Store Day this year! Björk -
Björk started her career not just as a musician but also as an artist. Originally she wanted to be a visual filmmaker which led her to study at Goldsmiths College, London where she studied art history and film. It was at Goldsmiths that she met with Tim Simenon who went on to produce her big break “Debut” in 1993.
The Cure are a British rock band that we all know and love! But before they were big time, they actually started out with an indie album called “Three Imaginary Boys” in 1979. And although this is their first release as the group The Cure, it’s not their last-they also released two more albums independently after that one.
The Smiths, or The Smiths Industries Ltd. to be precise, was a British indie rock band that formed in 1982 with Johnny Marr and Andy Rourke on guitar and bass respectively. Their first album “The Smith’s” came out later the same year on October 18th and it reached number 12 in the UK charts!
In 1994 when Oasis started making albums, they were an independent group before going mainstream with their second album “What’s The Story Morning Glory?” They even had two records for sale at one point called “Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep” which eventually got reworked into what would become their third single of 1995. And while we may not have heard of them at the time, they were pretty successful with their indie releases in 1994 and 1995 as well.
Also Read: Wonderwall Chords by Oasis Tutorial for Beginners
While most people know all about The Beatles and how they went on to become one of the best-selling bands ever, it turns out that before becoming a household name, John Lennon was actually just an independent artist. And although he had success working for himself solo later on down the road, if you’re looking for some early works (before 1968) then this is where to find them! Radiohead - Thom Yorke wasn’t always frontman of RadioHead-in fact when he started his career back in 1981 all he did was sing songs by other artists like Bob Dylan or Elvis Presley as part of “Dr. Biscuit’s Original Band”.
Although some of these artists have gone on to become one of the biggest names in music today, it turns out that they had a little bit more humble beginnings. Who knows? You might be the next one on this list s