r5RE MUSIC rum SHOWS L bfs MUSIC- Derek Vincent Smith, aka Pretty Lights, has mastered a beautiful and illusory indie trick: how to monetize free music. Since 2006, the pro- ducer/performer has released three albums and three EPs on his own Pretty Lights Music, all of are availa , download site Fans a " °: .ing them at a stew . "pace of about 15,000 per week, according to his manager Randy Reed of Red Light. The grass -roots interest has helped develop Pretty Lights into a touring powerhouse, atoubling venue ca- cities in every city oplays on every leg. fall tour will include Wncert venues with capacities up to 5,000. At 6 feet 9 inches, Smith often finds him- self traveling to gigs in roomier business class, striking up conversa- tions with seatmates who hadn't been ex- posed to his music. He found that even after telling them his music was available for free on his site, they wanted to know if they could get it on ¡Tunes. "I still can't wrap my head around who these people are," Reed says with a laugh, "but I guess they see it as a convenience factor." So Smith started selling his hip -hop and soul -inflected wares on iTunes, in the track - by -track format the platform demands. (On his site, only full -album downloads are avail- able.) Reed reports that he's averaging 20,000 downloads per month, resulting in a six- figure annual income for the "-We never artist, even after Apple and TuneCore take their cuts. "We never advertise to advertise to his fan base through Facebook, Twit- ter, anywhere that we his fan base sell his music on ¡Tunes," Reed says. "But people type in his name and just that we sell expect to find it." Similarly, special boxed sets -sold only from the merch booth his music on his tour stops and his site -filled a strong fan demand for keepsake on ¡Tunes. physical product, and supply a nice revenue stream. Smith has signed But people four other acts to Pretty Lights Music -, Paper Diamond, Break type in his Science and Michal Menert -all of which are using the same hybrid na,m and free/pay model. "We're not tout- ing it as the model for :expect everyone, and it's not to a replacement for the heyday of the record in- dustry," Reed says. "But find it." it's working incredibly well for him and the art- Rai.ay Reed, ists on his label." -Kerr/ Mason Red Light

22 BILLBOARD JULY 9, 2011