Biography
The name most readers will encounter alongside Derek Sivers is CD Baby, the online distributor of independent music based in Portland, Oregon, and the site listed as his own: CDBaby.com.
CD Baby was established in 1998 and built its business around getting independent artists' work out into the world, handling distribution in both physical and online formats. Tracy Maddux, chief operating officer at the company's parent, later described it as an "anti-label" — a shorthand that says a good deal about how the operation positioned itself against the traditional record industry it worked alongside.
The physical side of that offering did not last indefinitely. In June 2023 the company discontinued its physical media service and moved to digital only, closing out the part of the model that had shipped actual discs on behalf of musicians who had no label to do it for them.
CD Baby was established in 1998 and built its business around getting independent artists' work out into the world, handling distribution in both physical and online formats. Tracy Maddux, chief operating officer at the company's parent, later described it as an "anti-label" — a shorthand that says a good deal about how the operation positioned itself against the traditional record industry it worked alongside.
The physical side of that offering did not last indefinitely. In June 2023 the company discontinued its physical media service and moved to digital only, closing out the part of the model that had shipped actual discs on behalf of musicians who had no label to do it for them.