8 Most Mind-Blowingly Innovative Ways Artists Released Albums

8. Keeping It Secret €“ Beyonce

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1JPKLa-Ofc Beyonce's had the kind of resurgence these days that doesn't really happen to popstars who have been around longer than ten years; suddenly, she's the most talked-about star on the planet, topping charts and being proclaimed a genius, and it's mostly down to her excellent eponymous new album. Its release though, has also captured the imagination of her fans. Rather than posting photos on Instagram and updates on Twitter, Queen Bey didn't tell anyone she was in the studio; her record label codenamed the record 'Lily', and released it exclusively to iTunes with no prior warning or big announcement. It remained exclusive with iTunes for a week before distribution was widened, but many stores, including Target and Amazon, refused to stock the album after the star had released only with Apple. It's a similar idea to that of husband Jay-Z, who along with Kanye West, kept 'Watch The Throne' exclusive to iTunes first; the pair also went to huge lengths to prevent the album from leaking, with West only recording in hotel rooms and refusing to send out copies to journalists. iTunes was the perfect outlet for 'Beyonce,' given that the project had accompanying visuals; it meant that Beyonce could sell HD videos and her music simultaneously. Many though have questioned how long it will be exactly before everyone starts releasing straight to iTunes, bypassing the CD stage completely.
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Mark White hasn't written a bio just yet, but if they had... it would appear here.