Label Chief Says Boy Band Phase Caused Industry Slump

Aware Records founder Gregg Latterman, whose label, through an innovative artist-development arrangement with Columbia Records, has launched the careers of hit artists John Mayer, Train and Five for Fighting spoke with HitsDailyDouble.com and was asked whether the industry slump affected his company. “It hasn’t,” he says. “To me, a big reason why sales are down is because of the boy-band phase. Artists like *NSYNC and Britney Spears aren’t going to continue having monster records. Every 10 years we have this phenomenon with huge albums by these teenpop bands, then their second sells half as much until they start putting out solo albums.”