The music industry is changing - fast. Unfortunately, as is pretty common with any kind of change, it is easy for people to get a little ahead of themselves. Also unfortunately, with the internet, getting ahead of yourself makes for good headlines and good traffic, but it is also, well, ahead of yourself.
Which is all a really long way of saying that you've surely heard before and will hear again that demos are archaic, old industry, for fools, etc, etc. Maybe someday they will be (doubt it, though - they're a pretty practical part of the functioning of the industry that have nothing to do with "old label models" or whatever the buzz words are) - but they aren't now. Right now, demos make sense for some people and not for others. Incidentally, that has ALWAYS been the case, but let's not quibble. Consider this:
-
If you plan to release your own music, you certainly don't have to record a demo to send to yourself to see if you want to offer yourself a deal. If you plan to seek record label backing, then you will find that a demo comes in mighty handy. Many major labels and some big indies don't accept unsolicited demos, but then again, many indie labels do. Further, should some label come along and solicit a demo, it's nice to have one handy. This has been the case since the dawn of time or at least since the dawn of record deals versus DIY and was not just created by virtue of the new digital realm.
-
Labels aren't the only people who check out your music and decide whether or not to work with you on the basis of demos. If you're not sure how you want to release your music, or if you know you want to release it yourself, but you want to try to put together a team that includes a manager, maybe an agent, maybe a PR/radio company to help you plan your release campaign - a demo can be useful in assembling said team.
-
Don't get so caught up in semantics. A demo is simply a collection of your music that says, "hey, here is what I am all about. What do you think of all this, and do you maybe want to work together?" It can exist in digital or physical form (depending on the preferences of the people who are receiving it). There are countless occasions in your music career where you will need to give someone a musical taster of you that isn't necessarily an already released piece of work intended for public consumption, and that need doesn't evaporate because the internet was invented or because you want to self-release your music or because someone knows that saying something "revolutionary" about demos will get them retweeted a lot.
So, then, in a nutshell, no, demos aren't outdated. Depending on your goals and what you're working on, you may find yourself needing one. Be prepared when the need pops up. Learn more about demos in Demos 101.
