History: Both copyright laws and recording formats have evolved over the years to make the music business an intensely profitable one—in spite of its current problems with digital file sharing.

Industry: The recording industry is made up of four major corporate labels and hundreds of independent labels that act as talent scouts for innovative groups and musical styles.

Controversies: The primary controversies that concern critics of the recording industry are of two types: the effects of music, and its censorship. The two are related—those who are worried about the negative effects of music are often the ones who call for some type of censorship.