Why is indie music called "indie"?

is it just for "independent"?

Indie is simply a slang term for independent, they're one in the same, mystery solved.

yep!
=)

no, because the music is from india and indie is kind of a root word for india i guess.

i hope this helps in some small way.

--kelli

Indie is not a genre. Alternative rock is also often reffered to as indie. Indie is a music corporation label which means in this case in music that the bands are out of mainstream (although a lot of so-called "indie" bands people refer to are mainstream which the ones they refer to are wrong). No it did not "start in" india like Kelli said.

yep. but some unindependant music is called indie to, cuz it sounds like "indie" music - alternative rock, folk, etc. Uhm... Feist isn't "Indie"... she's on the Much Music Countdown... she has Indie "Style" but it's not independant..............

Yes, it is short for independant.
This means that the artist is signed to an INDEPENDANT record label. (e.g. feist, and indie singer, is signed to Arts & Crafts, which is independant.)

Record labels that are not independant are labels like Universal, BMG, etc. that have sublabels.

because it reminds people of indian chants :P

It means their record was "Independently" produced. You always hear fans complaining when they hear their favorite indie band has signed to a major label (Warner, EMI, Sony BMG, Universal) because the record label will typically push their ideas on the band, who in turn have to conceed because the label gave them a ton of cash to sign. The record labels want the groups to write radio-friendly songs and sell as many albums as possible. They're in it for the profit. If a band stays with an indie label, they have absolutely no outside influencers on the music they write or records they release. The downside is they have limited resources to market, advertise, and distribute their records. Alot of indie labels are actually owed by the band, since they produce, arrange, and distribute the entire album themselves.