KEYNOTE SPEECH by FISH

The Keynote Speech at the AES 110^th Convention, will be given by Fish. 2001 marks Fish's (Derek W. Dick) 20^th anniversary as a professional singer, having joined Marillion in 1981. It was the years with this band that brought Fish international stardom, with, as their greatest hit, the still popular single 'Kayleigh'. He quit the band in 1988 and decided on a solo career, gathering a group of musicians around him which came to be known as 'The Company'. The success and fame of those Marillion days never came back, but he did take with him a large and loyal following of fans. He built a recording studio in Scotland and set up his own record label, after his shaky relationship with some major record labels in the early '90s. Being an independent artist in the music industry is no simple task - and as the whole business is likely to be reshaped in the years to come, by way of music distribution on the internet, the next few years will be a crucial period, for Fish and many others alike. Music distribution on the internet offers potentially great opportunities for the independent artist, but possibly also serious threats. Let's see what happens in another 20 years time.