The world of entertainment is changing. Artists, authors, and other content creators now find themselves on the brink of a New Renaissance Paradigm of do-it-yourself creation, distribution and marketing. With new technologies and marketing strategies available to artists, the traditional brick-and-mortar corporate institutions that traditionally ruled over the entertainment world are losing their grip on the keys to the gates of show business success. The content creators themselves now hold those keys in their own hands.

This Article sheds light on this Renaissance Paradigm within the entertainment industry and what it means for artists, traditional corporate institutions, and the field of entertainment law. It first focuses on the decline of middleman corporate entities such as record labels, publishing houses, and film distribution companies; modern content creators are empowered by new technologies to take ownership of his or her own career. The Article then discusses how this New Renaissance Paradigm allows for artists to explore new areas of creativity. Now that they no longer must abide by the constraints of institutional middlemen, content creators are free to follow and express their own visions, contributing to the formerly limited sea of widely accessible creative content. Aside from how the New Renaissance Paradigm affects creators and traditional institutions, the Article examines how these new marketing and distribution strategies affect the consumer (or content appreciator), bringing them closer to the artist and giving rise to a form of artistic patronage. Finally, this Article analyzes how these changes to the entertainment industry will affect the practice of entertainment law and calls upon attorneys to adapt to the changing times to best protect and represent their clients.