>majority of artists will likely see no return on their investment

I wonder if music is the best example, because if I recall it has been always like this for musicians. Never have I heard that in my, my parents or grandparents time Musician was a career you would get in for money

When I was young I got to meet a lot of the aging jazz musicians of the 1930s in Kansas City. It absolutely was a career here. Granted, that’s a distant memory for most people.