Who Needs Mastering?
So who needs mastering? That is the question. It could also be that a professional artist would naturally want their music mastered in order to bring out the music into it's full glory.
The music industry depends on professional mastering of the work by their artist roster. In order to compete out in the world of music on the radio or itunes or anywhere music is consumed & enjoyed, that final mastering polish will keep the final product from sounding like they run their business out of a garage. Not that there's anything wrong with music from a garage since bands are known for rehearsing & creating music in garages.
There can be some imperfections in the audio that needs correcting before duplications can be made especially if there are special orders for vinyl reproduction.
So it is safe to say that when it comes to mastering and the people who need it, it can vary depending on what the final use will be of the audio.