I think it works with very famous artists too.
I can't imagine that The Rolling stones won't choose themselves the release date (or at least the month) for their next album.
I can't believe that the major company (I think Univresal in their case) won't ask to Jagger his point of view about when to release the album.
I am aware though that MK is not exactly in the same league as the Stones
And you don't think the label will want to maximize the release strategy?
Of course the artist will have a say but ultimately the label will have final call. if you want an example look no further than golden heart where Mark wanted ANISLA as the lead single. instead we got DP.
I'm not saying artists don't get a say in these decisions, and its probably the case that as physical sales have declined the weight of their opinion probably means more. But ultimately its the record label paying the overheads, the record label risking its cash, hence the simple business need to maximize its return. Any business that didn't behave like this wouldn't last long.
its dog eat dog, rat eat rat