Archive for October, 2008
Author: Daniel Medeiros
By Daniel Medeiros…
The life of a professional musician has all the allure of a million dollars and a one-way ticket to being famous. Is it worth it? Heck, yes! But the only way to becoming a professional musician (and by “musician,” we mean singers and bands, not professional flautists) is to land a record deal. Whether you’re aiming for a mainstream or an indie share of the pie, you need that label to get heard.
Wait, but it’s tough to get signed to a label, right? True. And while there are many changes happening in the music industry right now (especially on the technological side), there is still no better way to make money as a musician than by having an established record label market your music. So how do you sell your soul to the corporate devil? It’s rather tricky, but we’ll walk you through the steps. (And don’t worry, it won’t involve an evening with RIAA President Hilary Rosen, a bottle of tequila, and a Barry White album.)
Unless you’re the next Beatles, there are a thousand other bands like you – so make yourself stand out from the rest by being professional from the beginning…No one will want to sign you unless you’re going to make them money. As such, you and your band must be confident, experienced, dedicated, and have it together (in other words, you must look like you will bring in money).
I have the assumption that you do not have a manager and that you are trying to get signed on your own. If you do have a manager, let the poor guy or gal do his/her job and you just stay out of the way. Otherwise, you need us bad.
http://www.reverbnation.com/jazzalikes
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/no-business-mindno-record-deal-605842.html
About the Author:
DM is an excellent allround world jazz guitarist ,fulltime studio musician,project leader,show case session host and a full time concert touring artist in the music business and entertainment projects…As an unsigned and independent artist he’d released various CD compilations on his name such as “remix & pickups”,”Spreads”,”MindCure” which contain not only his own original work material but as well influences of other world artists he likes,played with or scouted…he works always within legal contracts,uses discipline passion and fun in his own work…works with different people but only the finest…He is an improviser who uses talent and virtuosity combined with technic..Travels for his own work,composes,arranges and believes in nature…He is a capricorn by birth and on earth that’s what he believes!…He is a child of the world a world cosmopolitan someone with an interesting character to know, a friendly guy always ready to help others in any circumstance of life but depends what and who!… Somebody experience courageous ambitious, warm,with a dream…A hard worker,direct to the point but always respecting the meaning of others…Somebody who’s not to be taken for granted & who’s never afraid to speak languages or to be mixed in different worldwide cultures socially and musically.
http://www.reverbnation.com/jazzalikes
Author: Tim Eutin
Today’s music business is more complicated then ever. The digital revolution has made it easier and less expensive to make a quality CD. There are more outlets to reach the public with your music then ever before with MySpace, Playlist.com and web-based radio outlets. There is also more competition then as well.
What can a new group or artist do to increase their odds of getting heard by the mass public or getting better and more frequent bookings? Paul Crowley, of Paul Crowley Music Marketing, who has worked with artists such as The Police, Janet Jackson, REM, suggests, “The first thing is to not look at recording a CD as the end product. It is just one part of the overall marketing plan.”
“To many people make the mistake of not having a an overall plan of where the group wants to be in a year, two years or five years down the road.” Paul continues. “Without a plan it is almost impossible to make serious progress in today’s music business. Groups without a plan seldom last in today’s competitive market.”
Another key mistake that artists and groups make is to not budget for promotions. Paul states, “I’ve heard a lot of great music over the years, fantastic music, but unfortunately the public never got to hear it because the groups didn’t take into consideration budgeting for professional promotional services. The groups falsely assumed that a record company or DJ would hear their music and it would take off from there. That just doesn’t happen in today’s competitive market. There are a lot of great artists vying for limited airtime. You need professional help to get through to the key people that can help you out.”
This brings up the third point that will help new groups reach their goals. Hire a professional to promote your music to radio and give you sound advice. “There is the music business and then there is the business of music”, smiles Paul. “It is important to find a talented professional to represent you to radio and give you solid music business advice. A good manager will help you to plan your resources, both time and money, to make the correct move at the right time.” It is important to find someone that can make those moves on the artist’s behalf.
As the music business continues to evolve and grow the need for professional representation and management is more important then ever. Groups that heed the advice in this article will find themselves ahead of the pack when it comes to realizing their goals.
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/music-articles/top-three-things-new-artists-and-bands-need-to-know-to-jumpstart-their-careers-608406.html
About the Author:
Tim Eutin has worked in radio for over a decade. He is also the host of several popular websites.
In a recent issue of Recording Magazine, there was an interview with Taxi and several songwriters. One of the questions that was raised by one of the visitors at the Road Ralley where the interview was held was “What is the best time to start writing?” In a nutshell, all the panelists had something unique to say, but all said the same thing. It is never to early to start writing songs and music. The only difference is the maturity of the works created and the expertise of the writer from how much they have written.
In thinking about this topic, I realized that the first time I wrote a song was when I was probably 9 or 10 years old. It was a very quick and silly piece, but it was my first. The words were simple, but I had never written music before either. After the words, my piano teacher at the time showed me the basics of putting words to music and the rest is history. Since then, I have written over 40 songs.
I would recommend to anyone at any age that it is never too late to start writing songs and music. One may not be able to sing them or play them directly on stage, but through companies like TAXI, it is possible to market them to other bands and publishers.
In August, I had the opportunity to experience a musical entertainer aboard the Caribbean Princess that should be a model for all of us. Bert Stratton is a pianist who can sing, write and entertain. Night after night aboard the Caribbean Princess, Bert has an audience that listens for hours and enjoys laughing at his antics sometimes twice a night.
Night after night, guests sit for hours with drinks listening and “participitating” in his nightly sets. He covers everything from old time rock and roll to current pop along with some of his own original works. It almost seems that people get an addiction to Bert after so many nights of constant listening.
Bert’s philosophy is that everyone should spread joy through laughter and hugs as it is those two things which create endorphines that change how a person feels. By interjecting a little bit of fun and excitement into his cover performances of popular songs and oriinals, he changes people through his music.
Even though he did a very similar set every night, there was something unique and personal about every show. Although he had a general set list for each night, he played what the audience wanted to hear whether it was rock, ballads or originals. That made each and every show worth seeing. I hope that I will get to experience Bert again at some point.