As a music business consultant and educator I often joke with my clients and students that it is my job to “pop their balloons” regarding the impressions they have wrongly gathered over the years about what it takes to become a successful musician; and replace those misconceptions with a solid dose of business savvy.
As a music business consultant and educator I often joke with my clients and students that it is my job to “pop their balloons” regarding the impressions they have wrongly gathered over the years about what it takes to become a successful musician; and replace those misconceptions with a solid dose of business savvy. In previous columns I have already ranted and raved on about the entertainment industry’s collective campaign to present only the ‘exciting’ and ‘fun’ aspect of show business to you. So, don’t worry I will stay off that horse, and ride another one to make my point that the real road to success is paved with a lot of sweat, and some tears, but mainly a lot of sweat...meaning there is no artist or band out there that has had an easy ride to the success they have earned. It is not surprising that so many aspiring artists haven’t a clue about the grunt work that IS the very essence of building a career. After all the only thing we consumers ever see is the surface appearance that the music marketing people orchestrate with their very professional selling techniques. But let’s get down to it now. If you thought writing and rehearsing your songs was tough, if you thought recording them was more work than you expected, if you thought getting the cover art for your CD was difficult, and that finding the right manufacturing plant and the best deal was a bit rough, then hold on to your hard drive. It is not a coincidence that the term for promoting and selling a record is called by record label personnel “working:” the record. For starters, let’s consider a few things you need to do to prepare and promote your newly released CD. (By the way I am presuming you realize that it TAKES $$$ to market your record! Rule of Thumb: At least double or triple what you spent on recording your CD depending on your recording budget. This amount is recommended for a serious local to regional marketing campaign.) So, you need mailers, stamps, computer with internet/email capacity, and get ready for some serious phone bills. In other words unless you want your new CD to remain stacked in your apt.or garage, you are going to do some good old fashioned grunt work to make industry people and the public aware of your original music. Stuffing envelopes, computer data entry, mailing list updating, and schmoozing...lots of schmoozing...on the phone, online, and out and about in the music scene your local community has available to you. The real work is frustrating and time consuming work, especially the follow-up phone calls that are required after you have sent out your free promotional copies to the various music directors at college and commercial radio stations, the writers and editors in the press, the booking people at clubs and other venues, and the buyers at distributors and stores. But, you know, the reward for all that frustration is the satisfaction you get when you actually hear your songs on the radio, when you read your reviews in the press, when you land that first or important headliner gig, or when you walk into a store and see your CD in the racks. Think of the grunt work this way. Every record you have in your personal collection had someone like you behind the scenes doing all the tasks I just laid out for you... or you would not have been able to become aware of that music. let alone have purchased it. I can already hear some moans and groans as you read this. You are thinking such things as “I don’t have time to do all that work”, or “ I’m a musician, I just want to make my music”. Well, so be it. No one is telling you to change your life to do what it takes to work a record seriously, and no one is demanding you stop being a musician. The message however is this...SOMEBODY has to do this work or your record will remain in the closet, unheard by an audience that might enjoy it. Tom Silverman the CEO of Tommy Boy Records once said at a music business conference to a group of independent artists and labels “Why did you make your stupid record anyway?!” His point was to wake up the crowd to the realities of this business. No one is waiting for your music...You have to be responsible for the building of your career in the beginning. If your music is as great as you say it is then the public will let you know if and when they get a chance to hear it, and the only way the industry gatekeepers and the public may get a chance to hear your music is if you find a way to resolve this grunt work issue. You do have one other option concerning all this...keep your music as a casual hobby. But if you make that decision do not blame an over-saturated market and business environment responsible for your decision. We live in a time when the supply of a lot of good music greatly outweighs any demand for it. When you decide not to do the grunt work of establishing your career it may be the best decision you ever made. Music as a hobby can be a very enjoyable experience. So, if the grunt work I have outlined here for you is something you want nothing to do with, consider keeping your music as a hobby, there is nothing wrong with that...and your expectations will settle down and demand much less of your time and effort. In closing however I want to make one more pitch in support of the grunt work. When you find a way to resolve who will do the hard work, and how it will be done, a funny thing begins to happen. You gain experience doing what a real record label does. You learn what it is like to fight the good fight on the promotional battlefield...and should lady luck smile on you and your efforts begin to bear fruit, you will arrive at the negotiating table with a label someday far more prepared for that almighty deal you once knew nothing about, and you will be on your way to being respected as “one of the team”, a knowledgeable and savvy player who cannot so easily be taken advantage of. I recommend this path. If you have the passion and the gumption to tackle all the work that needs to be done, you will actually find yourself with a new sense of pride for having achieved the results that have come your way.
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