Category Industry Resources

At first glance music publishing can be a bit confusing, but it is actually the basis of your income as an artist. Basically, if you plan on making a living off of your music, you better understand the ins and outs of publishing. In order to fully grasp the concept of music publishing you need to start with the basics. I hope that by reading this article you will have a more firm grasp on the concept of music publishing.

Lets start by answering the question: What is music publishing? Music publishing is a very broad topic – from copyrights and licensing  to royalties and rights – music publishing  has everything to do with getting paid for your music.

When it comes to understanding music publishing there are some terms that you need to know. Lets start off with the copyright. Copyright is the law that protects the property rights of the creator of an original work. Basically it is  the right to reproduce or make copies. Those rights are called exclusive rights. Technically your work is copyrighted as soon as the lyrics are on paper or your song is recorded on CD. However in some cases this can be tricky so actually filing for copyright is your best bet because it is guaranteed to protect you. Before we get into your exclusive rights as a copyright owner, there are a few other terms that you need to be familiar with. These terms are the composition and the sound recording.

Understanding the difference between a composition (sometimes called the musical work or you know it as a SONG ) and a sound recording (sometimes called a master), is crucial to understanding your rights within the music industry. Simply put, the sound recording is your particular recording of the song. We can understand this a little better by talking about another important term – the cover. You might already know that a cover is the  recording of a song that you did not write and you do not own. So when you record a cover, you can file copyrights for your version (or your sound recording) of the song. The composition is known as the original version of the song.

EXAMPLE: You just loooove Michael Jackson so you decide to record your own version (or COVER) of his hit song ‘beat it’. Your recorded version of ‘beat it’ is your sound recording and by filing for copyright you own and have rights to that version of the song. But remember, the recording is a cover of the song. The song (composition) is owned by Michael Jackson, (or more likely his music publishing company).

So now remember we have two separate properties: the “composition” and the “sound recording” of the “composition.” Music copyright law recognizes a copyright in the song and a separate copyright in the sound recording. The copyright owner of the song and of the sound recording can be the same person, but it usually doesn’t work out that way since many songs have multiple writers and a lot of the time they are written for other artists to record and perform. The songwriter is typically the initial copyright owner of the song.

Now lets get back to mechanical rights. First we will start with the exclusive mechanical rights for a SONG and then we  will talk about the rights for a SOUND RECORDING. When you copyright your SONG, you have the sole right to make copies of the song, the right to distribute copies of the song, and the right to perform the song publicly (whether it be on the radio, on television, or in a nightclub etc). You also have the exclusive right to prepare a derivative work (or REMIX) to the song. The final exclusive right in your song is the right to display the song in public (meaning if you want to post the sheet music to your song online or in a book to be sold publicly).

The exclusive rights for a copyright owner of a SOUND RECORDING include the rights to make copies and distribute records containing the sound recording and the right to prepare derivative works (to record a REMIX) from your recording. The owner of a sound recording also has very limited public performance rights, which applies only to public performances that take place by digital audio transmission – which refers to the reproduction and transmission of sound stored in a digital format. Basically meaning you as copyright owner of a sound recording, you can get your sound recording played online and not on the radio or television.

Now lets dig a little deeper. Before you can record and make copies of someone else’s song, you need to get permission from the owner. This also pertains to producers that use samples in their beats. For those of you who do not know, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a sound recording in a different song. In order to obtain permission to use someone else’s song you need to get a license – just like you get permission to drive by obtaining a driver’s license.

There are a few different kinds of licenses, most popular being the mechanical license, the synchronization or ‘sync’ license, and the blanket license. By getting a mechanical license from the songwriter (or from a music publishing company acting on behalf of the songwriter), you will then have permission to record, reproduce or make copies of the song. Now, let’s say you want to make a video of your cover song. you would need a synchronization license which  gives you the right to synchronize the “composition”  with visual images (in layman’s terms, it allows you to make a music video for your cover song). And of course, the synch license also gives you the right to make copies. Now a blanket license on the other hand, is used for radio and television stations, DJs, musicians, and public businesses and it makes it possible for them to play music without having to acquire rights each time they play a song.

So you’re doing a great job at getting your music posted to online blogs, getting your songs played on online radio stations, and you have hopes to get your music on mainstream radio; but in order to make money from this you need to take a few necessary steps. The first one is getting your music properly copyrighted. The second thing you need to do is register with a PRO (Performing Rights Organization). In the United States there are three PRO’s which are BMI, ASCAP and SESAC. These companies negotiate and issue  licenses to the various venues, radio stations, television networks etc. A PRO’s function is collecting performing rights royalties on behalf of its members, composers and music publishers.

Music royalties is the  money earned from songs or music. There are a few different types of music royalties including artist royalties (paid by the label to the artist), mechanical royalties (paid by the label to the writer of the song), performance royalties (earnings are collected from public performances such a radio and television play and are paid to the songwriter) and synchronization royalties (paid to the songwriters and publishers of a song for use in movies, commercials or TV shows). As you can see,  the names of the royalties directly reflect the source of which the  income is coming from. Both publishing companies and individual songwriters use PRO’s but you cannot be a member of more than one unless you are a publishing company. Royalties are calculated by something called a statutory mechanical royalty rate. The current royalty rate that must be paid to the song owner or publisher is 9.1 cents ($.091) per copy. Meaning, when you record a cover song, every time that recording sells, you owe the songwriter or publisher 9.1 cents. I am not going to go into detail on this because THIS ARTICLE  does a great job at explaining how PRO’s calculate royalties.

So, what exactly is a music publisher/publishing company?  A music publisher owns and administers works written by songwriters. You as a songwriter can start your own publishing company if you want to own more rights to your music and therefore collect more royalties. Normally artists go after a publishing deal with a music publishing company. You will have a better understanding of what a publishing deal consists of by learning what a music publishing company does. A music publishing company handles everything related to copyrights, licenses and royalties for your music. Their basic functions are to discover songwriting talent, promote the songs their songwriters compose to musicians and anyone else who may need a song for whatever reason (advertising, a movie, a promotional campaign, etc) Publishing companies pitch their song catalog to music executives, recording artists, producers, managers and others to secure placement for the songs on appropriate commercial recordings. They also work with PRO’s to  issue licenses for the use of the songs they represent and collect licensing fees. This work is usually referred to as the administration of a song.

A music publishing deal is an agreement between the songwriter and the publishing company.

There are a few different types of publishing deals and they can be negotiated in numerous ways. An administration deal is an agreement between a songwriter/publisher and a publishing company (or administrator), in which the publishing company not only collects income, but promotes the songwriter’s catalog. The “standard” publishing deal is usually a complete “split” of all the income the songs generate – meaning 50% of royalties go to songwriter, and 50% go to the publisher. Sometimes the publishing company will give the songwriter an advance so the publisher will not pay the writer any money collected for any songwriter royalties until the advance has been recovered. There are also co-publishing deals, where the songwriter has his own publishing company, and makes a deal with a second publisher, and both publishers many times may co-own the copyright and publisher’s share of income. In this case, royalties are usually split 50% for the songwriter, 25% for the songwriter’s publishing company that he or she owns, and the remaining 25% for the publishing company he or she does the co-publishing deal with.  Over all it will be a 75%-25% split. If there is more than one songwriter, the songwriters will split their share, and the publishing companies split their share.

So there you have it, the basics of music publishing. You’re probably thinking “BASICS??? THAT WAS A WHOLE LOTTA INFO TO BE THE BASICS!” and you’re right, but there’s a lot more to learn about music publishing. By this time you are probably wondering how to go about starting your own publishing company, what PRO should you sign with, what are some of the other ways you can negotiate publishing contracts, and how about the all time question… do you really need a record deal if you have a publishing deal? I think I’ve already bombarded you with enough information so we can touch on those topics another time. =)

Putting on an amazing show is imperative to the success of your music career. Performing is not only one of the best ways to get your name out there and gain new fans, but as album sales for artists have dramatically decreased, touring has become one of the main sources of income for artists. Perfecting your performance definitely takes trial and error but there are a few things that you should always pay attention to and do your best to master. In this article, I am going to give you a few tips to help you put on the best show ever.

Think of some of your favorite songs, what do they all have in common? Most likely they all have a great hook that gets stuck in your head after hearing it just once, the beat catches you as soon as you press play, and the lyrics are relatable and make you FEEL the song.

Melody, rhythm, lyrics and harmony are the elements of a song. As you are writing, you should pay close attention to those elements, and make sure that you fulfill each one. Instead of just hearing a beat, and saying whatever comes to the top of your head, spend more time planning and finding the purpose of your song. Hit songs usually catch a listener in the first few seconds and keep you listening until the end.

One of the most important aspects is the hook. EVERY hit song has a very catchy hook. This might be one of the first things you want to write, and then write the rest of the song based off of your hook. Or if you are a singer/songwriter, sometimes it’s better if you start by figuring out the actual melody of the entire song and then begin writing your lyrics.

While writing a song, there are some questions that you should ask yourself along the way. What is the story that you are telling? Whatever your story is, you need to draw the listener in and keep their attention from beginning to end. What message would you like to bring across? The best songs have a real meaning behind them. Also, is your song formatted correctly? While I believe there is no right or wrong way to write a song, the typical song is usually formatted like this: intro/verse/hook/verse/hook/bridge/hook out. You can also try – hook/verse/hook/verse/hook/bridge/hook out. There are a few others, but those are the most common. Experiment with the formats to see what is the most powerful and interesting for your song.

All in all, it seems like the key to a hit song is simple, put in some EFFORT. Do not rush your creativity. Appreciate the music instead of just singing or rapping the first thing that comes to mind. Ask yourself, do you make songs or do you make hits?

Check out this dope video from Ryan Leslie. His song ‘Gibberish’ is a perfect example of the songwriting process.

Now you all know how important it is to pay attention to the small details in this business. There is no room for carelessness when it comes to your music. When sending emails, you need to be professional in order to get the response that you’re looking for.This is one business where you usually only get one chance to prove yourself, and you wouldn’t want to mess up that chance with a tiny mistake like sending out an unprofessional email. Here are a few tips to make sure your emails are as professional as possible:

• Always put a subject that gives the receiver a clear idea of what’s in the email.

• Always introduce yourself and be sure to leave your contact info.

• Don’t CC a bunch of people on the email. If you are sending it to a few people BCC so that everyone’s email addresses are not visible.

• When forwarding a message, delete the previous info that shows who it was already forwarded to. (You don’t want everyone in your business.)

• Do not send a whole album/mixtape full of tracks. Pick 3-5 that show you at your highest potential and send those.

• When sending music to a DJ, radio station, etc – always be sure to send the ‘radio edit’ (clean version) first, as well as the explicit version. You don’t want to limit yourself. You want to be able to have your music played in clubs as well as on the radio etc.

• It’s usually better to send a link to your songs instead of sending an mp3. You don’t want the person to have to download your track before they even hear it.  Pay attention to how the sender wants to receive music, some people specifically ask for links. If you are sending to a gmail account, you might be safe sending mp3’s but you are always safe sending links.

• Try to personalize each email instead of sending a generalized mass email. (Save that for your mailing list!) You will always get a better response talking to each person directly instead of sending the same message to a bunch of people and hoping that someone responds. #GetPersonal

• Always have a pretty clear idea of what you would like to accomplish with that person before you send the email. If you want them to just listen and give their opinion let them know. If you need help with promotion, tell them. Never just blindly send someone music without a goal in mind.

• Always… ALWAYS proof read your emails before you send. Good grammar is more important than you think!

If you follow these few small steps you will be on your way to getting a much better response!

So you just spent plenty of time and money in the studio recording great original music that everyone is going to absolutely LOVE, buuuuuuut now what? What’s the next step? Now is the time to really buckle down and make sure your business is in order. How are you going to get your music out there? (link to last blog about marketing tips) What tracks are you going to promote as singles? (need help let me know!) How do you copyright your music? How do you register it for Mediabase so that you can track your music when it hits the radio? What are some dope venues that book artists? Do you look for a manager? What should you spend your money on? Lets iron some things out…

First off, lets start with the music.

Examine the album and make sure it’s exactly how you want it.

• Does every track have a dope concept? Catchy hook?

• Really listen to it closely, are your verses on point? or do you hear some tiny mistakes?

• Do you have at least three tracks that you can promote as singles that will make everyone hype about your album?

• Do your lyrics really show who you are, or are you using a lot of basic fillers? (by basic fillers I mean: you were almost done your track but needed a few more bars so you just said anything to fill it in)

Sometimes you swear you’re done, but then once you review everything you realize that you might have a few kinks to work out – don’t be lazy, make sure you correct whatever you feel needs to be corrected. If it’s not where you want it to be, go back in on it and work until you get it to 110%. In the end its all about the music, so you don’t want to move any further until thats as close to perfect as you can get it. You’re about to spend time and money getting it out there so you want to make sure you’re not wasting your time. This is your career on the line here, not something to play with!

TEST OUT YOUR RECORDS! It’s very rare that artists do this, and it saddens me. Before you release records to the public, allow a select few others to hear it. Write down a list of 25 people (can be a mix of friends + family members, but you should also include a few others outside of your circle that you know will give you their honest opinion.) Either have a listening party or a private studio session where you invite special guests to take a listen, or if you don’t want to do that then at least get everyones email address and send out a few tracks for them to preview. Be sure to let everyone know that this is a special release before you make the actual release. You might also want to hit a few open mics and do some special performances to make sure that your record catches the crowd. If you know any dj’s (which you should really try to get to know some) you might be able to get them to spin your record at one of their events/venues so that you can see the crowds reaction. This will not only allow you to get opinions on your new music, but it will build up the hype around your release.

Before you start to promote, you must examine your presentation. Your presentation must be as professional as possible. This will not only help you to promote better, but it will get you a much better response once you do start promotion. Ask yourself the following questions and be sure to get everything in order:

• Do you have a website with bio, music + videos, photos, gigs etc?

• Are all of your social networks updated and being utilized properly?

• Do you have a mailing list?

• Do you have any merchandise that represents your brand?

• Do you have business cards to hand out at your shows?

Once your music and presentation is up to par, now it’s time to get it heard. Of course before you decide to release your music it’s best to get it copyrighted. Check out this dope blog by my girls over at xxiiiv.com, it does a great job at explaining copyrights.

Once you are ready to copyright your music you can do so online here.

Performing is a major part of promotion. You need to line up performances: whether its an open mic, a party, a college event, a competition or your own show; whether the performance is 10 minutes long or a whole hour set – YOU NEED TO BOOK SHOWS. You don’t have to get paid but you have to perform. You can also check out this website (http://www.indieonthemove.com/) to find a list of venues + booking info from all different cities.

Promotion, promotion….PROMOTION!! What good is it to have great music if no one hears it? 

There are some great resources out there to help with promoting your music. You need to get your music on some dope music blogs and you should also put a small budget aside for other promotional services. I actually have plenty of great promo services for you to utilize right here at exclusivepublic.com!

Now it’s time to also think about getting some radio spins. However, before you do this you MUST register your music so that it can be tracked. Tracking sales and spins of your music with SoundScan and BDS is extremely important. If you are not tracking your spins with BDS how are you going to know where your fans are? If you are not tracking sales with SoundScan how are you going to know what is working and what is not working?

* BDS – Broadcast Data Systems. This is how you track how many spins you are getting on the radio. REGISTER HERE.

* SoundScan – This is how you can track your actual sales online, in retail, and at venues. REGISTER HERE.

Now is a great time to think about selling your music online. It’s always cool to give away free downloads of your music in the beginning of your career (usually in your ‘mixtape phase’) so that people can get to know your sound, but there comes a time when your buzz starts to grow and you are creating dope singles/EPs and it’s time to start earning money from your music.

Check out this blog post by Paul Porter (@industryears) that has great information on outlets to sell your music online.

Get your music to our speakers! Online streaming, itunes, amazon, etc. Hit up your local media outlets. Do interviews, make special guest appearances, set up a speaker on a corner and rock out, just get your music heard LOUD AND CLEAR.

If all of this seems a bit overwhelming, it might be a good idea to figure out if it’s time to hire a manager. Check out my blog “do I really need a manager” to help you with your decision. I will say that if you still feel you can do everything on your own without taking time away from your music, continue to do so as long as you can. Usually a manager will look for you once you are making a nice impression so you might want to continue working and eventually you will start to get attention from managers.

Everyone’s situation is different, but there are some basic steps that everyone needs to take. You have to remember to always examine your current situation. I do this at least once a week. Lay everything out on the table. See what you currently have in place and make sure it is working. Figure out what you lack, and know what you’re great at. Do as much as you can by yourself. Utilize your network and build your buzz up a bit, teach yourself the business before you try to reach out to managers, publicists etc. Prove to everyone that you are a hard working, dedicated artist before you try to hire a whole team to do things for you. The more you learn the more you earn.

Now we’ve all heard it before, and might even be guilty of saying it “This year is it. This year I’m gonna take my career seriously” but really… what’s your plan to make this happen?  I’ve decided to write this article to help hungry artists accomplish their mission of taking their career to the next level in 2013. Below are just a few things to focus on that will give you a jump start to the year. Remember its not always about working harder, it’s about working smarter.

Say BYE to Mixtapes, Focus on Singles – I’ve discussed this before and have had many debates about it with artists that are stuck in the ‘I must put out a mixtape’ mindset. But lets just get this out of the way…The reason why you need to focus on creating catchy singles instead of giving everyone a whole mixtape is very simple: YOU NEED TO BUILD AN AUDIENCE. As an indie artist, your main focus should be to do things that will help you gain new fans and make new connections. If you release a great single with a video, and get that posted to blogs and really start spreading it around, it will have much more of an impact than a mixtape. Why would you release a mixtape if you don’t have people checking for it? A single will make much more of an impact. People don’t like to search through 14 songs from an artist that they haven’t heard of, but they will check out a single (especially if it’s referred by someone they know, or posted on popular blogs). Once people start to catch onto your single, they will anticipate more of your work and they will even go back to check out records that you’ve released in the past. So while most artists like to take the time out to record tons of music but then only spend 5% of that time actually promoting it, this year you should spend less time recording and more time marketing. Record 5 singles instead of 14 mediocre records – and all that extra time that you would have spent on the rest of your mixtape, spend it heavily marketing and promoting your singles. So are we clear? No mixtapes until people are asking for it (and I don’t mean your circle of friends).

Create A Demo – This is almost a no-brainer, but still so many indie artists would rather create a mixtape instead of a professional demo. Using those singles that we talked about in the previous paragraph, create a DEMO that’s 3-5 tracks long. So then you will have 3-5 strong records that you can use to promote yourself and build your fan base. Your demo will also help when booking shows and finding other major opportunities for your career.

Brand Yourself – Know who you are and be able to describe who you sound like and what you stand for. Use one name for all of your social networking sites (so that it’s easy to find you), get professional photos with a few different looks that make you stand out, get your own personal website, and make sure your bio is up to date. All of these things matter more than you think (and that is actually the least you can do). You are not selling your music, you are selling your brand. Artists that have a clear branded image stand out from the crowd and look a lot more professional.

Get Your Paperwork in Order – This can be the annoying part, but it is all very necessary. Paperwork makes the world go round and sets apart those who are only pursuing music as a hobby from those who are pursuing this as a career. Once you create your demo, you need to get all of your music copyrighted and registered with a PRO (ASCAP, BMI). If you are expecting radio play this might also be a good time to get your songs BDS registered. I am not going to go into all of this here because we have already discussed this in previous articles on this site. But if you do your research, you will find all of the details you need. Which leads me to my next point…

RESEARCH RESEARCH RESEARCH! – Everything that you don’t know, someone else has mastered. If you don’t know something, be sure to look it up! The more you learn the more you earn. This music industry is rough, so why would you blindly go into a business like this and expect to be successful? Make it a point to research something new everyday. You’re reading this article (so salute to you!), but make sure you are reading articles like this all the time. Also, there are many books on the industry that are inexpensive but extremely useful. You can start by downloading an amazing book by Wendy Day (@RapCoalition) entitled “How to Get a Record Deal” (click here to buy it on Amazon).

Get Your Mingle On – with DJs, artists, managers, venue owners, promoters, producers, music execs and most importantly, your FANS. This industry is all about relationships, so artists need to do a better job at making those connections. Instead of spamming everyone with your music link, start conversations with people and ease your music in later. Make it a point to engage with people. Don’t talk at them talk with them, and I promise you will see a big difference in the outcome of your networking.

Stay Consistent With Your Content – Instead of solely focusing on gaining followers and fans, focus on keeping everyone entertained with great content. From music videos to behind the scenes footage, live performances and in-studio vlogs etc, there are so many ways to provide great content which will not only please your fans but attract new ones as well. And while you’re keeping us updated with great content, be sure to keep all of your social networks and websites updated. When you have a Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Reverbnation, plus your own website, it can be easy to slack in the updating department so be sure to keep a close eye on this.

Identify Your Sound – This is another part of branding. As an artist it is always great to be diverse when it comes to the type of records you can make, but it is also important to develop your own sound. For example: when you hear a Timbaland beat, you usually know it’s a Timbaland beat. You know a Kanye record when you hear one. Singers from Rihanna to Alicia Keys to Mariah Carey, all have their own distinct sound. This also plays a part in the longevity of your career. A great way to get started is to find a producer (or a select few) that really understand and are able to deliver the sound that you’re aiming for. This will also benefit you in the promotion department because you can now cross market each other, or maybe even become a team.

Utilize All of the Tools Given to You – Reverbnation has so many resources for artists to utilize – from a mailing list program, to a gig finder, to press kits and great tools for promotion – but artists are only using a small percentage of those resources. YouTube has a feature that allows you to make money off your videos. TuneCore allows you to post your music on iTunes, amazon, etc but yet you’re still giving every little thing away for free right? Which leads us to the final point…

Figure Out A Way to Make Money – I’m sure that by now you have realized that pursuing a career in music is expensive. You might want to think about finding a sponsor or investor, freelancing, fund raising, or how about using your knowledge and promotional skills to SELL OUT SHOWS?! Whatever you do, don’t put all your eggs in one basket. There are many ways to make money, find your niche’ and run with it.

True artists live and breathe what they do. If you are choosing a career in music, treat it as such. When you wake up think, ‘What am I going to do today to move my career forward?’ When you go out, put your game face on and make those connections. If you ever find yourself getting bored during the day, pick up the pen and start writing; think about your current plan and make sure its working for you. Whatever you do, don’t wait for someone else to do it for you. Longevity usually means creating great music and a strong brand that stands out, so focus on creating the best product you can. This year, make it a point to DO THINGS WITH A PURPOSE. Do things that will help your career progress.

Managers come a dime a dozen.  A good manager will play a vital part in your success. It is up to the artist to learn as much as possible about management before acting too fast and deciding to sign on the wrong person for the job. In your career, you need to take chances, but not when it comes to proper representation. You need to be represented correctly to make valuable connections in your career, and that’s not something to gamble on.  In this blog, we will talk about the responsibilities of a manager and discuss whether a manager is really what you need.

Let’s start off with the responsibilities for which a manager is NOT responsible. Artists often mistake a manager to be not only a decision maker, but an investor and a promoter as well. While managers often handle these duties, it is NOT the manager’s responsibility to fund your career; that is your job as an artist. A manager will definitely help by securing contracts and opportunities for you to be able to make money to fund your career, but it is not a manager’s responsibility to pay for things such as studio time, promotion, etc. It is also not the sole responsibility of managers to promote you; they are supposed to help you promote, not completely take over that role. As an artist you should always do your best to promote yourself and reach out for more connections, regardless of how many people you hire to help you.

The responsibilities of a manager vary depending on what the artist wants/needs and by how far along an artist is in his or her career. An indie manager takes over the artist’s business responsibilities so that the artist can focus more on his or her craft. An artist should always be involved and hands on when it comes to business decisions and ideas, but having a manager can make this easier and take some weight off so the artist can mainly focus on his or her craft. A manager is constantly making connections to further the artist’s career and keep the artist on track and in the loop. The manager works with the artist to create a marketing plan. Both work together to follow it. Managers are responsible for representing the artist to the best of their ability at all times. They should focus not only on the development of the artist, but also on getting tracks heard by DJs, publicists, booking agents, media brands, label execs, radio stations, online and print publications, and anything else that can bring artists a step closer to their goals. A manager schedules interviews and photo shoots, and generally oversees the artist’s career to make sure that everything is running the way it should. Managers’ roles tend to change as artists advance in their career. An indie manager may have duties similar to those of a booking agent, press agent, business manager, and even a tour manager. As artists’ careers grow, managers are able to pass some of their duties off to actual booking agents, publicists, and so on.

Truth is, if you are an indie artist you should be able to handle most of the manager’s responsibilities on your own in the beginning of your career. You do not need a manager until you have too much to handle, and by that time you usually don’t have to look for one:  they will come to you. You shouldn’t hire a manager because you don’t know what to do. It should be because you took your career as far as it can go, and you now have too many responsibilities distracting you from your music. Many artists ask anyone to be their manager—possibly a best friend, family member, or someone who  showed interest in them—because they think he or she makes them look professional. In reality, hiring a manager who doesn’t have connections or even know much about the industry doesn’t make you look professional. KNOWING THE BUSINESS as well as your craft is what makes you professional.

Manager’s Responsibilities Broken Down:

• Planning – The manager should communicate with the artist to find out what their goals are and what they need to focus on. The manager will do everything in their power to keep the artist happy and keep the business end on the right track.

• Overseeing and Enabling – The manager’s main job is to help with determining decisions related to career moves, bookings, promotion, business deals, recording contracts, etc.

• Negotiating – The manager will play a major part in negotiating contracts with booking agents, media brands, label execs, producers, etc.

• Networking – The manager will do their best to constantly make the artist’s name known to media brands, publicists, DJs, etc. The manager should always work hard to gain connects to help further the artists career.

As artists move further along in their career their managers’ jobs can be broken down and they can then hire a music manager, business manager, and road/tour manager instead of having one manager handling all of those duties. If you don’t have a manager, ask yourself WHY you want one. Know what your goals are and ask yourself, “How would having a manager help me?” A lot of artists are early in their careers and do not need a manager. Analyze your career and continue to work hard to promote yourself and make legitimate connections before you decide to hire a manager. In this way, a manager will find you. If you already have a manager, make sure he or she is doing their job to further your career. Be picky with whom you want to represent you and take control of your music career.

What is the purpose of marketing? Is it to sell something? ….ummmm not exactly. In the end that might be what you want, but lets keep it simple: the purpose of marketing is to raise awareness of you and your brand. “Marketing is the process of making potential customers and clients interested in your products and/or services.” So marketing is grabbing attention from others. Making them aware of you. Then, if you catch someone’s attention, there’s a big possibility that they’ll become a fan and listen to your music and hopefully buy it and any other products that you put out. So really, the main goal of marketing is to get a response.

What exactly do I mean by that? Lets say you release a new single: the response you’re looking for is that you get a bunch of listens, great comments, retweets, likes, views, more show offers etc. Or say you reach out to someone on a social network, the positive response would be that they reply or acknowledge you, they show interest. Or what if you have a performance? The positive response you’re looking for is: many people show up to see you perform, people love your performance and they want to see you perform again and they are now even more interested in your music. It’s all about the response you get. That’s why they say it’s better to have 1000 active twitter followers that retweet and respond to you, than it is to have 30,000 followers that can care less about your tweets. And as I always say, it’s better to promote your music to 25 people that you know, than to blindly send your music to 100 people.

Because this is an over crowded industry, your first impression can really make you or break you. Record execs get so many music submissions daily, so it’s your job as an artist to make sure that your first impression is a lasting one. No need to beg for your music to get heard. You must give off a lasting first impression that makes people generally interested in you. Talent isn’t all that you need in order to succeed in the business. Think bigger than music. You need to give fans a clear image of who you are and what you stand for – the key is to be able to relate but also stand out. We all have our similarities and differences, so it’s not that hard, just be yourself. Think about what you want to be known for (aside from recording great music), and go from there.

Let’s start with the basics. From your name to your look to everything in between, you need to be able to capture an audience. KNOW YOUR PRODUCT!! What exactly are you promoting? KNOW your brand. What do you stand for? What is your niche’? What sets you apart from the other artists? If you can answer these questions you are already a step ahead. A good friend/mentor of mine and guru behind the #LikeableAssholes clothing line  gave me a really cool analogy. He said, “Branding yourself is like getting ready to go to the club. You don’t just wake up out of bed and head out, first you shower, throw on a nice outfit and really groom yourself, THEN you’re ready to hit the club” – that’s exactly what branding does. It polishes your image so that you get a better response from potential fans, business opportunities etc. It gets you ready to face the industry.

Examine yourself. What name are you using to market yourself? Does it ring a bell? Is it simple and easy for people to remember? For example, “John Doe” and “King John Doe the Greatest Rapper Alive,” which name would be more marketable? You guessed it, the first one of course. Also, does your Twitter name match your Facebook and all of your other social networking sites? Can someone go on Twitter and find you, then go on Google and search for the same name and find all of your websites? You must keep it simple and to the point. My name is @BreezyB215 on Twitter, you can find me at facebook.com/breezyb215, as well as Instagram @BreezyB215. Your email should also be some version of your name (example: johndoe@gmail.com). The easier it is for people to find you, the better luck you will have getting people to listen to your music or check out any other product you have to offer. In order to market yourself properly, you also need to make sure to have at least the basics: You need some sort of press kit or website so that you have one place where all of your music/videos/show dates etc. can be found. You can start with a press kit but then you will eventually need a website. There are some great options out there that allow you to do this for free (Try wordpress.com to create a simple website, and check out myartistdna.com for a free press kit). Business cards are also very professional and good to have in those moments when you don’t have much time (which is often since you’re so busy with your music right?).

Examine different techniques to grab attention. First off, how do you expect to get the proper response out of someone if you don’t get to know them a bit? Why would you expect someone to care enough to listen to your music and share it if you don’t care enough to show interest in them? That’s a bit one-sided if you ask me. You need to show genuine interest in others if you expect the same in return. Don’t just share your music and hope that people listen. Try asking an engaging question, or if they are another artist, listen to their music and comment them on it. Then they will be more willing to listen to you. If someone that you want to network with asks a question to their TL, answer it and engage in conversation from there.

The next big thing that I see many artists have a problem understanding is that you need to find out how people want music submitted before you try to send them music. You have to remember, there are those that are actively searching for new music and therefore they might be interested in hearing your music in your first conversation. There are those that like to get to know you first before they even think to listen to your music. There are those who are already very well established and connected so in order to approach them and get a response you will need to really catch their attention. There are those who would rather speak through email and it might even take a few weeks for them to get back to you. There are also those that can care less about your music because they are not concerned with finding new talent or hearing anything unless it’s on the radio or their friend referred them. There are those who see you as competition so they might not listen to your new music and they sure as hell won’t share it, so sending your music to them is pointless. Everyone is different and everyone has their own way to do things but the common ground between all of them is that if you approach them the right way, they will be receptive. Don’t mention or tag people with your music, approach them the right way then once you find out that they do accept music submissions, find out how they want it.

Learn to get your point across. Stick to the bottom line. Have a clear view of why you’re reaching out to a person before you approach them, this way they will have a clear understanding of their role. The worst way to network is by randomly hitting someone up, they ask you what it is that you want to accomplish, and you sit there with a blank look on your face because you have no idea. Most of the time you just want that person to listen to your music. Then there are DJs who you want to not only listen to your track but spin it also. Then there are music execs that you want to listen plus pass it on or possibly invest in you. You get my point. All I’m saying is that you need to think before you act. This business is rough, you don’t want to just wing it.

Be personable. No one wants to speak to a robot. You gain more attention by personalizing things such as emails and even tweets. If you send me a “hey check out my music” tweet, then I look at your Twitter and you’re saying the same thing to a thousand other people, that only shows that 1. you don’t have a marketing plan, 2. you’re desperate to get your music heard and 3. I’m not special enough for you to personally ask me to take a listen (you aren’t paying attention anyway you’re just spamming random people) . This isn’t going to get you the response that you want. Be sure to personalize everything as much as you can. Do research on who you are sending music to and know why you are sending your music. Do you need help with promotion? Are you interested in their marketing services? Did they ask for song submissions for their label or management group? When you approach a DJ about playing your music, do you ask them to play your music right off the bat? Or do you talk to them, find out where they play, and find out what kind of music they are looking for? And again, how do you know if they even accept submissions? Put some thought into things, then do.

I’m sure that there are already people in your circle that can help you market your music. Learn to utilize the network that you already have to build your brand. How many people do you know that would listen to your new single right now if you sent it to them? (write them down) How many music blogs are you in contact with that might post your video? (write them down as well) You want to be organized so that you’re not scrambling all over the place trying to find things and so that you can have a clear handle on your marketing. You can even categorize your followers into lists on Twitter – separate followers into  ‘blogs’, ‘producers’ ‘artists’ ‘fans’ (consider fans people that you KNOW will RT your video).

Find your target audience and give them what they want. You must understand that your music isn’t for everyone. Before you release that hit single, before you go on tour and perform in front of your fans, before you can sell a whole bunch of merchandise, you first have to have an idea of who your potential fans are. I know some of you are thinking “but how can I know who/where my fans are before I even start to promote?” – it’s pretty simple actually. There are a few steps that you can take to help you narrow it down. First things first, who can you relate to? Know what you stand for, and who would benefit from you. Who does your music relate to? Do you record a lot of love songs for the ladies? Think about the age group that you appeal to. Is your music for a younger crowd or is it pretty vulgar and only for adults? Remember, the goal isn’t about letting everyone hear your music, it’s about getting your music to the right people. You’re not going to promote a hip hop showcase to a country music lover. Narrow it down a bit, do some research on the different areas of the country/world that certain genre’s are appreciated the most. Basically, start where you know it works, then spread from there. Instead of putting on a blindfold and hoping you hit the target, take the blindfold off and aim at the target. Make sense?

The key is to keep people engaged. Keep your fans interested and in the loop – they say that it only takes 1000 super fans for an artist to make a living. Meaning, if you found 1000 people that will share all of your music, pay attention to your every tweet/status, buy all of your merchandise and stay updated on all the latest YOU, you can earn a nice living off of your music. This takes a lot of fan engagement. Get creative. Interact. Respond to tweets/comments etc. Appreciate those around you.

Learn how to choose the right songs to promote. Pick a song that has a nice beat, great lyrics, and a nice hook and never release any music that is not properly mixed! You are being compared to music that is already on the radio, make sure your quality matches that of those who are already out there. Take the time to put in that extra effort. And once you do decide to release a single, you need to drop it on em hard. Releasing a single doesn’t mean tweeting it and posting it to Facebook so that you’re friends/followers can see it. That’s not a release. You really need to have a nice plan to make your single go viral. With the right sources, you can make your record spread like wildfire. You might have to spend some money to do it, but best believe it will be worth it. Lay out the groundwork before you release. Find the websites/music blogs that get the most amount of traffic, get your video posted to as many as you can. This will bring attention to your music from others that don’t know who you are. Think big, think broad. And watch your timing! Don’t get ahead of yourself. You just recorded your first album and you’re excited to release it, however, are people anticipating your release? Choose a single, shoot a quality video for it and release that a few weeks before you release your full album. Build anticipation. Get people excited to hear more. You don’t want to release a new single or mixtape every few weeks, we call that ‘music overload’. Be sure to properly promote the first single or mixtape, before you even think of releasing another one.

Capture your audience by putting on a great performance. Performing is a huge money-maker for artists, so why is it that so many artists out there just like to ‘wing it’ instead of really putting their all into every show? You might think “it’s just an open mic it’s no biggie” but I’m sure the record exec hidden in the audience thinks otherwise. Use your performance to keep your fans engaged and to gain new ones. Also be sure to always have business cards, hard copy CDs, and even some merchandise to either give away or sell at your shows. It’ll feel great to see your fans wearing your shirt to your next performance.

In conclusion, the key to making a sale is not to sell. Marketing doesn’t have to seem like marketing. Having a simple conversation with someone will allow your name to be known. If you inform people about a product (your music/brand for example), but don’t necessarily try to shove it down their throats, you’ll have a better chance at making that ‘sale’ in the end. Just like you don’t enjoy sales calls, spam emails etc, no one likes emails, tweets, posts on their page that they didn’t ask for. There is such thing as over promotion. When you ‘over promote’ you get over looked. The key is to give a little and keep everyone wanting more! No one wants to hear about your music all day, they want to get to know YOU. You have to learn how to get their attention in other ways. Always think WHY? …why should someone listen to your music? Why should they respond to you? WHY? And finally, you must also always respect constructive criticism. How are you supposed to improve if all you want is for people to tell you how great you are? There will always be positive and negative responses to everything you do, that’s life. You must be open to both and learn from all responses.

I hope this helped put some things into perspective. To all the artists that are really putting in work… #SALUTE!!!

Before the internet even existed, the only way to really succeed in the music industry was to get a deal with a record label. Labels had all of the control, they had the radio connections, and they had the money for touring and promotions etc. Nowadays, technology has enabled us to get a serious head start on everything. The ‘singing on the corner method’ that artists used back in the day, has been replaced with uploading your music and videos online. Technology has allowed us to reach the masses without the use of a major label.

With so many different outlets for artists to succeed independently, the question always arises – do we need a major record deal? This is asked everyday by thousands of indie artists that are eager to get ahead but not exactly sure what route is the way to go. When I say ‘indie’ I am referring to the other options aside from signing to a major label. This can be a combination of actually starting your own company or label, or even signing to a smaller ‘indie’ label. In my opinion, they are both pretty much the same thing. It can be argued that many independent labels don’t have resources and connections that you can’t get on your own. Technically, if you choose to sign to an indie label, you are still pretty much doing things your own way. There are a few factors both positive and negative that play a huge part in your decision to go indie or major. Allow me to break it down for you:

MAJOR label = MAJOR network. Labels have the control that they do because they are connected to all of the major media brands, radio stations, celebs, managers, etc. Major labels have major reach and influence. Remember, they once had full control of the industry, so of course their network and power is vast. If you sign to a major label you have a larger network to help launch your career. Some independent labels also have large networks, but in this case they are usually connected to a major label in some way. A network takes time to build, and many artists don’t have a clue on how to reach out and build relationships to help them along in their career. Artists mainly focus on the art, but unfortunately music doesn’t market itself. It takes a large network and a lot of promotion to really get your music out there, and this can be very discouraging – which is why most indie artists long to get that major deal.

Money is probably the most desirable asset of a major record label. Making music is EXPENSIVE. Before it pays off it will mean paying out. From recording to performing to branding and promotion and everything in between – you need a nice budget to really get anywhere in this industry. The most obvious reason why a major label is attractive to indie artists is because labels have the budget to properly launch an artist. In order to successfully release an album and expect it to have widespread appeal, a significant amount of money must be invested in the release. What artists usually don’t realize is that when you sign to a major label, they might give you this big advance and allow you to record in huge fancy studios, and your single might be all over the radio, BUT once them royalties start to come in, you (the artist) are now responsible for paying ALL of that money back! The artist is the last person to get paid. Labels LOAN you money and expect a nice hefty return. So what if you release your album and it doesn’t do as well as everyone expected? How are you going to pay back the label? This happens more than you might think.

On the other side of things, signing to an indie label or even doing it entirely yourself, can be a bit of a struggle. Independent labels don’t have the huge budgets that major labels have, and indie artists usually don’t have thousands of dollars to devote to their music career. However, there are ways of getting around this, like finding an investor or sponsor to help you with your music needs. This might take a bit longer and there is a lot of work involved, but it is definitely possible.

This leads me to the next factor that you might consider when it comes to signing to a major label – profit. As an independent artist, when you make a sale, it is your money to keep. When you put your song on itunes, amazon etc – the money that you make goes directly to YOU. If you did some research, you will see that artists signed to a major label only make a tiny fraction off of album sales. So if the label is selling your album for $12, well you might get $0.75 cents on each of those albums. Why is this? It is because the label spent the money on getting the best (most popular) producers, recording in the most expensive studios, plus spent thousands and thousands of dollars on promotion, and don’t forget you also have to pay your manager and all of the legal fees – and you must pay all of that back before you see a profit. The only thing that gives the artist ANY leverage is previous sales (before you were signed)!

(source: www.hypebot.com)

Control is also a major issue. When you go the indie route you have complete creative control over your music. You can record whatever song you want, feature whoever you want, add whatever final touches your heart desires. You can style yourself the way you would like, you can perform wherever you want and you can pretty much make your own schedule. Independent artists have control of their career. The closer you get to a label, the less control you have. This is part of the reason why it is better to build a network and gain fans yourself – because then once a label approaches you, they can see that you have already been successful doing things your way, which will allow you to have more say in your contract with the label.

One thing that is lacking with major labels is personal relationships. With all the changes going on in the music industry, major labels have sort of a revolving door. Major labels have laid off most of their staff in the last few years. This means that when you sign to a major label, that one person that originally fell in love with your music, might actually be gone before you even get a chance to release your album. This now leaves you fighting for attention from the label and can result in you not being able to even release your music. Because indie labels have smaller staffs and smaller rosters, it’s easier for musicians to develop a close relationship with the people working on their record. They sign you because they love your music and believe in your music and your brand. Going the indie route, you can connect more with your fans and build a close relationship with those that you choose to work with. Signing to a major label leaves you with less control. Major labels look at you more as a dollar sign, while indie labels care more about the artist themselves.

There has been a huge change in the music industry. While I’m not against signing to a major label, I am simply stating that artists need to get out of that old mindset of “I have to get signed to a major label to make money doing what I love.” Your main focus should not be to release as much music as possible and find that one person that is going to get you signed and all of your dreams will come true. This is not a way to go about your music career. The music industry has changed, therefore your approach must change with it. Labels don’t like the change because they now have less control. As an artist, you should embrace this change because it allows you to build up your empire without a label, and therefore gives you much more control of your career. Most labels won’t even consider a new artist unless they have a proven track record of consistent performances, and record sales on their own. Record labels can no longer take a risk on launching a new artist that has no fanbase. If you do want to eventually get signed to a label, that’s fine. Just don’t let your main priority to be finding a label contact – all that will do is give you access to a 360 deal where the label has full control and makes a percentage of EVERYTHING you do. You as an artist must take things into your own hands. Don’t let a major label be your focus, let building your network, strengthening your relationships and perfecting your craft be your focus. Combining live shows with heavy internet promotion will result in a solid fan base. When you have that, you have the choice to either move to a major label or to continue making money doing what you love. There are more avenues than ever before for indie music in general, and that means musicians have a better shot at success with a self release. Go out there and build solid relationships! In a few years time, you can definitely reach a lot of people!