A Throw back vid as jay discusses American Gangsta album which is personally one of my favorites.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Not Making Enough Money On the Road? Try Selling Underwear...
If you wanted lots of direct-to-fan tips, there was no better place to be last week than CMJ. But is any of this really healthy for musicians? Showcases have always been a crapshoot, though the daily panels featured endless amounts of 'expert advise' that steered away from the most serious issues affecting musicians today. In fact, it could be causing musicians to steer their careers in the wrong direction entirely, and ultimately compromise their most important asset - their music.
We covered about ten different panels and talked to lots of people, and the underlying thread often made little sense. Make no mistake, CMJ was stuffed with artists, many at a college level (from NYU) and totally early-stage. These were bands mostly trying to make it on their own. And throughout, the message from the experts was that if you just Twittered smartly enough, responded to every Facebook message, got WiFi-connected in your van, and properly collected emails at shows, you too could make a living off of your art. Or, become a mythical 'middle-class musician' (or better).
But the depressing statistics on this stuff were largely ignored. And the music itself was rarely discussed, part of the ridiculousness of what 'DIY' or 'direct-to-fan' teachings have become. When's the last time someone recommended something to you because of a clever Tweet, crazy scavenger hunt, or well-crafted Facebook campaign? Isn't that like recommending the box that the cupcake comes in?
On top of that, the worsening crisis of fan distraction also received scant attention. But getting people to stay engaged with your music and image has never been more difficult. Instead, most of the advise getting thrown at artists came from people with vested interests in selling books, monthly direct-to-fan accounts, touring consultancies, or social networking services. These people have every interest in getting artists hyped up about making it through digital networks, and far less interest in honestly discussing the critically important blockades to real artistic success.
But here's where it gets complicated. Most of these tips actually made a lot of sense - for marketers - and some ideas were quite innovative. For example, on the merchandising end, one interesting tip (from Jake Szufnarowski of Rocks Off) was to put branded underwear on the table - boxers, thongs, whatever. Does it really work? Sounds like a fun and probably worthwhile experiment that could boost sales - but how much time should an artist spend making creative briefs? Designing the pieces, selecting and managing a vendor, dealing with shipments, overseeing inventory?
Another panel delved into the details of targeted internet marketing - CPCs, CPMs, CPWhatevers. The discussion surrounded the endless methods for analyzing responses and keeping costs under control. You don't need to spend a lot, but you do need a lot of time to sharpen the marketing knife on these platforms. It's an entirely different discipline.
Which is exactly the problem. "I've been listening to all of these panels, and I'm on information overload," one musician-on-the-brink admitted in front of the assembled audience. "I just want to make music, I want to do that."
And what happened next was almost heartbreaking. Instead of addressing that critically important issue, the panel shot straight back into methods for managing smart search-driven, targeted campaigns. One panelist told the artist just to start small, and expand from there. Don't be intimidated by this stuff, and see what works.
In other words, missing the real issue that aspiring artists are really dealing with. Suddenly, artists have been handed the biggest blessing - but also the biggest curse - imaginable, and most artists are struggling with how to approach the beast and manage their creative time properly. In fact, there was absolutely no discussion about properly managing the artist's limited time - how much to dedicate to music, how much to dedicate to marketing, how much to touring. But every artist walked away with marching orders to do about five times as much stuff as humanly possible.
And let's face it - really doing it all by yourself is ridiculous - there isn't enough time, and the musician should focus more on art than marketing. So, just find a team? As the industry has collectively reflected on the impracticality of pure DIY, that has become the next mantra. In fact, ReverbNation CEO Mike Doernberg recently called DIY "crap," and at CMJ, talked about the evolution of team-building. "Most everyone who is successful started themselves," Doernberg relayed. "Over time, you'll look at your team and it's people you're paying."
Actually, that panel was called "Take a Left at the Label," but should artists more realistically be considering label deals - or tie-ups with more professional managers and marketing teams? Perhaps developing some initial traction while seriously searching for a more professional marketing and distribution partner at an earlier stage? Giving up a piece but trying to grow a bigger pie?
One artist actually asked this very question of the panelists, simply because he was having problems getting his audiences and revenues to ramp to a more serious level. He needed a team that really knew what it was doing - not his college roommate, girlfriend, or cousin. In fact, he wanted a major label to help him out, and felt ready to make the associated compromises.
I asked another question: is anyone really achieving non-label, direct-to-fan success? Is this really a path that is working on any reasonable level? In response, executives from ReverbNation, Hello Music, Nimbit, and Topspin offered the usual handful of success stories - Metric (originally signed and a really bad example), Ellis Paul, and maybe a few others. Oh, and a bunch of artists playing the Music Box.
Certainly, some artists are going to pull it off - but we've talked to a lot of artists with far different stories. They're not making it, not quitting their day jobs, and having difficulty getting reasonable levels of traction. Most are not surviving on their art, while drawing ridiculously low paychecks from services like ReverbNation (or, pick your direct-to-fan platform).
And for the losers in this mix, it seems like direct-to-fan success is mostly a fantasy, something more theoretical than real. Who knows, maybe they're listening to the wrong people, or believing in something that doesn't really exist. Or chasing one too many tips, while missing the bigger strategic wins. But that wasn't a popular thread at CMJ. In fact, it wasn't even mentioned.
Paul Resnikoff, Publisher in New York. Written while listening to Keni Burke, Johnny Gill, Bobby Caldwell, Shirley Bassey, Lou Rawls, Keith Sweat, Imogen Heap, deamau5, Lovage, and LCD Soundsystem.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Saturday, October 23, 2010
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Nas vs Def Jam… Thoughts?
Now there are two sides to every story. Artists want to express themselves and labels want to make money. And if you think labels are in it for anything but the money, you’re wrong, certainly not the major labels. Make it a labor of love and let’s see how many employees are left…zilch.
But this doesn’t count against my commitment story is popping up ever more frequently. I can see both sides in theory, sometimes the act just wants off the label or a higher royalty that’s in the contract for further LPs, and other times the label just wants to keep the act as long as it can for as cheap as it can.
But what’s definitely clear is there’s an adversary relationship. And this adversary relationship is killing the major labels.
It’s very simple. I give you the money, I tell you what to do. What artist wants to be told what to do? And if you don’t want to be told what to do, don’t take the money.
And that’s the paradigm that’s growing today. Artists are doing it for themselves. You can sell and get paid via Tunecore. And is radio gonna play your music anyway? That’s where the major label relationship is, radio and possibly TV, but how many acts are deserving of major TV exposure today? And that’s more a reflection of vapid TV outlets than the acts.
Terry McBride had it right. He was just too early. You want to unify the copyrights. So you’re in control. So you can say yes or no.
A little birdie sent me the below e-mail with this note attached:
“In a nut shell he has an album titled ‘Lost Tapes 2′ that his fans have been dying to have since his first one came out in 2005. They seem to not understand the cultural impact the first one had. The album is done and now they are saying he can put it out but it won’t count on his deal and they won’t pay for it but still want all the benefits of a new nas album.”
And here it is:
From: Nas
To: LA Reid, Steve Bartels, Steve Gawley, Michael Seltzer, Joseph Borrino, Chris Hicks
Subject: PUT MY SHIT OUT!
Peace to all,
With all do respect to you all, Nas is NOBODY’s slave. This is not the 1800′s, respect me and I will respect you.
I won’t even tap dance around in an email, I will get right into it. People connect to the Artist @ the end of the day, they don’t connect with the executives. Honestly, nobody even cares what label puts out a great record, they care about who recorded it. Yet time and time again its the executives who always stand in the way of a creative artist’s dream and aspirations. You don’t help draw the truth from my deepest and most inner soul, you don’t even do a great job @ selling it. The #1 problem with DEF JAM is pretty simple and obvious, the executives think they are the stars. You aren’t…. not even close. As a matter of fact, you wish you were, but it didn’t work out so you took a desk job. To the consumer, I COME FIRST. Stop trying to deprive them! I have a fan base that dies for my music and a RAP label that doesn’t understand RAP. Pretty fucked up situation
This isn’t the 90′s though. Beefing with record labels is so 15 years ago. @ this point I just need you all to be very clear where I stand and how I feel about “my label.” I could go on twitter or hot 97 tomorrow and get 100,000 protesters @ your building but I choose to walk my own path my own way because since day one I have been my own man. I did business with Tommy Mottola and Donnie Einer, two of the most psycho dudes this business ever created. I worked well with them for one major reason……. they believed in me. The didn’t give a fuck about what any radio station or magazine said….those dudes had me.
Lost Tapes is a movement and a very important set up piece for my career as it stands. I started this over 5 years ago @ Columbia and nobody knew what it was or what it did but the label put it out as an LP and the fans went crazy for it and I single handlely built a new brand of rap albums. It’s smart and after 5 years it’s still a head of the game. This feels great and you not feeling what I’m feeling is disturbing. Don’t get in the way of my creativity. We are aligned with the stars here, this is a movement. There is a thing called KARMA that comes to haunt you when you tamper with the aligning stars. WE ARE GIVING THE PEOPLE EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT. Stop throwing dog shit on a MAGICAL moment.
You don’t get another Nas recording that doesn’t count against my deal….PERIOD! Keep your bullshit $200,000.00 fund. Open the REAL budget. This is a New York pioneers ALBUM, there ain’t many of us. I am ready to drop in the 4th quarter. You don’t even have shit coming out! Stop being your own worst enemy. Let’s get money!
-N.Jones
–
Visit the archive: http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/
Monday, October 4, 2010
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)