Live Music Blog

We’ve located quite a few ways to promote our independent record label, new released music and new artists. Having your business information available to your targeted audiences is the central key. There has to be visibility!

One of the perfect ways to make your business information visible and available, is to connect with others who are already visible and available! That is right, seek and search out other websites that will allow you to become linked to their website …it works! For every individual who comes in contact with a website you’re connected to, will definitely elevate the occasions of your website being viewed additionally.

I found that by asking various web site owners permission to link their web site to yours will ofttimes time cause a web site link ex change to take place… wonderful deal huh? You bet it is! Just remember this, it is all about visibility! You will be surprised how a lot of other web site owners are willing to ex change links.

So let’s get on board and start seeking out friendly website owners who want the same accomplishments for their website as you want for yours. But make sure you be careful of those who will ex change links and then remove your link from their website. Go back and check their website every so again and again.

Even if you do not have a million dollar record deal with a well known label, there are plenty of effective marketing plans that you can get to work for you. Marketing does involve a fair amount of work, and you can easily lose money if you do not do it properly — money you can not even have in the 1st place. Here are some easy and inexpensive ways to encourage your music.

Business cards — they’re not just for men and women in suits! oftentimes inexpensive to print, they’re easy to pass out for individuals to tuck away and look at later. Make a few hundred or a few thousand, and always have a handful with you to pass out. Music conferences, seminars, trade shows, and even music concert are all excellent places to pass out business cards. Plus, any time you send out a demo CD or press kit you ought to tuck in a few so that the recipient will always know how to reach you.

EPs or demo CD s, about five to seven tracks long, area amazing way to get samples of your music out there. Put your optimum or the majority popular tunes on them, and pass them out to fans or interested fans as a free sample. This allows them to find pleasure in your tunes, share them with friends, and build up excitement for upcoming shows and albums. You may additionally select to sell these CDs at your shows to make a profit, and you will want to include them in press kits.

Email lists take some time to session up, but can be a exceptional way to reach your listeners. There are plenty of free sources Internet that might advocate you manage your list. To grow a list, use your member’s other lists and then use them to invite those members to join your list as well. Just do this carefully so that you do not get labeled as a spammer. Once you’ve a list, use it to send out a newsletter, concert and show up dates, or let any person know when your newest compact disc will be released. You might likewise use it as a way to get feedback from your listeners and find out what they like and don’t like.

MySpace.com is another easy to use tool to market your band, and many performers already do it. However, you want to make sure that you use all of the tools that are available to you to make it the most effective. Target your friend adds as well as those in your demographics. Plus, do not forget about all the interest you might generate about your page with blogs, videos, bulletins, and more. There are millions of people on MySpace.com every day, so you want to make sure that your pages have a reason for them to come back frequently.

These are just four things that you might do that are free or nearly so. Using them separately or in a mixture might stimulate your band’s image and popularity take off. As you start to sign bigger and bigger deals, you might then put these back into marketing with larger and flashier campaigns.

Music promotion isn’t such an simple task to master. In fact it is one of the biggest barrier present for an indie musician. There are literally tons of wonderful musicians out there, but what is stopping them from success and fame? It’s their promotion. Don’t think for a second just because you are signed to a ample record label, you will be next Justin Timberlake. Even ample record labels may at times struggle to promote certain musicians and there have been many cases where musicians voluntarily select to go independent so they may solely promote their music and be free of any contract.
Stop dreaming about getting “signed” – it is time to put the power in your hands. Independent music distribution is the wave of the future. And here is the nice news, you are in total control. Do not think for one second that have to have 100’s of thousands of dollars to drop your CD if you are independent? Think again. There are lots of organizations that will get you started for next to virtually nothing. You only pay for what you sell and they do all the leg work for you.

There are web sites that you might visit today that takes your music Web – turns it into a professional compact disc – and even takes your orders. They likewise ship, they print, they process orders … – heck, everything but making your song and cooking your breakfast. There are places Web which let’s you upload your song once and gets you listed in the top digital distribution web sites in seconds. The point is Web music promotion and distribution is much easier than you think. And iTunes is far from the only game out there – there are dozens of places to list your music that you’ve probably never heard of.

Social networking is another a Club you might use to establish amazing determinations. Armed with a little knowledge, you might propel your Internet presence within a matter of days and get tons of free publicity and traffic coming through to your web site. Not only has the Internet begun to dominate the promotion of music, it has additionally begun to dominate its distribution as well. iTunes, by 2006, reportedly have more than a million song downloads per DAY. That has been back in 2006. (Hint: Its 2008 now).

On-line downloads are projected to surpass CD sales some time in 2010. This is just brilliant news for independent musicians. For you all aspiring musicians out there, jump On-line, ride this 100-ton marketing guerrilla and take use of the amazing chance Web presents to everybody.

No wonder we all seek to express ourselves in some way. To achieve success in music we need a band, as a solo career is no longer popular. And now you are amidst decisions how to choose the performer members to share you dazzling ups.

Well, there are two ways out:

1.To involve professional performers into the project and to divide obligations in advance. The only thing acquired is your own professional skills.

2.To surround yourself with deer companions and start following the path of studying altogether.

No matter which way you’ll go, just don’t haste. It can happen the guitarist will tear a strip off or the drummer will misfit a drum performance. It’s no use shouting on them. we all make mistakes every now and then.

first of all try studying few simple songs, prefer My Girl by Nirvana. But do not jump into mastering jazz or grind core, as the Suicidal Tendencies, the Red Hot Chili Peppers or the Slipknot represent.

For joint work to be fruitful enough, you should organize rehearsals into two parts, the way, one will be devoted to revising already studied tunes and the other one will be used for improvisation, which is of a excellent value, as the performer members study to predict every next step of each other. Its’ you feeling every sense of music in the result. You could feel it is aliveness by letting it through your mind. But the central thing is not to feel down in case everything is not as excellent as you have imagined. It’s much worse to loose pleasure in playing and creating music.

What concerns recommendations of experienced musicians, they are value listen to, however, keep it in mind, it’s up to you, which of them to choose to follow.

The reality of depression and suicide has inspired artists to take part in the PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR, a music tour committed to reducing the stigma associated with mental health as well as making the access to help and hope for all safe and without fear.

Houston-based art rockers Blue October will headline the inaugural PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR–where impassioned artists join together to raise awareness and funds for depression and suicide prevention–and Atlanta-based hip-hop artist and producer B.o.B will open on the trek.

The PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR marks the first-ever tour solely benefiting suicide prevention in history. The month-long trek will launch Thursday, October 22nd at the Music Farm in Charleston, SC and wrap up with a two-night stand at Stubbs in Austin, TX November 20 and 21. See the full PUTP tour itinerary below; tickets are on sale now. To purchase, visit: http://www.putp.org and http://www.blueoctoberfan.com/pickupthephone/.

The PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR will launch with a press conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC Wednesday, October 21 at 10:00 AM. Justin Furstenfeld, the lead singer of Blue October, will be on hand to speak and perform an acoustic set before members of Congress as well as supporters of the tour partners 1-800 SUICIDE, PostSecret and TWLOHA.

Justin–who has struggled with bi-polar disorder most of his life–will be calling on Congress to fund both creative writing and art therapy programs as alternative options for mental health. The press conference will also urge Congress to fully fund the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act which provides the funding behind the majority of the suicide prevention programs in the United States today. The press conference is open to all on a first-come first-served basis, to RSVP, email TWLOHA: PUTP@TWLOHA.com.

The PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR is created through a partnership between the non-profit organization To Write Love on Her Arms (TWLOHA), the largest charity on MySpace and Facebook: Postsecret.com; Synclive.com; and 1-800 SUICIDE The National Hopeline Network.

Through 1-800 SUICIDE–which provides a life-saving service that is private and confidential for people in need–callers are routed directly to the closest crisis center in their immediate area so that quick referrals to behavioral health services and other supports can be offered. Since 1998, 1-800-SUICIDE has received over 3.6 million calls and rescued more than 4,000 individuals who had already initiated suicide plans.

The spokesperson for the PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR 2009, Justin Furstenfeld personally understands the struggles those who are affected by mental health issues face on a daily basis. “It has taken 20 years to have the chance to do a tour focusing on mental health issues which have been a daily battle for me for most of my life,” explains Justin.

“It’s great to finally be a part of a positive, progressive-thinking tour for an important cause which will make a direct impact and help people in desperate situations that need it the most.” In a strange turn of events in his own life, Justin worked at a mental hospital one day and, after suffering a breakdown, became a patient in a hospital the next.

Justin–who has taken medication for the condition since he was a teenager–now teaches creative writing at a mental hospital to young adults affected by mental health issues, self-abuse issues and sexual abuse. Through personal experiences and music, Justin challenges young minds to channel their emotions and anger into creative writing and art versus taking their frustrations out on themselves or the world around them.

He performs his art around the world, sending a message of hope to thousands who know and trust his message because he fights the same battles they fight every day. Justin is living proof that if you reach out and allow yourself to be helped you can lead a beautiful life filled with love, family and career.

“In moments of bravery and confusion and honesty, people turn to 1-800-SUICIDE–over three million of them,” points out Jamie Tworkowski, founder of To Write Love on Her Arms (TWLOHA).

“The folks at the Hopeline Centers have been answering those calls for ten years, picking up the phone when it’s mattered most. Now to help those who will not pick up the phone, together with 1-800-SUICIDE we are launching the first 24×7 online emotional support network called AliveIM!, which will soon be available at www.suicide.net.”

To Write Love on Her Arms (TWLOHA)–a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide–exists to encourage, inform and inspire and also to invest directly into treatment and recovery.

Since 2006, TWLOHA has responded to over 100,000 messages from people in over 40 different countries and have invested over half a million dollars directly into treatment and recovery, including $50,000 to help fund the AliveIM! support network.

In another innovative move, the tour has partnered with Synclive.com to air live performances from the artists via the Internet as well as provide an immediate online confidential connection for fans in need. Synclive.com will create an essential connection for concertgoers in crisis who are unable to approach a booth at the show in-person either for direct help or to volunteer for the online counseling program.

Formed in Houston in 1995, the rock five–piece Blue October have released five studio albums and sold over 2 million albums. The group released their fifth studio album Approaching Normal (Universal Motown), the follow-up to their 1.3 million-selling Foiled album; it spawned the hit “Hate Me,” which reached #2 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart, followed by “Into the Ocean,” a # 1 video on VH1 about a the metaphorical contemplation of suicide itself.

Approaching Normal debuted at # 13 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart in March 2009 and produced two top singles: “Dirt Room,” which rocketed to #6 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart marking the group’s third Top Ten singl, and “Say It.”

Blue October is Justin Furstenfeld (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Jeremy Furstenfeld (drums, percussion), Ryan Delahoussaye (violin/viola, mandolin, piano, backing vocals), C.B. Hudson (lead guitar, backing vocals) and Matt Noveskey (bass guitar, backing vocals). Due to their hard-won and loyal fanbase, the group now tours all over the world. Check out www.blueoctober.com and www.myspace.com/blueoctober.

Hailing from Atlanta, B.o.B. also known as Bobby Ray is a hotly-tipped hip-hop artist and producer who will release his debut album The Adventures of Bobby Ray via T.I.’s label Grand Hustle (Atlantic Records) in 2009. B.o.B. appeared on the covers of XXL and Vibe magazines as was hailed as part of “Hip-Hop’s class of ‘09” (XXL, 12/08). B.o.B describes his music as a fusion of influences ranging from 80’s, techno, rock, funk and du-wop. Check out www.bobatl.com and www.myspace.com/bobatl.

Recently, acclaimed actor James Earl Jones recorded a Public Service announcement for the PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR; click here to view: http://www.preventsuicide.us/hopeline-new/index.html.

Following are the confirmed dates for the PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR 2009:

DATE CITY VENUE

10/21 Washington, DC Capitol Hill – PUTP Press Conference

10/22 Charleston, SC Music Farm (no B.o.B.)

10/23 Charlotte, NC Fillmore

10/24 Hilton Head, SC Shoreline Ballroom

10/25 Atlanta, GA 99X (Blue October radio show)

10/27 Jacksonville, FL Freebird Live

10/28 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Revolution

10/30 Orlando, FL House of Blues

10/31 Tampa, FL The Ritz (Ybor City)

11/01 Columbia, SC Headliners

11/02 WASHINGTON, DC 9:30 Club

11/05 Rochester, NY Water Street

11/06 Boston , MA Reason to Live Tenth Anniversary Concert

11/07 Napa, CA Hot AC (Blue October radio show)

11/10 Columbus, OH LC Pavilion

11/12 Chicago, IL House of Blues

11/13 Detroit, MI Royal Oak

11/14 Kalamazoo, MI State Theater

11/15 Cleveland, OH House of Blues

11/17 COLUMBIA, MO Blue Note

11/18 Tulsa, OK Cain’s

11/20 Austin, TX Stubb’s

11/21 Austin, TX Stubb’s

Partners for the first-ever PICK UP THE PHONE TOUR 2009 include:

1-800-SUICIDE – National Hopeline Network

About the National Hopeline Network 1-800 SUICIDE (784-2433) and the Kristin Brooks Hope Center (KBHC):
After losing his wife, Kristin Brooks to suicide in 1998, Reese Butler founded the Kristin Brooks Hope Center (KBHC), which created the National Hopeline Network 1-800 SUICIDE.

In 2000, Reese gained the support of the late Senator Paul Wellstone (D-MN), Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) and obtained more than seven million dollars to expand and support the National Hopeline Network which is comprised of 200 community crisis centers in 48 states.

Callers in crisis to 1800-SUICIDE are routed to the closest crisis center in their immediate area so that quick referrals to behavioral health services and other supports can be offered. Since 1998, 1-800-SUICIDE has received more than 3 million calls and rescued more than 4,000 individuals who had already initiated suicide plans. www.hopeline.com

About To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA):

In 2006, Jamie Tworkowski wrote a story, a glimpse into a friend’s life and her first steps to recovery from drug addiction, self-injury, and depression. The story, titled To Write Love On Her Arms (TWLOHA), and t-shirts Tworkowski printed to help pay for his friend’s recovery, started a movement, not only within his local Orlando, FL community, but one that was swiftly embraced by people everywhere.

Realizing a strong need to bring these mental health issues to light, Jamie created TWLOHA–a non-profit movement dedicated to presenting hope and finding help for people struggling with depression, addiction, self-injury and suicide–and enlisted bands such as Paramore, Thrice, Anberlin, Switchfoot, Bayside, The Almost to spread TWLOHA’s message.

Jamie and TWLOHA joined national and international touring bands spreading their message of hope before bands took the stage each night. In August 2007, MySpace awarded TWLOHA the winner of their “Impact Award” for “Community Building,” TWLOHA garnered the most votes in the history of the Impact Awards.

To Write Love on Her Arms began with one broken girl, one painful night; addiction, depression, self-injury. It is the realization of what life can be when people commit to meeting a need. “A friend of mine told me there is no such thing as suicide prevention. This is an attempt to prove him wrong, to say that love can change a life. We can hold back the darkness. Rescue is possible,” says Tworkowski. www.twloha.com

About Synclive.Com:

Synclive.com is a highly interactive music and entertainment Internet community that allows users to broadcast their live performances, as they happen, over the Internet to a worldwide audience. Synclive.com is currently reaching 127 countries with over 1 million video views a month. Shows can be broadcast from anywhere, at anytime. Synclive.com offers artists a tremendous promotional platform for worldwide exposure.

It is a great way to promote new music, a new tour, new merchandise, and stay intimately connected with your fans. Shows are streamed live, recorded and stored at the artist’s discretion for future on demand viewing. Our most used tool is the embedded player which allows an artist’s live and on demand shows to be placed on all of their websites so fans can watch the show in the artist’s environment. Synclive.com is free for artists, fans, and venues to use and is open to all genres of music and live entertainment. www.synclive.com

About PostSecret.com:

Called “the most trusted stranger in America,” Frank Warren is the sole founder and curator of the PostSecret Project: A collection of nearly 500,000 highly personal and artfully decorated postcards mailed anonymously from around the world, displaying the soulful secrets we never voice.

The PostSecret.com site now receives more than 1,000,000 visitors every week. In 2005, the All-American Rejects approached Warren about using images of actual PostSecret images in their “Dirty Little Secret” music video. They offered Warren $1,000, but Warren instead asked them to donate $2,000 to 1800-SUICIDE where Warren is a volunteer.

The donation was made and the music video became one of the most requested on MTV. The National Mental Health Association presented Warren with an award for his work in raising public awareness of Suicide. The PostSecret project has now raised over $210,000 for 1800-SUICIDE. PostSecret was awarded the December 2008 “Myspace Impact Award” and donated 100% of the proceeds to 1-800 SUICIDE. Look for the new PostScret book titled Confessions on Life, Death and God due out October 6. www.postsecret.com

For more information about the PUTP tour, visit:

• www.putp.org
• www.hopeline.com
• ww.twloha.com
• www.synclive.com
• www.postsecret.com

If your band is in rehearsals, either planning for gigging, or practising new songs to add to your repertoire, the opening s are you’ll have to hire a rehearsal room. The costs of engaging a room can soon mount up if you don’t organize your time effectively. You can be was ting time and money going around in circles, with a rising frustration that your band doesn’t seem to be making any progress.

The answer is to set a Schedule for your rehearsals. in the absence of a schedule it is c hall enging to monitor progress if in fact any is made. Disorganized rehearsals can soon turn into chaos, with everybody throwing in pointers and playing varying things at the same time. The rehearsal is not the time for your guitarist to hone his right hand tapping skills, or your drummer to optimum his lightning fast paradiddles, it is valuable time for working together as a band, and ought to be used as such. performer members ought to have their personal private schedules for practising instruments and learning new techniques. During a rehearsal you ought to all be working towards the same goal and making each other sound as wonderful as possible. The rehearsal ought to never turn into a ‘who can play the loudest‘ competition.

What should your schedule consist of?

Set goals for your rehearsal times and WRITE THEM DOWN! You should know which tunes you are going to rehearse in advance. If you have planned your strategy, you’ll avoid getting stuck in a rut and your time will be used constructively. tunes you already know can be perfected and the little nuances worked on, stamping your own identity on cover tunes and putting the finishing touches to originals.

You ought to make a list of ‘finished’ tunes, ‘work in progress‘ tunes, and ‘new ideas’. As each one progresses, move it up into the next category, thereby revising the schedule for your next rehearsal.

I would suggest starting with 2 or 3 tunes you are happy and comfortable with, simply to give the band a positive vibe to build on, and then start work on new numbers. session aside a certain amount of time for each song, and then move on! Don’t was te time trying to best something that just isn’t working, you may come back to it later or at the next rehearsal. best the numbers that do work, and you will see positive results as your repertoire builds up considerably.

Always take regular breaks. Coming back to a number that has been n’t going too well with fresh ears might usually be all it needs to make a distinct improvement. If that doesn’t help, there’s no point in flogging a dead horse, so move it to the bottom of the list or contemplate dropping the song altogether and concentrating on another one.

Work on performer dynamics and expression, i.e. fast, slow, loud, and quiet. Get your fills as tight and as fluent as possible. What you’re working on is that elusive ‘feel’ that’s the club mark of a wonderful band. Everybody should not only be playing his/her own instrument, but additionally actively listening to the rest of the band.

Tape your rehearsal. You do not need any fancy recording equipment – a simple tape deck and mic will be sufficient. The idea is simply for the performer to be able to listen to their endeavors after wards. Listening to a song while you are not playing means you may listen more subjectively and discuss the merits. Take notes while you listen, that way you are already forming the schedule for the next rehearsal.

And finally, recall ; you are in a band! As such, the sum of the parts ought to be greater than the individual contribution.

You’ve brought together three or four of the optimum musicians in town, and they’re jamming to your tunes. You’ve spent days and evenings writing and rewriting lyrics, and you’ve been working hard to optimum your sound. Lastly, after a lot of months of practice, you are ready to reap the advantages of your hard work. But how do you begin?

As a new band, the idea of booking your 1st gig might prove to be a daunting task. Still, it does not have to be. By following these simple steps, you might turn a externally overwhelming process into a productive one.

Making sure that the members of the band are all on the same page is an essential 1st step in the booking process. Agree on a number of gigs per month that anybody at all will play. Put together a set of your best tunes and make a demo. Your demo ought to not include full-length tunes ; a few short snippets of your strongest material will showcase your band’s strengths and will sell your band to potential Venues with little or no resolution. With your demo, include a photo of the band, a short statement about the music or type of that the band plays, and your contact information, including the band’s web site. Decide what Venues you’re interested in playing and how much you’ll charge them for playing, if anything. Getting these details out of the way early will produce wonderful communication among the band members, thus avoiding misunderstandings in the future.

Next, do your research. Scope out the Local scene; find out who your competition is, which performers performance where, what Clubs cater to your specific sound, and who your target listeners is. Talk to seasoned Local acts; a number of times times, your fellow musicians will be your perfect sources of information. Getting to know your competition, your listeners and your Local scene will prove to be an indispensable tool when you are selling yourself to venue owners and booking agents. furthermore, be open to anything. Limiting yourself to clubs and bars will hinder your chances of booking your band. Find out about open-mic nights in your area, offer to open for other performers for free and find out about Local fairs and festivals where your band might get some exposure.

When you’re out and about checking out potential Clubs, ask for the names of the people responsible for booking artists at that location. Get their contact information and keep track. Use all of your contacts and, when calling them, be brief and to the point. Ask them If they have time to talk, and if not, when it would be a good time to contact them. Ask for permission before submitting your demo. Be persistent, but not pushy, and realize that it will take some time to get that job. Once you do get the gig, be sure to discuss payment, if any, as well as what you’ll need to bring as opposed to what the Club will provide. Be professional and be honest.

With determination, a little know-how, and some clever self-promotion, you could land that first show and be on your way to success in no time.

To the majority performers, the enduring image of an artist manager is a caricature of a heavy-set, unkempt slob of a man, stuffed into a 2-sizes-too-small, off-the-rack department retailer suit, chomping on a cheap smelly cigar while sliding a gr easy hand unceremoniously into the back pocket of a starving artist. Undoubtedly, somewhere in the vast landscape of the music universe, such malice exists. The vast majority of artist managers, however, are a motley collection of well-meaning, hardworking, selfless individuals struggling to make the dreams of an individual they believe in come true.

For the legion of dedicated unbelievers out there, this is an article that attempts to shed light on the true worth of an artist manager. Below are 8 reasons why a performer or artist needs a wonderful manager:

1. Career Guidance – It is oftentimes extremely c venue enging for artists to step back from the day-to-day activities and see the big picture (you know – the old ‘forest-for-the-trees’ thing). A knowledgeable manager may see how everything in the big picture fits together, and may help the performer navigate through the oftentimes -confusing maze of activities that seem unrelated yet are all part of a massive jigsaw puzzle. The manager offers career guidance and helps to set the overall game plan for the performer and the artists’ team to follow.

2. Cheerleading – Even though listeners are the main cheerleaders for an artist, an individual has to communicate the same enthusiasm to the music business community. an artist manager will trumpet the artist’s message to record labels, booking agents, promoters, media person nel, venue bookers, independent retail accounts, etc., in order to keep them all engaged and enthusiastic.

3. Prestige – According to the majority record industry professionals, there is something to be said about an artist that has a manager. The logic is that if an artist is good enough to attract management, there must be something of worth present. In fact, the majority major labels refuse to sign an artist unless they have solid team (manager, attorney and publicist) in place. an artist in the absence of management is just too much drama! Labels would rather deal with a person who knows how the music business works and could make decisions on a non-emotional basis.

4. Buffer – A manager could act as an effective screening buffer between the artist and people that want to do business with the artist. This buffer tends to attract legitimate industry players while at the same time scaring away scam musicians. There are no scarier words to a scam artist than “please talk to my manager”.

5. Time management – There simply is not enough time in the day to do everything that needs to be done in order to further the career of an artist. In among writing songs, conducting interviews, designing artwork for compact disc’s and merchandise, managing a mailing list, filling out copyright paperwork, rehearsing with the band, engaging and firing musicians, updating performer websites and MySpace.com profiles, getting pictures taken, shooting and editing DVD’s and YouTube videos, sending out packages and/or updating EPK’s, researching, repairing and buying equipment, etc., there isn’t time to furthermore craft a master game plan, solicit potential sponsorship partners, handle licensing requests, reach out to industry gatekeepers, attend industry networking events, harass labels for tour help, and so on. Some tasks may be delegated to the performer while others may be handled by the manager.

6. Accountability – Part of a manager’s job is to hold people accountable. What happens when the financial tour guide that has been promised by the label fails to materialize? Or the check from the booking agent bounces? Or the FOH engineer at the show is MIA? Or the licensee fails to sign and return the contract but is using the artist’s songs anyway? Or the beer in the tour van vanishes? Somebody has to keep people honest, and that is the majority appropriately the manager’s job.

7. Good Cop / Bad Cop – Need to fire the bass player but do not want to create an enemy? Let the manager play bad cop and do the firing. Need to re-negotiate your contract and request more of a promotion budget? Let the manager play wonderful cop and keep a positive spin on the proceedings. There are plenty of chances when the artist and manager may trade off playing wonderful cop / bad cop.

8. Sounding board – A manager, even though basic ally an “honorary member of the band”, is a number of times on the outside looking in. Managers a number of times see things diverse ly than the artist, and may a number of times offer diverse perspectives, insights and solutions to problems the artist is encountering. Running pointers by a knowledgeable manager prior to making decisions a number of times allows for wonderful pointers to become better and bad pointers to be removed altogether from the to-do list.

Now,there you have it! 8 nice reasons why an artist needs a manager. Having said all this, however, it is vital to note that having a bad manager is worse than having no manager at all. A lot of wannabe managers think they could just “wing-it” with an artist, and continue to operate with the “lets-record-a-3-song-demo-and-shop-it-for-a-record-deal” mentality, even though the music industry continues to undergo serious vary s. New business models are emerging, and only those managers that stay at the leading edge of the learning curve will create successful strategies and offer serious counsel to their clients.

(For the purpose of this article I’m going to make a couple of assumptions before I go any further. They are that you have a little bit of vocal or musical instrument knowledge and that you furthermore have a fledgling network of companions and contacts)

Starting up a performer is a wonderfully interesting time in a artists life. There is a fine balance of nervous anticipation and the fear of the unknown that follows the whole process.

A band has a divergent dynamic than working as a solo artist. There are other individuals involved, other individual ities, other strengths and weaknesses in character and abilities and because of this it’s really vital that you’ve several things worked out before you start looking for band members.

1. Have a good idea of your own strengths and weaknesses

The band members that you want to get will need to be around the same level of competence as you are. The central reason for this is that you may all grow together rather than have one or two artists carrying any person else. This kind of player imbalance causes doubt in the group and doubt is one of the major killers of bands.

2. Know beforehand how the band is going to be run

Is the performer going to be run by you or the whole group? The individual ity categories of the artists that you choose will need to be agreeable to the way the performer is going to be run.

3. What instrumentation is the band having in its lineup?

This is mainly determined by the type(s) of music that you want to play but having an idea of what performers you’re looking for will be of exceptional advocate.

It is now time to hunt down some band members

4. Ask your network of companions and/or contacts

This is always a good place to start. Ask everyone that you know or come into contact with. If you don’t have much of a circle of companions and/or contacts this will be a amazing occasion to expansive n it. This is one of the reasons why networking in the industry is so necessary, for occasions such as this.

Having a musician referred to you has a much better opening of working than one that comes from an advertisement. This leads me onto my next point.

5. Post an advertisement

Having said that I’ve had made some great contacts from performers enquiring from a ‘muso wanted’ ad. The key to effective ads is that they need to be concise, to the point, not too lengthy and put in places where performers are eminently like ly to see it and read it like in a music shop, a Regional music magazine or a music classifieds web site.

A sample ‘ musician wanted‘ advertisement might read something prefer this:

BASS PLAYER WANTED

To join folk/rock band

Influences include

Ben Harper, Jack Johnson, Counting Crows

Some experience like red

Own gear and transport essential

Interested?? Give me a call

Corey – (put home and/or cellular telephone number here)

As you might see, the ad is clear in its intention.

It obvious ly states the artist wanted, the type of music the band is playing, what the music may sound prefer and that the band has some experience behind it. Make sure you have a obvious contact name and phone numbers (if you want to include an email address as well that’s cool).

Don’t put in stuff prefer ‘work waiting‘ or ‘no time has been ters please’. You may judge those sort of things yourself when an interested musician contacts you.

Once you’ve done that the waiting game begins.

Virtually all individuals would say the first thing to do is to find a name for the band. Lets start from there s venue we??

The auditions are over, you have found your bass player and you all seem to get along really well. The excitement is in the air and you have had your 1st performer bonding celebration.

Now its time to start your musical journey together.

Personally, I think that locating a performer name is THE hardest decision that the performer will ever have to make and therefore one of the the majority necessary decisions as well.

A performer name is a remarkably necessary part of the artists identity. It’s the 1st point of contact a punter has with the band.

Does this conversation sound familiar to you?

Them: “Hey, I saw this cool performer last night. You gotta check them out”

You: “Cool, what was the name of the band?”

Them: “Ummmmmm……. I don’t know”.

Arrrrrgh!!!! I get that all the time.

I can’t recall how a lot of times individuals have raved about a performer to me but can’t tell me the name when I ask them. Right there is the has been ted opening for a band. It frustrates me no end.

This is a best example of how extremely necessary a performer name is.

The performer name is the 1st thing that a punter will remember. They will not address the performer by the names of the individuals in it when they talk to their friends (unless they’re individual friends of yours) they will address the performer by its name.

The optimum way to find a band name is through sheer persistance. Locating a band name that’s agreeable by everyone isn’t an simple task.

Here are some performer name party suggestions:

1. Get every member to write down their personal list of potential band names

This can be the 1st task that the band may do collectively. performance a date for the 1st band meeting and amidst now and then do that task.

2. Make brainstorming performer names the topic of your first ever performer meeting

When anybody gets together put all of the lists out on the table and go through each one keeping to one side the names that’strike a chord’ (sorry about the pun) with all of you and getting rid of the rest.

As a group try brainstorming some ideas. This is a amazing way to start formulating what the performer is all about, what its image is etc, etc.

3. Create a competition among all your companions /family/anyone else via email

This is a great way to start compiling the beginnings of your artists email list. List all of your companions /family/anyone else that you want to include and their email addresses and compile them all into one mailing group. Send out an email outlining the competition and be ready for the pointers to come flooding in.

It is important to have a cut off date for the competition (perhaps by your first performer meeting) and to have a prize on provide. Of course the prize is totally up to you.

Ensure that when you do find a performer name that you announce it through your email group. You have just started email promotion of your band.

Whatever you do have fun with the process and do not let the quest to find a band name override the other things that you have to do such as writing songs and finding rehearsal space.

I guarantee that once you have agreed on a performer name you’ll all collectively breathe a very large sigh of relief. The hardest part of the journey has been achieved.