Yesterday, my friend and colleague, Tobin Watkinson, accepted my invitation to join We Are Listening’s Panel of Judges. His participation in our songwriting competition review schedule will kick-in immediately.
Tobin Watkinson was most recently a consultant to the A&R Department at Atlantic Records while simultaneously holding the title of co-founder/partner at boutique LA based management company, Roxwell Management. Prior to co-founding Roxwell, Tobin was the Director of Artist & Repertoire at MySpace Records, a joint venture with Interscope Records.
He has been awarded gold and platinum records for his early involvement in the discovery of recording artist OneRepublic. Their debut single “Apologize” has sold over 10 million singles worldwide and is one of the most legally downloaded songs in U.S. digital history. In 2008 “Apologize” broke the all-time record for the most “spins” in the history of U.S. Top 40 Radio and OneRepublic went on to sell nearly 2 million copies of their debut album “Dreaming Out Loud” which has been certified gold or platinum in 12 countries. In addition, Tobin has also helped launch the careers of successful touring acts Scary Kids Scaring Kids (RCA) and Madina Lake (Roadrunner/Atlantic).
Prior to being recruited to help launch MySpace Records, Tobin was partnered in a joint venture with Warner Music Group and was part of the team that led business development efforts at internet music startup Purevolume.com. In addition, Tobin has worked with Velvet Hammer Music and Management Group, as well as joint ventures through Columbia Records and Sony/ATV Music Publishing, LLC.
I am confident that the addition of Tobin’s expert knowledge of the marketplace, sound ear, and network of contacts will lead to greater accomplishments for our songwriting competition participants.
My work with BandCentral has taught me that most artists fail…
…because their day jobs take over
…because personal differences get in the way
…because they’re broke
…because of fear of, or fatigue from, rejection
…because of poor communication and management skills
…because of irresponsible, unprofessional and irrational behavior
…because of a poor understanding of the music business
…because of a weak desire to understand the music business
…because of lack of leadership
…because of bad financial decisions
…because of over-inflated egos
…because of no career planning
…because of no marketing planning
And more…
The good news is that, if you’re not ‘making it’, it’s probably not due to the quality of your music. And all of the reasons above can easily be addressed.
In 2011, what are you going to do to avoid failure and build a foundation for success?
Yesterday, I published a post titled “Help, I’m a Struggling Musician”, highlighting a poor promotional strategy employed by many artists that approach me.
Today, I listened to Robert Kiyosaki’s “Before You Quit Your Job” audiobook in its entirety to reinforce my commitment to become a better communicator and effectively promote my business interests.
I am frustrated that many artists do not make it their business to become effective communicators. I often hear, “my music speaks for itself.” Unfortunately, poor communications skills – a poorly composed email, a half-baked presentation, or unprofessional phone call – will get your music shelved or deleted, not heard.
Being a great musician is not enough. To quote Robert Kiyosaki, “The world is full of talented poor people.”
Next time you compose an email, place a phone call, or reach out on Facebook, consider whether the manner in which you write, speak, listen, present and promote is as awesome as your music.
And in 2011, I suggest that you make it your mission to become a great spokesperson as well as a great musician. It’s a winning combination.
On a daily basis, I receive email to the effect of, “I’m a struggling musician, really talented… please listen to my songs and tell me what you can do, okay?”
It’s not okay.
Folks, the word “struggling” does not inspire much confidence and describing yourself as “talented”, “awesome” or “star quality” doesn’t fly either.
Instead, show me the benefits of listening to your music and maybe even working with or investing in you. Also, don’t tell me what YOU think of yourself. Tell me what other people think of you: Show me what the press is writing about you and how many fans are spreading the word.
If you’re good, validate your claim. Don’t assume that if you tell me that you’re the next big cheese I’ll believe you. I won’t.
I just wanted to give you a quick heads about an amazing tool designed to help you manage your career, and focus on music, rather than the boring business that seems to always get in the way of true creativity.
I recently spent some time with the awesome guys over at BandCentral. And I have to admit, I was blown away by what they’ve put together.
You’re a musician on the rise, which means you’re probably struggling to find the best way to keep in touch with your fans and organize your ‘music business’, right?
BandCentral can help.
You probably need help keeping track of your money, organizing your gigs and staying on top of your merchandise sales (especially if you expect them to keep climbing).
BandCentral makes it easy.
Whether you’re un-signed and self-managed or you presently have a label and pro manager, BandCentral will save you from the time, burden and career-crushing mistakes so many artists fall victim to…
Anything that helps musicians make more music by helping them delegate the drudgery seems like it’s singing in the right key to me!
In 2007, Detroit-based rock act, Schaeffer, were selected as the winners of Breaking the Band 1, our international band competition. As part of their prize package, they embraced the opportunity to work with We Are Listening’s TV and radio guru, Jon Delange.
Jon, who continues to mentor the band to this day, helped them achieve national awareness, first at radio and then with television networks by scoring placements in their original programming. Annually, they have preformed during Austin’s SXSW event.
Eventually, the group emerged as America’s favorite in the FreeCreditScore.com band search which began with a shortlist of more than 100 hopefuls showcasing nationwide.
Now, The Victorious Secrets, the band’s new alias, are engaged in a $30 million advertising campaign.
As the new face of FreeCreditScore.com, they will be featured in a series of television commercials slated to debut during the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards next month. They will also receive a $10,000 check, a Gibson Guitar prize package and Pearl drum kits, and a studio session with the music industry’s best of breed. They will also walk the red carpet at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards and have the opportunity to perform on the 2010 VMA Tour.
Here are The Victorious Secrets, in all their glory:
“Quit your day job. Start a label.” has to be the stupidest blog post I ever published. And yet, it’s the second most visited post on this blog.
(For your information, “Katy Perry” is the most popular post on this blog but that’s just because Google picked up on the image tag so when Katy Perry fans (of which there are many) search for Kary Perry images, my blog shows up. There’s no value in it for me whatsoever. I’m confident that zero Katy Perry fans care about this blog.)
But with “Quit your day job. Start a label.“, there’s no fabricated traffic. It’s all real visitors searching for authoritative content which, to my disgrace, leads them to the worst post on this site.
Seth Godin, best selling author and popular blogger, writes:
If you have a book to write, write it. If you want to record an album, record it. No need to wait for someone in a cubicle halfway across the country to decide if you’re worthy.
I think Seth is suggesting that, if you’re waiting for a so-called music biz whiz to tell you that your band rocks, you’re giving too much power to someone who doesn’t care about your music nearly as much as you do.
Probably not, but you’re definitely not alone. The days of artists earning their income through the strength of song sales alone are growing dimmer by the day.
Music fans don’t want to pay for music anymore, and they’re getting less willing to do so all the time. Teenagers today have grown up in a world where they can download, stream and share anything they want, and all for free.
And they’ve never known anything different.
If even the most recognized artists in the world are having their songs downloaded for free, how are you supposed to make any money?
Believe it or not, you already have everything you need to make money. But even though your recordings are the least likely commodity to generate a strong income, there are plenty of other things you can sell.
We’ve teamed up with our good friends at MusicCareerMasters.com to show you exactly what you can to do to drive your income outside of music sales.
MusicCareerMasters is a website created to help independent artists make a living from the music business. It is run by Mark Smith, a veteran band manager of over 13 years. He teaches musicians time tested and highly effective strategies to truly make it in today’s rapidly changing music ecosystem.
For We Are Listening members only, Mark has created an exclusive 6 minute video that walks you through exactly what you need to know to make the maximum money for your products.
Yesterday, my friend and colleague, Tobin Watkinson, accepted my invitation to join We Are Listening’s Panel of Judges. His participation in our songwriting competition review schedule will kick-in immediately.
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