There’ve been a few posts floating around on various blogs about how to be successful in (today’s) music industry. But there have been far more posts bitching and moaning about the horrors of the industry. My proposition is simple, and perhaps a bit idealistic (go figure…). Here goes:
1. You need EVERYTHING.
500,000 friends on MySpace doesn’t get you a record deal. In fact, it doesn’t get you much of anything. And who cares how many people watched your YouTube video? You can actually hire folks (usually in India…) to click, refresh, click, and repeat. Drive those views through the cyber-roof! So are they really worth anything?
But what if your audience isn’t on YouTube? What if they don’t have MySpace pages? What if they only believe what they read on this blog? (Hey, it could happen…). The point is, while artists are chasing down 360-degree deals, you need to be a 360-degree artist. Get yourself mentioned/posted/for sale in as many (credible) places as you can. Let someone find you multiple times without looking too hard. Odds are, that’s the person that’ll convert to a sale/fan.
2. Money helps, but brains make it last longer
DIY is great, but not if the quality sucks. Be smart, and do your research. Odds are you can get it cheaper, faster, and better elsewhere. Here’re a few suggestions:
Website: Check out Bandzoogle. Fully pro stuff, lots of features, everything you need – $19/month.
Postcards: FlyerStudios.com. 5,000 4×6 postcards, 4/4, $100 + shipping, FAST delivery.
Banners: WholesaleBannerz.com. Good, smart, fast, cheap, quality.
Distribution: Nimbit. Digital distribution (iTunes, and everyplace else), physical sales, $5/month. And does it work? Totally. Cheaper, better, faster.
3. Talk to people read stuff, communicate ideas.
Here’re a couple folks you should pay attention to:
Jeremy Meyers: This guy, who I’m proud to know, works over at Sony. Does digital marketing, and does it better than anyone I know. His Twittering is both extremely useful and often a whole lot of fun to read.
Bruce Houghton: He writes Hypebot, knows his stuff, and remains squarely on the side of the artist.
More than just watching people, encourage dialogue. Share your thoughts, needs, and ideas. If a couple people band together, good things usually happen. If a whole lot band together, stuff gets easier, cheaper, and more accessible. Package gigs, share hotel rooms, do whatever you can.
When you can, go to conferences, open mics, networking socials, and anyplace where you think someone might be interested in you or your music.
4. Work your ass off.
It’s not easy. And usually it’s the people that work both smart -and- hard that succeed. Add karma to that mix, and you’ll see that it’s almost always the same ol’ thing.
Good people with good products and ethics do good things. That’s the dirty secret you’re not supposed to know. Success requires a good idea followed by exceptional execution. Nothing more, and definitely nothing less. Anyone who thinks they can skate by on their 500,000 MySpace friends is sadly mistaken.
