Music Shows

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

Setting time boundaries is an vital tool for an performer to learn to use.

Paula Eder of ” Finding Time Tips and E-zine” states, “If you can’t say no, might be you don’t know where your boundaries are”.

Community service and donations are again and again requested from musicians. Paula suggest in her action step to “List each area you say “yes” to where you wish you’d said “no”. These are your first boundaries”. Boundary musicians have learned to stop saying “yes” and wishing they had said “no”. Creating more respect for their artist time. Careful planning…saying “yes” to things all of us really want to do, frees time for activities all of us really want to participate in.

When your day in the studio is finished, take time to prepare a priority list for the next day.  setting boundaries with your list gets chores out of the way fast. Leaving time for work in the studio or community service. Virtually all of all it leaves time for enjoying being an artist.

Being involved with family regularly consumes much of an  performer’s  time. Communication in this area is substantially vital. You know your family is rushed, frazzled and work hard to make a living and, you want to stimulate. But, your performer time needs consideration furthermore. Discuss these needs, come to an agreement that leaves each person with time to stimulate each other. The boundary performer is able to return to the studio feeling nice about time spent with family and time to create.

Prepare a sign that’s posted at the entrance of your work space that apparent ly indicates you are working. When the sign is removed it signals that you are free to talk and interact with others.

How do you  set boundaries? Do family members and organizations need to learn your performer boundaries? Talk to me about the way you handle these situations and still make time to establish your art.

To most 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 a person 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 benefit of an artist manager. Below are 8 reasons why a performer or artist needs a good manager:

1. Career Guidance – It is a number of times extremely c venue enging for performers to step back from the day-to-day activities and see the extensive picture (you know – the old ‘forest-for-the-trees’ thing). A knowledgeable manager might see how everything in the extensive picture fits together, and might advocate the performer navigate through the a number of times -confusing maze of activities that seem unrelated yet are all part of a massive jigsaw puzzle. The manager provides career guidance and advocates to session the overall game plan for the performer and the performers’ team to follow.

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

3. Prestige – According to most 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 value present. In fact, most 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 may make decisions on a non-emotional basis.

4. Buffer – A manager may 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 artists. 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 betwixt writing songs, conducting interviews, designing artwork for compact disc’s and merchandise, managing a mailing list, filling out copyright paperwork, rehearsing with the band, employing and firing performers, updating performer web sites 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 get togethers, harass labels for tour aid, 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 individuals accountable. What happens when the financial tour support 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 individuals honest, and that’s 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 performance bad cop and do the firing. Need to re-negotiate your contract and request more of a promotion budget? Let the manager performance good cop and keep a positive spin on the proceedings. There are plenty of chances when the musician and manager can trade off playing good cop / bad cop.

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

So,there you’ve it! 8 nice reasons why an musician needs a manager. Having said all this, however, it’s necessary to note that having a bad manager is worse than having no manager at all.  Many wannabe managers think they can 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 significant vary s. New business models are emerging, and only those managers that stay at the leading edge of the learning curve will produce successful strategies and provide significant counsel to their clients.

Music publicity success comes down to knowing how to work with music editors in your desired newspaper or magazine. No matter how nice your tunes are, or how electric your live show is, you won’t get publicity for your music unless you know how to give a music editor what he or she needs to  promote  you properly.

After surveying a roundtable of music editors and other music publicity experts, I learned what separates the well-known performers from the obscure ones. Following are secret press pointers you could use to get better publicity for your music:

Plan Ahead. Give media outlets enough guide time to make room for your story. Newspapers and Local/Regional magazines need to have your press release and promo package at least three weeks before your gig. National print magazines need your info two to three months ahead.

Do Your Homework. If you’re a pop artist, do not send your press kit to a country music editor. Regardless of how wonderful your songs are, you’re was ting her time and yours. If you want to send your press kit to a national or Regional paper, find out beforehand If they review unsigned and independent bands.

Be Patient. You may have to call more than twice before you’re able to reach a music editor on the phone. Try calling diverse times of the day. Leaving many phone messages ought to be avoided.

Keep a Contact Log. When you are approaching more than one media outlet for a music publicity campaign, it is not simple to keep your information straight by using memory alone (or scraps of paper). Keep a chart or database with editor names, dates contacted, and other info so you could keep track.

When They Answer. Before delivering your telephone pitch to a music editor, ask If they are on a deadline. This shows that you are professional and respect their time. Assuming that the music editor states yes, ask for a better time to call. If you ignore their deadline schedule, the editor won’t be able to give full attention to your pitch, and you run the risk of annoying the editor and blowing your music publicity opportunities with that media outlet.

Rehearse Your Pitch. Know what you are going to say before you dial the phone number. Practice your story a few times so you will be able to deliver your pitch in a brief and succinct way. Speak slowly and apparent ly enough so that you are understood.

Follow Up. Confirm receipt of your promo package. If you’re asked to resend any materials that went missing, send right away in the absence of complaint. Ask If the music editor would like to be added to the guest list, or if he or she’d like to send music writers in his or her place. Assuming that they do want guest passes to your show, make sure that those names are on the venue guest list.

Getting music publicity might seem c venue enging at first, but mastering these press ideas will guide to more exposure for you and your music.

1. The Definition of Publicity – first, we are going to start out with the exceedingly standard s–some definitions of what publicity is exactly. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary:

Publicity – “An act or device designed to attract public interest; especially : information with news worth issued as a means of gaining public attention or support. likewise : The dissemination of information or promotional material.”

I might n’t have said it better myself. Publicity is EXACTLY these things.

A music publicist is hired as a member of your team to represent you to the media. Media is defined traditionally as editors and writers at newspapers, magazines, dailies, weeklies, monthlies, college newspapers, and television. Some publicists may also cover radio for interviews on tour stops, but if you want to get on the radio charts ( prefer CMJ), you’ll need a radio  promoter. Some publicists also cover Web PR, prefer my company, but not all traditional publicists do! A publicist’s job is to liaise with the press. They are not hired to get you a booking agent or gig, a label deal, a distribution deal, or any other kind of marketing deal. That’s what a manager is for. They won’t get you played on radio, either. This is what a radio  promoter is for. A well-connected publicist, however, can be able to hook you up with all of the abovementioned things, but it isn’t in her job description.

2. You Are in the Driver’s Seat – Do not forget artist – you are the buyer here and you are shopping for PR. You are in the driver’s seat. It’s your money and your music that keep publicists in business. And hiring one is prefer hiring another guitar player for your band. Choose one that you prefer who fits your vision and your goals. All a lot of times I have heard that a publicist has been hired in spite of the  performer’s  individual opinions. You should prefer your publicist, and she should be the right one for you.

3. With Publicity, You Pay for Effort – Never for Results – I’ve had disgruntled artists call me and say, “I hired a publicist and I only got six articles. That fee me $1,000 per article!” Okay. This isn’t how you quantify a Public Relations campaign. How you quantify a Public Relations campaign is by how a lot of albums were sent out, what the responses were, and even Assuming that they were inconclusive or negative, it’s how much resolution the publicist made on your behalf. Of course, you should get some and a lot of solutions. Getting little is totally unacceptable. But you never know where your publicist’s resolutions will attend months, and once in a while years, after your campaign is complete.

4. A PR Campaign Needs to be Planned Well in Advance – For long-lead press (that means magazines with national distribution like Spin, Rolling Stone and Paste), the editors put their publications to bed three full months before they hit the newsstands. So if your CD  is coming out in October, you must have it pressed with full artwork and ready with materials to mail in July. Of course not all PR campaigns focus on national press (more on that later), but no publicist will take you on with zero persuade time so you definitely need to prepare persuade time in every case.

Good Publicity Campaign Lead Times:

National Campaign: 3-4 months before the release

Tour Press Campaign: 4-6 weeks before the show

Regional Campaign: 4-6 weeks before placement

On-line Campaign: 2-3 weeks before placement

5. The Four Components of a Press Kit – A wonderful press kit consists of four parts: the bio; the photo; the articles, quotes, and compact disc  reviews; and the compact disc.

• The Bio – Create a one-page bio that is succinct and interesting to read. I strongly advise employing a bio writer (if you may afford one, this should fee betwixt $200 – $400). If you’re not ready to pony up the cash, enlist an outside source to advocate you out. I find individuals who are great story tellers make great bio writers.

• The Photo – It can seem cheesy to arrange a photo shoot, but if you take this part significant ly you will deeply benefit. Start a photo that is obvious, light, and attention grabbing. Showing movement is a plus (sitting on a couch or up against a brick wall isn’t interesting). If you have a friend who knows how to use PhotoShop, enroll him to endorse you do some funky & fun editing.

• The Articles, Quotes & CD  Reviews – Getting that 1st article written about you could feel daunting. Two great places to start are your Local hometown papers (barring you don’t live in NYC or Los Angeles), and any music web site that you prefer.

• The compact disc  – The compact disc  artwork, prefer the press kit, must be well thought out. Do not bother sending out advance burns of your compact disc  unless the writer requests them. Full artwork is always like red. Put your phone number and contact info in the compact disc  so if it gets separated from the press kit, the writer knows how to contact you.

6. Publicity is a Marathon, Not a Sprint – Public Relations is extraordinarily diverse in nature from a radio campaign that has a specific ad date and a chart that you’re paying to get placed on. Sadly for me, there is no Top 30 publicity chart. With the sheer number of albums coming out into the marketplace, it might take months longer than your publicity campaign runs to see determinations.

7. Web Publicity is Not as Important as Offline Publicity- I always say that today’s newspaper is tomorrow’s recycling, so don’t discount Web publicity so hastily. For one, it’s up and around for months and every now and then for years. The new research and statistics prove that people are reading newspapers less and less with every passing day. people are getting their news from the Internet, so Internet placements are absolutely a great bonus.

8. Publicity Does Not Sell Records- If you are employing a publicist to see a spike in your compact disc  sales, I’ve news for you. There is absolutely no correlation among getting excellent Public Relations and selling records. If that were true, I’d be a lot richer. Public Relations is designed to raise awareness of you in the press, to advocate build a story, and furthermore build up critical acclaim. And of course, a excellent article might persuade to sales and being on N Public Relations might really advocate you see a spike in sales. But overall, if selling albums is your goal, Public Relations isn’t the thing you’ll need to reach it.

9. All Publicity is Good Publicity – I know we have all heard this, but it is a wonderful thing to really understand. If your goal in PR is simply to get your name out there (and this ought to be a goal), the truth is the average individual recalls particularly little of what they read. Only a tiny percentage gets retained, so if you really think that readers are going to recall a tepid or a mediocre review of your compact disc, the answer my dear friend is they won’t. And never ever take your own PR significant ly. As my favorite artist Andy Warhol once said, “ Do not read your press, weigh it.”

How does an artist move forward in the music business without the help of business professionals backing their career? How does an artist get noticed by the business professionals and get them to  promote  the  artist’s  music? Whether your objective is to have a individual manager, a booking agent, a publicist or be signed to a record label, there is only one way to do it. And that is doing it all yourself 1st. Taking care of all the business behind your career so that if, and when, the business professional comes on board, they use your progress and can take it to the next level.

This means- you’re your own manager, booking agent, record label, distributor, marketing director, publicist, street team and more. Do each to the perfect of your ability. When you invest your time and resources into your career, you learn the ropes of the music business and get a better perspective and appreciation for the work the professionals do.  Also,  when you invest in yourself, it inspires others to invest in you as well. think about yourself as an octopus. One central body, but multiple arms all working at the same time.

The 1st arm of your business will be THE MUSIC. This is the part of your business that’s the least business- prefer, but the the majority critical to moving forward as a business. Talent & songs are what drive this business. Work on musicianship, songwriting, and production. Write and record wonderful songs. The quality of your sound should be able to compete with commercial tracks on the Billboard charts. Figure out how to classify your genre and write a clear description of your musical style.

The second arm is MANAGEMENT. This is where you truly use the business side of your brain. Get outside of your music (and your ego) and try to evaluate your music and its ability to compete in the music industry. Evaluation and career planning need to take place. There are multiple books and Web articles on Artist Management. Start by getting career do’s and don’ts and direction by considering acts that have come before you and have achieved the success you would like to get. What did they do that you could emulate? Then determine who your fans are and how you will reach them. Attend workshops on the music business and read Web articles to get more career advice. Managers love to work with an artist who was previously self-managed. The artist could make business decisions, and will appreciate and respect the manager’s tutelage.

The third is the RECORD LABEL/ DISTRIBUTION arm. If you have songs and product, you want to get it out to the public, to as many people as possible. It’s never wise for an musician to wait to get signed to do this, as labels take notice now when you, Mr. Independent, are making a buzz selling a large number of albums. Plus you could start making some money from your music. Sell your compact discs on your website, from a Local seller who will take you on consignment, to all your friends and family members, at your live shows, etc…Think about where you buy music, and then get your music to those places. Distribution? Thanks to the Internet you could have globally distribution. Get that compact disc  up on compact disc Baby, and be sure to pick Digital Distribution. Yes, you, Mr. Local Guy, will soon be getting song sales in faraway places prefer Bangladesh!

The fourth arm is BOOKING/TOURING. Virtually all artists I know want a booking agent. It is a hard job, which includes gain ing a skill agency license, so there are not an abundance of agents waiting to sign a new act that has no apparent fan base and touring history. You’ll need to gain your own bookings. Your goal is to book yourself at shows so you could share your music, build your fan base, and make resources from your music. Don’t forget, the perfect way to learn how to do this is to find books and On-line articles that tell you step-by-step how to get bookings at club s, festivals, and national tours. Strengthen your “sales pitch” about not only what a great live demonstrate for you have, but mainly how you plan to get a large fans to come see your show. Once you’ve consistent shows and fans are coming out steadily, you are much more attractive to a booking agent to begin working with you. You’ll be so happy to give up that job, and the agent will be happy to take on the could hem. A win-win.

The last octopus arm is the MARKETING arm. Whether you’re working with no budget, a small budget or unlimited source s, you may be gin your marketing campaign as soon as you’ve either 1) a live show or 2) an album. Your goal is to reach your target audiences, and to use effective ways to excite them about what you’re promoting. Make a list of where your audiences is, and ways to reach them. Think outside the box, get creative! What is your story- what makes you unique- why ought to individuals care about you or your music? Answer those and you could start to  encourage. No money? Use the Web to spread the word, make flyers and give out them yourself, put on a free show, reach out to music reviewers for CD  reviews and newspaper & magazine writers for stories and reviews. Small budget: consider advertisement or printing merchandise to sell while touring. Getting a publicist interested in working with you is possible following you’ve identified yourself as a “newsworthy” act. Having an interesting story, being a tremendous skill, having a buzz….will get a buzz in their ear and make them take notice in you.

a lot of musicians feel unsure of how to work the music business alone. They will, unfortunately, wait on moving forward in hopes a music professional will come along and steer them,  encourage  them and guide them. But the music business of now is a truly DIY industry. The number of independent acts releasing material daily far outweighs the number of qualified music professionals in the business. It is perfect for the musician to get started in all the above areas, hopefully inspiring enthusiastic audiences to become the musicians street team and after some progress inspiring music professionals to get involved. While the musician gets business savvy and builds their momentum, they also put themselves in a more convincing position for negotiating with the music professionals/ companies. Not only will the musician have launched their career, but when a music professional joins forces with the artist, the career could really truly thrive.

Concert  promoters may efficiently be thought of as major event planners. Every detail of the performance has to go off in the absence of a hitch and that responsibility lies solely with the  promoter. Concert promotion is a demanding career that requires meaningful attention to detail. In order to be an effective and successful performance  promoter, a high level of organization is necessary. Losing track of necessary contact names, dates, telephone numbers or Club information may prove disastrous.

The world of concert promotions is full of contracts, legal agreements, insurance policies and riders. In order to make the perfect business decisions, a concert  promoter has to have a working knowledge of all of these legal documents. Not understanding parts of a contract or rider can lead to confusion and c venue enging ies down the road.

Concert  promoters may make a very large amount of resources, and then, they may lose resources as well. Most individuals do not realize that quite often, performance  promoters actually use their personal resources to fund a performance event. All of the event costs are his or her responsibility up front. Once the tickets have been sold, the performer gets their cut and the bills get paid. It’s only then that the  promoter gets what’s left. For this reason, it’s one of the majority importance to get as a lot of paying customers in the door as possible.

Some of the major expenses involved with performance promotion are the Club rental and gathering insurance. The  promoter contacts the Club and works out a cost for the duration of the event. Some Clubs will require up-front payment while others could require a down payment with the remainder due at the end of the performance. Insurance is absolutely important and helps to protect the Club owners, performance  promoter and band from possible litigation.

In addition, the concert  promoter bears the cost of all advertising promotions and other marketing expenses.  promoters these days have a variety of options for marketing. They might use the Web, radio, TV and even flyers to get the word out about their event. Marketing, when done properly, regularly takes up a fairly substantial portion of the concert  promoters budget.

A successful concert  promoter understands how to advertise to get the the majority people to buy tickets for the show. They’ve got to have a wonderful sense of the performer that they are promoting as well as their fans. Whether a concert attracts a very big fans or a small one depends on how well the gathering was  encourage d, plain and easy. Concert  promoters really have one objective; to make sure that enough tickets sell to make a profit. Ideally, all the tickets will sell for every night or day the gathering will run, but that is not guaranteed.

The location, size and even layout of a Club has to be taken into consideration by the concert  promoter. In order to put on a wonderful rock concert, everything has to be just right. Everything must be considered, from performer dressing rooms to the house sound system and lighting. Pleasing the performer is only part of the story though. The listeners has to be taken care of as well, both inside and outside the Club. Things like security, parking and even restroom facilities all fall under the concert  promoters watchful eye.

At some concerts, the concert  promoter will have to pitch in and endorse in other ways. Concert  promoters are generally responsible for making sure things are ready for the band. This can include session ting up the stage, doing sound-checks and lighting a deejay ustments. Quite generally it also means they’ll have to decorate the Club to suit the concert.

At smaller get togethers, the performance  promoter is again and again responsible for collecting tickets or working the merchandise table. At certain types of get togethers, they can even have the task of checking ID’s at the door the day of the event.  promoters are again and again also responsible for help ing to break down the stage used by the band. Clean-up following the performance can also be the  promoters job, depending on the negotiated contract.

Being a performance  promoter can be inspiring, rewarding and risky, but it’s benefit it. Concert  promoters have great jobs because they work directly with the artists. Besides that and the fact that the income can be excellent, recall, they’ve got some of the best seats in the house at every show.

The world wide Internet provides you a excellent occasion to showcase your music to everyone in the world without the expensive marketing strategies that major performers have at their disposal. But there are plenty of other performers out there that try to do the same thing. Having a excellent band website is a start, but do not stop once it is ready. To build an fans through the web, you need visitors. And that is only possible if individuals might find your website.

Be found via the search engines

If you’ve a nice and unique band name, chances are that your website will rank well in the search engines if individuals type in the band name. But do not forget that only individuals who know you will ever attempt to search for your band name. If you’re a band from Barcelona playing symphonic rock music, it would be great if your band website appears in the search results for the combined terms symphonic + rock + Barcelona. The more competition there is for these terms, the more difficult it becomes to get a nice position in the results and the more difficult it is to receive visitors.

How to enhance search engine ranking

Many search engines nowadays look at the keywords on your web site to decide for which terms it will be found. The actual ranking in the solutions list largely depends on how many other web sites are linking to yours, and links from important Web pages count heavier than links from less important pages. The search engines furthermore take a detailed look at the keywords present on the pages linking to your web site. How to use this to your advantage? spend enough time to get some links from other web site s, prefer entially in a listing accompanied by a description of your band. With a bit of patience, it will worth your ranking.

Where might I get my band web site listed?

There are many places on the Internet to  promote  your performer web site. You could ex differ links with the web site of a friend band. You could put a link in your signature if you participate in certain forums. On the other hand there are some dedicated directory web sites available where you could post information about your band, including a link to your performer web site. The way they’re organized makes it simple for individuals to find you, for example based on certain keywords or location. A great example is the European Music performer List , in which European Music Bands could create a free performer profile page.

We have discovered 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 main 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’s right, seek and search out other websites that will allow you to become linked to their website …it works! For every person who comes in contact with a website you are connected to, will definitely boost the opening s of your website being viewed likewise.

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

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

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 freely 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  promote  your music.

Business cards — they’re not just for men and females in suits! a lot of the time inexpensive to print, they’re simple to pass out for individuals to tuck away and look at later. Make several hundred or several 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 compact disc  or press kit you ought to tuck in several so that the recipient will always know how to reach you.

EPs or demo compact discs, about five to seven tracks long, area excellent way to get samples of your music out there. Put your best or most popular songs on them, and pass them out to audiences or interested audiences as a free sample. This allows them to find pleasure in your songs, share them with companions, and build up excitement for upcoming shows and albums. You can additionally select to sell these compact discs at your shows to make a profit, and you will want to include them in press kits.

Email lists take some time to  set up, but may be a great way to reach your fans. There are plenty of free sources Web that may endorse 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 attend dates, or let anybody know when your newest CD  will be released. You may likewise use it as a way to get feedback from your fans and find out what they prefer and don’t prefer.

MySpace is another simple to use tool to market your band, and a lot of artists already do it. Nonetheless, you want to make sure that you use all of the tools that are available to you to make it the the majority effective. Target your friend adds as well as those in your demographics. Plus, do not forget about all the interest you may generate about your page with blogs, videos, bulletins, and more. There are millions of individuals on MySpace 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 may do that are free or nearly so. Using them separately or in a mixture may help your band’s image and popularity take off. As you start to sign bigger and bigger deals, you may then put these back into marketing with larger and flashier campaigns.