It's a noisy world out there

Let’s take a quick trip to the past and rewind a few decades. Back then people would go to school, get a job, stay loyal to their employees and slowly but surely progress to a more senior position. In return they would be awarded with a steady stream of income, a pension scheme and a promise of a job for life.

Well, that was back then. Nowadays it’s all a bit different. You go to school, get a job, and do a lot of job-hopping either because you think it’s going to advance your career faster or because you are made redundant every other year. Whatever the case, the whole idea of staying in one place, and having a long-term relationship with your employer is a thing of the past.

The same applies to the music industry. Back in the day as a budding musician you would be signed to a label, which would give you an advance, nurture your talents and accept the fact that you’re probably not going to sell that many records before your fifth release or so. In return you would stay loyal to them and take their well-meaning advice to become better at your craft.

Well, that was back then. Nowadays you need to take care of yourself, because you are expected to sell a whole lotta debut albums, and if you don’t then clearly you weren’t ready to get signed. I recently spotted a couple of major label interviews, and the message was very clear: you need to prove that you have a following and that you have done your homework in marketing your stuff.

Now this is not just a rant about how the evil record labels make you do all the work. Not at all. The world has changed permanently from those cosy days of mustard coloured leisure suites and jobs for life. Companies, brands and rockstars alike, are no longer operating in their ivory towers pushing stuff down to the silly consumer, who is willing to buy anything they are told. Nowadays people have access to everything and will only want what is relevant to them. It’s your job to find the ones who you can be relevant to.

Marketing is not about making a sexy website and a cool tune and then expecting people to come running to you. It’s about having a relationship with people, talking to them, sharing your thoughts with them and listening to what they have to say. It’s your scene, your people. This two-way relationship will make your life much easier too. You know where you should be if you know where your audience is.

If you’re still not convinced here are my top-3 reasons why every rockstar should learn marketing:

1. Save Time and Sweat

First of all define who you are and where you belong. Then find the people who you fit with. Knowing who and where your audience is will save you a lot of time and effort, because you know where they hang and who with. There is no point in touring all the rock clubs in Canada supporting a grunge band when you play electro metal and most of your audience prefers industrial clubs in New York.

2. Own Your Audience

If you don’t take care of your own website, collect a list of emails or befriend people in Social Media, then your audience is gone as soon as your label/manager/friends uncle (or whoever takes care of these things for you) decides they don’t want to do the job anymore. Keeping control over the basic online tools yourself will ensure that you can reach your audience regardless of what happens to your business arrangements. Things are usually more pear shaped than they are peachy. Even if you lost some of your business partners, make sure you don’t lose your audience with them.

3. Give And Get in Social Media

Nothing keeps things more alive than getting close and personal with people. If you manage to touch someone with your art, their feedback is sure to touch you back. You are passionate about your music, and it’s an amazing feeling when someone else is passionate about it too. It’s so 1999 to think a rockstar needs to be an isolated genius hiding behind the façade of coolness and have the PR people take care of fan communication. Exchanging thoughts and feelings with others is the best source of inspiration for anyone. It’s a privilege to have that connection, so nurture it.

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The punk movement was a revolution at its time. Punk’s main ideology was to operate outside the establishment. Punk wasn’t only about music; it was a whole cultural movement. It included and inspired many art forms such as fashion, literature and visual arts. Punk’s DIY ideology made it contagious. People who lived at the time are endlessly telling stories of the amazing era, when everyone was creating what they wanted, and putting it out. They didn’t need anyone’s support or approval. They just went ahead and did it. Punk allowed everyone to express themselves, whether they were skilled or certified to do it or not.

The punk artists were proud about the fact that their art was home made, and that they would do whatever the heck they wanted. Punk was seeking alternative ways of expression, aesthetics and distribution. Punk didn’t censor anything. Therefore it inspired many types of people and artists.

Since Punk wasn’t part of the establishment, it needed to find it’s own distribution network. Many small record labels, clubs, record stores and magazines mushroomed. People wanted to find and share the cool stuff they’d seen. They wanted to spread the good stuff that moved them. Punk bands joined forces and toured squats and living rooms.
If you look around, we are living a similar era. The amazing digital tools have made music production, distribution and marketing possible for everyone. You no longer need tons of money to produce a professional sounding record. You don’t need a label to distribute or market your music. You don’t need the approval of anyone but your audience. How cool is that?

And it’s not just musicians. You can find inspiring visual artists, photographers, video makers, and web designers doing exactly the same thing. They are right at your fingertips – just a mouse click away – and many of them would love to collaborate with a band. The DIY movement of the digital era is the new punk. Everyone is allowed to join, publish their own work, network with other like minded people and spread the word of those that move them. Just like punk did.

Now go out and join the revolution!

Playing festival gigs is great fun. You can be pretty sure to get a crowd that’s having a good time. Festivals are a great way to meet other bands. It’s also a chance to get your music out to people that haven’t heard of you before.

However, playing festival gigs can be tricky. There is usually no luxury of sound checking. Often you’re not allowed to make any sound before the first chord of your own gig. The stage can be in a state and the gear battered. Tents and open space stages provide a completely different acoustics, since your sound doesn’t bounce back from the walls.

So how to make sure that you manage to play a great gig?

Bring Your Own Sound Guy

Many bands don’t bother with paying their own front of house or stage engineer. However, this is one of the most important things to have if you must get up and running quickly. If you and your sound engineer know each other, you both know what you’re trying to achieve. When you only have 15 minutes to set up your stuff, you don’t want to start discussing the particular nuances of your vocals that you would like to have in your monitor.

Bring Roadies

This is by no means a luxury. It’s an absolute necessity when you’re in a hurry. Having people to help you carry your stuff quickly in and out of the stage ensures you have more time for sound check and more eyes to make sure nothings left behind. Drum and guitar technicians help a lot in making sure everything goes smoothly, even when it’s raining, your snare breaks and your guitar strings snap.

Don’t Drink Before The Gig

This should go without saying, but we’ve all made that mistake sometimes. Getting to a festival is exciting and everyone’s in the mood of some fun. However, partying ahead of time ensures you will lose your stuff, break your stuff, play a half-decent gig and leave important stuff behind. Just try to hang on until it’s time to celebrate.

Come Prepared

It is difficult to get the sound right. That’s why you should start by having as little dependencies on whatever is waiting for you at the gig. Rehearse really well (and play lots of gigs) so that you are able to play well, even if the sound isn’t 100% what you expect. Bring your own sound guy. Don’t be a primadonna, just do you’re job.

Be On Schedule

You are given times when to turn up and where. Be there. On time. No one is going to sympathise for you taking the wrong turn or getting a flat tyre. There schedules are tight and you’re failure to follow the schedule ruin everyone else’s schedules too. Well, actually it isn’t. They’re just going to go ahead without you. There are dozens of other bands to worry about, so you must comply with the festival’s schedules. You only get the slot you’re given, so make sure you use it wisely.

I have had the privilege of sitting as a judge on the largest annual Band Competition in Finland. It has 200 bands attending every year, and I’ve been part of the judging panel since 2005. The competition is aimed at unsigned bands, and is open to anyone. The entrants are picked in the order of entry submissions, so the bands are not required to have previous gigging experience. Some of the bands are playing their first ever gigs, while others have been playing youth clubs for years. Needless to say a bit of experience goes a long way. Year after year, I’ve witnessed the same problems that the bands make in the beginning of their journey. Here is my top list:

1. Weak Lead Singer

There are so many amazing musicians out there, especially guys who have picked up the guitar at an early age and spent a lot of time practicing in their bedrooms. Then they’ve put together a band, and realized that someone had to do the dirty work of singing. As a result the band plays amazing music, but the vocalist is shy, out of tune, or sings as little as possible.

Every now and then you see a great band that doesn’t have a lead singer, but unfortunately most of us are hard-wired to expect a focal point for the band, which is the lead singer. If you are not up for the job, then don’t attempt to do it. Instead try to find someone who can carry the role, and concentrate on what you know and love most.

2. Mismatch of Characters

Many young bands are made up of one or two strong characters, and the rest of the band members are scraped from whoever they manage to find from their immediate circle of friends. The result can be very confusing to watch. An example is a band that had a glam rock style guitarist and vocalist, a hippie drummer, a Goth keyboardist and someone’s 14-year old brother on the bass. A band is one entity. There is room for various characters, but essentially they are different sides of the same thing. If you’re too far apart, no one quite understands what they are looking at.

3. Unprepared For the Worst Case Scenario

It’s incredible how many bands turn up without back up guitars, extra drum sticks and snares or sturdy samplers. The first rule of gigging is, if something can go wrong, it will. You must have your back up guitars ready when a string snaps, a new pair of sticks when your trusty old ones snap or have a plan for when your computer decides not to boot. At a gig it’s one strike and you’re out. Every band has mishaps on their gigs, the experienced bands recover so quickly that the audience doesn’t even realize anything happened.

4. There Is No Show

Without experience it is understandable that new bands find it difficult to be natural on stage. You’re no longer in your bedroom, so hiding behind your hair while plucking your instrument is rarely interesting for the audience. It’s not just about the music. It’s about sharing a moment with your audience. Invite them to your world, and look after them.

5. Too Much of A Show

Having a huge element of a show can quickly backfire too. I saw a fantastic band. They played well, were unique and had great songs. They also had a huge show. The band was dressed as bishops except for the bassist who was naked and painted green. The band entered the stage carrying the bassist on a cross. The same crazy show continued in their artwork and websites.

That’s all good, and certainly made them unforgettable. However the show completely overshadowed their music, which was skillful, touching and catchy. No one remembered what they played or had to say. Everyone just chuckled at the naked green bassist.

6. Too Serious

We know that music is the most important thing in your life, that you practice like mad and intend to go far. However, that focus and seriousness can make you look and sound like a bit of a boring git. Many of the winners in the competition had bit of a cheek in their show. When you don’t take yourself quite THAT seriously, you’ll be more relaxed, play better and be more fun to watch.

7. Meme bands

Each year it’s easy to spot which bands have been making an impact among teens. There are at least 20 clones at the competition. It’s great to start with being inspired by your idols, but you need to quickly move on if you want to get an audience of your own.

8. Lack of Good Tunes

This is an obvious one, but I can’t emphasize it too much. There are amazing bands out there, that look good, play well, and set the audience on fire. But their songs are completely forgettable, and no one really cares to hear the music once the euphoria of the live situation has faded away. Great songs are what make or break a band, so put enough blood, sweat and tears into writing tunes that set you apart from the rest.

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One of the reasons why pop music is so powerful is that it offers a way to dabble with almost every kind of art out there: poetry, live performance, illustration, photography, video and fashion.

The best news is that although creating all this art takes a huge amount of time and effort, you don’t need to do it all yourself. Many artists collaborate with other artists to create stunning visuals, innovative videos and head-turning fashion statements.

Here are some famous examples:

Marilyn Manson + Floria Sigismondi

Marilyn Manson hooked up with Floria Sigismondi to create the cruel and crooked world of Antichrist Superstar. Floria’s unique brown-tinged imagery, bleak esthetics and strange fashion sense provided the perfect backdrop for Manson’s music.

Björk + Shoplifter

Björk’s amazing music and visuals are a result of many great collaborations with other artists. One great example of this is her collaboration with the artist called Shoplifter. It was Shoplifter who dressed Björk in the ethereal dress and plaited her hair into the intriguing “hair sculpture” creating the unique look on Björk’s Medulla album.

Björk + Shoplifter

Madonna + Jean-Paul Gaultier

The collaboration of Madonna and Gaultier is a legendary example of how two artists can unite their personal styles to create something a little larger than life. Gaultier’s style is unmatched by other designers, and his provocative corsets were the perfect accessory for Madonna. As a result Gaultier designed the iconic outfits that Madonna wore on her Blond Ambition tour.

Madonna + Gaultier

Blur + Julian Opie

Blur joined forces with Julian Opie for the cover of their Best Of album. The album cover even found its way to the National Portrait Gallery in London.

Blur + Opie

Art + Art = Amazing Art

Instead of attempting to become fashion designers, portrait painters, video directors or hair sculptors themselves, these musicians have simply joined forces with other artists to create something interesting, unique and compelling.

The DIY Musician, The Independent Artist, An Unsigned Band.

These terms are all used side by side, and they all imply the same thing. An artist without a record deal.

If you actually believe in what the premonitions for the future of music business, then you don’t really care about getting signed. You care more about building your band from the ground up and into a sustainable business that you run yourself. Instead of scouting for a deal you focus on connecting directly with your audience. You figure out how to make money with your music, instead of waiting to score a fat advance. And it is improtant to you that no one is going to rip you off.

So DIY, Indie, Entrepreneur what’s with the name? Does it matter what it’s called, when your goals are the same?

DIY?

I have a slight problem with the term DIY Artist. Somehow it carries the connotations of the homegrown, hand painted, free and amateurish. DIYing means that you can save money, because you do things yourself instead of paying for the professionals. But it doesn’t really evoke the images of a savvy, modern, connected, ambitious musician in charge.

Independent?

Independent musician is much better, but independent of what? A record company? A major label? Of the music industry? Being independent doesn’t mean no strings attached. As an independent musician it’s vital that you form your own network of people who you can trust and collaborate with. These people can be distributors, promoters, PR, and press. And they are very much part of the music industry. As should be you.

Entrepreneur?

An entrepreneur has all the qualities of DIY and independent artists: starting from scratch, having very little money, doing things yourself as much as you can. But the mind set is completely different. It’s not about being on the fringes or non-commercial. It’s not about being small, homegrown or unambitions. Quite the opposite. It’s about starting small, but dreaming big. It’s about being creative about your business in order to survive. Doing as much yourself as you can, but always aiming for a professional outcome. It’s about getting networked and sharing experiences with others who have taken the same route. It’s about finding collaborators and building something that you can be proud of.

Does It Matter?

Does it matter what you call it if it’s all the same thing? Maybe not, but words are incredibly powerful. If your identity is that of an entrepreneur, then your whole attitude changes.  What do you think? Does it matter or is it all just a word play?

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So, you’re living the ultimate indepenedent artist lifestyle. You write and record constantly, releasing something cool every few weeks. You rehearse with the band and throw gigs regularly. You draw great album art and design your own t-shirts. You make wicked You Tube videos, and write great blog posts. You Tweet and Facebook, and keep up with some great blogs and inspirational artists. You take care of business, send your receipts to your accountant on time, track merchandise levels and order new stock in time. Oh yeah, and you take care of your physical health, live in a happy relationship and have a day job.

The amount of work that you need to go through can feel absolutely overwhelming at times. Which reminds me of the old saying:

How to eat an elephant? The answer is simple: one bite at a time.

1. Keep it manageable and consistent

Divide your work so that you have only one or two tasks per day. Read and respond to blogs, Tweets and Facebook posts when you’re having your morning coffee. Walk or jog to work. Dedicate specific evenings for songwriting, rehearsing and business. Edit and post videos on Sundays. Don’t do anything on Saturday’s unless you have a gig. Doing a little bit every day accumulates over time. Take a day off. Keep it steady and manageable instead of burning yourself out.

2. Excecute an inspiration immediately

So your plan was to work on the new track today, but then you saw an amazing TV show that gave you a great idea for a video. Forget that tune for a while and make that video. You can get things done fun and fast if you immediately execute the idea that struck you. If you don’t do it then the moment will pass and on your “video day” you’re struggling.

3. Divide work

Play to the strengths and interests of the various band members. One of you might be more into business, where as one of you is an amazing visual artist. One of you is the eye catching entertainer, that everyone wants to connect with online. Great! Have separate areas to look after and trust that person to care of them. You’ll get so much more done and it’s probably going to work much better, when everyone is not sticking their fingers in every pie.

4. Extend your band beyond musicians

Do you have friends or relatives that are great with a video camera, or are aspiring entrepreneurs?Offer them a job in the music business! You probably know some great people that are going to be an excellent extension to your band, even if they don’t play an instrument.

5.  Connect everything

Is your job helping your musical career? Do you have a camera on your rehearsals? Are your blog posts and lyrics contemplating on the same issues? If everything you do becomes part of your art, producing it becomes much easier. Live one life, not several competing ones.

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People who are successful have usually worked very hard for a very long time to make it happen. Michael Jackson’s first solo album was not “Off the Wall”. He had released four solo albums on Motown before that. No Doubt had been together for 10 years before “Don’t Speak” broke to mainstream. During those ten years the band had gone through the suicide of their first lead vocalist, Tony and Gwen’s split up and two unsuccessful album releases. Kid Rock was signed and dropped by three labels and funded the fourth album himself before finding success with “Devil Without a Cause”. Lady Gaga was signed and dropped by Def Jam before she had the chance to release anything. And don’t forget The Beatles, who were turned down by numerous labels, before being signed to Parlophone – a small subsidiary of EMI that specialised in novelty music.

The Secret Ingredient

What’s the one most important thing you need to do in order to become successful?

Have talent?

Be well-connected?

Work really hard?

All the above are definitely needed but none of the above matters if you don’t make a clear mental decision first.

Commitment.

Without commitment your talent never has the chance to fully blossom. You probably won’t stick around for long enough to make the connections and you’re certainly not going to have the stamina to work hard and see through the hard times.  Commitment is the big secret behind every success story. Whether it was to your art, your career or your relationship.

Dreams are only dreams before you start to take action to make them come true. What kind of a dream can be achieved without commitment? Not a very big one. Once you’ve made a commitment you instantly gain two other advantages: priorities, and perseverance.

Prioritise Your Dreams

So you’ve got a great band of amazingly talented people, some killer tunes, and really positive feedback from your gigs. You’re on your way to the stars, baby, and one day you will rock the Stadium! So you plan to rehearse like crazy and book as many gigs as possible. Sweet!

Tuesdays and Thursdays are not good for the drummer, cause he’s working late. Sundays are not cool, cause you’ve promised your girlfriend to spend the day with her or she’ll get grumpy. And that gig you got offered next month is not going to work, because you’ve already made plans to travel out of town. Then the guitarist leaves the band and after a few months of not finding a replacement, the band starts to dissolve.

Sound familiar?

Life is the biggest obstacle between you and your dreams. There are a thousand things that get in the way. It’s not great to juggle work, upset your girlfriend or keep the band together. But if you have made a commitment to your band, you make it your top priority. Then you arrange the rest of your life around it. Prioritising is tough, and people outside the band don’t always understand it. But if you’re going to do it, then you’ll have to stick with it.

What Doesn’t Kill You…

If you’ve made a commitment to your music, you will make time and you will see through the tough times. Committed artists work hard, which in turn makes them better at their art. They will seize every opportunity to bring their work to an audience. And they won’t give up.

What has been the biggest obstacle for you so far?

This post first appeared on Independent Rockstar – a cool blog that you should check out.

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1. Fans Get The VIP Treatment

The album went on sale on the bands website at the same week than it was released to the press. So no “sneak previews” to impress the industry first. If you hear the song on the radio, you can go and download it immediately from the bands website, instead of waiting for another 2 months or opting for the dodgy file sharing services.  Using their own website also allows the band to offer and package the album in the way they want. Which leads to…

2. Personalised Albums

You can choose 10 songs of your liking out of the 20 available tracks. Potentially this allows for 100 different variations of the album! Choosing the songs is super fun with a quirky interface with cute little icons and plugs to wire the songs into your album.  Next you can design your own version of the album cover. Another cool interface and plenty of room for artistic expression. The package costs £7.50 and once you’re done your album turns into your personal web page, which you can share with your friends. You can also upload your page to Kaiser Chief’s “Album HQ’s” site, where you can compare your album with what others have made.

3. Fans As The Distributors

Forget HMV, Tower Records, Virgin Records and… errr… Tesco to distribute the album. Kaiser Chief’s personalised albums turn into affiliate websites that reward you for sharing the album. Every time someone buys an album you’ve created, you get paid! Affiliate schemes have been used by many online businesses for years now, so it was about time a band thought of using it.

Cool to see that some internet innovation is being used by bands, instead of the usual “war against sharing”. Check it out on Kaiser Chief’s website.