the mic newsletter q3 2003

8/14/2019 The MIC Newsletter Q3 2003

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www.mt101.com

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Volume 1, Issue 4

STATION PEOPLE: Station employees are sometimes

recruited to work an artist, and will tell you that they know

what stations want. This sounds convincing, but in reality,

taking the calls (which they do/did at the station), and making

the calls, are very different animals. Until station people are

trained (at a label or indie), they make poor promoters.

OWN CHART: When you do hire a real

promoter, make sure he/she is not affiliated with

the chart that they say they are going to promoteyou to. Some promoters actually publish their

own chart, and they can put you on it wherever

they want to. And they can take you off just as

quick. Worse, any advertising money you place

with the publication actually just goes straight

to them. They wont make any of this clear to

you... youll have to ask around.

BIG CLIENTS: The most-often used sales technique of

promoters is to tell you they have worked some big artist,

and that this would benefit you. Ask them what they mean by

worked. Were they solely responsible for charting that artist?

Probably not (you will have to ask the artist to verify this...

the promoter is just not going to tell you the truth.) More than

likely, the promoter was probably just partnered with a label

or another promoter, or worse, was just an assistant or sidekick.

Again, they WILL NOT tell you they were not the only

promoter. You will HAVE to ask the artist or the artists

management directly.

Continued on page 4...

If you are hiring a promoter to push your artist to radio, here

are a few things you can consider which will help you have

the greatest chance of success. (And when I say promoter, I

mean an airplay promoter, not a club or booking promoter.)

The big concern with this process is, if you choose the wrong

person(s) to promote your artist... and end up with bad results...

you cant just go back and do it over again. Thats it for that

CD (at those stations). That CD is now an

old project at those stations, and you cant

go back to them until you have a new release.

USING A FRIEND: Non-experienced

friends sometimes offer to work artists to

radio for free or for a few dollars. This is

fine as long as you use them for the right

tasks... like helping with the mailing, etc. If

you are working college radio... say, no more than 20-30

stations... then they could make some calls too. But if they try

to call any more stations than this, or if they try to call

commercial radio, they will probably stumble after just a

couple of weeks. And forget any capacity of doing reports or

trade charts.

SOMEONE FROM THE MAJORS: Staff promoters at

major labels sometimes offer to help you out on the side for

a fee. On their days off, or on the weekend, they say they will

make some calls for you. What happens is that their company

finds out and disallows it, or, the person gets tied up on their

days off and cant do it. You are then stuck. Either way, it is a

conflict of interest for them.

PR PEOPLE: Public Relations (or publicity) people

sometimes offer to work an artist to radio for airplay. But

dont, however, confuse PR with airplay. A real radio campaign

has nothing to do with publicity. They are two separate

techniques, with different contacts, lead times, terminology,

call frequency, and so on. A person who is good at one is

usually terrible at the other. This is why they are always

separate departments at labels.

Music Industry Connection

RADIO AIRPLAY 101

Network!

Negotiate!

Know the Business!

SPECIAL PRINT EDITION OF THE MONTHLY E-ZINE (ELECTRONIC MAGAZINE) THE MIC

Third Quarter 2003 F r e e !

Network! Negotiate! Know the Business!

Get updates onMusic Therapy 101Workshopsand the Music Bizby joining the email listat www.mt101.com

Independent Promoter Checklist, Pt. 1

Are Radio Programmers &

Music Directors Spineless

C O W A R D S ?See page 4

Bryan has spoken at Music

Therapy 101


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The MIC

A practical plan, a passion to succeed and a

willingness to innovate are most important in

marketing your independent release. First, make

sure your product stands the test of time. In short

your music should be HOT! You will spend a

great deal of time and financial resources

promoting your music, if is not HOT do notpromote and sell it.

Before we continue you will need either a

computer or a pen and paper, so that you can

take a few notes. Now make a list of music retail

stores, night clubs, colleges & universities, high schools, coffee houses,

malls, college and community radio stations, college, high school and local

magazines and newspapers. The list of venues and locations should be

within a one-hour driving distance of your home market. This will give

you the opportunity to penetrate your home market and build a solid fan-

base. This is especially, important for the independent label and artist who

count on selling CDs, merchandise and tickets to live performances to pay

the mortgage.

The next step is to obtain the physical and email address, phone and faxnumbers of each location mentioned. Begin contacting the colleges and

high schools that have school newspapers. The goal is to get the music

and/or entertainment writer to either interview you and/or write a review

of your HOT Music. The writers should receive your type written bio, an

8x10 black & white glossy photo and professionally recorded CD. However,

always correspond with the music reviewer before submitting your

materials, as some writers may have special requirements. For instance,

they may accept a black & white 4x6 photo versus an 8x10 black & white

glossy. In addition, you may find that when dealing with commercial

publications, meaning publications for profit, that you will be able to secure

a positive review once you have placed an Ad with that particular magazine

or newspaper. While all publications do not require you to place an Ad

before they will write a review, some do, so artist beware. Before your

jaws drop consider the following. Most publications for profit make theirmoney from advertising dollars. Since, a review of your music brings

awareness to you as an artist and your new release the magazine is helping

you gain greater exposure, which may lead to increased CD sales and

attendance at your live performances. Hence, some magazines require that

you spend advertising dollars before they will write a review of your music

worth reading. In turn you receive a review and the magazine will receive

advertising dollars; it is a mutually beneficial opportunity.

While simultaneously getting music reviews you should be working on

performing live. When you are beginning your career, you will want to

focus on perfecting your craft and building a loyal fan base. This is achieved

through performing live at every venue possible. If the opportunity presents

itself for you to perform in front of 1,000 people do it, likewise if the

opportunity presents itself for you to perform in front of 10 people do it.

The goal is the same, perfecting your craft and building a loyal fan base.With that said here are some ways to make the most out of your live

performances. First, invite every person on your contact hit list to your

live performances. Yes, music writers, DJs, music retail store managers,

club owners, record pool directors, etc. Remember your goal is to get your

music heard by potential fans that will buy future releases and merchandise

and support your concerts. One way to get people to try something new is

by offering a discount. For example, you may want to sell your full length

CD for $7. Some companies have been extremely successful at selling

more products by lowering their prices.

Here is how you turn a live performance into a Window of Opportunity

Continued on page 4...

Marketing YourIndependent Release

Publisher/Editor N Chief-JaWar

Writers

Bryan Farrish, JaWar

Layout Crafted by - Alfred Bacon

Music Industry Connection, LLC

P.O. Box 52682, Atlanta, GA 30355, USA

800-963-0949 www.mt101.com

[email protected]

The Music Industry Connection, LLC is

meant to inform you about future Music

Therapy 101 Seminars, give you industry

insider information and provide you with

tips and resources to help you achieve your

goals and realize your potential. Receive

the MIC monthly by joining the email list

at www.mt101.com. Know thyself.!!!

Copyright 2003 Music Industry Connection

Subscribe to Music Industry Connection for $4/year.

First Name: _______________ Last Name: ____________________

Physical Mailing Address: __________________________________

City: ________________________ State: ______ Zip: __________

Email: _______________________________________________

Phone #: (____) __________

Where did you get this paper from? ____________________________

Fill out and mail a $4 money order payable to Music Industry Connection,

LLC PO Box 52682, Atlanta, GA 30355.

Music Industry Conference

(The-MIC)

Oct. 17 & 18, 2003 at the Sheraton Hotel in

Birmingham, AL

Scheduled are: Artist showcases, A&R Luncheon &

Dinner, Networking Socials, Educational Workshops,Music Critique Panels and Exhibitors.

Register at WWW.THE-MIC.COM or by calling 256-859-6741

Not affiliated with The MIC (Music Industry Connection)

Newspaper


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Radio Airplay 101...Continued from page 1

Promoters who really do work major label projects just do not like to work

with entry-level projects. With major label projects, the indie promoter

ALWAYS has staff promoters at the label doing a ton of the work, in addition

to heavy retail (the CD is on the shelf at most bookstores), touring (20-200

cities in major venues), and press (10-100 articles in major publications

like Spin or Billboard, along with 50-500 articles in small publications.)

And all this is on top of TV appearances. So if you think that the indiepromoter is the one person who made the artist chart, think again. He will

not be able to do the same for you.

Contact Bryan Farrish at: Bryan Farrish Radio Promotion, 14230 Ventura Blvd.,

Suite A, Sherman Oaks, CA, 91423. Phone: 818-905-8038

Marketing Your Independent Release ...Continued from page 2

and build a loyal fan base. Before each performance designate someone, a

group member, manager, brother, sister, etc. to collect names, phone

numbers and email addresses of potential fans. Ensure your representative

have the tools necessary for success. For instance, give them a preprinted

mailing list sheet and pen. Your group representative should have a table

with CDs and merchandise to sell as well. Your retail ready CDs should be

priced to sell. For instance, your CD should sell a few dollars less than a

national recording artist. Therefore, if a Jay-Z or Jill Scott CD sold for

$13.99 you may want to sell your music for $9.99. If you did not use any

of your money to press your retail ready CDs you can sell your music for

much less and still make a profit. Yes, you can press 1,000 retail ready

CDs without using your own money, but that jewel is reserved for attendees

of my dynamic workshop How to Market & Promote 1,000 Retail Ready

CDs Without Using Your Own Money. For dates and locations of future

seminars visit www.mt101.com or call 800-963-0949.

JaWar, Chief Visionary Officer of Music Therapy 101 (MT 101) since 1998,

has given informative seminars in and around the Atlanta area. He created

the workshop to identify and share vital information in a step-by-step

process necessary for success and ultimate longevity in the music biz with

aspiring artists and those willing to be involved in the music industry.

When your event demands practical, relevant, and useful information froman enthusiastic speaker who has legitimately been there by releasing

two independent CDs of his own, consider JaWar, Chief Visionary Officer

of Music Therapy 101 and Kemetic Records. He may be contacted at either

800-963-0949 or [email protected]. Written by JaWar

Music Industry Conference Calls comingsoon. For updates join the email list at

www.mt101.com

Network with A&R and Record Executives from Bad Boy Records,

Epic Records, Elektra Records, Jive Records, UniversalRecords, Capitol Records, Interscope Records, VirginRecords, J Records and Def Jam Records etc. on November 1,2003 in New Orleans, Louisiana at the 2BAW MUSIC SEMINAR.

Matthew Knowles, manager of the Grammy award winning group,Destiny's Child and father of one member, Beyonce Knowles will re-ceive the 2BAW Entertainment Music Seminar Lifetime Achievement

Award this year.

For location, time and registration details call the Seminar Hotline at310-226-8441 or go to www.2bawentertainment.com. Tickets sell outfast! Act Now!

Spineless Cowards ...Continued from page 1

With all the great music available do you think that radio programmersand music directors are spineless cowards for not implementing a morediverse playlist? Music fans and industry professionals you are encour-aged to share your thoughts by sending an email [email protected]. To ensure that you receive the full article ad-dressing if radio programmers and music directors are spineless cow-ards, music industry opportunities and updates on the Music Therapy

101 Seminars join the email list at www.mt101.com.ADVERTISE HERE CALL 800-963-0949

the mic newsletter q3 2003

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