Talent or Fame?

I know I know, I haven't posted in a while but I am back to the keys today.

As I looked through the numerous blogs that I normally post and just make a few comments on, I found a statement from Billy Corgan (Smashing Pumpkins Frontman) made in a recent interview at SXSW.

He made the point that the industry has become obsessed with fame, not talent.

You have the numerous cases of YouTube sensations that have made some video in their living room, got a whole bunch of views, and become some type of superstar. When in reality, they really aren't that talented. Record Labels pick you up and sign you to a deal, usually one that screws you over, and then once your 15 minutes of fame is over, they drop you and you end up on some VH1 behind the music special, or a "Where They Are Now" article.

I also believe this is an issue in other industries as well. Media is drooling over the next underdog athlete to come out of the woodwork, have a stretch of good games, and have a good backstory. Most recently, Jeremy Lin took over ESPN for a solid 3 weeks. He was an Asian-American player from Harvard that got his chance to play in a game for the New York Knicks. He puts up alot of points and all of the sudden "Linsanity" is born. Of course he couldn't sustain his lucky streak and now Linsanity is over.

Tim Tebow was a Heisman-winning quarterback to Florida, critics said he couldn't play quarterback, that he had mechanic issues, and that it would never work in the NFL. The fans in Denver demanded he be put in the game about Kyle Orton, he plays terrible for 3 quarters, then barely pulls it out in the 4th. All of the sudden, he is a superstar. He is a man of great faith, and the media creates a firestorm, just to get a story.

Not to rant about things not about music, but I am so over the media Sensationalizing every little thing and make a huge deal about nothing. It just gets old. We need to recognize true talent and hard work, and not just some lucky streak just to make good TV.

Musician Coaching

My post today is all about my favorite blog I follow. Rick Goetz runs a website called Musiciancoaching.com .

He has a extensive background in the music business and now is a music business consultant. He offers services such as, writing your bands bio, writing a marketing plan for you, product management, he can help critique your existing business and help to make it more successful, and he also does corporate work like licensing and event production.

His blog consists of different interviews he does with key music industry people, or articles he comes across that he finds beneficial to read.

Alot of the articles I post about here on my blog have come from those which he has posted. He tends to post a few times a week, so he gives me alot of material to base my posts off of if I am having a hard time finding topics to write about.

I will be giving a presentation near the end of the semester about this blog, so keep checking back to get my full analysis of his blog!

As Always,

Keep the Music Alive, and Straighten Your Tie.

Why Even Major Label Musicians Rarely Make Money From Album Sales

Once again, I came across an awesome article that breaks down the reality of producing and selling an album on a major label. Even artists who go double platinum may never see a dime from those sales.

The article points out,

"Lyle Lovett have pointed out that he sold 4.6 million records and never made a dime from album sales. It's why the band 30 Seconds to Mars went platinum and sold 2 million records and never made a dime from album sales. You hear these stories quite often."

How crazy is that to think about!? You sell millions of albums but never see a dime.

"Courtney Love famously laid out the details of recording economics, where the label can make $11 million... and the actual artists make absolutely nothing. It starts off with a band getting a massive $1 million advance, and then you follow the money:

What happens to that million dollars?

They spend half a million to record their album. That leaves the band with $500,000. They pay $100,000 to their manager for 20 percent commission. They pay $25,000 each to their lawyer and business manager.

That leaves $350,000 for the four band members to split. After $170,000 in taxes, there's $180,000 left. That comes out to $45,000 per person.

That's $45,000 to live on for a year until the record gets released.

The record is a big hit and sells a million copies. (How a bidding-war band sells a million copies of its debut record is another rant entirely, but it's based on any basic civics-class knowledge that any of us have about cartels. Put simply, the antitrust laws in this country are basically a joke, protecting us just enough to not have to re-name our park service the Phillip Morris National Park Service.)

So, this band releases two singles and makes two videos. The two videos cost a million dollars to make and 50 percent of the video production costs are recouped out of the band's royalties.

The band gets $200,000 in tour support, which is 100 percent recoupable.

The record company spends $300,000 on independent radio promotion. You have to pay independent promotion to get your song on the radio; independent promotion is a system where the record companies use middlemen so they can pretend not to know that radio stations -- the unified broadcast system -- are getting paid to play their records.

All of those independent promotion costs are charged to the band.

Since the original million-dollar advance is also recoupable, the band owes $2 million to the record company.

If all of the million records are sold at full price with no discounts or record clubs, the band earns $2 million in royalties, since their 20 percent royalty works out to $2 a record.

Two million dollars in royalties minus $2 million in recoupable expenses equals ... zero!

How much does the record company make?

They grossed $11 million.

It costs $500,000 to manufacture the CDs and they advanced the band $1 million. Plus there were $1 million in video costs, $300,000 in radio promotion and $200,000 in tour support.

The company also paid $750,000 in music publishing royalties.

They spent $2.2 million on marketing. That's mostly retail advertising, but marketing also pays for those huge posters of Marilyn Manson in Times Square and the street scouts who drive around in vans handing out black Korn T-shirts and backwards baseball caps. Not to mention trips to Scores and cash for tips for all and sundry.

Add it up and the record company has spent about $4.4 million.

So their profit is $6.6 million; the band may as well be working at a 7-Eleven."

Makes you think twice about major labels huh?!

http://www.techdirt.com/articles/20100712/23482610186.shtml

As always,

Keep the Music Alive, and Straighten Your Tie!

Blogging for Journalist Guest Speaker: Dave Rhea

On Tuesday, We had the multimedia editor for the Journal Record here in OKC come speak to our class. He discussed his job at the Journal Record and how the industry has changed, and his views on blogging.

What really caught my attention was the fact that he has a history in the music business. Out of his whole presentation, that is what I found interesting, Surprise right?

He was in a band with a record deal with Atlantic (if I remember right). The reason I found it interesting, is because he is someone who thought he had made it. Every band begins with the goal of getting a record deal and making it big. He is a great example for the reality of a major record deal does not always mean mainstream success. They recorded a few albums, realized it wasn't going to work, and now is out in the work force trying to make a living.

So many artists or bands think that all they need is a record deal and they are done. They have a false reality that once they are signed, they are set for life, going to make a living playing and recording music. So many artists are struggling to play music and make a living. Some even are having to choose to quit playing music in order to get a job. Such a small percentage actually make it big.

Just some thoughts. Overall, I like Dave Rhea.

Until next time,

Keep the Music Alive, and Straighten Your Tie