Just how do you get a record deal

What seems to be forgotten is that cover bands are in fact playing original music...

It's just not their original music.

It's just original music created by people who knew how to make music that a lot of people wanted to hear.

So, you can play what you want to play and bitch about how people would rather see a cover band than your band, or you can learn to play what other people want to hear and in a couple of years you'll be able to smile when you hear cover bands playing your songs...
 
bdenton said:
What seems to be forgotten is that cover bands are in fact playing original music...

It's just not their original music.

It's just original music created by people who knew how to make music that a lot of people wanted to hear.

So, you can play what you want to play and bitch about how people would rather see a cover band than your band, or you can learn to play what other people want to hear and in a couple of years you'll be able to smile when you hear cover bands playing your songs...
Click to expand...

:laughings: :laughings: :laughings: :laughings: :laughings:
 
Greg_L we all have to have hope and determination.
Its irrelevant whether we get a deal or not at least its enjoyable and you can get by with it.
Thats all that truly matters.
 
bdenton said:
or you can learn to play what other people want to hear and in a couple of years you'll be able to smile when you hear cover bands playing your songs...
Click to expand...

I'll bite, can you site an example of an act within the last 2-3 years that have gone from playing covers to writing top 40 hits? Succesfully?
 
JakJak said:
Greg_L we all have to have hope and determination.
Its irrelevant whether we get a deal or not at least its enjoyable and you can get by with it.
Thats all that truly matters.
Click to expand...

Hope? Not hardly. Determination? Maybe.

You can hope in one hand and shit in the other. Guess which one fills up first?

I play music because I like it. I couldn't care less about making a difference or making a check.
 
Greg_L said:
I play music because I like it. .
Click to expand...
this is the only good reason to play music.
Yes, it's true that I personally do it as a job ..... but ultimately I could easily make more money doing a LOT of other things.
I choose to play instead and accept the fact that I only earn a modest amount compared to the cubicle jobs I could be doing because I just love playing.
But no one should kid themselves ...... it's a tough way to go and involves doing gigs you'd rather not and playing songs you don't care about.
Since, for me, it's the actual act of playing that I love ....... I'm happy as a clam ........ and that's WHY I play .... and is the only good reason to do so.
I can't tell you how many former musicians I know that are bitter because they 'never made it'.
If you love playing and it's fun ...... that's a good reason to play.
If you're lucky enough to be one of the tiny fraction of players that 'make it' then congratulations to ya'.
But ultimately for 99.99999999 % of us ...... you need to have fun playing or it's gonna end up being something where you don't get a good return on your investment.
 
At your age, I think you have more pressing matters at hand. It's great to focus on music, but education is very important. Most sixteen year olds would love to get a record deal, drop school and tour the country; but the chances of that happening are extremely slim. I've never heard your music, nor am I well suited to inform you whether your music is good enough to market. My suggestion is to get finished with high school (assuming you're still in high school), and on the side, spend your time honing your musical skills. By taking that route, you will not only improve your chances of getting a record deal, but you will also have your high school education and a fall back plan.

The best of luck to you.
 
If you are good enough and you put the effort in you will 'make it' (to a degree). If it was easy everyone would do it.
Most of the people complaining on here about lack of opportunities to make a living out of music either aren't good enough to do so or haven't put enough effort in.(imo)
 
Some good advice here and I think speaking from experience I'd have to say you have to ask yourself what you're happy with achieving (or not achieving) Making music, selling music, marketing music and the background stuff like videos/accounting/entourage/props bla bla all costs thousands even just to do one quite simple song/video. Unfortunately what some have said here is very true.. doing it yourself is one way to give it a go but to grown even a moderate true fan base you need first of all to get very well 'known'.. have some brilliant catchy songs under your belt... heaps of time and good equipment to perform them, and lastly a big dose of luck! The sad fact is, some things take off and some things do not, even if they are good.

If you're extremely confident about your music, then there is no harm sending off a few demos to labels (what have you got to lose?) Plus there is no reason why you can't go for an online presence AND send those demos off. Don't cut corners.. go for it if you really want it badly enough. Just remind yourself that there is a chance it may never happen.. at least to the capacity you might dream about. If you're happy with taking the journey anyway I'd never discourage people, because it's a great experience and along the way you make some great contacts too.

Lastly, I'll say that there are various ways to sell music.. Online. Offline.. from a bucket at your local gig house. :P I started selling my first album 5 years ago and it took off remarkably well (mostly in my area because everyone knew me as a live performer singer, thats where I began with a dose of luck). Due to my popularity at the time I set up an online label and signed with a distro corp, and now I've got itunes and all those other online places managing my tracks. I'm happy with that. I took a long break from music the last two years, (to my detriment) but life took over. However, the original fans I created through my live gigs over the years are ever faithful. Some Ive never met but they get my fanmail and download my songs and I'd rather have that moderate little niche of supporters than takeover the world! So look at what you want ultimately.. if its the stuff legends are made of, you might have to push yourself completely out of your comfort zone for a long long time! If you're happy with moderate achievements or even small ones then take it one step at a time at your own pace.

Hope that helps somewhat. :)
 
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