CEO and Artist Can I Get Some Good Advice? Resources/Links/Etc Welcome

L

Les W

New member
Hello Everyone,
I am a potential upstart label and would like to be an artist. How is this possible? I have been really doing the artist side, and a little business side. Problem is only people I know to look up to as to how this could happen is really Fred Durst and Jay-Z...exactly...

I want to do my own thing, but seems like SO many people try this and FAIL miserablely, I'd just like to know what it is I should focus my energy on?? Anyways hey maybe I am being a retard, this is just a shot in the dark.

thx a lot if you can help
 
Basically, you start out as an artist. You get business contacts, you tour, you meet managers, record execs, promoters, radio people, etc along the way. Then one day you realize your music is just trendy and kids in 10 years will be laughing at the faddish garbage you're spewing out. So you start using your name and clout and a good bit of that money you made from your records and start a record label. And you slowly back out of the artist part because (a) running a label is a full time job and (b) as mentioned before, your music wasn't very good to begin with.

Anyway, that's how they do it. The way to be successful in the music business is to be successful in the music business. Once people smell success on you, they will clamour behind any crazy idea you come up with, be it a label, a studio, a website, a magazine, a new line of underwear, or whatever.

lykwyd chykyn,
professional cynic :)
 
DistortedRumble: I do Hip Hop. Can you elaborate? thx

Lydwyd: I was about to call you cynical but you beat me to it :D lol...
Hey I am a bit of a cynic myself...thing is with your plan, I could be Stuck under a huge Artist deal...

The sucess in the music business motto is a valid one and your advice has not be lost on me thx
 
Les, the thing to realize is that the whole business comes down to clout. When you have moved as much product as the guys you mention, people listen to what you say. Stuck in an artist deal? hardly. deals get renegotiated. When a label realizes that you have the ability to move significant product, they do whatever it takes to make you happy and keep you on the roster, so long as they still make some money too.
Nobody gets to be a top selling artist without making contacts in the business. Enough contacts to put together a label if they so chose. Focus on one thing, and if by chance you get to the top the choices will abound.
 
Both jobs are a full time job so as long as you never sleep it should be easy.
Its much easier when you are big to move into the biz side as you can then hire people to work under you and pay them. You are better off doing one thing well than both things half ass.
 
Long and the short of it is that you need to sell some records or otherwise show that what you are doing is viable.

There are plenty of ways to ease into the process... Books, mentoring, following a successful band, etc.
 
Exactly!!

I have read about four books so far and am looking for more if anyone has ANY good suggestions please share!!

Right now the music side is getting almost ALL of my attention because I need to get product manufactured before I can go certain places with the biz...

I am just hoping SOMEONE who tried would have some good advice or at least point me to somewhere I can read about who has.
 
like pashop said...both are full time....most rappers-turn-CEOs(Jay-Z, Dr.dre, eminem) are rappers and then turn into a ceo....first thing is first..have the talent to back up your business. now another method is CEO that does the guest appearance(diddy,jermaine dupri). you can produce some hot stuff for other rappers on your label and make them give you a shout out or you come in on a verse. now the biggest thing your going to need to realize is that you may end up failing...so dont put yourself in a hole you cant crawl out of. try this...go ahead and be an upstart label but you're going to need atleast 1 other person with you. (it looks more legitimate to prospective rappers if theres more than one person standing there with a label logo). its damn near impossible for you to start from nothing and build a label and yourself as a rapper at the same time by yourself. think of it like the rim and the tire....the rim is the focal point that everyone looks at (the rapper). the tire(the label) keeps the rim from meeting the road(failure). that was a dumb explination.........but anyways....you need to come off good as a rapper first before putting alot of your time into the label which requires managing other artists. and while your being a rapper, try to get someone else in the to work on the label side of things. when doing shows...you both need to be there supporting the label and you as a rapper on it but dont take it all on by yourself.
 
Hey,
I'm a fellow musician who started his own record label. Althogh I'm not particularly experienced, I can give you whatever advice I can.
Once you get you're album procoduced, you're going to want to sell as many copy's as humanly possible. Play wherever possible. If you're doing rap then burn the instramental tracks of your music. Park in a crowded parking lot, pop your trunk, play some beats and rap to it, all the while selling your cd. Ok so half the people there will hate you, and eventually the owners off the parking lot will kick you out, but if you sell dozen cd's then it was worth it. (By the way, this works best AWAY from where you live.) I suppose I have an easier time with that though, because I'm an acoustic artist.
As far as the label goes, I'm not sure what direction you're aiming to go with that. If you're not aiming to make money as the CEO of a record label, and are using it as a tool to sell your music, then try and get friends of yours to join you. With three or four artists on a label, things can get much easier. You can split the cost of advertising with the other artists, and indie distributors are more likely to pick up your music.

Oh and by they way, get yourself a copy of Musician's Atlas. It's outrageously overpriced, but extremely useful. It lists most of the contacts you could ever need. Send out copy's to all the college radio stations that it lists and play your type of music. Make sure your follow up call's to all of them, it's worth and definatly increase the amount of play you'll get.

Also decide on your goals. I mean are you planning on being a superstar (who isn't) or is your goal to just make a living doing music.

Well that's all the advice I have, I hope it's useful. Keep in mind I'm new to this, and I don't really know what I'm talking about.
 
Josh English said:
Hey,
I'm a fellow musician who started his own record label. Althogh I'm not particularly experienced, I can give you whatever advice I can.
Once you get you're album procoduced, you're going to want to sell as many copy's as humanly possible. Play wherever possible. If you're doing rap then burn the instramental tracks of your music. Park in a crowded parking lot, pop your trunk, play some beats and rap to it, all the while selling your cd. Ok so half the people there will hate you, and eventually the owners off the parking lot will kick you out, but if you sell dozen cd's then it was worth it. (By the way, this works best AWAY from where you live.) I suppose I have an easier time with that though, because I'm an acoustic artist.
As far as the label goes, I'm not sure what direction you're aiming to go with that. If you're not aiming to make money as the CEO of a record label, and are using it as a tool to sell your music, then try and get friends of yours to join you. With three or four artists on a label, things can get much easier. You can split the cost of advertising with the other artists, and indie distributors are more likely to pick up your music.

Oh and by they way, get yourself a copy of Musician's Atlas. It's outrageously overpriced, but extremely useful. It lists most of the contacts you could ever need. Send out copy's to all the college radio stations that it lists and play your type of music. Make sure your follow up call's to all of them, it's worth and definatly increase the amount of play you'll get.

Also decide on your goals. I mean are you planning on being a superstar (who isn't) or is your goal to just make a living doing music.

Well that's all the advice I have, I hope it's useful. Keep in mind I'm new to this, and I don't really know what I'm talking about.
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Man this is really great stuff!!

I soaked in every word dude...I am goung to look at that Musicians Atlas I have the Indie Bible and compare the two!!

Did you learn all this (I know you said you are still new) by trial and error? Or did you just figure it out?? Just Curious...
 
josh was right about the setting up shop in a parking lot.....but a high traffic area thats perfect is what ever fast food shops are open after the club closes...where i live, from 1-4 in the morning, its cook-out and McDonalds. people are parked and doing jack shit...perfect spot for some rhymes to me. not to mention finding other local talent
 
distortedrumble said:
josh was right about the setting up shop in a parking lot.....but a high traffic area thats perfect is what ever fast food shops are open after the club closes...where i live, from 1-4 in the morning, its cook-out and McDonalds. people are parked and doing jack shit...perfect spot for some rhymes to me. not to mention finding other local talent
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Genius!!!!
 
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