|
|
|
Arkansas Picture Palaces
Arkansas Picture Palaces Read Jetsetters Magazine at www.jetsettersmagazine.com To read this entire feature FREE with photos cut and paste this link: http://jetsettersmagazine.com/archive/jetezine/globe02/usa02/AR/theaters/theaters.html Within a...
Hollywood Publicist Michael Conley Confirmed to Speak at Indie Music Week
Hollywood Publicist Michael Conley Confirmed to Speak at Indie Music Week
Nashville, Tennessee - Indie Music Week has announced that Michael Conley, veteran entertainment publicist based in Hollywood, CA, will be participating as an Indie Music...
LIVE MUSIC!
"Live music." That common saying may contain some truth, but these days the word "live" is having less and less to do with music. For many people, a dj is their form of live music. Despite what dj's would like to have you believe, musicians make...
Throat Singing In Inuit Culture
Originally, Inuit throat singing was a form of entertainment among Inuit women while the men were away on hunting trips. It was an activity that was primarily done by Inuit women although there have been some men doing it as well. In the Inuit...
Using streaming media to benefit the music industry
In the past couple of years the internet has opened up a new world of marketing opportunities for both the independent musician and major record labels and their sponsors. Most of the major music festivals and organized band events are sponsored by...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Promote Your Way to Making Music and Money
You've spent years learning how to play, and although your
expectations do not include playing for 20,000 fans at the local
arena, it would be nice to have a gig somewhere other than your
back porch. The difference between sitting home and playing for
play is often how you promote your self and your act. You can
create an effective local promotional campaign that will enable
you to play and get paid. You do have to have a listenable act,
whether it's a single, duo or full band; you do have to play
music that people want to hear. Once you have this product,
however, you still have to promote it. Paying jobs do not just
happen; often it's left to you to make them happen.
You first need to create your promotional materials. A good
promo kit is crucial; this is often the first impression you
will make with the entertainment buyer. Many musicians believe
recording a demo CD is an essential first step, I disagree. I
have not used an audio demo to book a job in many years; my
promo kit consists of nice business cards, an attractive logo I
print on the header of all written correspondence, a portfolio
of references, quotes and pictures, a list of sample songs, and
my secret weapon. This item in my promotional toolbox is so
effective; I don't know why everybody isn't using it.
To duplicate my secret weapon, you need to create an full color
11"x17" poster. This can be done on your home computer with any
one of a number of graphics programs. You need to include simple
but attractive graphics, your act's name, a very brief
description of what you do, a photo of the act, and a white
rectangle about 4" x 8" located either near the center, or at
the top. If you do not have the expertise create this poster,
find a friend that does, check out your local high school's art
department or pay somebody in your local newspaper's advertising
department a few dollars to do it 'on the side.'. Have them save
it in PDF format on a CD. Take your CD to your local Officemax,
Staples or other office superstore. They can make a digital
11"x17" print very reasonably. Then you should have them make 5
full color copies from your 'master' and laminate them.
Now you have five very glossy, very professional and very
effective promotional tools. When you attempt to book a job,
take a dry erase marker and write in the empty white space
"appearing at Fred's Restaurant (or whatever business you are
trying to book) Saturday the 2nd" and explain that giving him
several of these to display is just one way you help him promote
his event. You can re-use these many times, and they always make
a huge impression. I've been told several times "I never thought
of having music at my event, but when I saw your poster with my
name on it, it just seemed like a wonderful idea."
Getting the word out and booking jobs is your final step. You
will probably want to play some free gigs in the beginning.
Offer your services for any social occasion you can think of,
your town's civic festivals, church bazaars or anyplace a crowd
forms. Bring a camera and have somebody take some pictures. One
local band in my home town stage rented a hall on a Monday
night, asked all
of their friends to dress up and come to the
party and hired (for a nominal fee) a local newspaper
photographer to shoot for an hour and save every picture on a
CD. They ended up designing their poster as a collage; it was
one of the most attractive pieces of promotional materials I
have ever seen.
You might go to the local radio station that plays music similar
to what you do; tell the advertising director you would be
willing to play select radio remotes free for the publicity. You
might even wind up with a local radio personality saying nice
things about you that you can use in your promotional materials,
Try to write every complimentary quote down anybody of
prominence says about you; when they say it ask them "can I
quote you ?"
Once your act has a track record, you are set to book some
paying jobs. Find out what other acts are making in your area,
approach businesses, make your pitch, and don't get discouraged
at first. Do not make the mistake of pricing yourself too cheap,
not only will you earn the enmity of other performers in the
area, but the buyers will perceive you as cut rate as well. I
have a cardinal rule; I'll work for free for a worthy charity
event occasionally, but I'll never work cheap.
When you look for paying gigs, be creative, do not limit
yourself. I always use the term 'entertainment buyer,' rather
than 'club owner.' While bars are still one market for live
music, there are many other venues. I have made money performing
for malls, car dealerships, gated communities, weddings,
retirement parties, boat dealerships, fraternal organizations,
radio remotes, fairs, festivals, company parties, restaurants,
flea markets, bowling alleys, RV parks as well as bars and
lounges. You need to check your area out, not just for who has
live music, but who could use live music and might be willing to
pay for it.
A good approach in selling your act to businesses is always put
yourself in the buyer's position. What is it you can offer the
buyer? Keep in mind it is the buyer's needs, not yours that he
or she is concerned with. Statements like "I've always wanted to
play here" should be avoided. Try something like "We are an
exciting act that your clientele would really love and we have a
following." If it is a retail business's special event you are
trying to book, instead of stating "gee, I'd really like to play
for your grand opening, you might say, "I know you are spending
quite a bit advertising your grand opening, why don't you ad
something special so the people you attract really have a
memorable time?"
The sales pitch is definitely not a time for false modesty, you
should sound confident, but never promise something you can't
deliver. The most important thing about selling your act is, be
persistent. Selling yourself will be hard at first, but you'll
learn and it will get easier. You might be turned down the first
20 times, but soon, you'll be playing and getting paid.
About the author:
Reese Thomas is a 35 year veteran of the live music industry.
You can check him out at http://www.musicbyreese.com
|
|
|
|
|
| Yahoo! Music - Internet Radio, Music Videos, Artists, Music News ... |
| Visitors may create a personal Internet radio station with Lauchcast and listen to music based on their own and other listener's tastes. |
| music.yahoo.com |
|
| All Music Guide |
| Comprehensive guide to recordings in every genre. Cross-indexed source of reviews, essays, and ratings; all available online, on in-store kiosks, ... |
| www.allmusic.com |
|
| MTV - Music Videos, Shows, Celebrity News, Movies, Games, and Photos |
| MTV is the ultimate destination for music and pop culture. We have the latest music videos, band info, entertainment news, photos, album previews, ... |
| www.mtv.com |
|
| Music Videos, Songs, Internet Radio, Free Music Downloads - AOL Music |
| Offers music news, artist bios, discographies, photo galleries, downloads and videos. Covers multiple music genres. |
| music.aol.com |
|
| MSN - Music: Home |
| http://music.msn.com/music/newthisweek;new this week;Gwen Stefani's "The ... Mary J. Blige takes home most honors at Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas ... |
| music.msn.com |
|
| Free MP3 music downloads - Free Music Downloads - MP3 Downloads ... |
| Download.com Music is your source for legal and free MP3 downloads. Download MP3s from thousands of artists. |
| music.download.com |
|
| MySpace |
| Progressive / Alternative / Indie. MySpace Music Video Fresh Pick: Bloodlined Calligraphy (Last Goodbye). Rock the Bells Hip Hop USA Tour (Nov 11-Dec 22) ... |
| www.myspace.com |
|
| College Music Society |
| It is a consortium of colleges, conservatories, universities, and independent musicians and scholars. Dedicated to gathering, considering, and disseminating ... |
| www.music.org |
|
| Apple - iPod + iTunes |
| Complete line of flash memory and hard drive-based music, video, and media content players. Includes technical specifications, video clips, interactive demo ... |
| www.apple.com |
|
| Music - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
| Music theory, within this realm, is studied with the pre-supposition that music is ... Amateur musicians compose and perform music for their own pleasure, ... |
| en.wikipedia.org |
|
| Worldwide Internet Music Resources |
| Categorized links to musicians and ensembles, composers, research sources by musical topic, the business of music, and performance-related subjects ... |
| www.music.indiana.edu |
|
| BBC - Music |
| Vote in 6 Music's roundup of the best singles of 2006! ... The Man In Black - a true American icon, and one of the giants of country music. ... |
| www.bbc.co.uk |
|
| Pandora Internet Radio - Find New Music, Listen to Free Web Radio |
| Pandora is the music discovery service that helps you find new music based on your old and current favorites. Create custom internet radio stations, ... |
| www.pandora.com |
|
| Yahoo! Music UK - Free Music Videos, Internet Radio, Music Charts ... |
| The latest official UK music charts, talent and music industry news and special areas. Includes chart commentary and music news round up. |
| uk.launch.yahoo.com |
|
| Napster |
| Add Music to Your IM, Email and Web Pages ... To see the terms for our Music Store and Subscription Service, click HERE. © 2003-2006, Napster, LLC. ... |
| www.napster.com |
|
| Read About Music News, Billboard Charts, Music Videos & Ringtones ... |
| Billboard.com is the music entertainment industry source for music news, information, and the popular Billboard Music Charts. |
| www.billboard.com |
|
| Lycos Music - Music Home |
| Comprehensive search engine by Lycos. Site also has news, reviews and information on players, encoders and rippers. |
| music.lycos.com |
|
| Welcome - Music India OnLine |
| Has a large collection of music and songs classified by type, language and region. All downloads are streamed through RealAudio. |
| www.musicindiaonline.com |
|
| calendarlive.com - MUSIC |
| Concerts, album reviews, pop, jazz and classical music news from the Los Angeles Times. |
| www.calendarlive.com |
|
| CLASSICAL MUSIC ARCHIVES - CLASSICAL MUSIC |
| Contains thousands of classical music files in MIDI format as well as live recordings. New contributions are solicited. A search engine is included. |
| www.classicalarchives.com |
|
|