A producer friend of mine says that in the music industry, overnight success takes 7 years. I figure I’m okay since I’ve been at it for 4. But I do have my moments of “seriously? I went to Cornell and now I am doing WHAT???!! making HOW MUCH a year?!!? “ I get freaked out by the size of the industry and the number of people trying to do exactly what I am doing. But I take it one step at a time, one tour at a time, one song at a time, one Excel sheet entry at a time. If I focus it all on the present, with gentle thoughts and planning for the future, I figure I’m on the right track if I’m still overjoyed that I get to perform for a living. The present is looking bright.
Making a Selling Product
Perhaps this section should go first, but I rambled on about CDs and websites and made the assumption that anyone who considers him or herself in this music business is already ahead of this part, so I’ll be brief. The gist: make a great friggin’ record and make it (and anywhere you promote it) look cool. This may cost a little money up front, but it is well worth it- hire a graphic designer, a professional recording studio, and a good CD duplication place. I also hired a web designer who took the CD design and incorporated it into my website design, which I use as flyers for shows, posters, and other websites (like myspace). I am essentially branding myself, and consistency is key. My email signature and all paper I write on has my album logo on it. If you have a great product that is well presented, you are half way there. Distribution and exposure come after you have something to distribute and expose.
Making Connections
As I started to mention before, connections are critical to a career in music. And the best connections for me have turned out to be my ex-boss (who introduced me to my new boss at the jingle house), my mother’s chiropractor’s son (who hired me to write music for his websites), the intern (who introduced me to his drummer friend who now tours and records with me), my landlord (who introduced me to a friend who hosts private house concerts) . . . and my list goes on. I’ve learned to share unabashedly. The more people who know what I’m up to, the more people can help me get connected to my next “big gig”. And most times, people are overjoyed to be hearing about a young musician following her passion. It’s not like we’re talking about how great our 5’x5’ cubicle is…. we are out there doing it. And that is inspiring to people. So share away.
Following up on leads is a huge part of making and solidifying a potential connection. A phone call, lunch date, or email (that should include web links and professional looking signature) reminding the person I met through so-and-so is often enough to engage them in future conversations. I remind everyone who I am and what I am up to and what I am going for. It’s good to have an idea in your head of a brief way to convey your musical goal. (My recent one is: “I am working towards getting sponsorship for my fall UK tour while spending the summer performing around the Northeast and at private house parties. Do you know of anyone hosting a summer event that may be interested?”) And there… I got my two goals – getting sponsorship for my fall tour, and booking summer gigs- out in 2 polite sentences.
Making Money
I used to think that NYC musicians are doomed to playing in clubs that pay $1 per person after the first $50 is collected if you brought more than 40 people. WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN????? Luckily, I have learned that there are gigs out there that pay you decently in exchange for your performance. Simple as that. Some of these gigs are in unexpected places: house parties in peoples’ private homes, ski resorts’ après ski, summer camps, high schools, colleges, restaurants, museums, to name a few. It takes a lot of legwork and a good phone plan but the money is out there, right next to the eager listeners.
Selling CDs is one of the best ways to make money. I have gotten over being embarrassed about announcing that I have CDs for sale . . . shameless plugs are not shameless if you are making money… how are people supposed to know about your great product if you don’t tell them? CDs at live events tend to be more lucrative than CD sales online. But keep directing people to your website… tell them about it in person and direct all of your other websites (myspace, facebook, whatever) to your CD sale site. Also I’ve tried a few gimmicks. Buy 2 get a free poster and sticker, or sign up for the mailing list and get a CD half off, etc etc. I try to be original because everyone else is doing it one conventional way. It seems to be all about catching someone’s eye. Once you’ve won their eye, you have a few seconds to win over their ears, and once you’ve done that, the heart is close behind. Once you’ve won their heart, you’re in, as the heart is directly connected to the wallet.
There’s no shame in supplementing your gig money and CD sales with an additional job. Many musicians feel that they would be shifting focus away from their passion if they found a day job, especially one that wasn’t even related to music. I have found that there are several ways to fluff up the old bank account without compromising my musical integrity. First off, I teach private piano lessons. In just 4 hours a week, I can make half of my rent, and by teaching piano, I have become so much more proficient at my main instrument that I feel like I should be paying them. (Don’t tell them that!) Taking cues from my successful piano lessons, I figured out what else I love, and decided to teach that. In the summer, it’s abs classes, or guiding kayaking tours. Of course, location is important, but finding flexible people to work with you around your busy life is extremely advantageous. Even though I’ve toured for weeks at a time, my piano students enjoy a break and feel they can cancel if they are feeling stressed or scheduling doesn’t work out. I am equally flexible with them, which I believe is the key to keeping my students for the long haul.
There are a slew of in-industry jobs as well, which are great if you’re taking some time to write, or do local shows, or stay in one area for a bit of time. Interning, answering phones, or starting out as an assistant at ad agencies, record labels, jingle houses and recording studios is a great way to learn some industry jargon, get a chance to play with cool technology, and meet critical connections. Advertising agencies are a hub for creative talent- graphic designers, web designers, copy editors, music supervisors. The works. After 3 years of working at a jingle house, I had written music for nationally airing commercials, just by starting as an assistant tech. The connections and recording facility that I had access to were invaluable.
Organization
Organization is KEY to being self-employed. I have become very friendly with Excel spreadsheets. For $10 I found an incredibly thorough budget template online. I track CD sales in a separate worksheet. I have radio and other media contacts and phone numbers in a different file. And the important thing about all of these: I keep them up-to-date. They are not snapshots; they are fluid and act like ocean waves- I need to see where the last one was in order to predict where the next one is coming from. My budget is not really a budget (since my needs and costs and income vary greatly from month to month it is hard to predict exactly what I will spend and develop a budget around that)…. instead, I use it to track my spending and my income. At the end of the year, I print out the summary sheet (which tells how much I made in CDs, tips, day jobs, speaking gigs, tax refunds… ANY source of income… along with all of my spending like gas, travel, supplies, food, extra dining out, etc…. I have over 20 categories!) and I hand it to my tax guy. He loves me. This spreadsheet is so useful, but my trick is to update it EVERY day. Any exchange of my money to ANYone, whether a few grand to my CD duplication company or $3.50 to Starbucks, it goes into my “budget”.
I keep track of the people that work for me. I have all of my band members sign receipts (even if I pay them with a check) and fill out 1099s at the end of the year. I keep all receipts that have to do with my business (CD duplication, equipment insurance, travel tickets, gas receipts) not only so I can have them when I write all that stuff off, but also to keep track of where the money I make is going. I have all band-related items in one folder. (It’s actually one of those sub-divided folders with 10 sections… my sections include: Credit card bills and statements, Insurance papers, receipts (band related), receipts (personal), tax stuff, phone and cable bills, contracts (from licensing companies, radio promotion companies, with band members), miscellaneous (jury duty papers, traffic tickets- not that I get ANY of those, etc etc), bank statements. This folder is my life, and I have one for every year.
My car has the potential for looking like a music junkie’s dirty old basement. Instead, I have my gear organized and hidden under the station wagon’s security cover. I constantly clean out garbage and keep it clean- not only for peace of mind, but to keep my gear clean too. When on the road with my band, we establish and keep our own personal space. This ensures that we survive as a band and a group of friends, and although not directly important to the “business” side of things, it keeps the business running smoothly. My charts are neat and organized in folders. My iCal calendar keeps track of my gigs and are consistent with my website and myspace show listings. And my apartment is neat. Anywhere it’s possible to stay organized and neat decreases the chances of frustration, losing something, and insanity!
