Ask any record company A&R person, artist manager, or record producer what they’re looking for, and you’ll only get one answer: “Hits! We need hits!”
Through a combination of text and interviews with top music executives, producers and songwriters, this book will teach aspiring songwriters how to construct the kind of songs that open doors, create careers, and communicate to listeners around the world. By offering a definition of a “hit” that is specific, musical, and also attuned to the realities of the radio and record business, the book will develop and focus readers’ songwriting skills, and enable them to respond successfully to the call for "hits only, please."
Most importantly, this book will unveil the formula that creates a successful song—that perfect
balance between the comfort of the familiar and the shock of the unexpected. Drawing upon the advice of successful writers from the past and present, the wisdom of experienced A&R professionals, and the author’s first-hand knowledge of both the creative process and the demands of the record business, it will demystify the music industry’s ultimate challenge: the creation of that chart-topping, “breakthrough” song.
About this product: Ask anyone in or around the music industry today about music or the music business and they will tell you this: Almost everything has changed—from how artists are signed and marketed to how the companies that sign them function. No matter what your music industry mission is or what style of music you play, you need current inside information to succeed in what many perceive as the most ominous of industries. Industry veteran Justin Goldberg tells musicians, songwriters and budding moguls what they should be doing to succeed. From setting up an indie label to shopping songs and gaining airplay and getting signed (or not), these invaluable insights are meticulously documented in an informative guide to creating a career in music. Includes a CD-ROM (Mac and PC) with hundreds of pages of valuable business forms, recording and publishing-related contracts, and detailed contact information on thousands of record companies and other industry professionals.
This detailed, informative guide to creating a career game plan vividly teaches o How to effectively release independent albums o How to create revenue through licensing, self-distribution rights, soundtrack opportunities and merchandising o How to get your music into major retail chains o How to gain airplay on commercial and college radio o How to set up songwriting copyrights and music publishing companies o How to interest top managers and lawyers in your career
About this product: YOUR TALENT IS JUST THE BEGINNING! Avoid common mistakes and make the most of your opportunities. From basic industry concepts to the ministry skills so necessary in Gospel music, industry veteran Monica Coates discusses it all honestly and with an eye toward practical application. If you are considering a career in Gospel music as an artist or industry executive, this book is for you. Monica Coates is a veteran of the Gospel music industry with experience in artist management, publicity, radio promotions and A&R. Over the course of her diverse career, she has worked at the top Gospel labels---EMI Gospel and Verity---and with a variety of artists, including Fred Hammond, Donnie McClurkin, Hezekiah Walker and Joann Rosario.
About this product: This updated second edition will teach you how to take charge of your musical career with crucial do-it-yourself strategies. Filled with empowering resources and tips for self-managed musicians, including: * How to write a business plan, create press kits, sharpen your business chops * Using the Internet to promote your music * How to customize your demos for maximum exposure * Secrets to getting your music played on the radio * 12 things you can do to get the most out of every gig * The most comprehensive musician's resource list on the planet, updated continually online!
About this product: A perennial bestseller, this definitive guide to all legal, economic, and financial aspects of the music business better than ever in its revised, thoroughly updated new edition. This edition addresses the implications of MP3, the Copyright Term Extension Act, union treatment of digital music, and more.
As this "bible of the music business" moves into its 40th year, the book's expanded scope addresses challenges and opportunities of a new century, including:
MP3 record duplication, Internet sales, and cybercasting Digital record performance rights for artists and record companies New markets emerging from WIPO and GATT treaty enforcement of copyright protection against counterfeiters and bootleggers Greater reliance on major labels, further merging of powerful companies, and reduced record distribution by independents Revised markets opened by the European Economic Union and other consolidations The impact, both positive and negative, of growing motion picture and theater investments in the music business
About this product: Updated classic on the ever-changing music industry. New technologies are revolutionizing the music business. While these changes may be smashing traditional business models, eroding CD sales, and creating havoc among the major record companies, they are also providing new opportunities for unsigned artists, independent labels, and music entrepreneurs. This book provides a legal and business road map as well as practical tips for people looking to sell music online, develop an online record company, create an Internet radio station, open an online music store, use peer-to-peer networks to promote and sell music, take advantage of wireless technologies, and much more. This revised 2nd edition is the most up-to-date and thorough examination of current trends. The accompanying CD-ROM includes an entire audio course as taught by the author at the New School for Social Research, plus hundreds of links to web resources, including continuous updates so this book will never be out of date.
About this product: Available in paperback for the first time, this groundbreaking in-depth history of the involvement of African Americans in the early recording industry examines the first three decades of sound recording in the United States, charting the surprising roles black artists played in the period leading up to the Jazz Age and the remarkably wide range of black music and culture they preserved. Applying more than thirty years of scholarship, Tim Brooks identifies key black artists who recorded commercially and provides illuminating biographies for some forty of these audio pioneers.Brooks assesses the careers and recordings of George W. Johnson, Bert Williams, George Walker, Noble Sissle, Eubie Blake, the Fisk Jubilee Singers, W. C. Handy, James Reese Europe, Wilbur Sweatman, Harry T. Burleigh, Roland Hayes, Booker T. Washington, and boxing champion Jack Johnson, as well as a host of lesser-known voices. Many of these pioneers faced a difficult struggle to be heard in an era of rampant discrimination and "the color line," and their stories illuminate the forces - both black and white - that gradually allowed African Americans greater entree into the mainstream American entertainment industry.The book also discusses how many of these historic recordings are withheld from the public today because of stringent U.S. copyright laws. Lost Sounds includes Brooks' selected discography of CD reissues, and an appendix by Dick Spottswood describing early recordings by black artists in the Caribbean and South America. Tim Brooks is Executive Vice President of Research at Lifetime Television. He is coauthor of "The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows" and "The Columbia Master Book Discography", and the author of "Little Wonder Records: A History and Discography". He is past president of the Association for Recorded Sound Collections and the winner of its Lifetime Achievement Award. Dick Spottswood is a freelance author, broadcaster, and record producer. He is the author of the seven volume reference work, "Ethnic Music on Records".
About this product: Written by seasoned experts in the business and produced in association with the Music Managers' Forum, here at last is a guide that will steer both artist and manager through the turbulent seas of music management. An indispensable handbook for any aspirant to business.
Now in its fourth edition, All You Need to Know About the Music Business is universally regarded as the definitive guide to the music industry. Called "the industry bible" by the Los Angeles Times, this newest edition is filled with vital information on the technological advances that are reshaping the business, and how novices and experts alike should manage such changes. In the music business, the key to success lies in knowing how to protect yourself. To do that, you need the best and most up-to-date advice available. Whether you want a career as a performer, writer, or executive, Donald Passman's comprehensive guide to the legal and financial aspects of the business is an indispensable tool. Drawing on his unique professional experience as one of the most respected advisors in the industry, Passman offers authoritative, up-to-the-minute information. You'll learn how to:
Select and hire a winning team of advisors -- personal and business managers, agents, and attorneys -- and structure their commissions, percentages, and fees in a way that will protect you and maximize your success
Master the big picture and the finer points of record deals
Understand the ins and outs of songwriting, music publishing, and copyrights
Maximize concert, touring, and merchandising deals
Plus, this latest edition includes information on:
The power of the Internet -- from promotional and com- mercial web sites such as Amazon or CDNow to the publicity advantages of chat rooms, bulletin boards and ever-improving Webcasters (the Internet's answer to radio), and the serious dangers of piracy
The new and changing laws of the electronic frontier, including copyright infringement, illegal downloads, and the challenges to intellectual property rights
Recognizing the opportunities offered by digital downloads, MP3, and other new media which will be the future of music
There are also updates on traditional industry matters such as royalties, advances, video budgets, and copyright law. The music industry can be a gold mine, a minefield, or both, but with a small investment of time in learning the business, you can reap huge benefits. All You Need to Know About the Music Business shows you how.
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