MUSIC SURVIVORS GUIDE

Here is an excerpt from my upcoming book. I would love to hear your comments.

CHAPTER 2

CHASING THE DREAM / WHAT IS THE MUSIC BUSINESS

What is the music business; OR ANOTHER QUESTION COULD BE ASKED, What was the music business?

In this chapter we are going to take a look at the past, the present, and the future of the music business.  This is the beginning of your Due Diligence - appropriate carefulness.  Have you ever been for a walk in the forest in the South, in the summertime?  As a child you are taught to cautiously watch every step you take, and keep a vigilant eye out for snakes.  There are snakes in the south that are very venomous and can cause you severe harm.  Welcome to the music business.

Our goal is to help protect you against these venomous varmints. Look at this book as a survival guide, and you will need a snakebite kit, or two along the way.  We will be providing you with the paramount information you will need to navigate this treacherous terrain.

Let’s begin with a little history of the proverbial sinking of the Titanic, or if you would record labels.

RECORD LABELS WHERE'S THE BEEF?

I often speak to professional groups as well as local craft associations.  I'm frequently asked, are the labels really hurting?  The answer is a definitive yes!  Going back to 2004 sales where approximately 36 to 40 billion globally, from 2009 to 2012 they have plummeted from 14.5 billion to 6.3 billion, and it's not going to get any better.

Here's the good news!  The money is still being spent, and your share is waiting, if you’re willing to do the work.  The Digital age is here!  The biggest reason the record labels have lost so much, simply put, is their arrogance. They got complacent, and thought the gravy train would never end. Well it did, and they’re paying dearly

THE UGLY TRUTH OF THE MUSIC BUSINESS/ A SURVIVORS GUIDE

Here is an excerpt from my new book coming out soon.

1.   START WITH A PLAN

There are two things that will destroy your career before you get started.

1.   LACK OF PASSION

2.   NO PLAN

Lack of passion is like setting out on a 100-mile trip with only enough gas to get you 10 miles.  You will choke down, sputter and come to a stop.  Believe me, I have seen many start this trip with half a tank and wind up giving up.  Now is the time to dig deep and do some serious soul searching, and ask yourself, do I have enough gas for this trip?

NO PLAN –

Having no plan, I hate to think about it, and as elementary as it sounds, more people than not take off without one.  Not having a plan is what I like to call the WHACK – O - DOODLE method. Don’t you think it’s whacked out to head somewhere without knowing where you're going; so do I.

Steve Covey says in his book, The Seven Habits Of Highly Successful people, to start with the end in mind.  This is a great approach for many reasons. Visualization is inherent in having a dream.  If you can’t see yourself there, then there is a good chance, neither will anyone else.

FIND YOUR NICHE–

Niche – suitable place, specialized market – synonyms Place -Position – Slot-

There are many specialized fields within the music industry.  Most people are only proficient in only a few.  Find out where your passion lies and it will lead you to your Niche.  Don’t try to be something you’re not gifted for, it just won't work, and remember there’s only one you.  Always be true to yourself.

A hundred years ago when I was working in Nashville, AKA Music City, one of my responsibilities was to interview potential Artists.  I had a couple of questions I would ask that would overpoweringly determine whether we would work with someone or not.  The first question was, whom do you sound like. During that time the guys would commonly say, George Straight, or the fillies would say, Martina McBride.  WRONG! You see there is already a George and a Martina.  You see, we were not looking for twins.  Question 2 I would ask would be, How long are you willing to pursue your dream?  Some would give it a time limit.  There is no time limit on passion, you either have it or not.  This was a deal breaker.  The right answer was as long as it takes.  Just the other day I was at a jazz open mike night.  An older gentleman who appeared to be in his eighties sitting in a wheel chair rolled up to the stage, the host handed him a mike and he began to sing.  Although you could hear the age in his voice, the passion was louder.  Now guys and fillies that old crooner was the picture of success.  So find your NICHE and don’t give up!

fun music stuff

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this article if you can. (December 2009)

Since the inception of the UK Singles Chart in 1952 there have been various records to break, including most chart toppers, longest run at number one, biggest selling single etc. All the records have changed hands over the years, some more than others and many have certain reasons as to why the records have been held by a certain act. Here are some of the most important records held by acts in the UK at the moment:

Contents   [hide]  1 Most number ones 2 Most combined weeks at number one on the UK singles charts 3 Longest run at number one 4 Number-ones by two or more different artists 5 Most successful debuts 6 Biggest selling single 7 Posthumous number ones 8 Lowest selling number one 9 Self replacement at number one 10 Fastest selling single 11 Biggest selling single not to top the chart 12 Downloads 12.1 Number one singles on downloads alone 12.2 Digital downloads 13 Most weeks on UK Singles Chart by decade 13.1 1950s 13.2 1960s 13.3 1970s 13.4 1980s 13.5 1990s 13.6 All-time total weeks on chart (15 Nov 1952 – 31 December 1999) 13.7 Top chart acts per year by total weeks on chart 14 Age records 14.1 Youngest to... 14.2 Oldest to... 15 Other records 15.1 General 15.2 Most hits without reaching... 15.3 Weeks on chart by individual singles 15.4 Singles which were first to reach chart milestones 15.5 Most singles in a year 15.6 Album with most original Number-one hits 15.7 Album that spent the most time at Number one 15.8 Biggest drop out of the top ten 15.9 Singles to have stalled at Number 2 twice 15.10 First to... 16 See also 17 References

PREMIER PROFESSIONAL MUSIC ASSO. OFFERS FREE MEMBERSHIP

How would you like to become a member of the Premier music association for education, development, mentoring and networking in the world for absolutely no cost.  Truly no cost and no charge card needed.  AMP, The Association of Music Professionals is going to give you an unprecedented offer for a limited time. This offer will extend to the first 75 respondents to this offer.

We are a membership organization of professionals who have won every award in the industry, including Grammy's, Stellar, Dove awards and the list goes on.  We will be working with you on every aspect of the music industry.  From sound engineering, songwriting, social media, artist development, booking, and publishing; we cover all the bases.  We are getting ready as a part of our offering to provide you with what we call our secret weapon for networking.  This will enable you to reach the unreachable in the music industry.  You will have an opportunity to network with professionals on all levels of the business.  Get your songs heard, get the recognition you deserve and all of this without having to leave your computer.  One of the most difficult things for writers to do is get their music heard.  We are going to help you with that.  We will be holding training, and networking events all over the country.

The process to get your free membership is very simple. All you have to do is send us your contact info and answer two questions,

 1. What services would you like to see in our offerings?

2. What would you be willing to pay monthly/ annually to become a member of AMP?

Click on comment, answer the questions, send us your info, and we will sign you up for this limited offer absolutely Free! 

REMEMBER THE FIRST 75 GET THE 
PRIZE!!!!!!!!!!
I HAVE JUST BEEN INFORMED THERE MAY BE AN ISSUE GETTING SIGNED UP. EMAIL TO GRADYSHUMAN@GMAIL.COM

CD'S GOING GOING GONE

Here is an article that just gives yet another wake up call for th music industry


WASHINGTON – At a House Commerce Committee hearing Wednesday on “The Future of Audio,” Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) Chairman and CEO Cary Sherman will tell lawmakers how the music industry has “transformed how it does business,” touting the fact that digital formats now account for more than half of industry revenues and pointing to an array of licensed formats and services for fans.

At the hearing, before the House Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, Sherman will testify (testimony here) that “CDs are no longer the primary format for the music business or the primary way the industry generates revenues. Digital is not just our future, it is our present. In 2004, the first year we had any meaningful digital revenues, the industry earned a grand total of $190 million from digital services. Last year, we hit nearly $3.5 billion. Quite a change.”

Sherman will tick off a litany of different models licensed by major music companies:

•    You want DRM-free downloads? We’ve got that: iTunes, AmazonMP3, eMusic, 7digital. 
•    You want to pay a modest monthly fee for all the music you can ever listen to – on your computer or smart phone? We’ve got that: Rhapsody, Spotify, MOG, Rdio, Music Unlimited, rara.com, Zune Music Pass. 
•    You want free, ad-supported video and audio streaming? We’ve got that: Spotify, YouTube, Vevo, Myspace Music, AOLMusic.
•    You want music bundled with your mobile phone? We’ve got that: Muve Music, Metro PCS/Rhapsody 
•    You want to store all your music in the cloud, so you can access it from wherever you might be? We’ve got that: iTunes Match, and more deals in the works. 
•    You want specialized digital radio services that offer you the niche kind of music you like to hear? We’ve got that: Pandora, SiriusXM, Last.fm, Yahoo!Music, AOLMusic, and over750 more such services. 
•    You want online simulcasts of AM/FM radio stations? That is available too: iHeartRadio, WJLK-FM 994.3 (The Point), KPWR-FM (Power 106), WXLC-FM (102.3 XLC), and over 750 more online radio stations fully licensed through our sister organization SoundExchange.

Sherman will testify that the agreement announced last month with the National Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) and the Digital Media Association (DiMA), setting mechanical royalty rates and standards on a slate of new cutting-edge music business models, was a signal of a new focus of the industry and organization: