Three Paths to "Success" in the Music Business

After talking with many musicians about their goals for their music, I've come to the conclusion that there are three paths to "success" in the music business. The path that an artist or band takes will depend on their values, their drive to make a living at music, and their ability to take risk. I could write a book on this subject (many already have), so this article is simply a summary of the key ideas behind making a living at music. Notice that I say "making a living at music" instead of "being rich and famous at music." When many artists and bands define "success" they mean "being shown the money - the kwan" as Cuba Gooding Jr. says in the movie Jerry McGuire. Many people think that music success means "kwan" - more than just "coin". They desire financial gain and recognition to go along with it. If you think you're going to earn the "kwan" through music, then I suggest that you stand outside right now to be struck by lightning three times in a row. It's possible, but highly unlikely. However, I have met several people who have been able to make a living at their music. They usually take one of three approaches...

Path #1 "Relentless Booking Approach"

Chance of Success: High
Work/Determination Required: High
Income Generated: $$ or $$$

The music market is saturated. The world does not need another band. However, artists/bands that make money at music realize that the path to success is through hard work, not relying on anyone else for a "big break" or a "leg up". The big lie in the music business is that someone will notice you and come to your aid. They won't. Hard work is what works. What do I mean by hard work? 1) Be very good at what you do 2) Be relentless booking yourself for gigs. Booking yourself means taking out a calendar, an address book, picking up the phone and making it your job to gig as often as possible. Successful bands are booking themselves one or more times a week, traveling on the road from one region to another. The goal of these gigs is to sell CDs and merchandise. 75% of CDs sales result from live events. At each venue that you book, make sure that you can sell CDs and other merchandise for your band. At the gig, collect email addresses of fans and treat the owners/managers of the venue with gratefulness.

Make your own record. Use a good local recording engineer/producer but don't spend more than $5k to $10k for an independent album. Any more than that and you are getting ripped off and you won't be able to recoup your costs.

Keep a great web site updated with news about the band, your gigs, and how to buy CDs and merchandise, and download music. (We recommend www.rockbandsites.com for this service. Tell them that Rain On Me Productions sent you!)

Get your legal affairs in order. Your songs and your recordings are your intellectual property, assests that produce income for you long term. Protect them by setting up your own publishing company, filing with the copyright office, and registering your songs with a performing rights agency (ASCAP, BMI, CCLI, etc.) Get the book "Music Law" from www.nolo.com and understand it. If you can't understand it, then your music career may be in jeopardy. You can outsource this stuff by hiring a real lawyer from a reputable law firm specializing in copyright law; however, proceed with caution especially if you don't understand the issues.

Get other bands to record your songs so that they must pay you a mechanical royalty for each copy of your song that they sell on their CDs. This is where the real money is in music. (Read about Mechanical Royalties in the Music Law book.)

As you gig and sell CDs, your industry contacts for radio airplay and retail presence will develop naturally. If you're lucky (really lucky), a major label may become interested in you. However, don't plan on this. If you ever get to a major label deal, you want to be in the position of not needing them so that you have more to bargain with. You should be able to make a "go" of it by being independent, or with the support of an independent record label to help finance albums. In the end, this approach will most likely lead to being able to do music full time.

Path #2 "Aloof Artist Approach"

Chance of Success: High, as long as you redefine "success" to mean being able to do what you love and earn some money while doing it.
Work/Determination Required: Medium
Income: $ (you'll have to have a "real" job in addition to your music)

At the center of this approach is a "take it or leave it" attitude to your music. You'll want to make a decent CD (no more than $10k). Then you'll want to book yourself from time to time and sell your CD at these and any other opportunity that presents itself. Sell CDs to friends, family, co-workers, and just about everyone you meet. Don't worry about "marketing" your music. Your main marketing mechanism is gigs and your personality. Just sell CDs at gigs and put up a nicely designed website about your music. (Again we recommend www.rockbandsites.com or you can use services like www.garageband.com.) The advantage to this approach is that you're not expecting anything else but to be able to do your music and make a little income on the side. This can be fulfilling and liberating. You'll need a "real job" to go along with this approach, and many musicians take this route. You CAN make a living with this approach by gigging enough, but you have to gig at least a couple times a week to make a go of it. I know people who have done this and it works. Another alternative is to teach music lessons, and/or play as a "hired gun", combined with gigs and selling your CDs to make a living. Also, be on the lookout to pitch your songs to other bands, record companies, music production libraries (for film, commercials, etc.) as this might provide you with long term revenue streams.

Path #3 "Win the Lottery Approach"

Chance of Success: Low
Work Required: Low to Medium
Income: $$$$ but one in a million - literally

You can take this approach in isolation, but it's best to combine it with Path #1 or #2. The goal of this approach is to obtain be signed to a major label as quickly as possible. If you are signed to a major record label, realize that they will want to take 90% or more of your CD sales profits, 50% of your song royalties, and you'll still be liable for paying the label back for your studio costs in producing an album. That sounds daunting, but the hope is that you would have enough star power, and the label would provide enough marketing muscle to generate a ton of sales (tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands). They will put you on tour. They will own you. If that sounds attractive, read on.

First off, you need to have a great demo, not necessarily a full CD. (Making a full CD is still wise so you can garner some following, and sell it to recoup costs.) You'll want to hire the best producer that you can find for a reasonable cost. Realize you're taking a big gamble that most likely won't pay off, so spend as much as you're willing to lose. Whether you do a demo or a full length CD, you must be very good or have something really unique to offer to go just on a recording with a limited fanbase. The next step is to use your connections with other musicians or studios in the area to present a demo to an A&R person (stands for "artists and repertoire") at a major record label. Don't settle for just mailing something in. You must actually know someone, or know someone who knows someone, etc. Along with the CD, prepare a great "promo kit" using a professional graphic designer. Make a great presentation because it's your only shot.

Record labels look for 1) something musically unique 2) star power 3) fanbase. Different record labels are looking for different things, so target the ones that match your genre and pursue them. Record labels sometimes sign people simply on their uniqueness, despite them having a limited following. If you have a following of fans (hopefully in the thousands), your chance of success to get signed by a major label go up dramatically (see Path #1 above). If you get signed, pay attention to your legal matters, as it could make the difference between coin and "the kwan" (just study the story of Elvis and Presley Enterprises for this lesson).

Summary

There are really just three paths to success in the music business. Success depends on your definition of it, and how hard you want to work at it. Using your talents, getting relentless in your booking, building a fanbase, and understanding legal matters of music are your building blocks, so use them to their full potential.

Loving money or fame is not a path to happiness. Believe in God, love your family, love your neighbor as yourself, and do what you love. If you're not there yet, go here then here.

derek

P.S. Stay tuned for an upcoming article on how this relates to being a Christian musician.