DSN Music | Tips For The Indie

Las Vegas -- All across America musicians are taking their first steps towards a career in the music biz. Many are just weekend warriors who play a gig and then head back to their day jobs come Monday. However, many are serious about launching a career in an over saturated market, and walk into the industry completely blind. Being an independent artist or an "indie" is a rough gig in its own right. The term "indie" originally was used to separate the independence of an artist from major commercial record labels. If you were with a big label you were considered with a "major" if not than an "indie" - pretty simple.

The music industry has really changed in the last decade since the digital revolution, with a large percentage ratio favoring "indies" vs "majors" . With social networking sites, and more affordable audio equipment, almost anyone musically talented can create their own content and showcase it.

Due to this new era, the lines have really become blurred between established artists and folks in their bedrooms creating music. The gatekeepers of the music industry still run the distribution, marketing, and booking world which many "indies" are clueless about.

So, we have complied some advice and asked experts in the "indie" field their advice for newbies wanted to make it big in a musical rat-race. How to promote your band, and how to prepare your music properly for the real word.

How To Get Sponsorship for Your Band, Tour, Event or Production By Thomas J. King

The following is a step by step procedure we have used at Multimediary Entertainment Marketing to secure hundreds of thousands of sponsorship dollars for numerous tours, events, artists, television programs, and feature films. We have done this for several major record labels and both signed and unsigned artists. Now we want to share our knowledge and experience so you can do this on your own.

Create an Introduction Letter

The first step in securing sponsorship dollars is to craft a professional introduction letter highlighting the features and benefits of the opportunity you are offering. Some of these features and benefits might include inclusion in advertising, product sampling, banner display, and more. After you have given a brief overview of the opportunity, close the letter by asking their permission to send them a more detailed presentation. The introduction letter is the most critical part of the sponsorship success equation. If well crafted, it will get your foot in the door.

Demographic Analysis

Understanding your audience is critical. Potential sponsors will want to know who you are reaching. The best way of gathering this information is right at you finger tips. Call radio stations you think should be playing your music. Ask for an account executive and ask this person to fax you their Tapscan, Scarborough, or Prism demographic and qualitative information. In all likelihood you will now be armed with a detailed overview of what your audience looks like and can match this up with potential sponsors. You will also have a great hit list of companies to start hitting.

Creating Your Sponsorship Presentation

No that you have your introduction letter and demographic profiles, you are ready to begin creating your presentation. The presentation will seal the deal with sponsors only if it contains all the information they will need to make an educated decision on your opportunity. The presentation must contain the following elements:

1. A two to three paragraph overview of your opportunity.
2. A detailed overview of tour routing, markets, and venues.
3. An overview of what type of public relations and media support you expect to have and how the sponsor will be included.
4. Your audience and demographic profile.
5. Tour partnership deliverables or what the sponsor will receive for their investment.
6. The total investment you are looking for from your sponsor and the return a sponsor can expect.

Now that you have all of the pieces of the puzzle you are ready to go out and shake the trees for sponsorship dollars. With effort and consistency you will land a sponsor. Always deliver on what you promise to retain your sponsors year after year. Under deliver and they will promptly kick you to the curb. Our philosophy is to always under promise and over deliver. With this philosophy you will be assured ongoing solid sponsorship participation for years to come.

*Thomas J. King is a 30 year veteran of the radio, music and marketing business.

So you've been playing out locally and now have a few good tunes. Everyone says get that to a DJ and get some radio airplay! Go to a studio and cut a CD! Then what? It is easier said than done. A guy burning CDs at home in his bedroom and making copies for friends, will not have a clue how to get it mastered for the real world. Mastering... what's that? Exactly! An artist really needs to understand the industry or consult with those already in it. Seems like the obvious, but how many musicians do you know who have never done that! Egos can prevail, and eventually lead you nowhere without understanding the ins and outs of the music business.

Consulting with a studio engineer is always best before actually recording. your content. Understanding what will be required once your project is finished is also very important.. have a full-scale plan.

Any record label or music marketing company will have perimeters for submitting music. Just because you and your friends think it sounds good, doesn't mean much. Let the experts critique and check out your stuff. Upfront presentation of your music is very important, so production value and packaging are critical. Look at it as trying to get a job, with a resume, portfolio, and the works.

Having a professionally produced CD may be expensive, but eventually lead to something big. Not to say a raw demo won't open a door, but most likely you will have to return to the studio to clean it up or recut it.

Studio Protocol
Knowing The Do's and Don'ts Your First Time In The Studio

1) Do's - be prepared... mentally - rehearse the music you wish to record.. unless you're planning to write in the studio. Very luxurious for those that don't have very much of a budget... be ready to perform in a different environment... rooms and headphone monitoring is quite different from live performance at your rehearsal space. Physically - have your instruments properly maintained before going into the studio... new strings and intonation on your guitars, new heads - tuned up and ready to go for the drums... extras of each if you can.

You won't believe how many groups come into the studio with horribly out of tune guitars and drums. If they sound like shit from the get go, then the recording will also. Most likely the engineer will not tell you that your instruments sound like crap unless you have a big studio budget... he'll just think your some half ass garage band and won't deal with it.

Don't - expect your song to sound exactly the way you hear it in your head. Production of music always sounds the way the environment records it. (if your drums are tuned to a high pitch, don't expect them to sound like john bonham's kit) Be physically ready to play to your instrument to your best ability. Have your vocalist lubricate his vocal chords (drink lots of water) the night before, not doing bongs hits with your band mates after practice the night before..guitar players and drummers know your parts....da!!!

2) Now a days there are so many medias to having your music publicly heard... self promotion through the internet and live performance is the obvious way to get yourself out there. Allowing free downloads of your music on a websites is a good start. Do some engine searches on your computer and locate sites that have this capability or create your own webpage with download capability... find an indie label that suites your musical style and endeavor.

Then submit some of your music to them... some labels may take your music even if hasn't been already solicited by an A&R rep.... very rare though. Have some product ready for sale at your gigs... t-shirts, bumper stickers and cd's.. you'll usually sell a few these items if you tell the crowd you have them available while your performing... walking billboards can create a buzz...... stickers...etc.

Don't forget to have your music copyright before releasing it to the masses...submit your music to a publisher especially if your have some radio play or exposure to some mass media outlet. This will allow for residual payment from your music at all of it's media sources...supposedly...???

Get a favor from your rich upper middle class california uncle who already has contacts with the entertainment industry. I'm sure your dad would thank him, just so he could get your ass out his house...ha!!!

3) I would ask their prior studio experience and what their final goal of the project is before it starts. Demo quality or highly produced.. you might get lucky with your demo stuff...finances definitely suck for indies... put your ego's aside and listen to the entire band... not just your performance!

Veteran Independent Music Producer Steve Botterweg