Do you have any news? Tell us about upcoming shows, CD releases, new websites or anything else you have going on.

Dave Codr, a music industry pioneer and an indie promoter, answers more of your questions this week.

Dave responds to these questions:

Posted by eccam on 6/20/2007
Hi Mr. Codr

My question: Is there any chance for people who are not necessarily looking to be the artist/performer to be noticed, i.e. market their songs to other artists via the internet?

In other words, do you think publishing companies look out for new writers or rather rely on their trusted ‘hitmakers’?

Thanks for you answer,
Eric


Dave’s Answer:

Eric,

It all depends on how good your music is. Keep in mind, these people are inundated with hundreds of artists biding for their time. The easiest path to reach these people is to have some substance behind the music. Has a song received any radio airplay, appeared in an independent film, etc? None of those are going to guarantee attention, but they will move you to the front of the line, provided your music is good.

Even trusted “hitmakers” like Van Dyke Parks (U2, Carly Simon, Fiona Apple, Sheryl Crow, The Thrills, Silverchair) reach out to new artists. Parks recently invited an independent artist by the name of Ryan Lindsey (www.ryanlindsey.net) to come to his house in LA and discuss songwriting after hearing some of Lindsey’s material. Considering Lindsey is based out of Norman, Oklahoma, your location isn’t so much an issue as your songs, exposure and resume.

Since you’re not a performer, I would suggest you look for local artists that would synch up with the material you write. This will help get you exposure and start building a reputation as a talented songwriter. Just like anything else, your success is going to be determined by how many people know about you.

I look forward to hearing your stuff on the radio soon.


Dave needs your questions! He’ll be answering more of your inquiries next month, so please leave a question below.

Posted by cashaudio on 6/19/2007

Is it worth the expense to blindly send packages out to college and public radio stations or do you have to have some contact there first to ensure you get a shot at airplay?
-Cash
Primal Audio



Dave’s Answer:

Cash,

I advise artists to NEVER send material unsolicited without talking to the person at least once before you send it. Club booking agents and radio music directors receive hundreds of CDs every week. If all they did was listen to music, they still wouldn’t get through it all.

Most of the radio station PDs I know don’t even open packages unless they are from someone that they know, or are expecting to receive the package. Since it’s gonna cost you about $5 to ship it, plus another couple bucks for your cd, plus the time involved, blindly sending out CDs can be an expensive process that has the added detractor of not being effective.

When you contact these people, (by phone or in person please) try to be different than every other band that calls them. Understand you are one of many and do something to make yourself stand out. I once had a large pizza delivered to a music pro I wanted to work with, along with a copy of the band’s CD I sent the pizza shop in advance. I got a call from the guy as he was munching on the pizza listening to the music, laughing at what a novel approach it was. To this day, he introduces me as the pizza guy and tells the story. That was 1993. So obviously I made an impression on him. I’m not saying to send pizzas to everyone, but try to use that as an example of a way to make yourself stand out.

Once you build a relationship, the person is going to be more apt to not only open your package, but to listen to it. That moves you from one of hundreds to someone that he/she recognizes.

By the way, I fancy Pepperoni.

Dave needs your questions! He’ll be answering more of your inquiries next month, so please leave a question below.

Posted by Julian on 6/19/2007

I too am constantly up against the “you have to have connections to make connections” wall. I blanket every music festival I can attend until EVERYONE knows “COOKIE CUTTER GIRL, POP SUPERHERO” was here! Yet, *real* deep pocketed, looking for new talent connections are NEVER THERE. Outside of being born, bought or begged via connected favors into it, how does one break the “Indie Ceiling” of the music industry?

GIRL POWER!
JULIAN aKa CCG POP SUPERHERO
CookieCutterGirl.com



Dave’s Answer:

Julian,

Every relationship has to start somewhere. What you need to do is identify the people you are trying to get to notice you. This isn’t going to happen overnight. Sending one e-mail or handing someone a single flyer is going to do very little in terms of developing a relationship. Many of the music pros I know lament about how difficult it is to find “quality” artists. Unfortunately, flyers, CDs and EPKs are not categorized by good and bad. That means these people have to listen to hundreds, if not thousands, of artists to find those few who are developed and have the talent they are looking for.

To reach these people and build a relationship with them, you need to contact them directly. Keep in mind that you are one of hundreds or thousands of artists contacting them for the same thing. Try to avoid the standard content, i.e., I’m really good, I have a good draw, you should book/write about me. Every band who calls them says the same thing. If you really want to make an impression, do a little research on the person. Find out what their hobbies are and what they like to do in their free time. Business calls are all about business, but relationship building calls are about getting to know the person and letting them know you.

In your hometown, you should know who you need to talk to. But when you get on the road, knowing the right industry contacts is difficult. Luckily for you, I know of a industry publication that lists nearly 100,000 music industry contacts. It’s called the Music Phone Book, and the publisher is this long-winded guy named Dave Codr. You can order a copy of the Music Phone Book at www.musicphonebook.com/order.asp. I’ve been told it’s a good resource

Posted by DarkMage on 6/19/2007

Hi Dave,
My question to you is this:

What are your thoughts on what a talent scout or record company looks for when they’re searching for an artist?

I realize this is quite a broad question, but, hey, this is “broadjam”,

Posted by zomenoneous on 6/18/2007

Hello, Dave-
I have a question: Is there a certain point I should be at for promotion? I figure that whatever an artist puts in is what determines the level of help we can get from someone like you.
For instance, if I have talent in an area which could be marketed, for instance, if I were into making music for independent films that could also be performed, is there a point to having a promoter if I am at a stage where I do not have the funding to make a recording up to the standard of that industry? Like, if the post-production/demo is fine, musically, but the latter isn’t there…
What would you tell someone at my stage—someone with material suitable for a certain medium but not recording-wise?
I’m guessing artists purchase certain promotional packages, which pay for the amount of hours to piece together the loose ends. Is that worth the money at this point?
Hope I’m asking a relevant question. Thanks!


Dave’s Answer:

Zomenoneous,

Hiring a promoter can be a tricky scenario, especially if you don’t have the money to pay. Even if you have one of the top firms and have the money to pay them, they’re still not going to do as a good a job promoting you as you will yourself. It really comes down to risk vs. reward. If the money you are going to spend is going to bring you a licensing deal or better paying gigs, then it’s worth it. Problem is, you won’t know what they can get you until after you hire them. It’s the whole chicken and the egg scenario all over again. When working with any music pro, it’s always a good idea to check references. Speak to other artists they have worked with and ask them if the results were worth the expenditure. You’re going to have to do your homework, lest you fall into the old “a fool and his money” scenario.

As for the quality of your music, home recording has come a long way. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to put out high quality recordings. Pro-Tools is everywhere. You may not get the big room sound that you would in a professional studio, but you can get quality recordings. Take Sublime for example. They recorded 40 Ounces to Freedom on a four track Fostex XR7 cassette recorder and the disc sounds great.

Often times, the reason artists get sub-par quality recording is because they try to record too much. Rather than laying down 15 tracks, focus on your best 7-8 songs. This will allow you to spend more time and money recording them, which will result in a higher fidelity sound and a tighter overall CD. Just because you wrote it doesn’t mean you need to record it. Preproduction is a crucial part of the recording process most independent artists skip altogether. Record the material yourself or with a friend who has a multi tracker. You wont release that version, but it will let you listen to it yourself and come up with edits and changes to improve on each song. Then you can rerecord songs in a studio or higher quality surrounding and know exactly what you want instead of trying to work it out in a studio where you are on the clock.

Dave needs your questions! He’ll be answering more of your inquiries next month, so please leave a question below.

Do you have any news? Tell us about upcoming shows, CD releases, new websites or anything else you have going on.

David Codr, the creator of the Independent Artist Registry and publisher of the Music Phone Book, has produced and promoted over 1,000 concerts, working with acts as diverse as Dave Matthews to Notorious BIG.

He has also managed a number of regional and nationally touring bands, logged countless hours as a producer and was the talent buyer for several premier live music venues on the West Coast.

Dave was one of the pioneers of “Guerilla Promotion” for independent artists and bands and most of his techniques are still widely used by industry insiders.

Now, Dave is ready to answer Broadjam members’ questions about the music business.

Leave a question on the Broadjam Blog for a chance to have it answered by Dave. Check back next week to see if he answers your question. We will post his replies to select questions on the Broadjam Blog next Monday, June 25.

Do you have any news? Tell us about upcoming shows, CD releases, new websites or anything else you have going on.