A Brand of Band - Part 2

-Look at the Beetles in their day. They were compared to a religion. They had people who murdered to be able to go to their shows (not literally) and had fans that would camp out just to see them.

- Look at Lil Wayne now. He is huge! People want him on their album and he is willing to put his name out there. Will his fame fade? All depends if he ever decides to quit.

Lil Wayne's Discography

-The Jonas Brothers is now one of the biggest brands. Connecting with Hannah Montana and Disney has been a merchandisers dream.

-Battling the merch and brand even has its branding. One of my personal favorite artists, Immortal Technique is a good example of fighting the mainstream with good results. His music is politically motivated. Immortal Technique connects with millions of Americans on day to day issues that they deal with.

Immortal Technique's album "The 3rd World"

A brand is an image that artists either keep or drop (name another Sir Mix A lot song other than "Baby got Back"). People say artists sell out when they re-brand themselves for the mainstream, so starting with a credible brand is key for any artist or band. A brand of a band is like something you live with. Their are a few exceptions. Instead of hits we have niche’s and demi-hits, and its about finding your own and making it big there. Specific Branding.

From the mind of

Keveeno Reeverts

A Brand of Band - Part 2

A Brand of Band - Part 1

Throughout my short music career (about 7 years if you include me writing songs and recording artists through a $20 4-track, and $20 radio shack microphone), I had many artists that were a favorite because of their “off camera” lifestyle. They had a brand, an image that has been latched onto them that surpassed their music and sometimes surpassed real life. Their image made them seem larger than life and it made fans spend money to go see their “god comparative” performances. Where did all that go wrong? It seems now because of the internet, we as fans of music know some things about these artists that they probably forgot. Being a fanatic takes a lot of work and those “god comparative” performances became just something else we can see on Youtube now.

Right now there is no God figure because a god would last longer than a year or two. We saw the god in Michael Jackson try to break out and look what happened to him. What happened to the large marketing teams? What happened to the people that made gods out of musicians? To break a god costs money that not many people have any more. We turned to demi-gods of niche’s, or The Long Tale. I finally got to read this book by Chris Anderson and I’m learning that in today’s world there almost can’t be that “hit” anymore. We broke genre’s up to the hundreds and now they are breaking into their own thing. Underground rap is not underground anymore if billions have a chance to listen to it. Same thing with punk rock. You are fighting the “man” yet you are on Rupert Murdoch’s Myspace!
To be continued...

From the mind of
Keveeno Reeverts

A Brand of Band - Part 1

Music IS Business

I admit it. I'm the resident country music fan in this office (you may not have known this, but does it surprise you? I think probably not). And sometimes I feel a little out of place-- not because the people here make me feel that way, and not because I don't enjoy this indie rock thing, but because I don't know much about it. What good am I to an indie rock label?

I can't answer that definitely, but here's what I've learned so far.

Music is business. You can love it or hate it. You can claim all you want that music is NOT product, bands aren't brands, it's all about the ART. Unless you're sitting in your basement with a guitar and no intention of ever coming up, music is still business, and marketing, promotion, and management skills transcend genre. Since I'm here to learn about the music industry on a more hands-on level, I think we can agree that it doesn't matter that indie rock isn't my first musical love. I could be here working with rap or R&B, and I'd still be learning many of the same things.

I'm 22, and that alone gives me more expertise about current marketing strategies than some people who have been in the business for years. It seems like most new music is marketed to the 30 and under crowd (obviously with some exceptions), and people in my particular age group have grown up with the internet, and the social marketing craziness. We have ALWAYS had MTV and CMT. We inherently get it. We also know it's not new anymore, which gives us the ability to look beyond it. One of us is going to find the key soon, and it will be something no one, especially the major label dinosaurs, expected.

Key or no key, there will never be a magic answer. Big breaks are called breaks for a reason-- some people find their success the first year out, some people spend 15 years in undeserved obscurity before gaining much sought-after recognition. Nothing will ever happen if you're not out there doing your thing, but nothing might happen even if you are. Opportunity meets preparation was never more true.

Courtney

Music IS Business