Square Room Records – Latest News on Music and Record Industry

Getting into the music business is hard enough, selling records and staying successful is another matter altogether. There is a reality check that you have to face at some point in your career as a musician; this could be before you start, in the middle and sadly towards the end. The hard truth you have to face is - accepting what you are good at and giving people what they want.

For example, you may be a singer/songwriter who loves to sing. But if you come to realize that your writing is way better than your singing, then you have to give up the singing and put all your efforts into writing songs. Being successful also means being prudent. A great example of this is the artist Babyface; he had a decent singing career, but his songwriting and producing capabilities were far superior to his singing. So he ended up focusing more on that aspect which has brought him tremendous success in that field. This is one aspect of figuring things out.

The other aspect is accepting who you want to play to. You could be great at playing a fusion of country western-snake charmer-Australian aboriginal music, but you could be effectively playing to an audience of one. Sometimes your passion has to take a backseat to building a realistic career. You do not necessarily have to turn into a boy band or girlie band and churn out sticky nonsensical hits, but you will have to change to fit a more commercial style if you want success on a large scale.

Figuring out these things early in your career will help you to map out where you want to go and what you want to do. Reality is also a bitter pill to swallow.

In the music industry, your image is everything. Your ability to sing or play an instrument is second to the image that is created. This can be created by you, the artist or by your management company. The Spice Girls are an excellent example of image creation. Each girl was assigned a character which they stuck to and the whole group was given a gimmick called “girl power”. The success of this image is only too evident as you look back. The Spice Girls are probably the only widely recognized group of individuals since The Beatles, as in almost anyone anywhere can name each individual member of the group.

Creating the right image for your self is easy and at the same time is difficult. Confusing as that sounds right now, when you get down to it, it will make sense. The first step is figuring out what kind of band or singer you want to be. Then you can go about following the current trend in fashion or, more riskily, create your own “look” which can give you a sense of authenticity if you can pull it off. Besides the look, you have to walk the walk and talk the talk. For example, rock guitarists don’t really have to contort, jump up and down or even grimace when they fabulous solos. Just ask James Burton, an extremely talented session guitarist who has played on stage with Elvis. But the thing that brought Burton internal fame (as in only the internal industry people knew of his talent) and the thing that brought Pete Townsend, Slash and other great guitarists their fame is what they did on stage. Slash had his traditional cigarette in the mouth, no shirt, top hat, leather outfit and body movements that looked like he was wringing the tones out of his guitar while it caused him physical pain. Though it sounds ridiculous, the image really worked for him.

So think about your image seriously; cultivate and groom it until it becomes your persona and whatever you do - maintain it whenever you are onstage or giving an interview.

It is not the end of the world if you have not yet been picked up by a record label. You can get into the game yourself, but there are a few things you should take note of.

1. Goals - Pick something you want to promote about yourself. It could be a Single, a live show or even your website. Once you pick one, move your focus to only that pick.

2. Target audience - Identify the target audience and focus your promotional efforts on them. If you are going to perform in a town, get through to their local paper and radio station try to get yourself some publicity that way. If you are pushing your single then you can use a mailing list, your website, social media, etc. Whatever it is, choose your audience carefully for maximum results.

3. Promo package - This should always be handy wherever you go, ready to be distributed to influential people. It should contain the latest news about you/your band, short bio, demo or single, previous press coverage’s, contact info and pictures of you/your band.

4. Stick out like a sore thumb - That is in terms of your music and persona. The idea is to avoid being classified as an also-ran. You do not have to do too much, but try to be a little different from the bands in your genre so that there is something unique about you.

5. Freebies - Make sure that the press and industry scouts who come to check out your gigs are well looked after. You should also try to send out freebies to some of the people on your mailing list. Offering a free download to all is a simple way of solving that problem.

6. Branding - Get your name out there. It has to be everywhere in the city. It can be anything from stickers, caps, key tags etc and whatever that keeps your name in people’s minds.

7. Contacts - All these ideas will get you lots of contacts, you should never lose them. Load them up into a database and use it every time you need to send out some promos.

The evolution of music has progressed at such a rapid pace in the last five decades that new music genres are popping up almost on a daily basis. Music genres today are extremely diversified and the list is a long one. Each genre and why it is different from one another requires several articles to describe them. This is a look at a few very broad categories of music that encompass all the other genres.

Art Music - All types of classical music can be placed under this category. This includes contemporary classical music which encompasses Experimental, Minimal and Electronic music. Some forms of Jazz music are also included here even though Jazz is classified under its own category.

Pop Music - The name itself describes the sort of genres that fit into it. To put it very bluntly, Popular music is music that the general public loves and is entertained by. Classical music lovers claim that pop music is at the very most - light entertainment, and that classical music is equivalent to art. However those lines have blurred somewhat, as many pop music productions have a high level of artistry associated with them and many classical works are loved by the masses.

Traditional music - Folk music as it used to be known has had to have its name changed due to the expansion of the genre to accommodate other sub-genres of music. Traditional music is characterized by Oral Transmission, where the music passed on from person to person and not written down or learned. It is also characterized by the fact that the music is based on the culture of a region.

Regional music - This refers to music that is somewhat endemic to each country or region.

Fusion music - Fusion music is in a very basic sense an experimentation of two or more genres to produce a unique sound. One the best examples of fusion music is Rock’n'Roll, which was originally born from the combination of Country music, Blues and Gospel.

LP stands for Long Playing record and initially made its first appearance over 60 years ago. Columbia records held a press conference to unveil the LP on June 21, 1948 at the Waldorf Astoria. The LP initially had two formats, which were 10-inches and 12-inches in diameter. Catalogue number wise, the first 10-inch was Frank Sinatra’s “The Voice of Frank Sinatra” and the 12-inch was the “Mendelssohn Concerto in E Minor for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 64″. These two have the honor of being the first ever LPs in history.

Initially, the 10-inch was reserved only for pop music and the 12-inch was for classical and Broadway music and shows. However this changed very quickly and pop transitioned to the 12-inch in a big way. The 10-inch LP did make a comeback of sorts in the late 70’s and early 80’s due to a marketing tactic. The playing time on an LP is 45 minutes but there were times when 52 minute versions appeared. The longer version was well received but died out due to mastering limitations.

Since LP turntables played songs in sequence it brought about a significant change in recording artists. They began to develop albums where the sequence of the songs flowed smoothly into one another providing a constant or gently changing mood.

The LP held its dominance all the way into the 80’s until the appearance of Compact Discs (CD) in 1988. Since then LPs disappeared from the music scene up until a few years ago when the interest in LPs has seen a revival. Since then the demand for LPs has started growing slowly and possibly faces a comeback into the mainstream music market.

Extended Play or EP can be a Vinyl Record, CD or even downloaded music. The definition of an EP is anything which is “more than one single but too short to be an LP”.

The earliest form of an EP can be traced back to as far as 1920 to the 78-rpm discs released by Grey Gull Records. A notable feature was the very fine grooves on the record. The format gained recognition only in 1952, when RCA victor released 45rpms in order to combat Columbia Records’ LP format. Although the EPs held only could play 7.5 minutes on each side, they still played on 45 rpm equipment which was the chief cause of their success. RCA’s biggest artist EP-wise was Elvis Presley who had 28 EP’s released between ‘56 and ‘67.

In the ’50s and ’60s, EPs predominantly contained either compilations of singles or samplers from albums. They were not popular in the U.S., but in the U.K. they found a willing market. Therefore it is not surprising that The Beatles were the first artists to have an EP in the UK Singles chart. This honor went to The Beatles’ Magical Mystery Tour, which was a double-sided EP.

The first EP album to hit number one in the Billboard charts was “Jar of Flies” by Alice in Chains. “Collision Course” by Linkin Park and Jay-Z are the only other band to emulate this feat. A notable recent release/revival in 2010 of the format is the “Six-Pak”, a collection of six songs offered by Warner Bros. Records and which comes on a CD.

To protect your original work you must always, always copyright your material. There is no other way that you can combat plagiarism. You can obtain a copyright from the U.S. Copyright Office which will protect you and give you your rights to fight for, in case your work is stolen.

Although copyright laws tend to be confusing, the process of registration is actually very simple. The first thing you should know about copyrights is that from the moment you get something down in any physical form (this includes recording, scribbling song lyrics on a piece of paper, etc) you OWN the copyright to that material. BUT thereafter, you have to prove that the material was conceived on that day and at that time. This is where it gets slightly tricky.

Some people stuff the material (cassette, CD, piece of paper, etc) into an envelope, seal it and post it to themselves. When they receive it, they do not open it. This is because the package will arrive with a postmark which contains the date. This is one way of proving the date of conception and is known generally as the Poor Man’s Copyright.

To get an official copyright you will need:
a. A recording or a copy of the sheet music
b. The appropriate form
c. An envelope to mail the package in
d. A check for $45

Fill out the form, attach the check and the material to be copyrighted and mail it to:
The Library of Congress
Copyright Office
101 Independence Avenue, S.E.
Washington, DC 20559-6000

This is all you have to do to ensure that your rights are protected. So go ahead and try it out!

The country music industry is very big and breaking into it is similar to breaking into any other music genre with one exception. Country music places a very big value on songwriting. In hindsight, this may seem obvious; country music is all about the words so songwriting would be the obvious thing to get into. This is a fact and if you are interested in this career path you can do no worse than starting out in the country music capital of Nashville.

When you arrive there, do not have any pretenses about making it big on the first day. It is not going to happen like that. So get a job. Try to find a job in one of the big publishing companies but do not reveal your aspirations to be a songwriter. Get hired, establish yourself as a good employee and build up your relationships with all the right people there. Then you can mention your abilities to them and get their help.

Get into the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI). This organization will help you develop your craft and improve your talent. Then get involved in the local talent scene. There are a few venues that have open nights where you can display your talents. The talent scouts regularly visit these gigs and you just might impress someone enough to kick start your career.

Become a member of ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC. These organizations are responsible for collecting your royalties. But keep in mind that you can be a member of only one of these organizations, so choose wisely. Be patient, keep plugging away at it and eventually your efforts will be rewarded.

The internet has taken much of the heartache of rejection away from budding artists. In the past a new artist had to go through many years of rejection from numerous studios before they hit it big. But now with YouTube and similar sites, it is easy for artists to get exposure and become popular.

Since getting popular is easier now, how does an artist monetize that? Well in the event that you are still not big enough to be picked up by a recording label, you can go ahead and sell your material to the fan base that you have built up.

There are many services online that will do all the dirty work of distribution for you. All you have to do is search for them. These services require only a nominal payment, usually under $100 to set up and distribute your album across a wide variety of online vendors (like iTunes, Amazon, Rhapsody etc). Since they have deals with the vendors, they require no further
payment.

The vendors themselves will not charge you anything; rather they will take a cut off the sale price (usually around 30 %). The balance amount comes straight to you.

This is currently the best method available to new artists who want monetize their efforts. You could always sell the material off your own website, but the hassle and cost involved with getting that underway is phenomenal when compared to these easy distribution services. But as always, do not pick the first service you see, research them well and pick the one that gives you the most benefits.

Writing a song is sometimes a pastime for many people and while most of the lyrics written are not of any great quality, there are some gems in there. For what it is worth everyone who writes songs for fun or is trying to get into the songwriting business should take a long hard look at what they are writing. It may just turn out to be a goldmine in the right hands.

No matter how personal the song is to you, the first step in making money from your songs is to realize that the song is a commodity. More importantly you should know that what you have written is intellectual property that belongs to you. There are two ways to make money from the lyrics of your song if it is picked up by an artist or a studio.

Mechanical Royalties - This is a payment method bound solely to the number of units (CDs/ Tapes) manufactured. The payment percentage is also regulated; in the U.S. it is set by a five member panel that is appointed by the President. Currently that figure amounts to $0.08 per song. So if 10,000 units are manufactured, the songwriter will receive $800 as payment. This amount is sometimes split with a publisher if such a person is involved in the deal.

Performance Royalties - This is where a songwriter gets paid for every time the song is played on TV or Radio. Payments are made through Performing Rights Organizations such as ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC and it is essential that the songwriter be a member of one of those groups to receive the royalties. However some research must be done in ascertaining which PRO is best suited for the songwriter.
While there are other methods which are contract and deal based, these two are the most popular and long lasting methods of payment for songwriters.