INKED!
10 Tips from Entertainment Insiders on What Gets You Signed!
“While working at Universal/SRC, my ex boss used to say, the easiest thing is, getting signed” -Monique Baines
The phone rings and on the other end is a voice, that can’t quite express himself, at least not intelligently. The typical random caller to the label that wants to “sign” his artist usually says something like “Uuh…my name is blah blah….and uh, I got an artist. You know….he real big out here, and uhm I wanna send you his stuff, and sit down with the CEO.”
Yeah, right. Having a sit-down with the CEO of a well known record label should be the last thing on your mind. You should be working on what’s going to get your artist recognized by fans and A&Rs, among other things. When I got such calls working at the label, I provided what I thought was the best advice and direction I could give the caller in the few minutes we had on the phone together, As an executive assistant to the CEO, I never had the time to provide any more than that. I made a mental note to put everything I’d learned by observing and speaking to colleagues about how artists could increase their chances of being heard and/or signed into writing, one day. I’ve quit the label since then, and now have plenty of time to share.
Times have changed drastically, and with them, the Entertainment Industry as a whole. I’m convinced the formula for success in this Industry changes by an “nth” of a degree every day. Demands from fans are forever changing, but we all know that fans will always love undeniably good music. To keep up with these demands, record companies usually offer a ‘single’, digital distribution, ringtone/ring-tune, EP, LP, or multiple album deal.
Typically, ‘single’ or digital distribution deals are given to artists that already have a buzz of some kind. They’re more experimental for a label, to gather statistics on the artist’s potential sales. This would help the label determine whether or not to enter a full album deal with them. If a song already has a buzz, it’s likely a record company will plan to promote the record to a larger market, enabling profit from digital sales. I can only share what I’ve observed over the course of 6 years working at a label. The majority of the artists signed to this label already had a buzz or a production team behind them.
It’s extremely hard to break into the recording industry, so I’m going to share what I’ve learned from what industry insiders believe will help get you your deal. Now that I’ve provided some background information, while reading the rest of this article, keep in mind that I worked at a small, but well known Hip-Hop/R&B/Pop record company that was backed by one of the Majors, Universal Records. The information I provide may not apply to every act, but definitely applies to many. Also as an artist myself, I’m currently using what I’ve learned to further my own musical career.
After polling colleagues, A&Rs, executives, executive assistants, marketing, and promotions representatives, here’s what I’ve compiled after asking this question:
“From your experience working in the industry or being an observer of it, give me the single most important thing you feel an artist needs, or needs to do to sign with a major.”
Note: I’ve removed titles and names so readers can observe the consistency in the feedback provided. No matter the title or experience, they all pretty much converge at the following 10 pointers.
1. Hard work
When working at the label, my ex boss, Gaby Acevedo used to tell me, “The easiest thing IS getting signed”
First and foremost, anyone with common sense should know this, but we are not talking about just hard work, we are talking about slaving and real sacrifice. DJ VLAD, an associate of mine, recounted to me many times the days and NIGHTS he went from station to station, and club to club promoting his mix-tape; As a Russian / Jewish DJ, he struggled through adversities in an industry where he was considered a minority. No one was trying to hear anything from him. He had to grind more than the average DJ in his game, losing sleep and money to get where he is today. If you listen to any “nobody” turned successful individual’s story, they tend to share common themes. They’ll all evoke the same feelings of struggle, passion, and sacrifice, but they will also say that each experience lends to who they are as a successful person today. Today Vlad runs a successful online hip-hop site and has invested in numerous endeavors. Working day and night, consistently, will get you noticed. Labels appreciate hard workers. Like the quote above says, the easiest thing is getting signed. The hard work starts with proving your sales potential to avoid being ‘shelved’ essentially keeping your job.
2. Be independent
This label rep says: “They need to be able to be independent, once they can do everything on their own and not need a major; that’s when they get signed to one.”
If you can get your song on the radio, great; You’ve accomplished something without the help of a major. But most likely as a new artist, it will be extremely tough as some radio stations wont even look at your record unless you are already signed to a major or sub-major. It may also depend on the market you are trying to break into; like NY, LA, or ATL. Smaller markets may be easier. It varies across the board, with marketing, and sales. If you cant sell a certain amount as an independent artist, then don’t expect for a label to step in and want to help you. A label should only be there to ‘magnify’ you; Take what you’ve already done, and make it greater, better, bigger. Get what I mean?
An A&R says: “they need to prove what they were able to accomplish on their own (i.e. stats sales, tour, merch, social networking, marketing, etc.) I feel this gives the label confidence about what is possible for that artist. A label might say ‘If the artist was capable of getting all the fans and exposure on their own, imagine what good we can do for them.’ But what the artist needs to understand before we sign them is that they need to follow the rules, and do what we tell them to do. Signing to a major is giving the reigns to your project to someone else and saying ‘I need more help selling my music,’ and by saying that, you need to be completely open and cooperative to what we do, and let us do our jobs”.
3. Be Polished
A marketing rep says: “Be polished before u get to them [label] i.e.: your look/image, performance, voice, etc should be on point. Make labels come to you. Basically, labels know how hard it is to break and develop an artist, so they want the artist to do it on their own, then they can safely jump on the bandwagon.”
Side note, as a new artist you might have better luck with a smaller label, or sub-label. But sign to the major directly, and you can bet that most likely, you’ll be shelved or delayed.
At a small label, there are fewer artists for the team to focus on, so the focus will be on you. If you are going to sign to a label, large or small, it also works in your favor to have had already developed a fan base, because you’ll get a bigger deal, and you are in the forefront. A prime example is Drake. Years ago, the buzz on Drake in the industry was fierce. Everyone wanted to sign him. I know Drake had big goals for himself; He didn’t want to sign to any label right away, avoiding small start up budgets, and any chance that he wouldn’t be priority. This is the case for many artists, but Drake pushed himself so well, to a point where he was able to release a record and become #1 on the charts. This didn’t happen overnight, it was years of hard work that eventually got the right people behind him. But even before Drake officially ended up with Young Money, he had passed on many offers. I’m not saying that exactly what worked for Drake will work for you, but this example proves that once you have a worthy buzz, all types of offers can come. Once an artist is label ready, its now safe to present.
4. Mass Appeal
A Jr. Exec says “you have to appeal to a mass audience, call it mainstream if you will. You need to be talented and distinct. Not following what everyone else does.”
I’d like to add that cookie cutter artists only last a minute, and record labels may find it difficult to develop lasting careers for them, but I believe its OK to come out “sounding like everyone else” to get your records played and to establish a name with the main stream. After you’ve done that, I’d say it might be safer to come out with your complete, distinct sound.
5. Singles/Hits
Now we are talking about a record deal here. A label wants hits. If you don’t have them, stay independent. You might have an easily identifiable and unique “sound” and that’s great, but your chances for a deal may still be minimal, if any at all. For the purposes of getting your deal, you have to have at least 3 surefire hits. A label focuses more on a single by an artist, rather than the artist with the single; It’s the faster route to making a profit from your music.
6. Hustle & Flo
A Radio Promotion rep says “simply, sell units independently and /or get significant bds/mediabase spins on the radio, Labels are lazy when it comes to artist development. You need to do the work yourself and then hope for distribution, once you get the radio interested in your record.. and you deliver a ‘final’ product – it keeps the label from having to invest too much time in artist development & A&R’ing your records”
Aaah, I think your beginning to get it. It’s all reverting to doing it yourself, and being ready for a label to approach. I assure you, it’s the truth, and it’s also a grind. It may not always be easy to get a record played, but it is possible, you’ll never know in this industry. It may help you as an artist, to start with your top 3 records. Map out a marketing plan. Ask friends and family what they think of your records. Do some research on how to distribute your songs to an online radio station. You can even try satellite or XM stations. Instead of starting with major radio stations, start with the smaller ones. Keep track of feedback from DJ’s and listeners. Think about what type of venues you want to perform in. If it’s a club record, you might want to visit your local club/venue, buy the DJ a drink, and ask him or her to play your record. These are all viable ideas. It’s always easier to start small and local, it builds your confidence as an artist, and builds a track record. Have a spin on the radio? Make sure it’s been encoded in BDS or Mediabase. This will enable you to track where your songs are being played. Endeavor to call a station, or visit a town to do a show. These are good ideas for free promotion. Try performing for free! DJ’s, promoters, and now-a-days bloggers, can do wonders for your career, so always make sure you show them love, and do so genuinely and wholeheartedly.
7. Dedication and Persistence
In addition to #1, pay close attention to these words from a label president. “To me the most important thing is dedication and persistence, they must be willing to do anything and everything, and sacrifice their time. They can’t expect to be made stars overnight; champions aren’t made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep down inside them a desire, a dream, and a vision. They have to have a last minute stamina, they have to be a little faster, they have to have the skill and the will but the will must be stronger than the skill”
8. Cosign – It can be simply “Who you know”
An executive assistant states that an artist “needs a lot of the right influence and clout behind them supporting them.”
I saw it with my own eyes, Asher Roth, a ‘white boy’ from Connecticut, trying to be a rapper. I heard many make fun of his whole ordeal; How can this skinny white boy think he’s going to move units? (In all honesty, it was that exact question that drew me to him as an artist). His situation was like the lottery to me. I used to say, “hey, you never know”. Who am I to knock someone? I thought he was very cool, and yes, he had talent. Another factor in why people believed in his project was the fact that he had someone with influence and clout behind him, someone that believed in him enough to bring him to Steve Rifkind. Now, Asher worked his ass off, and was discovered on MySpace. That hard work led him to be discovered by his manager. Asher continued to work hard, but with an influential force behind him, it was that much easier for him to get that deal. With his new manager, came financial backing, he was able to get his own promotion/publicity team and so forth. Not all of us are lucky enough to find someone that believes in us on the first try, but if you continue to work hard enough to develop a worthy buzz as #1 states, trust me, that person or persons will come.
9. Swagger
“Talent means nothing if u don’t have something that makes people care that you’re talented at least, as far as music goes”
After reading this several times, I couldn’t decipher exactly what the person actually meant, but what I draw from it is that you must be “likeable”, have charisma, and attitude, or something unique about you. I remember an exec I worked closely with stating he was undecided about signing an act, due to the overwhelming roster of artists currently on his label. He wasn’t sure he’d have the $ and staff to support the artist, but he fell in love with the artist’s personality and later on signed the artist. To this day, I believe it was that person’s charisma that won the executive over. As an artist myself, I’m always being told things like I’m too reserved, or that I seem too “innocent”, whatever that means. In the end I think that’s what works for me. People also say that “mysterious” works for me. Like Asher Roth the thing they thought would work against me, might actually be what works for me. Just be who you are and mean to be. However I’m sure the average artist reading this doesn’t need me to preach, because if you are trying to make it in this game, there’s no room for tender egos, only room for the strong.
Another executive sums it up with, “one needs: personality, talent and star potential”
10. Wait, its not just Talent?
In addition to having a vision, this digital marketing guru states that “an artist in today’s game needs 360 degrees of Talent not just great music, which is the most important thing obviously, but strong ideas on how to market themselves, and talent for how they should be perceived out there in the public to make them win”
Now, I’ve provided a wealth of advice on what “insiders” have deemed as valuable information on what can get an artist a deal, but remember there are always special cases. You’ll never know what rare incidences may occur in the process. The 10 tips above apply to the mass/majority of artists “trying” to make it in the game.
Its time for me to go study, so until next time…. feel free to leave your feedback, and suggestions on other topics you’d like me to explore.
About the Author:
Monique Baines is [I am] a NY based R&B recording vocalist. A graduate of NYU, Monique served as executive and marketing assistant [to Steve Rifkind of SRC records] for six years, who later moved on to start her own consulting company [Pria Group]. In her (my) spare time, Monique works on her writing/blogging skills and recording project.
As part of an independent, buzzing and touring act, Physha P Fam (formerly Physha P), Monique couldn’t be more correct about the 10 tips above. By working hard, hard and the hardest, touring the US (now up and down CA), attaining opening slots for major artist (ie New Boyz, Franke J, Eve, Neyo, Fonzeworth Bentley), national TV exposure (106 & Park, Blaze the Stage, Hype Magazine, CBS, etc. ), winning most major showcases in NYC, a large, international Internet following and viral buzz, we’ve put in THAT work. Still, that is not enough, because we are NOT known to the mass American public, which is our goal. As the article states, we will keep grinding building our story, and attracting the right people to add to our team.
All I can add to the article are a few simple things targeted towards upcoming, independent act, even though you still have to grind for yourself when you are on a major to avoid being shelved (see article above):
(a) keep going no matter how hard it gets and when you think you are stuck in a rut, especially if you’ve experienced major, noteworthy successes, as is our case;
(b) if your plan is working, your getting shows and media coverage on your own, your music actually hits (dj’s are playing it nation wide, internationally, etc., have the support of record pools and associations, some radio play, etc.) without pay-for-play, keep going and STICK to your plan. You’ll have many people tell you this or that is not not a hit, but proof is in the pudding. Just look at how many major record label a&r’s told Kanye West “Through the Wire,” “Jesus Walks,” and “All Falls Down,” were not hits. He put money where his mouth is, produced his own video, and pushed. Not all of us have his money, nor team, but stick with your PROVEN success;
(c) You NEED hits. Not records you and/or your team like. Records with potential to be liked by the rest of the country and world. If you want to be on the same label as Justin, Usher, 50, Kanye, Black Eyed Peas, etc. your music needs to compete with them and sound as if it belongs on the same play list. If you want to push something different and “change” music business, then, do it after you gain mass appeal. Otherwise, you’ll be fighting the world and a music business that does NOT want to hear what you have to say let alone your music. Hits, hits, and nothing but hits. That is hit with an “s,” unless you want to be a 1 hit wonder, that’s hit WITHOUT an “s.” And, last by not least
(c) “pay-for play” never works. I hate when major labels, agents, etc. tell an independent artist (aka a broke artist or person on a very limited budget), to “get their (commercial) radio play up.” Where is an independent artist going to get $75,000-150,000 dollars for a national radio campaign? Not only is “pay-for-play” illegal under US law, but these artists would have to sell keys of drugs, if they are not born rich. In addition, the commercial radio game is rigged for the big boys and with the big boys. I suggest, as do many people who do this music business as a living and WITH experience in trying to break into commercial radio, if you have the budget for “pay-for-play” do NOT use it for radio. Say you have $50k, hire a national and proven PR person/company and marketing person/company, specialization in music, specifically the type of music you make. Make sure both marketing and PR areas cover Internet and Viral marketing. Once you find the right team members, contract them to 3-6 month retainer, have them provide each goal for each month in writing as part of the the contract (for example, month 1, PR person will do these 10 things and son on), you pay them 50% upfront each month, and 50% at the end of the month once the job is done, and make sure to have ALL OF THIS on paper. If any one of these people do not go along with this game plan, they are NOT for you and about getting paid, whether they do their jobs or not. Assume you picked the right team members, in 4-6 months you’ll have a media buzz, internet buzz, a bunch of fans and followers, able to use that story to get college, internet, satellite radio play, and some commercial radio play and would have cost 30-50% of the $50k budget. I can go on forever about these ideas from our experiences, contacts, and what worked, didn’t and continues to work. NOTE (a BIG note): You have to have HITS first. You have to test these hits and make sure they are good to. Then, you have to set your marketing and pr goals and plan around who you are as an artist. If you choose “pay-for-play, ” good luck. Make sure to have a team to support you while you are on the radio for the 4-6 weeks of your campaign. Hopefully, your song is hot, because you are paying for the record to be played, hot or not. Once your 4-6 weeks is over, it’s off the air if it is NOT hot.
All in all, great job, Monique. Those tips are true and good to go. Aside from my little comments, you just have to focus on being the best artist you can be, keep building your story with something new each month and focus less on getting a major deal. The deal will come with your fight to the top. Make sure your hits are tight and your business is tighter. No one is your friend in this business. Holler if you need more ideas for your music business dreams.
b.i.g. Lou of Physha P Fam
President of Da Fam Music &Ent., LLC
music business consultant
myspace.com/PhyshaP – facebook.com/Physhap, twitter.com/PhyshaP
physhap@gmail.com
PS F the A&R’s. They don’t know what they are talking about. If they do, ask them who’s the last artist they signed and blew up. Meaning, they discovered the aritst without the artist already buzzing, a&r’d their project, and contributed to the successes of said project. Nowadays, they are just copyright and publishing desk boys, clearing rights so songs can be exploited. Keep going all you artists.
Nice writeup. I like how you kept it real, saying that you yourself are trying to apply these tips you’ve learned to your self as an artists. And also noting potential flaws in yourself you’ve learned, such as being to reserved. I especially agree with this quote: “If you cant sell a certain amount as an independent artist, then don’t expect for a label to step in and want to help you. A label should only be there to ‘magnify’ you; Take what you’ve already done, and make it greater, better, bigger.” I feel a ways about your point in #4 though. Does starting mainstream to get on and then switching to something unique really work? I mean I guess Andre 3000 did it. But dont labels typically want you create another hit like you did last time? Artist like T.I. put out the same single with every album they drop. What you know about that and Big Thangs Poppin is the same song lol.
Hey Lanstar, thx for the feedback. You are right about #4, obviously each situation is different. An artist can come out and their sound is so unique that they are easily accepted into the market and can sell records. But not always the case, the industry is flooded with rock bands, hip hop artists, and pop/r&b singers, who claim they are different, but honestly everything sounds the same. Trust me I’ve heard the demos that came into the office I worked at. To get a DJ to play a record, the song has to be really hot, nobody cares about the artist when they are new. Its all about the record and how it blends into the Mix or playslist. So the only way to break an artist, in the cases I’ve seen, is to push a record that the majority will like, I mean this is only logical. The plan is to introduce that artist to the market, develop a buzz on that artist. Get fans to demand to hear more of the artist on the radio. What fans want, DJ’s have to play (I recently learned its also about the advertisers for that radio station and what they want). Put out another single (follow up single) for that artist, the buzz going shoot videos. Have promo tours, meet greets, radio interviews. Now fans are beginning to learn that artist, fans are identifying with that artist. Its hard to keep a following, but once you established your buzz and fanbase, anything you give to the DJ’s/radios, they are more likely to play. So its safer to put out music that is more unique to that artist later on in the career. Mostly because you need to develop your relationship with the station, and also with the market. I worked at Street Records Corporation. Our way of pushing an artist started in the street. We pushed records to mix show DJs, mix tapes, and we used street teams. Having a record that DJ’s could fit into their playlist, was one of the ways that helped to get the artist on, and eventually after the artist became popular, it was easier to push the other singles we had lined up for them.