The Musician of Oz

The great and powerful, Wizard of Oz, presented himself as a supernatural, omniscient being.  However, he was revealed to be a much different individual, operating a complex facade of smoke screens and holograms, without any real power.  Musicians can put themselves in the same position as Oz did, by abusing the gap between the digital and dimensional worlds.  

This is a topic I have wanted to write about for quite sometime.  In today’s online world, it is far too easy for musicians to hide behind a curtain of bells and whistles without necessarily a substantial following or fan base; or, in some cases, talent!

Now don’t get me wrong, being confident is great.  If you are passionate about the content you are creating, the confidence should naturally present itself.  I also believe it to be absolute suicide for a band or musician NOT to have a significant digital presence.  Having said that, Social Media can be abused.  Trying to add extra ‘fluff’ to your fan pages, EPK, and twitter updates will only make you look foolish.  Anyone with considerable power in the industry can see behind a fake facade of false claims.  

Here are my solutions for preventing this problem:

Don’t Lie

Not only is it immoral, spreading false claims throughout your social media outlets will diminish your credibility with promoters, record labels, and most importantly, your fans.  No matter how sly you feel these little fibs might be, anyone who has the smallest amount pull in the music industry will be able to separate the truth from the bullshit.  After all, it is highly unlikely that a fledgling band consisting of emerging musicians is probably not playing shows for 20,000+ screaming fans; especially, if their digital fan base is not even out of 3 digit figures.  Be true to who you are, and embrace the stage of your career you are currently in.  Potential fans, and industry officials will appreciate your confidence and passion for your product.  Be proud of the content you are putting out, and if it doesn’t meet your expectations, it’s your responsibility to improve the quality.  

Your Manager is not Omnipresent

I will keep using the Facebook example for continuity purposes.  Facebook allows a band page to add contacts.  These include a Manager, Booking Agent, Label Affiliate and Press Contact.  It does not look more professional to fill in your manager’s name for multiple positions.  Yes, in the beginning, your manager will perform many tasks and odd jobs, but he is still just your manager.  Hold off on adding other contacts, until you have actually attained them.  

Build a Family-Style Team, Not a Loose Alliance of Friends

I discussed above the temptations empty boxes give off.  If you want these boxes filled, go out and build a team.  Find people who believe in what you are doing, and are competent to respond to potential inquiries.  Not only do they have to trust the quality of your performance, but you must be able to trust that they will hold up their end of the deal as well.  Each member of your staff is a representation of your brand, whether that is comprised of you as a solo artist, or as a member of a band.  Make sure you find competent, hard-working, and most importantly, loyal people to build your team.  

Name Yourself Wisely

Please choose your band or stage name wisely.  Sorry, the 90’s are over.  Nobody wants to check out a band named The Lingering Farts, or The Coked up Monkeys.  Also, there is not correlation between name length and creative talent.  The most marketable choice in today’s world should be short, to the point, and a representation of your musical personality.  

Be Happy!  You get to make music for a living!

You should be living the dream!  You chose not to be some paper-pushing, 9-5 schmuck, who gave up on their dreams long ago.  Being a musician is hard work, that is a given.  If you can’t handle the stress and hardships that come with this profession, you are in the wrong line of work, my friend.  Enjoy where you are along your musical journey, and look for ways to better your craft.  If you want to be successful in this industry, you have to dedicate your life to its betterment.  

Paying your dues is also part of the deal.  Don’t let a crappy gig, rude sound guys, or greedy venues dull your mood.  You cannot control the attitudes and personalities of others.  No matter how famous, rich and elite one becomes, a musician must always be able to deal with the cavalier asshole.  Besides, if you disassemble their insults, you might just find some pertinent information beneath the garbage.  

I used Facebook as an example in this article, but these problems and solutions can be translated to any other Digital profiles you may have (i.e. Myspace, Reverbnation, Sonicbids, Soundcloud, etc.).  

Hope this advice was helpful, and happy music-making! 

-Dillon Roulet

I am a young consultant for a private entertainment and digital advertising firm.  I specialize in networking undiscovered talent with large promoting companies, agencies, management firms and record labels.  I also manage a small client base of up-and-coming artists, and bands.  

Please feel free to add me on Facebook or Linkedin if I tickle your fancy.

Comments

[Riley Lynch]

These are some good basic tips, Dillon, and they will help bands avoid looking unprofessional and stupid. Here's the thing: it's not ALWAYS bad to look stupid. Some bands, like Weird Al or the Thunderlords, actually make money off of the childishness and immaturity of their act.
The only part of the article that I disagree with is the Name Yourself Wisely section, and its underlying message. I would say to artists "Don't be afraid to be yourself, even if it comes at the risk of making you look stupid." Some people will laugh, but at the end of the day if you make good music then you'll still have all of your fans, some of whom wouldn't be interested in you if your band had a clean, uniform, and professional image.
Take Starfucker (often abbreviated STRFKR) for example. They're an indie electronic pop band that's quite popular right now. They said that they chose their incredibly immature band name because they wanted to see how far they could get with a stupid name like that, one that a lot of people aren't even willing to say out loud. In some ways the name is holding them back, as parts of the establishment that don't approve of such foul language aren't willing to sponsor or feature them. However, I kind of like the mischievous spirit of the band, which makes me want to support the band all the more. Maybe I'm alone in this, but I believe an authentic image, even if it's ridiculous, is better than a carefully curated image that's not true to the spirit of the band and its music.

[Dillon Roulet]

Riley Lynch: In many circumstances musicians often try to create a 'larger than life' name that could be interpreted as compensating for a lack of substantial talent.

However, you bring up a good point that many successful musicians choose names they genuinely feel a connection with, which is a great attribute. You are right that authenticity should trump all other imagery, especially in the environment of today's modern music industry. Thanks for the feedback!

[Poppa Madison]

Dillon ( should that be M'sieu Roulet ?) if so...... Commontalezvous?

Your article makes absolute sense ....to me.

I am a closet composer and singer with no real desire to physically go public as at 70 I don't feel I have the wish to nor the constitution to stand the pressure and hype of it all.

As "The Goons" might have put it........

I sit in my little closet..... with my DAW wide open and my mouse clutched tightly in my once nimble fingers. I do not tickle my ivories as they no longer work.
My computers they talk to each other.....which is more that most people do with me...but I do not let that bother me!
I digitally manipulate everything around me that I used to do in a former analogue life where I virtually did everything for real. ' Sa troof !
Whooh !
An' now fellow nutters I do not understand nuffing about what I am doing and nobody cares so why should I?
But I do ! As you all cannot see !

So from Bluebottle to you it's TTFN and LGBTAN.
Which for the incontinenti ( who I hope whose appetite I have wetted instead!) and others who know nothing, means..... Let's get back to ANALOGUE Now !

Poppa
© ♯♪♫ ♂PM

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/poppamadison