How To Better Your Songwriting Skills

    Songwriting has 5 key components and those are melody, harmony, lyrics, rhythm and structure. You can start with any key component, but make sure it goes along with the rest of the components. First off, don’t be a perfectionist. This will slow down your creative process. It’s always good to experiment with different ideas and put all your thoughts outs. Good or bad. Next, it’s always good to receive feedbacks.  Mainly, take tips from honest people. Not your friends or family. This will make you better your skills. Don’t be afraid to break the rules and do what works for you. Everybody skills are different so embrace your skills. Unique songwriters always make it far into the business. Always practice, work hard and never give up. There are disadvantages of being songwriters. The main one is the rejection. Every songwriter wants a publishing deal, but few get it. Like I mentioned before, never give up. In my opinion, it does take time to get publishing deals. Top songwriters in America got their publishing deals less than 5 years. It might may take longer than most. Believe in yourself and everything will fall into place. Once you are done with your song, try to listen and analyze your song. Critique yourself; you might want to change something or say it differently.  Nowadays, songs out there are simple and catch the audience’s attention. It’s great to work with other songwriters. Just try it, if you are new. There are many advantages such faster songwriting process and double the creative ideas. There are disadvantages such as arguing and one does more work than the other. It’s good to move away from your comfort zone. Lastly, take regular breaks. Everyone needs a brain break. If you have writer’s block, take a break also and come back to your session. To avoid writer’s block, try to read and write more and exercise your brain. Try to take brain breaks in-between your session.

Music Think Tank. (2015). Top 10 rules for better songwriting. Retrieved from http://www.musicthinktank.com/mtt-open/wurrly-new-singing-app-if-you-have-a-voice-dont-save-it-for.html

Peter Spellman and Tim Berry

As I was researching different writers, I came across Peter Spellman and Tim Berry. Peter Spellman is an author and director of Career Development at Berklee College of Music. Back in 2000, he wrote The Self-Promoting Musician: Strategies for Independent Music Success. The Musician's Internet: Online Strategies for Success in the Music Industry in 2002. Peter Spellman also wrote other business development books. Music entrepreneurs use these guides to help them in the music industry.  Due to his successful writing, he has been a guest speaker at many schools and made different appearances on publications.  Peter Spellman wrote an amazing article on the music business plan. He says, “A music business plan is the map to the fulfillment of your goals”. (Spellman, 2003) There are many benefits when it comes to writing a music business plan. Peter suggested that key components that investors are looking for in a plan include:

·      Description of your company & product/service

·      Cash flow projection

·      Analysis of your company (strengths, weakness, opportunities & threats)

·      How you plan to market the product/service

These are considered key because it’s a big part of my business plan. For my business plan, I’m considering Description of your company & product/service. Without those, investors wouldn’t able to grasp my basic ideas of my business plan.

Tim Berry is an author, entrepreneur, investor and business planner.  He founded Bplans.com, co-founded HavePresence.com and judge for international business competitions. He also wrote an informative article and published on Entrepreneur

Press. In his article, Tim Berry mentioned that all investors are not the same. Some work in a large firm, small firms or private investors. A business plan really helps the entrepreneur get started on their business. Peter suggested that key components that investors are looking for in a plan includes:

·      Management team with track records

·      Clear statement of the investment offering

·      Clear exit strategy

·      Summary/conclusion

These are considered key because this helps the investor understand the business plan.  For my business plan I’m considering summary/conclusion because it sums it the business plan in a whole.

Spellman, P. (2003). Writing a music business plan that works . Retrieved from http://www.mbsolutions.com/articles/writing_music_business_plan.html

Spellman, P. (2003). About us. Retrieved from http://www.mbsolutions.com/about/bio.html

Tim Berry. (2015). what investors look for in a plan . Retrieved from http://www.entrepreneur.com/article.79834

Tim Berry. (2015). Tim berry. Retrieved from

 http://www.entrepreneur.com/author/timberry

Music Career with ReverbNation

    Besides creating music, I’ve found a platform for musicians to share and sell their music. The site is called ReverbNation. It’s just like Soundcloud, where a musician can upload, share and promote their music. ReverbNation offers a better opportunity to musicians such as connect with industry professionals and fans. This site also provides tools, applications and services for musicians to launch their music career. It’s a great way to communicate with fans. ReverbNation was launched in 2006 and been successful ever since. Their main goal is to advance a musician’s career. I really do think it’s a great site for musicians to manage their career. By browsing through the site, I can tell they take musician very seriously. It looks professional, clean and vibrant.  There are more opportunities for an artist such as performances, placements on TV/Film and music for big brands.  Artists mainly perform in music festivals such as Summerfest, HardRock, Firefly and many more. It’s a great way to gain fans. ReverbNation has a feature called Crowd Picks. It’s when everyday people can listen to your music and let’s ReverbNation know what the listener likes. This is how ReverbNation determines top song and artist on the site. It’s pretty cool when your music gets a little fame in front of the site. ReverbNation provides the best for musicians. There are tools that they provide to create your profile.  Tools such press kit, site builder, widgets and apps. This set of tools is for musician, who wants to professionally present him or herself for Industry professionals. There are tools for engaging with fans such as FanReach and SocialSync. Musician use these tools for connecting with fans through emails and social media with one click. The best tool that they have is selling your music directly to fans on their profile or through digital distribution. Musician can sell their music on streaming services and gets to keep both rights and royalties. If you want to take your music career to the next level check out ReverbNation. Some people don’t want to pay the whole price so there are different price options. Tools can be sold separately.  Check out their opportunity video!

References

Doernberg, M. (2015). Reverbnation. Retrieved from http://www.reverbnation.com/

Video:  (2015). Opportunities on ReverbNation [Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz4rHOJ4sLc
 

 

Publishing Issue: Music Streaming Services vs. Songwriters (ASCAP & BMI)

PRO’s complained that streaming services are not fair to their songwriters.  They just want to update the calculating royalties for songwriters and composers. Representatives are using antitrust consent decree. It’s an anti trust law made back in 1941. The issue is brought to the federal government to determine everything. Everyone knows streaming is taking over. Currently, Jay Z bought a streaming service called Tidal. He’s hoping it will be a big streaming service such as Pandora, Spotify and iTunes.

CEO of ASCAP, Elizabeth Mathews, stated, “The use of music has increased exponentially, but the payments have not followed.” She thinks some day the there won’t be any PROs anymore and everyone will switch to streaming.

I think that the songwriters do get paid too little.  Many listeners always play music from streaming services daily. Some songwriters never got paid. There’s an article about singer-songwriter, Ne-Yo, complaining about the streaming services and wants to warn other songwriters.  Here the link: http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/permalink/2015/04/23/ne-yo-streaming-companies-enjoy-billion-dollar-revenues-at-our-expense

It takes 1 million streams for a songwriter to receive $90. If there are multiple songwriters in one song, then that $90 is split.  On the other hand, Tidal want artists to have more control of their songs. There are advantages and disadvantages for both the consumer and songwriters.  

Streaming service companies are defiantly taking advantage of consent decrees and songwriters. Songwriter Equity Act that can help shape up the licensing system. There might be a change, but no guarantee. Technology is changing our future and it does affect the music industry. It’s hard for a songwriter to make money because of publishing companies, collaborations, piracy and streaming services. I do agree with Ne-Yo because streaming services are a billion dollars companies. Streaming companies generate revenues from subscriptions and advertisements, but listeners can listen to free music all day.  

Ted Talk Review: Simon Sinek

The brand that embodies the why, how what format is Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola has been a brand for many decades.  Coca Cola is a beverage company. Their purpose is to spread happiness across the world. The company sells drinks online, stores, and vending machines. The drink satisfies loyal customers and yet continues to do so. Unlike Pepsi, Coca-Cola has a different way of sending messages through people. Their goal isn’t to change the world, but to bring a smile on a person’s face. The brand represents their main color. Red represents passion, happiness and love.  By using positive message, that is how this company thrives in the industry.  You really can’t compare beverages out there because each messages are different.  I’m sure everyone across the United States drank Coca-Cola at least once.

    Two products I researched are Beats by Dre headphones and bought Promaster Selfie Stick. Beats by Dre headphones were developed by Dr. Dre in 2008. When the products were released everyone went out and bought them. I didn’t really care too much about it because I usually wait years later to buy it. Before I researched, my friends suggested that I should test the product. Under the law of diffusion, I fell into the category of early majority.  I fall in this category because I’m very practical and I wouldn’t try the product right away. I don’t always waste my money on something I haven’t tried yet. I ask for advice from friends and decide whether to purchase the product or not.  When I researched I saw good and bad reviews that’s why I pursue this product in a unique manner. I recently purchased Promaster Selfie Stick because it’s new and looks very essential.  I think it’s a great idea because many people can take better pictures without stretching their arm too far. Some people might consider it’s a horrible idea, but I think it’s pretty cool. Under the law of diffusion, I fall into the category of innovators.  I fell in this category because I like to try new products that look important to have. It’s a creative, fun and essentially that’s why I pursue this product in a unique manner.

Citations

Buzzfeed. (2015). Promaster selfie stick. Retrieved from http://www.buzzfeed.com/charliewarzel/whether-you-like-it-or-not-everyone-is-going-to-be-wielding

Coca-Cola. (2015). happiness. Retrieved from http://us.coca-cola.com/happiness/

Dr. Dre. (2015). Beats by dre. Retrieved from http://www.beatsbydre.com/aboutus

TED Talk . (2009). Ted: Simon sinek. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action

One Million Cups Video Review

     A presentation that I will be reviewing is Talent4Startups. The business pitch is mainly about an online startup company. It’ s a free matchmaking platform for startup founders to connect with talents. It’s a non-profit and the focuses on helping instead of competition. I saw many strengths and weaknesses during the pitch presentation. His strengths are connecting with the audience, speaking clearly and pacing himself. His weaknesses are looking at the slide show during the presentation, saying “um” and many words on the slides. I can tell he was nervous at the beginning. Later on he got comfortable presenting. He really connected with the audience by asking questions and interacting with them. He spoke clearly. I can understand him by his accent. He did a great job on pacing himself. He talked for a minute on each slide. I had noticed that he kept looking back at the presentation.  I think he wanted to make sure his words and the slides matched or he was just nervous. It was constant. I also noticed that he said “um” a whole lot. He said “um” in every other sentence.  I think that his nervousness again, but I’m not sure. There were many words on each slide. I couldn’t see any of those words from my point of view. Overall, he did okay. I know that he could have done a lot better If wasn’t so nervous.  He can improve on slides. His presentation was better than his slides. The slides had way too many words. I would recommend having a picture and/or having few words with bullets. I would put a word and describe the business that way instead reading right off the slide. He did well without having note cards. When I would present to the class, I would carry note cards with me. If I didn’t present with note cards, I would also read my slides. Practice makes perfect. For the business concept, he should improve on explaining more about his platform. The presenter should talk about what’s in the platform, how everything works and how to use the platform. He briefly talked about it. I would recommend having a visual layout of his platform on his slideshow.  

Industry Liabilities Blog

Warner Music Group Settles Lawsuit

There was lawsuit against Warner Music Group for unpaid intern.  Kyle Grant interned for them back in August of 2012 and Justin Henry interned for them back in October 2007.  There were roughly around 3,000 ex-interns that filed a labor violation claims against the music group. According to Hollywood Reporter (2015), there will be a settlement around March 9^th. Other companies such as Viacom, NBCUniversal an ICM settled their claims. I personally think that Warner Music Group should pay the amount because there are other ex-interns that made claims. Warner Music Group is slowly having a bad reputation. I was actually thinking about interning for that company. After reviewing this article, I’ve decided not to. I don’t want to be the next person filing a lawsuit against them.  

Michael Jackson’s Family and AEG Case

Back in 2010, Katherine Jackson filed a 1.5 billion lawsuit against AEG Live (concert promoter). The family believed that the concert promoter company hired Dr. Conrad Murray to kill Michael Jackson by giving him anesthetic. According to Hollywood Reporter (2015), the family though that it’s an “involuntary manslaughter” at that time. In 2013, the jury ruled that AEG Live had nothing to do with Michael Jackson’s death. In 2014, the family had a new trail, but was later denied by appellate court of California. The court looked at the past trails, summary decision and facts. There was still no evidence of the claim. I believe that the family should go after Conrad Murray. AEG Live hired him as independent contractor, but the company nothing to do with his death. The family should find peace and stop going after AEG Live.

American Idol Winner Files a Claim Against American Idol

Phillip Phillips was the season 11 winner of American Idol. After his stardom, he believed that companies had manipulated him into getting jobs. He felt forced performing for idol sponsors for free and wants to comfortably run his career.  When the last album released, Phillip Phillips didn’t know the title. Talent Agency Act of California states that person need as to be license in order for them to act as agency.  The problem is that Phillip Phillips signed multiples of contracts before becoming an official winner. He thinks that 19 Entertainment violated the act because the company is not an agency. He also had commission and producers problems. The rate was too high.  Everything that 19 Entertainment did wasn’t Phillip Phillips best interest. I personally think Phillip Phillips should’ve negotiated. 19 Entertainment is just following what the contract says. It’s a lesson learned for him and other future contestants can learn from this too.

References

Gardner, E. (2015, January 26). 'american idol' winner files bold legal claim to escape 'oppressive' contracts (exclusive). Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/american-idol-winner-files-bold-767088

Gardner, E. (2015, Janurary 30). Warner music group settles lawsuit over unpaid interns. Retrieved from www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/warner-music-group-settles-lawsuit-768614

Siegemund-Broka , A. (2015, Janurary 30). Michael jackson's family can't revive $1.5 billion aeg case. Retrieved from http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/michael-jacksons-family-cant-revive-768684