By: Bob Lefstez
1. Material
It's an old cliche, but you're only as good as your songs. But
DON'T make the mistake of believing there's only one song
formula. If so, you'll miss out on Yes' "Roundabout". The point
is, how you look, how you fit into the scene, your IMAGE is
secondary to what you're actually playing. And, if you want
career longevity, you've got to write your own material. Oh,
there are exceptions. Very COSTLY exceptions. Try breaking a
diva. But, by writing your own material you give people a chance
to BELIEVE IN YOU! Without revealing yourself, there's no hook.
Revealing yourself in "Vanity Fair", or god help me "Us", is not
like revealing yourself in your songs. Music has a power, a way
of conveying meaning that NOTHING ELSE CAN! No image, no other
words. If you're truly smart, just put out the songs and say
very little.
2. Website
Create a place where fans can rally, where people can discover
your music. Be SURE the URL is your band name only, that your
site is not hosted at another server and the URL is mac.com or
msn.com or ANYTHING ELSE dot com. And, this site must be FAST!
And never run out of capacity. How the site itself looks is
ALMOST IRRELEVANT! One can make a strong case that the fancier
the site, the bigger the turn-off to the public. If you can
afford a Flash programmer, what are your priorities? Music or
image? Your site doesn't have to be as basic as craigslist.org,
but Craig has got it much more right than wrong. His site is
intuitive, and FAST! You can find what you need immediately.
Which is why at the top of your homepage you're going to have:
Bio, News, Music, Tour Dates, Message Board, Contact. Put these
in BIG LETTERS at the TOP OF THE PAGE! Don't make it TOUGH for
people.
And, if you're VERY smart, you're going to give away MP3s.
Hopefully on the homepage, with no click-through required.
That's the key, to GET YOUR MUSIC OUT THERE! DO NOT STREAM YOUR
MUSIC! If for no other reason that at today's Internet speeds
there's a delay, and most of the streaming software sucks. And
NEVER have music launch with the site itself. This is anathema
to the surfer. If he can find your site, he can find your music,
assuming you make it easily locatable on your page!
3. Empower Your Fans
DON'T create a street team. At least nothing CALLED this. Just
give fans tools to get the word out. Make it easy for them to
e-mail MP3s. Make it easy for them to communicate with OTHER
fans.
And when you go on tour, EMPLOY YOUR FAN BASE! If you've made it
and are flying, have them pick you up at the airport. But, since
you're developing, have them host you at their houses. For
dinner, to SLEEP! This will be a story they'll never forget.
You can count on them FOREVER! They'll be HEROES in their town
if you ever make it. Let the hard core into the gig for free.
And give a discount to others on your Website. And, at the gig,
give them stickers, and posters, and any other kind of
memorabilia you can come up with. People want a piece of you, it
helps them believe, GIVE IT TO THEM!
And put up an MP3 of the show on your site. People want to
remember the gig THEY were at. And, if you can afford it, give
away music at the show. It would be best to allow them to plug
their iPods in to get tracks, but you can always give away CDs.
4. Embrace File-Trading
If you want to break an act, you MUST support P2P. Because it
spreads the word that you're into spreading the MUSIC! That
THAT'S what's important. It's a signal for your fans to do their
work, that you're supporting them. As for losing sales... True
fans want the CD anyway. At least for now.
5. Touring
If you don't play live, you can't make it in the new paradigm.
Non-tourers should sign to a major label, and utilize their
marketing dollars. Otherwise, buy a van and some gas, and hit
the boards. Play ANYWHERE and EVERYWHERE you can. Hopefully,
multiple times/gigs a week. Because NOTHING builds a fan base
like live shows. People can feel the energy, they can feel the
MUSIC! They have an EVENING, where they hang with their buddies,
and make new friends. Every gig should resemble a night at
summer camp. An indelible life-changing experience that you'll
never forget. Start locally, and then build regionally. DON'T
worry about conquering the whole nation, or world. There's TIME
for that. Great acts develop slowly. AND, unlike in the olden
days, with the Internet and a mobile society, if you make it in
one place the people from that region will go to college or move
elsewhere and create a fan base you can play to live in this NEW
market.
6. Radio
Don't pay anybody to get you on. And don't service a station.
If a station isn't coming after you, FORGET ABOUT THEM! Except
for non-commercial stations. Play ball with college stations,
and public radio stations that have music shows that expose your
genre. People who listen to THESE stations BELIEVE IN THEM! And
thus, will be prone to believing in you. Sure, if a big station
plays you, and if you're hot, eventually they will, things are
changing, SUPPORT THEM! Go give an interview. But DON'T play
the radio show/radio station concert/gig. This cavalcade of
stars behemoth rapes you of your specialness. You specialize in
blowing people's minds at a special event that burnishes YOUR
image, not SOMEBODY ELSE'S!
And, support satellite radio (send THEM your music), and in the
coming years, Internet radio. Sure, the footprint is now small,
but so was FM's in the late sixties. XM is programmed by
believers FOR believers. XM breaks acts. Just VERY slowly. But
that's your strategy, so THROW IN WITH THEM, establish a
RELATIONSHIP!
7. Never Sell-Out
It stops your fan base in its tracks. Oh, you might get some
casual listeners exposed to your music, but the hard core will
now be done with you. They thought you were THEIRS, but now they
realize you're Madison Avenue's. No one's lining up to get
endorsements from THEM! The corporations are the ENEMY! If you
switch teams, you're done!
Once you make it, your image is EVERYTHING! It must be guarded
PRECIOUSLY! You have to make sure people still believe in you.
Partying at star waterholes, buying Rolls-Royces which are
featured in tabloids...you become a CARTOON, and nobody believes
in a cartoon (other than the REAL cartoons, like "The Simpsons",
which have more credibility than today's musicians).
8. Maintenance
A constant flow of product. A new record a year at least. Look
at the Dave Matthews Band, there's at least one authorized live
CD package a year. Constantly give away new material on your
Website. Even DEMOS! Don't KEEP the music from people, GIVE IT
TO THEM! They want the WORK projects along with the FINAL
projects!
Don't repeat the formula. Constantly evolve. The Beatles taught
us this, and Madonna reinforced the paradigm. If you're not
growing, you're losing your audience. THEY'RE getting married,
having kids, getting fired, getting divorced, having grandkids.
Why should they expect you to always look the same and play the
same music? The more normal you appear, the more you write about
your life or explore new musical styles, the more people can
relate to you.
9. The Game
Only the game is changing, the music remains the same. It's
about sheer creativity. Capturing lightning in a bottle and
exposing people to it. The only thing that's different is how
this exposure is accomplished.
