DISQUS

np... I'm spending the next few days talking my fiancé into seeing it with me, anyway... you are all helping in my argument with her! heh

That's Daniel Quinn's Ishmael, one of the very best books ever written. No joke. Easily in my top 5 most influential books of my life (so far). :)

Wow, wow, wow.

Now I kinda wish I'd have gone. :)

Love the line "Be one of the few that is clever enough to make money making music instead of pretending it doesn’t matter."

Not just that line, but the whole talk, man... great advice for anyone interested in music business and music education. Thanks!

Wow, wow, wow... congratulations, Derek! Seems like a good match with DiscMakers.

Looking forward to your next steps, and wishing you the very best! Have fun.

I'm envious you had the pleasure of knowing him and learning from him firsthand... I have recommended his book to more than a few, and my kiddos are absolutely decorating their rooms any way they want.

Good of you to post a tribute on here... my sympathies to all his students, friends, and definitely his family.

Congrats, Derek.

I passed these notes (and your doc link) on to a few of the artists I've produced recently.

Your wisdom and experience help in so many ways... thanks.

Marc Broussard's "Home" doesn't feel like a normal pop song to me, whatever that means, but it grooves hard and always gets me singing along (two signs of a great song, imho). Produced and co-written by a good friend of mine, Marshall Altman.

Kevin Gilbert also broke rules (and will break your heart). He was an incredible talent, and in a lot of ways his posthumous quasi-musical The Shaming Of The True is a total rule-breaker (check out "Suit Fugue - Dance Of The A&R Men" if you can find it).

On a completely different emotional tip, I produced a record last year by a kickass up-and-coming band called Northern Room. They had a nice slow track called "Stars Of God" that really came to life when we dug in at the studio. It breaks some typical rules regarding song structure and that approach to the arrangement allowed for a long build up and eventual payoff. Super proud of that one, I am. :) There's some before and after samples at my site for those that might be interested.

Nice tip... always good to have quickie inspiration bits waiting in the wings.

FYI, I just posted at Twitter yesterday that your blog would make a great addition to Kawasaki's music.alltop. Any chance you're jumping on the Twitter bandwagon sometime soon? :)

@ Ronnie... yeah, and you added a nice one, as well :

"If I were a label I don’t think I could sign myself just yet."

More artists should think like that. It's too easy to proclaim you're the Next Big Thing when it's someone else's money on the line.

Record Labels as Venture Capital, that's where my head is at with this issue lately... and these days, as Derek has discussed here previously, artists are able to do a ton on their own, without a traditional record label investing in their dream.

And this list is exactly why I've let my label stagnate and am focusing on production and songwriting instead.

Investing your own time and money in someone else's dream is not a great business plan. I wish I'd read your post about 5 years ago!

"Confidence is needed to shake off previous expertise."

Love that - a great reminder that the skills we spend a lifetime acquiring and developing can indeed become a crutch if we get lazy and complacent.

Digging your blog, Derek. Learning Mandarin and how to surf aren't exactly in my future, but you definitely inspire me.

:)

The challenge for me has always been finding something positive to say when an artist clearly has no business being in the music biz - it's impossible for me to lie with any believability. I can't be saying "aww, man, it's GREAT!" when my eyes and my face are saying something completely opposite of that!

I think you're on the right track... it depends on what stage they're at and what kind of answer they're looking for.

And if they're not "tough enough to ignore [you] if they disagree," then they aren't ready for the big leagues anyway, are they?

As much as I hope with everything in me that people will always pay to support quality artists (musical or other), it is definitely an interesting time to be in this business.

I recently posted about embracing the giveaway/it's-all-promo mentality, but will certainly admit it's not an easy path to follow. I just think it's a reality... startups are competing against staggering odds, and until you have an audience willing to give you their hard earned money it makes sense to me to use the technologies available to get your music to as many people as possible.

Maybe that's the difference. Hmmmm.... keep the free distro as digital, and offer physical product with extra features, artwork, tickets, memberships, whatever, for sale. People that find out about you through free channels will hopefully like what they hear and move on to support you and your musical efforts. That makes some sense.

Argh. No easy answer, to be sure. People have to figure out the best path forward for their own unique situations, I'd say.

Those are all great ideas, and your readers would be well advised to open the minds to the possibilities that are available these days. Your first three brainstorms are exactly how I make a living... spot on, mate!

Haven't played a gig in years... probably over a decade. Mailbox money rules. In fact, it's the de facto retirement plan for myself and staff composers at my company, The Burst Collective.

The money you can make in performance royalties is staggering - but a very wise man once told me I'd never make any money in that end of the business until I decided that's what I was going to do, and that alone. Once there was that focus, the clarity of spirit and confirmation from the universe has been absolutely fantastic.

It is definitely interesting to watch my girlfriend building her skin care business... one of those "in person, hands on" businesses you mention. The differences in how we approach planning our futures are quite stark.

As for the other ideas you're inviting, I'd say there are possibly additional ways to monetize an artist's online presence - as opposed to merely selling access to an portion of your site, you could sell advertising or sponsorships if your traffic was sizeable (or niched just right, too).

Solid advice, to be sure. This is one of the very few Truths About Life I hope to pass on to my kids.

I just know this philosophy is going to make me jump out of a plane someday. Been avoiding it for years... heh.

A very happy birthday to CDBaby, and much success to you, Derek, in all your future endeavors! Exciting times ahead, indeed.