after watching the grammys last night, i went to bed so inspired by all the amazing nominees and winners and my new found respect for their, dedication, drive, ambition and passion for their craft. then i thought about the talented and [not-so-talented] people i have come across and came up with this list based on some conversations and observations:

signs of a not-so-serious artist

• your main goal is to get signed to a record deal but then when asked why you want a record deal you can’t really answer that other than saying you just want to make it.
• you don’t understand record label terms such as recoupable, advance, mechanical royalties, masters, etc.
  when you think advice, valuable contacts, & direct assistance should be free.
• you think that getting a manager will jump start your career but don’t understand that you have to be at certain stage in your development before even taking on a manager who can do the things you expect should happen.
• when you think that getting your song on mainstream radio means that you have made it and the rest is just supposed to fall in place.
• you don’t know how to get booked for paid concerts but feel you are ready to hit the stage.
• you name drop prominent artists you have worked with in the past but your music doesn’t reflect that you have worked with any current established artists and the way you represent yourself doesn’t reflect that any reputable industry business person would be affiliated with you.

i couldnt come up with any more after that, my head started to hurt.
but do you agree with this list?
am i generalizing or way off?
if some of you artists are experiencing some of the above, what EXACTLY are your challenges?

im just at a cross roads as to why some amazingly talented people win grammys, and other amazingly talented people stay stagnent or cant peak in their careers.

always from a place of love,

~lissa

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when i hear or read about a new artist, its like second nature for me to hit google and find out everything about you.
sometimes unfortunately thats where the discovery ends *womp*.

my issue with undiscovered recording artists is that when i hear about you, i spend two minutes googling you, then sometimes i spend another ten to twenty minutes trying to find avenues to download or buy your music forcing me to do various annoying things such as – searching through iTunes, seeing if you are available on eMusic, or scouring the web for torrent files which i hate because its virus central (yucky).

from a user experience perspective, this sucks and deters a good amount of your potential target audience (aka me) away from finding actual copies of the music in exchange for the ability to blog about/stream/download/buy music.

sooooooo how can we fix this?

well, a few companies have been working to develop open Application Program Interfaces (API) music e-commerce stores which can be easily integrated on any web page [aka floating music players that give users an option to listen, download & buy music in the same place]. imagine visiting an artist’s website and being able to access an entire discography with the ability to stream and purchase songs, without ever leaving the page *excited*.

with the uncertainty of myspace, that application might just come in handy right now.
besides, myspace only is a portal for discovery not commerce.

until that miracle widget is developed, in the meantime i suggest recording artists research and map out their target audience and connect with the bloggers that speak to those specific people.

however, dont force feed anything, just make it happen organically.
any blog post is better than no blog post at all….

just make sure you are accessible and googleable online.

just my thoughts,
~lissa

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1. 10 Reasons Why Most Demos Get Rejected #ArtistTips No disclaimer for this one, just apply it to whatever...

No disclaimer for this one, just apply it to whatever your doing now and improve the quality of your hustle.

~lissa

10 Reasons Demos are Rejected:

1. No Contact Information on CDR and/or CDR container
(put your name, address, email, URL, MySpace address, and your phone number on both
[this should be common sence - however im sure its done ALL the time. A&R's dont have time to 'google' you, especially if you are virtually unknown -  pun intended.]

2. Lack of Originality – just because you can record, doesn’t mean your music is worth recording
[make sure your music is relatable, clear in communication and innovative, A&Rs are just looking for something that will stand out. and it could something as simple as melody lines and vocal delivery. your demo doesnt have to come with holographic images, just natural talent and maketability.]

3. The Music Is Good, But The Artist Doesn’t Play Live – this applies to all genres of music except electroninca and experimental music
[Not everyone is a Maxwell or an Alicia Keys, but if you only sound good in the studio, make money as a songwriter.]

4. Poorly Recorded Material
[Invest in your craft and get your music mixed and mastered. Learn to do it yourself, but make sure you have someone more experienced than you to make sure your music isnt killing someones eardrums.]

5. Best songs are not identified or highlighted on the CD or the CDR
 – send only 3 or 4 songs and highlight the best ones
[I will also like to add, TAG YOUR GOD DAMNED MP3's properly. "Track 1 Mastered" is not the title of your song im sure.]

6. Sending Videos In Place Of CDRs
[I know we live in a digital marketing age, but video should be secondary.]

7. Sending Unsolicited Recordings
[You sent them, but they never asked for them…which means they will probably mail them back to you, or never play it at all. Make that personal connection first before you send anyone anything.]

8. Sending The Wrong Music To The Wrong Label
[Do your research to make sure the label is the RIGHT FIT for your music.]

9. Musicians Can’t Play Their Instruments Competently – this is so basic, but you would be astounded at how incompetant most start-up musicians are

10. The Music Sucks
[Try this exercise: send your demo out to 50 A&Rs and lebel reps and if no one responds then read this]

This list was put together by Christopher Knab who is an independent music business consultant based in Seattle, Washington.

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DISCLAIMER: this comes from the heart. in no way am i targeting anyone in particular, but if this does speak to you and your particular situation. fall back, reevaluate and think twice.

so…
you have been ‘on your grind’
you have been ‘putting in work’
you have been ‘hustling’
for the past 6 or 7 years and you find yourself in the same exact spot that you were in 6 or 7 years ago.
you may have had some successes along the way, possibly some windows of opportunity, but did you maximize them to your fullest potential?
if not, then you dont want it as bad as the rest of us do.
and if so, why are you still here?

i think ALL aspiring artists (with or without talent) should have realistic conversartions with themselves. think about everything and everyone in your life. think about how your ‘grind’ has affected others. think about the amount of money [or lack there of] invested in your career. is it still worth it?

if you have kids – think about the effect its having on them. if its just temporary, then by all means, its a small sacrifice to pay for long term security and stability. but think about the amount of quality time you have [or lack there of] invested in your kids. will they respect you or resent you in the long run. is it still worth it?

those are some of the few real-ass questions artists need to be asking themselves on a regular basis.

a really amazing girlfriend of mine shannae ingleton said these words, “Don’t follow your dreams… Chase them…” We cant chase the dream forever, there has to be a limit.

some of us chase our dreams till we are poor, some of us chase our dreams until we are isolated from our families, some of us chase our dreams until we realize that we have to go back to the 9 to 5.

and there is NOTHING wrong with that.
that’s just you has a person realizing what you need to do in life to really be happy.
as much as we want to be successful, there’s always a price and sometimes it costs you the things closest to you. and you have to ask yourself if you have enough drive, dedication and determination to risk it all.

think it through,
set [realistic] goals,
know your limits,
know when to stop
&
move on to the next.

spoken with the utmost sincerity,
~lissa

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Five years ago, music industry heads would talk for hours about how to get your CD or pressed vinyl into the hands of DJs in clubs or on radio, or even tips on how to press and package a CD that wouldn’t get buried on the desk of an A&R executive at some major label.

Def Jam started this trend back then – label reps just simply bum rushed parties and handed a DJ a record and forced him/her to play new music just to see a crowd reaction to that particular song. It was the greatest form of market research….

That type of guerilla marketing was the blueprint for a lot of marketing plans for major labels.

I’ll tell you first hand that that shit don’t work anymore.

I have attempted twice to throw an event where all you heard was just new, unreleased and rare music, and they have had poor turn outs…everyone could say the regular excuses – the venue was too big, there were a bunch of other parties going on blah blah blah yadda yadda yadda, those that live for discovering new music are like a rare species – there arent very many of us.

There are very few people who go to the club to hear NEW music that they have never heard before…a lot of people would prefer to plan a weekend of partying to hear the same five hits. Just a genuine question to those people…dont you get just a litte bit bored? dont you miss the element of surprise when hearing something in the club that you have never heard before?

Ive come to the conclusion that people will take in new music when they are in a passive state of mind – you know, at home, surfing the net, studying, working out, driving, etc. Not in the club when they want to get drunk and blame it on the alcohol and pretend that they know all about bricks when they make the trap say ay.

I’m constantly looking for the “next” – scouring myspace for the newest artist or the next hottest single. i never listen to the radio. that could be a HUGE mistake, but with so much undiscovered music on the net why listen to the same five to ten  songs on heavy rotation for about 8 hours a day?

~lissa

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If I have never said this before, I think Ne-Yo is a BRILLIANT songwriter. His ability to relate to both men and women is fantastic. Not only do I feel he channels the great Michael Jackson every single time he writes a new song, but I believe he also keeps a specific current artist in mind to shop his demo tracks to.

photo via

Take a listen to “Say Anything,” a song that could be sung by either an male or female vocal artist (you can hear the difference in the verses) about calling out a significant other on their shit.

Who do you hear singing this potential album cut?

I give Mary J. first dibbs to kill this track, however I’m having a hard time figuring out a male vocalist – probably because we’re lacking male r&b artists – but this dope b side could definitely be kept for Ne-Yo himself.

ne-yo-say-anything
~lissa

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Last  Saturday I was an advisor for the Stylus DJ Spinfest conference that featured DJ Drama I met with about 15 people who booked time to ask me questions or advise on a project or music that they were working on. i only had five minutes with them, so i had to talk smart and i had to talk fast. it was a challenge but it was fun.

this morning i got a couple messages in my facebook inbox:

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