9 Steps to Making it in The Music Business Today - What Your Momma Should Have Told You!

I get at least 1 new artist each month asking me for advice or help with their music career. I love to help when I can because when I was a successful songwriter, record producer and score composer, God knows I got tons of help. But there are some basics that young people need to know and do before they approach anyone who might be inclined to help.

So I offer some key information and things to think about for new and aspiring artists that to me seem obvious. Please get a pen. I will give you some time between points for homework.

1. This is a business about creativity and you should be as creative (and good) as possible. If you work with 4 bar loops you have killed at least 50% of your creativity. So, the other 50% better be amazing. If you are younger than 30 years old and trying to make it please remember, 90% of the great music was produced before you were born (If you think I am wrong about this then you are an idiot). So you need to do some musical homework and see what music stars were putting out that built the industry that you are trying to be a part of at the moment. If you listen to the music greats you will find that hardly any of them sound like each other. They all led with their creativity and this key fact (and the fact that they were talented) got them both rich and famous for decades. Try this as strategy for moving your career forward: Make good music that centers around your experiences and opinions and find a unique and popular way to express yourself. I know it is difficult, but this is the key to being a great and long lasting artist.

2. The business has been in a decline for more than a decade and is still going down. The ship is sunk and there is no help coming (no, itunes will not save it). You need to understand why this happened when everyone loves music so much and what you can reasonably expect when you go into the business and if you get signed. Also create 5 alternative ways for yourself to get your music out to the public besides the major record labels. Start down the path of these 5 ways immediately. If you do not do this, you will never make it in the music business.

3. If no one in your immediate circle has ever had good success in the business the odds of you being successful are almost zero. Period. Yes I know about American Idol and the other tv shows discovering unknowns, but compare these three or four people to the 5 million trying to make it and it still amounts to lotto. So, you had better find some experienced people who are down for you and get them on your team. Oh yeah and listen to them. If you cannot get anyone interested, you are not talented enough to make it in this business. Period.

4. The record industry is signing 360 deals which means that instead of only stealing money from your record royalties, they now want to control all of your revenue streams and potentially steal from you no matter where you make money. Why would you sign this type of deal? If you end up getting paid like Lady Gaga or Beyonce because of the majors, this type of deal may be a good thing. But do you understand all of the implications? If you do not, read #5.

5. Understand completely every aspect of the business from writing to production deals to record contracts to touring to what and how you will be paid. If not you are an idiot and you will be treated like one.There is no middle ground here.