Ray Beckerman has posted the most definitive guide to the RIAA’s practice of scaring the wits out of consumers with copyright infringement lawsuits. At the crux of the strategy is the realization that many of the “John Does” in each…
Stay safe on the Web!
Sometimes I have to stop and remind myself that, for a lot of musicians, the Web is a brand-new place. And with more and more indie musicians trying out services like eBay and Paypal to sell CDs and merch, a…
RIAA to YouTube: You’re Next.
I was working in radio, and part of a team that was running what was, at the time, one of the ten most-listened-to live streams in the world, when the RIAA and the PROs steamrolled streaming radio with some pretty…
Using zone strategy with your mailing list
If you’re a practitioner of Joe’s zone strategy for booking gigs, here’s a tip that’s served me well: incorporate your zones into your mailing list for more accurate mailings. It occurred to me that it doesn’t always make sense to…
What if lack of net neutrality dictated your playlist?
I honestly hadn’t thought about this until now… If the record industry, which has used payola and co-op dollars for decades to squeeze small artists out of radio playlists and off of record store shelves, could actually pay cable and…
Lefsetz on Downloads: WTF?
Lefsetz has some choice language for record execs that don’t understand why there are still ten illegal downloads of a hit song for each paid download. And he wonders why nobody in the mainstream media’s writing/thinking about why this whole…
Music Business Radio – Street Teams
I’m one of the guests on David Hooper’s Music Business Radio this week, and we talked a lot about street teams and growing your own audience. (We talked a lot about Music Hates You, in fact — the guys have…
Music Business Contracts TeleClass tomorrow!
Here’s one final reminder about tomorrow’s conference call! Music Business Contracts Everyone thinks it’s smart (if not essential) to consult an attorney before signing any music business contracts. If you’re still struggling to pay your bills, spending money on billable…
Hem: Liberty Mutual’s Accomplishing What DreamWorks Couldn’t
Hem has been honing their sound — a blend of etherial vocals and Americana — for close to seven years now. DreamWorks signed them in 2003, but couldn’t make their records click at radio. Luckily, they’ve moved on to Rounder,…
New Tastemakers
Back in about 1996, I decided to shift my career away from music programming and toward production. That’s because I simply didn’t have the memory capacity of my colleagues, who can remember everything about every act they’ve ever heard. (A…
Sales Drive Radio Airplay, Not Vice Versa
Yes, back when guys like Cousin Brucie and Dick Clark could open a mic and cause a Sam Goody stampede, radio (and TV) could dictate what records flew off store shelves. Not today. Focus groups and sales forecasts determine what…
How much destruction can a rock star write off on his or her taxes?
Here’s an awesome interview with an experienced band business manager about the kind of expenses he sees each week from his clients (and other musicians). Smashed Guitar? Investment in your image. Nephew wants to open a bar? Stay away, especially…