The first I heard about the scandal at NPR was a tweet from my former colleague at WXPN, Bruce Warren: That sounds about right. In case you haven’t been following the news, a senior NPR official got pranked by a…
How microfunding sites like Kickstarter can stifle success.
Michael Epstein suggests that microfunding better suits a label model, where funders on a Kickstarter-type campaign can invest in a slate of projects rather than in a particular artist. Scott Andrew notes that sites like RocketHub encourage some acts to…
Finding the Twinsumers in your perfect audience.
I love reading the monthly briefings from the Trendwatching team. This year, they called out “Twinsumers” and “Social-lites” as part of their 11 Crucial Consumer Trends for 2011. Grow Your Band’s Audience charts a course for finding “your perfect audience.”…
How to offer your services as a producer, and how to find local talent.
Mailbag time! One of our readers writes: I am into urban/dance music. This relies on an artist as well as a producer. I’m a producer. Here is what I am willing to offer the artist: -I am willing to allow…
Bieber’s Grammy Snub, Explained
Steve Stoute’s a little angry at NARAS. Every year, folks complain about a Grammy snub. But Steve’s wondering aloud, in an open letter to the New York Times, whether the Grammy voters have consistently snubbed “pop culture” with its selections…
What’s Culturally Significant? (Part 2)
A few weeks ago, I joined a gathering of about a hundred professionals from the arts, entertainment, and creative communities in Philadelphia to discuss the concept of “creative vitality” in our city. The fact that all of these talented individuals…
What’s Culturally Significant? (Part 1)
Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Annette John-Hall covers a delicate controversy brewing just a few blocks from my home: Jamaican Jerk Hut–one of the places I thought I’d truly regret leaving behind the second time I moved away from Philly–has a new…
How to tell people you make music for a living.
It’s so easy to focus on social media marketing and street team strategies, that we often overlook some of the most basic ways that you can grow your audience. Every day, someone probably asks you what you do for a…
How learning to hear “no” can save your career.
Yesterday, I wrote about how our culture cast Simon Cowell as the villain of American Idol, just because he has the audacity to tell people “no.” We’re so concerned with being liked, with validating everyone’s experiences, and with wanting happy…
Why you should learn to say “No” like Simon Cowell.
If you believe the news reports from the Television Critics Association, there’s “no villain” on American Idol now that Simon Cowell has left for the American version of X-Factor. That’s a shame. American culture has evolved in the past few…
Why you should ignore thousands of music consultants…
…also known as your fans. While this will sound a little contradictory coming from the guy that wrote two books about audience engagement (with a third on the way), think about the qualities that drew your fans to you in…
Where can you sell your music online?
If you’re not already immersed in the entertainment e-commerce industry, you could face an overwhelming number of choices. Consultants and web contractors may want to charge you hundreds of dollars a month to develop and host custom solutions for selling…