How To Make It in the New Music Business: Practical Tips on Building a Loyal Following and Making a Living as a Musician, 3rd Edition

Cover
Title
Contents
Preface to the Third Edition
Author’s Note
Introduction
1. Why Music?
    What Does Making It Mean?
    The Purpose of the Day Job
    The Backup Plan
    The 26-Year Marathon (The Goals)
    How to Form Your Band
    Why No One Cares About Your Music
    Does Age Matter?
2. The New Industry
    You Thought You Were a Musician
    The 50/50 Rule
    Embrace the Hyphen
    What’s Right and What’s Wrong in Music
    Are You Nearsighted or Farsighted?
    The New Team
    To Sign or Not to Sign
    Manager
    The Bridge: 11 Things Every Band Agreement Needs to Include
    The Bridge: 7 Ways to Find a Manager
    Agent
    Record Label
    How to Get a Record Deal
    The Bridge: How to Get a Record Advance Without a Record Deal
    Publishing Company
    How to Get a Publishing Deal
    Publicist
    How to Find a Publicist
    Attorney
    How to Find an Attorney
    Why Everything You Thought About Streaming Is Wrong
    Fans Aren’t Going to Pay for Music Anymore—and That’s OK
3. Recording
    Getting into the Musical Headspace
    Inspiration Quests
    Active Writing Sessions
    The New Studio
    How You Can Get Anyone in the World to Work on Your Album
    Who Do I Need to Get to Do This Thing? How Much Should I Pay Them? What Are the Steps?
    Producer
    The Bridge: Music Split Sheet Example
    The Recording Studio
    Engineer
    The Home Studio
4. The Release
    I, Artist
    The Power of Video
    How to Create a Great-Looking Music Video on a Tiny Budget
    What Album Cycle?
    Should You Release a Single, an EP or an Album?
    Are Sales Dead?
    Digital Distribution: How to Get Your Music on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon and Everywhere Else
    The Bridge: 26 Things to Do Before You Release Your Song or Album
    The Folder of Assets
    How to Write Your Band Bio
    The Elevator Pitch
    The Rule of 7
    The Album Release Timeline
    A Few Creative Campaigns to Get Your Juices Flowing
5. Building a Fanbase One Fan at a Time
    The New Fan
    The Pyramid of Investment and the Pyramid of Engagement
    Get Rich in Your Niche
    Are You in the Right City for Your Music?
    Los Angeles, New York, London or Nashville?
    Los Angeles
    New York City
    Nashville
    London
    How to Find Who Your Fans Are
    The Bridge: How This Artist Grew to 500,000 Monthly Spotify Followers Without Playlists
    Is Radio Still Important?
    Playlists Are the New Radio
    How to Get Included
    The Bridge: How I Gained 50,000 Followers to My Spotify Playlist
    TikTok Discovery
    Influencer Marketing
    The Mailing List
    The Triple Check
6. Playing Live
    What Happened to Live Music?
    The Purpose of Performing Live
    When to Charge for Shows
    The Perfect 30
    The Power of the Tag
    Behind the Banter
    The Bridge: When Greeting Fans, Never Say “Nice to Meet You”
    The Bridge: 10 Things You Should Never Say Onstage
    Don’t Play to the A**holes
    Does This Mustache Make My A$$ Look Fat?
    How to Hire Freelance Musicians
    The Bridge: 9 Things Every Musician Needs to Know About the Sound Guy
    The Only Way to Prevent Bad Sound
    How to Put Together a Local Headlining Show
    How to Headline on Tour
    How to Be a Great Opening Act
    Playing Live from Home
    The Bridge: 8 Things You Don’t Want to Forget to Do on Show Day
7. Booking and Promotion
    How to Be a Star in Your Hometown
    The Book Sheets: Picking Your Spots
    The Book Sheets: Finding Local Bands
    The Bridge: 11 Things Your EPK Needs to Have
    The Bridge: The Reason You Never Get an Email Response
    What Do You Mean We Don’t Get Paid?!
    Performance Deals: From the Worst to the Best
    What Are Promoters?—And How to Get Opening Slots for Touring Acts
    The Bridge: The Troubadour Said This Was the Best Booking Email Ever
    The Bridge: 11 Things to Do Once You Book the Show
    How to Double Your Income
    Going Rates for Touring Bands Playing Under-500-Cap Rooms
    The Bridge: 10 Steps to Sell Out Your Show
    The Bridge: 9 Things to Consider When Choosing a Venue
    Weddings, Corporate Parties, Proposals, Bar/Bat Mitzvahs and the Weird, Wild, Profitable World of Private Shows
    How to Make Over $100 an Hour Street Performing
    Festivals Are No Longer Just for Hippies, Man: How to Break into the Festival Circuit
    Gig Resources You Need to Know About
8. Touring
    Why Hit the Road
    Where to Tour
    How to Book a National Tour
    Cover Shows
    Tour Responsibilities
    Tour Manager (TM)
    Day Sheets
    Advancing Shows
    The Bridge: It’s Not a Meet and Greet—It’s an Experience
    Lodging
    Merch Sellers
    Per Diem (PD)
    Merch Manager
    FOH
    50 Is the Magic Number
    How to Make $500+ per House Concert
    Opening Tours
    How to Stay Sane on the Road
    The Bridge: 25 Things to Do Before You Leave for Tour
9. How to Make Real Money Playing Colleges and Performing Arts Centers
    What Is the College Market?
    Who Is on the CAB?
    Music Industry vs. College Industry
    Career Building vs. Money Making
    The “Shows”
    What Acts Do Best in the College Circuit?
    NACA and APCA
    Showcases
    Block Booking
    How to Get a Showcase
    Get Ready for the Conference
    Finalizing the Sale
    How to Get a College Booking Agent
    The Top 10 Music College Booking Agencies
    What to Do Once You Have a Show
    Getting Rebooked
    Breaking into Colleges
    The Performing Arts Center Market
10. Sponsorships and Investments
    What Are Sponsorships?
    How to Get a Sponsorship
    How to Get an Investment
    How to Waste an Investment
11. How to Master the Internet
    How to Build a Great-Looking Website with No Web Design Experience
    What Should Go on Your Website
    Places You Need to Be Online
    Constant Creators vs. I, Artists
    Which Social Platforms to Ignore and Which to Master
    The Big 10
    Followers Are Not Necessarily Fans and Fans Are Not Necessarily Followers
    Pick Your One
    YouTube
    Instagram
    TikTok
    Is Facebook Still Important?
    Finding Your Fans Through Advertising
    Twitter
    Snapchat
    Livestreaming
    The Bridge: How This Band Made $250,000 Livestreaming from Home
    The Metaverse
    The Music-Streaming Platforms
    Don’t Lose Focus
12. The New Asking Economy: The Difference Between Asking and Begging
    Crowdfunding vs. Fan Clubs
    What Are the Differences Between Kickstarter and Indiegogo?
    Vinyl Crowdfunding
    The Bridge: 16 Tips for Running a Successful Crowdfunding Campaign
    NFTs for Music Explained in Musician Terms
13. How to Get all the Royalties You Never Knew Existed (and other Business Things You Need to Know)
    Terms You Need to Understand
    The Bridge: How to Collect 100% of Your Performance Royalties
    How to Sign Up for SoundExchange or Your Country’s Neighbouring Rights Organization
    Artist Royalties
    Songwriter Royalties
    How to Release Cover Songs (Legally)
    Right of First Use
    How to Copyright Your Music and Why You Should
    Trademarking Your Band Name
14. How to Get Music Placed in Film and Television
    Movie Trailers
    Commercials
    Movies
    TV Shows
    Video Games
    If It Works, It Works
    Music Supervisors
    The Bridge: 8 Things Every Music Supervisor Wants in a Pitch
    Sync Licensing Companies and Agents
    Music Libraries
    What Do “Nonexclusive” and “Exclusive” Mean?
15. Bump Everyone Else off the Cover
    Three Main Kinds of Press/Media Attention
    How and Why You Should Get Local Press
    How and Why You Should Get Trade Press
    How to Get National Media and Why You Should
    How to Find the Blogs to Contact
    The Blog Sheets
    How to Write a Press Release and Why You Should
    The Critics
16. So, You Don’t Want to be a Musician?
    100+ Jobs in the Music Industry Other Than Recording Artist
17. OUTRO
    Music Publications You Should Be Reading
    Music Podcasts You Should Be Listening To
    My Current Rant About the Music Industry
How I Helped Change a Law for Musicians
Some Words of Caution (and other Stuff You Really Need to Read)
Glossary
Acknowledgments
Index
About the Author
Copyright