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Apr 06
2010
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Magic Pixie Dust for Music Business Success by David RosePosted by David Rose in Music Industry, David Rose, Business View |
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Have you ever found a band (or several) you were convinced would become a success or even be destined to become one of the most popular band on the planet if only other music fans knew they existed? Isn’t it always completely baffling when a band you love doesn’t catch on despite their outstanding talent, songwriting and live shows?
This happened to me many times during my tenure at Yep Roc Records while working with such a great artist roster. In 2004 we had a new release from a band called The Comas I was convinced would be one of the best selling indie rock releases of the year. The Comas are a very talented band and Conductor , based on singer Andy’s Herrod’s breakup with Dawson’s Creek star Michelle Williams , was a great release. Additionally, director Brent Bonacorso created an amazing full length video based on the album that was included as a DVD in the CD’s packaging.
I thought once we executed the publicity plan, music fans of the world would have a new favorite band and Conductor would be sitting at the top of the indie charts.
The label committed fully to this release with new media, publicity, radio promotions, and retail marketing to build awareness; plus, provided a tour support budget to get the band on the road. The band and release were embraced by the media, a few of the successes included:
- An 8 (out of 10) rating from indie tastemaker Pitchfork Media
- Named to Rolling Stone Magazine’s “Top 10 Bands You Haven’t Heard of"
- Magnet Magazine’s # 3 record of the year
- Multiple songs added into the rotation at KEXP plus a featured interview and in studio performance
- Yahoo Music “One to Watch” selection that included an in studio performance and interview plus a full day feature on theYahoo.com homepage
Conductor sold just
over 5000 total units despite strong media coverage and all the other
things the band and release had going for them. At 5000 units the record was unprofitable for both the label and the band. The Comas moved to
Vagrant Records for their next release in hopes of finding greater
success. Unfortunately their 2007 release Spells sold even fewer
units than Conductor.
How could a great band with a great release and full backing from their label and distributor not be more successful? Unfortuately, for some reason many bands simply don’t catch on with music fans or become a commercial success.
I have come to the realization over the years that there is some type of unseen “X” factor at work for bands that become successful. Some bands hit, some bands don’t and it’s not always clear why. Ask any experienced musician or industry professional and they will most likely tell you the same thing. I’ve taken to calling this “X” factor magic pixie dust since it’s not easily defined and quite elusive. Magic pixie dust isn’t available from a different publicist or found at the newest online music website to be sure.
How do you go about finding this magic pixie dust? No one knows for sure, but I’m of the opinion that it has to find you. The only way to put yourself in a position to be found is to work hard at your craft, play as many live shows as possible, build up your fan base and simply persevere through all the challenges you face every day as an artist pursuing your passion. You never know when a little magic pixie dust might come your way.
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written by David Rose, April 08, 2010
Thank your for the comment and email! Yep Roc was an early adapter of almost every online music site available at the time including iTunes, eMusic, Rhapsody (and a bunch of other online music sites that aren't around anymore...). Conductor was widely available online in multiple formats, including individual track downloads.
You're certainly correct when you point out that music industry revenues were already in full decline by 2004 but it's difficult to correlate the industry's decline to indie rock releases across the board. For example, 2004 was the year Arcade Fire's Funeral really caught fire (no pun intended).
I've repeatedly seen some really great bands and records just not catch on with fans for one reason or another. On the other hand, all music fans can name several mediocre releases that were wildly popular. I would like to believe that talent and hard work always leads to success but unfortunately, it doesn't work out that way every time.
Does "Magic Pixie Dust" just equal luck when it comes to commercial success for a band or release? I really don't know. But, if I ever figure out the answer to that question I'll be sure to post it here!
Thanks,
David
written by Bob Ostrow, April 09, 2010
written by David Rose, April 11, 2010
You are so right about Chuck Prophet! Like so many great Yep Roc artists including John Doe, Dave Alvin, Robyn Hitchcock, Peter Case, Grant Lee Phillips and Todd Snider, Chuck is a super talented artist who doesn't garner the attention he deserves.
Chuck wrote a really great guest blog post for us last year. Click here to check it out or type in Chuck's name in the search bar at the top right of the page to read it.
Thanks,
David
I thought this was a really funny post, but at the end of the day, bad luck is bad luck is bad luck. And the Comas ran into some of the worst bad luck in recent history, just an awful convergence of outside cultural factors.
That album WAS really awesome, but it also came out a year after the launch of the iTunes Music Store. At that time, music fans of every stripe were captivated by the idea of a pay-per-song model, and it made the idea of shelling out for an album seem like a sucker's proposition, especially amongst the population that the Comas record probably should have resonated most with.
At the risk of oversimplifying things, I think you could make the argument that this iTunes-spurred shift contributed significantly to the ensuing 30% decline in revenue across the industry that occurred over the next five years.