From Techdirt.com :

It's hogwash when some repeat the refrain that "artists should just be artists" and not worry about business models, connecting with fans or social networking. It's a claim that is made over and over again -- sometimes by musicians themselves. In the past, we've pointed out that this is fine, if artists just want to be artists then they need to do one of two things: either not expect to make much money or partner with someone who can focus on the business model and social networking side of things.

Click here to read the entire post.

From Artistshousemusic.org:

You’ve decided to form a band. Let’s get your business in order.
What are the most important things you can do to make sure that you don’t trip
yourselves up down the road? What can you do now to make sure that when you hire lawyersand accountants you don’t have to pay later for them to fix business mistakes you could have avoided? Here are 20 questions to ask yourselves before you get too far.

Click here to read the entire post.

From AdvertisingAge :

"How do I get you and your brand clients and agency clients to choose my song or my band for your next major ad campaign?"

The answer is complicated, but the short answer is this: There is no music-branding silver bullet that will skyrocket a developing artist to stardom and riches. Take your time and focus on your own career and we will find you. It's often not the answer these artists want to hear, but it's the truth.

Coca-Cola, Nike and Gap are not going to place your song in a national TV spot or your artist on their billboards or the print ads they are buying in Vanity Fair unless the brand or its agency understands your brand as an artist.

Click here to read Jeff's entire post at AdAge.com.

From Fun with Discs and Downloads :

There’s no shortage of information online about how to monetize your music: sell CDs in stores and online, downloads, merch, synch licensing, live gigs, etc. There’s not nearly as much written about how to maximize your revenues once you’ve made use of the above selling opportunities. Here’s a quick list of some common sense things the average artist can easily implement (and which will show instant results):

Click here to read Tony's entire post.

What do you do?

 It's a question that gets thrown around in any social situation where you're meeting new people.  Songwriters and musicians can often find this a tough question to answer, since the vast majority of us hold day-jobs or other sources of income aside from music-related "work".

Today's article on Serve The Song asks you - songwriters and musicians - how do you answer the question: "what do you do?"

Here's a bit from the article:

Some of us play music on the side, and plan to keep it that way.  Others are working the day-job “for now” until the music thing takes off.  Our split career-personalities come in many forms and variations.

What does your day job say about YOU?  How much of your day-job makes up “what you do”?  Would you base it on the percentage of your income?  Or something a bit more personal?

Check out full article here: Musicians, What Do You Do? (What's Your Answer?). Share your opinions in the comments section of the article.

From About.com Music Careers :

The music industry is changing. Everyone knows that, right? One of the many problems associated with working in an industry in transition is that sometimes the debate over what SHOULD happen or what MIGHT happen masquerades as the truth about what IS happening.

One of the most important tools in your arsenal as you get your music career going is realism - that means being realistic about how much work will be involved in making things happen AND being realistic about the state of the music industry right now.

Click here to read Heather's entire post.

Drummers get to rack up the points at these “fill” queues as well. These are more along the lines of a 10 second drum solo with the drummer having both an ego and a coke problem. Come to think of it, this might be the only real part of the game.

From MusicianWages.com :

Ready to release your own album but not sure where to start? Last week I outlined many factors to consider when preparing your release, and today we’ll cover the basics. In this article you’ll learn where you can sell your album online, what distribution means, how digital music distribution works, and some bare essentials necessary to start selling your music.

Click here to read Cameron's entire post.

From MusicianWages.com

In an industry that is all about networking and who you know, business cards are a great tool. They are a convenient way to give a new friend or business contact a little pocket-sized reminder of who you are, what you do, and how to get in contact with you. Moreover, in a industry where individuality, creativity and quality are valued, musicians need to use business cards that reflect their personality, artistry and character.

There are a lot of different ways to approach the musician business card. Let’s start with some examples.

Click here to read David's entire post.

From Innerrhythm

I had a request recently on how to write a music business plan. Here’s the format I recommend my clients to follow. Call it a template. A music business plan gives you a sense of leadership, strategy and direction and I discussed it briefly in my free e-book , How To Design A Winning And Profitable Music Business.

Whether you are a band, solo artist, songwriter, instrumentalist, producer, manager or any other music industry individual, you need a plan to help you achieve your goals and be fulfilled. The template below will help you create one. In helping to make this template real, I’m going to use a fictitious R&B/soul artist called Tina.

Click here to read the Kavit's entire blog post.

From About.com Music Careers:

Are you thinking of getting into the record label business? Starting your own record label, whether for fun or with hopes of turning into a real, live business, is hard, hard work. Before you make the leap, find out what you are getting into and what you should have in place, so you're set up to make a good go of it. Here's what you need to consider before you start planning that first release.

Click here to read Heather's entire article.

If you want to get a record deal, get people to your shows, or sell music like crazy, the answer isn't some kind of "magic pill" website that you post your music on, blindly sending out a bunch of demos, or anything to do with having good music...although good music certainly helps -- the answer is to develop a "mindset" that naturally attracts people to what you're doing as well as an understanding of how the music business game is played.

As you develop as a person, your music career will develop with you.  Sounds crazy, but it's true...and I've seen it time and time again, with thousands of acts that I've worked with, from garage bands, to the guys selling out arenas.  Check out these ten common music business mistakes:

Click here to read the full post at Music Think Tank Open.

Don't Dream It, Do It!

DEFINE THE DREAM
What is it you are actually trying to do? Be the world's best writer? Become a megastar performer? Lead the church choir? Own a record label that records other acts?

You would not believe how many writer/artists come to me, saying they just want to do "something" in the Music Industry. Sorry, you have to specialize a bit more than that!

Sit down with paper and pen. Define EXACTLY what it is in your heart that you dream of. (Hint, the bigger the dream, the harder to achieve...but as long as you are prepared to give what it takes, you'll find a place in the scheme of things.)

By the way, I have to do this, because I get sidetracked by wanting to do too many things. I constantly have to reassess projects and schedules...just part of business in a busy, busy world.

RESEARCH THE DREAM
Let's say you decided that you want to be a great writer, who is successfully cut on the charts, and makes a lot of money. Do you know what the real charts are? Who's on them currently? What labels are consistently charted? The styles of the top ten successes in the last two years?

Do you know what the actual elements of a great standard song are? Can you name the top sellers of all time in your genre? The top sellers of the current year? And do you know why they attained success? Do you hone your skills and knowledge whenever you have a chance?

Can you make the presentation of your art a commercial reality? Not just WILL you, CAN you?

PRACTICE THE DREAM
Go do 150 sit ups without practice. Go write a great song without practice. You have to practice (i.e., actually write) everyday, just like you would with any improvement program. If the newest song you are showing is old, you are not competing as a writer.

REWRITE THE DREAM
If something doesn't go the exact direction you thought it should have, rewrite the situation. If it's the song that has flaws, rewrite it until they are gone. If it's the voice, get some training.

If it's the gig, create one that works for you. (When I was playing gigs in KCMO, I went to the Plaza, to nice places that DIDN'T have entertainment. I'd offer the owner a free evening of music, if he liked it, I'd work X amount of weekends for X amount per night. I almost always got the gig, partly because I was prepared, partly because few can resist something for nothing and not sense some obligatory return. (Most wanted entertainment, but had no idea they could afford it. For me, it was a way to go.)

If you find that you thought you wanted the big dream, but then you realize that your dream didn't include all the nonsense that goes along with one of those in exchange for your "other dream(s)," (perhaps your family or job?), it is TOTALLY all right to adapt your dreams to accommodate each other. Unfortunately, some dreams require 24 hour dedication to maintain. (Ask any professional who is a megastar in their field.)

PURSUE THE DREAM
Don't give up. That's the first thing ANYONE successful who is giving advice says, so it MUST be true. (OK, it's pretty logical that if you DO give up, your odds will go way down...) What I'm really saying is leave no stone unturned. Take advantage of all opportunities, work, work, work at it.

LIVE THE DREAM
Remember that each time you sing, play, write, perform, discuss, pitch, etc., you are creating a reality that supports your dream. Don't forget to applaud the little steps, as well as the big. You write a birthday song for your sister-in-law, and it makes her cry with your kindness. Your song is used in a campaign for adoption, and though it didn't earn a dime, it was perfect, and said so much to so many. A peer complimented your writing at a recent song pitch. You were the hit of the community musical. GOOD FOR YOU! It all matters.

All these things make us more professional, and give us the reasons for doing the work. They are as important as the royalties, and enrich our life of music. Don't overlook them.

APPRECIATE YOUR DREAM
Did you know that most of your little steps are someone else's big dream? Some people would give a great deal to have the opportunity to perform ONE karaoke song in front of an audience...or have anyone use a song for any reason....or play a great guitar lick...or own a computer...or you name it. Appreciate the skills and opportunities God has blessed you with that you might even have a dream.

Just my opinion.

Janet Fisher

(C) all rights reserved, reprints with written permission. Janet Fisher is a longtime professional songwriter and publisher for Film and TV, author of the pop book, MUSIC HORROR STORIES, and owner of Goodnight Kiss Music (BMI). She also supervises music for film, consults about the music business, and teaches songwriting.

From TheMusicSnob.com:

We recently interviewed Rachael Sage, a talented singer, songwriter, poetess and all-around musician. She’s living the dream: making music, playing gigs, and supporting herself 100% through her music. Her experience will inspire you to work harder, write better music, and take more risks. So pay attention!

Click here to read the entire interview with Rachael Sage.

From Sivers.org:

Should you go digital-only, and skip the CD?

The real question is: How much of your potential audience are you willing to exclude?

We’re in transitional times. A lot of people have iPods. But most still don’t. A lot of people get all their music online. But most still don’t.

So the answer for 2008 is : if you’re serious about being a professional musician, you need to do both. 

Click here to read Derek's entire post.

Here is a list of 5 things corporate America needs to pay attention to succeed. While reading the article I got these from I realize that musicians need to pay attention to these too. I will add my own thoughts to each one but there are so many different answers possible I would love to hear some of your own ideas.

1. Outsourcing Partnerships:

Even though most street teams haven't evolved the way I think they should. Outsourcing is the wave of the future as artists though your fans make a great resource to outsource to. This is the start of a new style street team which I have seen in a few places.

Staying in touch with street team leaders in other countries or even regions of your own country is easier and quicker. This means more work for you or your management team. But the benefits once time gets organized is huge.

5. The Dominance of Search:

This is an excellent piece from CD Baby Founder Derek Sivers and a must read for anyone aspiring to a career in the music business. It's a 71 page PDF chalked full of great advice and useable tips.

Quoting Derek: 

"This is my best advice for my fellow musicians, about how to call attention to your music. My advice here is a combination of my advice from my own experience, and my advice from watching the experiences of other successful musicians. I never intended to sell my advice. I just want musicians to succeed."

Click here to read the entire PDF.

If I had a record label, would you be signed to it?

I never liked the idea of having a record label, because you’re too deeply invested into something you don’t control.

So if I were to have a label, my decision on who to sign wouldn’t be decided just by the quality of the music. There are plenty of people with great music but destructive work-habits or an unsustainable approach to their career.

To confidently invest in an artist (as a label), I’d want to see the following:

Click here to read Derek's entire blog. 

From Bruce Warila's Unsprung Wisdom Blog: 

The day the band (company) was formed, band members voted to split ownership evenly; now you find yourself doing much more work or creating far more value than your bandmates.  Perhaps you started out as a band, but the band has also become a business.  You don’t want to appear greedy and it’s not your style to change the rules once the game has started.  However, it doesn’t seem fair that everyone benefits evenly when you’re doing more work than everyone else.

This is one of the most common problems in small businesses - ownership and reward is divided evenly, but the work and/or the value creating capability are not.  Here are eleven easy steps to fix the problem.

Click here to read Bruce's full blog post. 

An excellent article in Wired Magazine by David Byrne of Talking Heads fame on the music business and the various business models now available to artists.

http://www.wired.com/entertainment/music/magazine/16-01/ff_byrne  

Whenever I talk to a band who are about to sign with a major label, I always end up thinking of them in a particular context. I imagine a trench, about four feet wide and five feet deep, maybe sixty yards long, filled with runny, decaying shit.

http://negativland.com/albini.html

Being in a band is no different than being part of a professional sports team; a group of individuals united in achieving a common goal—each person playing a unique and integral part in achieving a dream. The motto—at least in theory—being, “All for one and one for all.”

http://www.getsigned.com/want4.html