Expert Speak
'Thinking outside the Box'
Every week we try to make room in the Tribune for one of our Experts. This week we welcome Tony Platt, famous producer who is also a member of the board of the Music Producers Guild of the United Kingdom. He.s worked with legends such as Bob Marley and AC/DC in the Seventies, but thirty years onward he.s still on top of his game and eager to work with new talent.
By Tony Platt
It's so easy to whinge about and even easier to blame lack of success on everything and anything but those things wholly within your control. In spite of the widespread suggestion that the music business is dead or dying really nothing could be further from the truth. Perhaps, I will agree, it is having a 'midlife crisis' and needs to 'find itself again' (no doubt a symptom of the male dominance that still unfortunately exists in the industry!) but let's face it, the music business has never been easy, this isn't a phenomenon that suddenly arrived because of the internet. When someone first suggested recording sounds onto a wax cylinder or a piece of wire there were plenty of detractors ready to decry the very idea as being ridiculous, they are presumably the forefathers of all those who are somehow unable to move away from the business model of the record industry that dominated the last half of the 1900s.
New technology has presented new opportunities and to take full advantage of these we need to radically change the way we make music available to listeners, as a result we need to also radically change the way we earn money from this transaction. Recording engineers and music producers have been telling the labels this for many years now but because the traditional approach from record companies has been to seize complete control of the entire process they have been slow to embrace anything that looks or feels even slightly democratic! Of course it was only a matter of time before this backfired on them and now they have to play catch up. It isn't a pretty sight.
Now, I don't necessarily believe that Sellaband is the complete answer but it is a very good start in a positive direction. The most compelling feature of the Sellaband concept is that it returns control to the artist without expecting them to become a record label or manager or agent - I know very few artists who like the business of the business and even fewer who are good at it.
However, in order to fully grasp what Sellaband can mean to you as an artist you need to ask one very important question - "Do you want your music to be heard by more than your immediate family and friends?" It is not a new question; in fact it should have been at the core of most artists career motivation. It is also not the same as the question that is asked by Fame Academy and Pop Idol and their numerous clones, which is "Do you want to be famous at any price?"
During the peak of these shows I actually found myself saying "Well of course Fame Academy is a higher standard than Pop Idol" - but surely this is like comparing McDonalds and Burger King!
These shows and many other marketing ploys that launched alongside them were short- term remedies to shore up the dwindling fortunes of the major labels but they could not and cannot provide long term solutions to the problems the music business faces.
Sellaband offers a new and potentially exciting business model for artists to move their career forward but it needs the artists to think more creatively about what they do and how they do it.
It was always the case that in reality a record label should actually be working for the artist rather than the other way around, it's just the way it was presented that buried that fact and led to the assumption that the label was doing you a favour - the way that banks do! The idea that getting a record deal was the goal rather than another step on the way encouraged too many artists to put all their efforts into just getting a deal and once they got it they presumed everything would be taken care of from then on. Equally, it is important not to assume that just signing up to Sellaband is sufficient, it acts as a tool to help you sell yourself but you still have to take the initiative.
I am looking forward to what can come next - I know this can grow and it will no doubt attract imitators and exploiters but I am very hopeful it will stimulate many new ideas and some much needed fresh thinking.
Introducing... KANE SOLE
Kane Sole from New Zealand
Comfortably nestled on Page 1 of our Find Artists section is Kane Sole, an inspiring performer from New Zealand. It took most Believers a little while to value his music (he registered on August 18, but it wasn't until September 3, when the first Parts were sold), but now gets nothing but praise for his voice and his songwriting skills. When contacted by the SellaBand Tribune, Kane informs us that he is absolutely thrilled about SellaBand and is deeply touched by the way people are responding to his music. His personal story is quite remarkable as well: "I finished my music degree last year in New Zealand and have since been travelling around Australia with my girlfriend... only to be robbed of all our worldly possessions and randomly end up in South Korea teaching English. I'm currently saving all my money for my music career, which matters to me more than anything. I have only 9 months left on my contract here in South Korea and then we intend to go to London where I was going to launch myself as an artist!" This bad luck experience is not keeping Kane from writing more music and getting himself ready for the big break. Wouldn't it be fantastic if Kane were to raise the $50.000 on SellaBand before his teaching contract is up, so he would actually be able to come to Europe and record the album of his dreams! A lot of Believers have expressed their appreciation for Kane Sole's music already, and his music is being played very LOUD at SellaBand HQ as well. Luckily this seems so be a two sided love-affair, because the artist has nothing but praise for SellaBand and the Believers: "I joined Sellaband because its just such an innovative idea. The initiative is an excellent way for artists to reach fresh sets of ears that would otherwise be oblivious to our music, and the best part is, if they like it they can become a part of it too. The idea of fans/believers having a direct unadulterated impact on the success of an artist is an awesome thing... two very enthusiastic thumbs up for Sellaband!"
Link: www.sellaband.com/kane-sole
Kirt from Germany
Q+A: KIRT
One of the most visible and certainly most active artists on SellaBand is Kirt, from Germany. Now close to $2,000 in budget, the man who makes a habit of personally thanking all his Believers, is using his MySpace profile to introduce his fans to SellaBand.
1. Who is Kirt?
Kirt is the combination of pop, electronic music and orchestral elements. Due to my classical education, there is a great influence of traditional music. As soon as I have the possibilities, I will work more with orchestral elements. Concerning the message of Kirt, it is important to me to address social issues and explore how the mind ticks. What lies beneath? How do we feel and think within the depths of our psychology? Many times I write about issues from a third perspective. Not all the issues in my songs are my own. The words for "Father" for example are written by a good friend.
2. Why did you join the SellaBand program?
Sellaband, in my eyes, is the revolution of the music industry. Revolutions do not happen in a day. Usually you don't see them coming until they are there, so I am happy to be part of this revolution at this early stage.
3. You thank all your Believers personally. Will you continue to do this until you've reached 50k?
The way believers and artists communicate will be enhanced greatly with the new features and this improves the communication possibilities. I will extend this personal contact with the growth of these features wherever I can. After all, the believers are my partners! I will just do it in a slightly more sophisticated way!:-)
4. What do you do yourself to reach the goal of $50,000?
First of all, I approach people in the "real world" Primarily friends and family and any new people I meet. I send round mails and round sms to inform people about Sellaband and update them about news and developments. That way they are always part of the process. Secondarily, I work via myspace.com. I look for people,who may be interested in listening to my music and make them aware about Sellaband. Recently I added the Sellaband flash presentation to my website at myspace.com/kirtmusic.
5. Do you already know what you want your SellaBand album to sound like?
The album will be a mixture of good pop songs with an orchestral and electronic flair. It will sound very contemporary and traditional at the same time.The main focus will always be on the emotions the songs carry. I am looking forward to a good mixture of different emotions.
6. Which studio and producer would you like to work with?
I would like to work with people, who have experience with acoustic music and classical instrument recordings. I want these recordings to be absolutely beautiful. I have many years of experience with samples and electronic sounds, so I am quite comfortable with that side of the sound. But essentially, as I mentioned earlier: its about the emotions and I am looking for a sound that will carry them to the listener.
7. Why should people buy a Part (or more Parts) from Kirt?
Music is my life. I knew this at the age of twelve and I have been working in that direction ever since. This will always be the case. I will do my best to improve my work and this will pay off.
8. What's your connection to Simeon, Nanu & Knaeckebroedt?
I have worked with Simeon for a couple years now. I make the beats and produce the songs, while he writes the lyrics and performs the raps. He is very valuable, when it comes down to making the beats. He helps me stick to the basics and get to the point!Hip hop is very pure and sometimes I elaborate too much musically! This weekend we will work on new tracks. Watch out www.myspace.com/simeonmusik for fotos of this session. For Nanu I have produced the song: "Macht Euch Bereit". They wanted a bit of an edge, since the song was originally arranged in a very poppy style. I gave it a bit of a hip hop and electro flavour. They are doing very well in Frankfurt and I have no doubt that they will go far in Germany! Knaeckebroedt is my house and Dance alter ego. Many songs don't fit in with the Kirt style so I created Knaeckebroedt. Soon I will upload some fotos of Knaeckebroedt. He wont look like me and he's not from this world either.That is all I am revealing now. Be prepared for a surprise!
SellaBand one month onwards
A little update for all Bands and Believers, on where we are with www.sellaband.com. Between August 15 (we went live precisely at noon Central European Time) and September 15, we've had over 50,000 visitors, who, looking at the impressive 455,000 pageviews, took the time they needed to get the right impression of our concept. Over 1,500 music fans from 54 different countries signed up as Believers and 253 Artists, from 30 countries, uploaded their music on our website. The internetworld is talking about us as well, because if you try to google the word Sellaband, you will get over 100,000 references, as opposed to less than 500, one month ago.
New tools
As you may have noticed, we try to add new features and updates to our website every week. Recently we've added the news ticker, the stand alone player on the artist pages and a place on every artist's profile page, where Believers can leave a message to the artist. Other applications/tools we hope to launch in the coming weeks, are the official, daily update SellaBand Charts, and SellaBand Radio.
Believers pages
Here at SellaBand HQ we find it important to find the right balance between Bands & Believers. So, when Bands have the possibility to upload their profile pages, why shouldn't the Believers? That's why we are currently designing the Believers profile pages, where you can let other SellaBand users know who you are, what you like and which Bands you Believe in. These profile pages should be ready in the next few weeks and will mark te start of the Believers Community. By the way, those Believers who wish to remain anonymous and keep their relationship with the Artist private, will be able to do so, so there is no fear of the taxman coming after you;-)
Artist Incentive Program
In one of the coming issues of the SellaBand Tribune, we hope to be able to introduce the so called A.I.P. This is the Artist Incentive Program. This will consist of several useful tools for artists to use on their way to raise $50.000. When you reach certain thresholds on your way up (likely to start with $1.000), we will offer nice and handy tools to our Artists, all free of charge, thanks to several sponsorships that we are currently working on. More news as it comes in...
You've heard the Experts, now here's the Artists:
Before we launched SellaBand, we have asked all our Experts if they would be so kind to give us a comment on the concept of SellaBand. Now, five weeks after the official launch and with over 250 artists with active profile pages, we thought the time was right to ask some of the musicians what they think of SellaBand. Here are their answers:
"Enabling the fans to sponsor and promote their favourite Artists, while becoming shareholders, seems like an obviously brilliant idea. And for me it's both fun and exciting to be part of it."
Simeon, Germany
www.sellaband.com/simeon"Sellaband is that chance we were looking for. Having a great forum to promote and get some real support for our music. Actually be able to reach out to fans on a worldwide scale. These are the things that will really make a difference to us! And Sellaband has a unique way of doing this. From the start we felt that this was the way to go. The hardest part was to actually believe that there could be an initiative like this with no strings attached and completely free. But hey, it`s there and it works! Use it."
Headphone, Belgium
www.sellaband.com/headphone"SellaBand.com is genius! I love the concept of being a believer. This is a new way to show you faith and dedication to music. A lot of people say they love music and here is your chance to put your money where you mouth is. Most people want to pay for something and get something in return right away. This is a new level of dedication. If you think you know what good music is then challenge your thoughts here at SellaBand. You are the judge and you can make it happen for small town island boys like me. I thought SellaBand to be a great opportunity and I had nothing to loose but when I saw that people where starting to invest in my future I was touched and it lifted my musical spirit. This is unique and brilliant. SellaBand.com is one of a kind and i like that."
Cubworld, United States
www.sellaband.com/cubworld"I have a very exciting feeling about Sellaband. I'm on the crest of a new wave of income possibilites from my music making. Myspace has been completely essential for increasing my global fanbase - now along comes Sellaband, a genius idea for both musicians and fans alike where we can make music AND money. Sellaband is a great idea - my fans can help me get back into the studio and in return I can offer them a cut of my income. The best ideas are always the simple ones; Sellaband is going to prove this fact when new, world class recordings funded through the Sellaband system start being released."