Major Milestones…

We’ve always claimed that we want to be open and honest about how we do things and how our platform is developing and community is growing. Time for an update, we think and do a little number crunching with you all. 


Dolly, Pim, Chris and Yf raising their glass for Lily. Pic taken by the Boss at lunch today. Dagmar and Annette were out on business, just in case you were wondering...

Lily couldn’t have chosen a better week than this to finish her budget. She became the fifth artist to raise the full $50,000 on SellaBand. She has Believers from almost 40 different countries. In total there are over 75 different nationalities to be found on our platform. We’ve just passed the total amount of $750,000 in Pats sold since our launch in August 2006. Of this amount $500,000 has been sold in the short five months of 2007. SellaBand now has some 7,500 ‘paying’ Believers (plus another 7,500 who have registered for our weekly newsletter, but have yet to buy their first Part(s). This means that the average purchase per (active) Believer equals $100,00. So, 7,500 music-lovers raise three-quarter-of-a-million-dollars, just imagine where 75,000 Believers could take us. Believers-growth (in numbers we mean, of course…) remains our core mission!  

Critical mass

There are almost 4,000 Bands/Artists on SellaBand. Five of them have reached the critical mass of $50,000, in total 20 are over $10,000 in budget, some 75 acts have rounded the 1K mark. Almost 270 bands are at $100 or more and almost 1,000 bands have at least $10,00 on their account. Which leaves almost 3,000 bands with not a single Believer behind them. What on earth were you thinking when you joined SellaBand, we sometimes ask ourselves. But, the other side of the coin is that Maitreya can now sign all his e-mails with an impressive: ’I’m number one out of 4,000 artists on SellaBand…’  

 

Better or worse

Good or bad? You decide. We’re happy with the quality of the music on SellaBand. We’re thrilled to see how active and dedicated so many people have become. Looks like SellaBand has even changed some lives and that is so much more than we ever could’ve hoped for. One year ago, the concept was just a theory. The reality turns out to be somewhat different than the theory. Not better or worse, just… different. Bottom line is that SellaBand is very much alive and kickin’, one month from now the first official album(s) will be released and we hope to be on the front pages of worldwide publications once again. We Believe, more than ever. We hope you do too!

May 22, 2007, The SellaBand Team 

Lily's Lovin' it!


Monday May 21, 2007 turned out to be one of the most exciting days in the life of Lily Vasquez. When she showed up at work in the morning, her boss already must have sensed there was something different about her. And he was right, because on this manic Monday, his employee was about to become a SellaBand Recording Artist...

 
The ever friendly guys in Black Jack were kind enough to 'donate' a chat box to Lily and her loyal Believers. When will SellaBand offer this kind of Countdown Chat, we hear you ask. Soon friends, is all we can say, hopefully in time for the next Countdown, or at least the one after that... Anyway, Lovely Lily chatted the day away and at one point her boss just sent her home. Very friendly fella, as he then decided to buy some Parts. Things went really quickly from there and when Lily got home and found some time to let her dog out (true story, we swear...) the final Parts just flew out of the window. Shortly before midnight (Central European Time), Lily's 'thank you message' must have appeared on thousands of computers at the same time and her profile page automatically disappeared into the 'Recording Artist' section. There's five of them now, what a great feeling that is for all of us at SellaBand HQ.

 

Countdown chatroom

Here's what Lily has to say, one short night after her mission was accomplished: "My official reaction?.. You'll see... Video is being updated... But if I had to put it into words, it was shock and denial at first.  All I remember is seeing Maitreya's page and not mine, then I froze and I couldn't get myself to check the recording artist section to make sure I made it. I had millions of thoughts running through my head and when I finally checked it, I just lost it. I was so happy and I felt like hugging everyone who was with me all day waiting for this moment. I received nothing but love all day and I want to thank everyone who stayed up all night, who kept encouraging others to keep supporting me until I made it, and who were genuinely happy for me. I also want to thank Black Jack for creating the Lily countdown chatroom. Without the laughs from that chat I would have been a mess all day.! Thank you so much everyone...I still can't believe it. Eight months of hard work and dedication paid off May 21st, 2007! The fun has just begun! :D."

 

Clémence announces producer!


Producer Haydn Bendall 

SellaBand Recording Artist Clémence is proud to announce the producer for her upcoming SellaBand album. Famous British music producer Haydn Bendall has agreed to reserve time in his impressive schedule, to produce Clémence’s album. Haydn, who worked for over 10 years as the Chief Engineer at legendary Abbey Road Studios, has worked with superstars such as Kate Bush, Sting, Paul McCartney and Pet Shop Boys. Recent work includes a wide variety of artists, such as Chris Botti (Jazz), Nightwish (Metal) and Katie Melua (Pop). Last Friday, Haydn and SellaBand A&R Man Adam Sieff met up with Clémence in Paris and completed a very constructive working session. Says Mr. Bendall: “I'm really excited to be working with such an exciting young talent as Clémence. She has has all the qualities necessary to become a major international star, and I'm confident we will create an album that will prove her Believers' faith in her was fully justified."

 

In her own, typical fashion, Clémence is equally excited: “I had the great pleasure to meet Haydn Bendall last Friday, Adam introduced me. Not only he's very friendly but also he is a man of great experience. I'm convinced that the result will be wonderful. I'm delighted to see that step by step we will be reaching our goal. We have agreed that we will record the album in London, and recording is likely to begin in June. I think there will be 10 songs on the album. Some of them will be an adaptation in English of the songs you already know. I'm delighted and impatient.” Adam Sieff, who will be in control of A&R for Clémence is optimistic about the timeline for the project: "Once song selection has been finally decided upon recording will get underway as quickly as possible. Believers can expect to hear the completed project around the end of the summer, and there will be a few surprises in store for them."

 

Adam’s Apples


Hi Bands ‘n’ Believers – it’s time for your weekly update of some of the best of the new stuff here on SellaBand.

Name: Fractured?
Artistry: Indie rockers.
Where: Somewhere in the UK.
They sound like: A little eighties – but in a good way.
The songs: Strong - especially “Don’t Preach”.
What they’re doing: Looking for more band members.
Adam says: “Something special here so discover for yourself”.
Rating: 4 apples.

Name: Velez.
Artistry: Four piece Brasilian music band.
Where: Portugal.
They sound like: Cool, subtle and melodic grooves straight from Rio.
The songs: Excellent – try “Luz In The Night”.
What they’re doing: Recording their third album independently.
Adam says: “Really like this and look forward to hearing the new songs”.
Rating: 3.5 apples.


Name: Jion.
Artistry: Alternative.
Where: Rome, the eternal city.
They sound like: rocky, poppy, sassy, groovy.
The songs: “Never Change Yourself” is the song of the week.
What they’re doing: Looking for management and support.
Adam says: “Veronica rocks!”
Rating: 4 apples.

And let’s hear it for:

twelve34 who retro rock-it in a fine BTO style - not ‘arf!
The Affection – no info on their page but ‘Two Miles” is a killer.
Dirty Wee Middens for their sleazy “wheelie bin spunk rock ‘n’ roll.”
Franky Joe Texier for his gorgeous flamenco guitar-styled French chanson.

Thoughts and feedback: adam@sellaband.com

 

 


Concert @ Sea: get your tickets now!

Over 250 SellaBand artists have already registered for Concert @ Sea, the special  Music Festival, hosted by Dutch superstars Blof. Full details for this spectacular event on June 30, can be found in last week’s Tribune, here is just a reminder that registrations will close on June 1. Bands who want to be considered for a performance on this festival should drop us an e-mail at: concert@sellaband.com

This is the pitch: here’s your chance to perform in front of 60,000 music lovers, as headliners Blof have announced a special ‘Nieuwe Revu Stage, Powered by SellaBand.’ SellaBand Recording Artists Nemesea will be performing at Concert At Sea, and Blof will handpick one of the other SellaBand-artists who will be able to play live. The final slot will go to a band that will be elected by the Believers of SellaBand. More details will be announced shortly.

Wherever there’s live-music, there will always be an audience! In the case of Concert @ Sea, over 55,000 tickets have already been sold. The unique location at Brouwersdam in the province of Zeeland, NL, is worth alone the visit. But, you will get to see quality acts such as Blof and De Dijk, but also at least 3 SellaBand Artists. They will perform on the ‘Nieuwe Revu Stage’ and we want to make sure that they will get a warm welcome from some die-hard SellaBand Believers.

Therefore we are giving away 50 tickets for Concert @ Sea. Here’s your chance for a pair of tickets. Drop us an e-mail at ticket@sellaband.com and simply answer one question: Why do you want to go to Concert @ Sea on June 30 in the Netherlands? The 25 best/most inventive answers will be rewarded with a pair of tickets…

 

Q + A

Cubworld

 

From time to time we get in touch with one of our Recording Artists, to inform you of there whereabouts. Jacob Kongaika, better known as Cubworld, has finished recording his album and is currently putting the finishing touches to the artwork. Just like all of us he is eagerly anticipating the release of his album ‘Step Lightly; Create Out Loud’…

 

How are you doing?

“I am doing Great! It’s so nice to be back home… I even wrote a song about it. I have had some hard times lately with both of my Grandmothers passing away.  I am hanging in there and we have a very supportive family so we are all there for each other. Other than that things are going along really smoothly. I am getting more and more excited about the album coming up. I have some great shots for the CD cover and am working hard on that. I am listening to ruff and mixes and working on getting that put away too. I even got to do some music with Nemesea, which by the way the song we are doing is awesome. Brought me to tears more than once while trying to sing it. Very talented song writing guy...”   

 

You've spent a whole month in New York recording your album. What's been the absolute highlight?

“First off, the feeling of living in your dreams is amazing…There are so many things to choose from.  I would have to say the biggest highlight would be going to Tony Bennett Studios. That's where things made me so star struck. I felt like it was real when I was in that studio. I sang better, I felt better, I smiled, I sang and it was just that studio I had always dreamt about working in. Just like in the movies. That was one of the many highlights of being in NYC.”

   

What was the most important lesson you've learned?

“ I learnt a lot of Musical lessons in NYC about structure and composition when producing a 3 dimensional album but I would have to say that I learnt to be straight forward with what I want and not to be scared to ask for help.  When you’re working together it’s very easy to see things change a bit from what you wanted in place of something the people you are collaborating with want. This is something I think everyone should figure out way before they commit to any one that you let handle your music. It has its Pros and Cons. The album is going to be great and definitely has a 3rd Dimension. This  (3rd Dimension) meaning that me and my guitar have been taken to the next level…”

 

So, please tell us a bit more about the album...

“It’s going to be a ten track album. About half will be songs you have heard before and half will be new. One new song I wrote just a week before flying out to NYC and it made the cut. Sound wise we were looking for that 3rd dimension. I love love  love  acoustic performances almost more than produced albums but for this album we are putting more sounds into the mix. I love bands with great mellow sounds with great "textures" underneath. Bands like Nemesea, Second Person, Kent, Switchfoot, Keane, Coldplay… They have layers of sounds but at the same time supporting the vocals and lyrics of the artist. The album might come as bit of a surprise to some because it's not too much like the samples I put up on my page from time to time. I am though planning a follow up DVD with that approach in the near future. Read my profile tab back a couple days though if you want more on that. I hope that the surprises on the album will be pleasant ones.”

 

What's keeping you busy these weeks?

“Other than much needed family time I have been talking with a potential producer. I am trying to figure out my next moves. I am at cross roads again musically and financially and need to make my next move as to what the future of CUBWORLD will be. I am trying to finish up my web site so it is running when the album drops and I’m trying to start up a clothing line with a close friend of mine. I have many things that are keeping me busy and moving and traveling. I have not slowed down in fact I have been moving faster since I got home from NYC.”

 

Do you still follow what's going on on SellaBand?

“Not as much as I would like to. I have been on the road and doing a lot of watching my boys to make up for lost time but I am so glad I have a wife that knows everything that is going on on SellaBand. She tries to keep me informed. I drop in to update my page and say hi to people that say hi to me and also to check up on my boy Maitreya but I haven't been in touch as much these days. Let’s say instead of checking SellaBand 1,000 times I day I only check it 100 times a day. LOL.”

 

What are your plans for after the album's been released?

“Listen to it!!!! Hehehe. I mean. I really want to push it to the next level. I talked about Jack Johnson in my early days on SellaBand and still love the direction he and his label are heading. I would love to push my album his way and see if I can jump on board with his label. I would LOVE to tour so if anyone has any hook ups, ‘hollah at a brothah’. Hehehe. (seriously cubworld@gmail.com) I am trying to get a band put together asap. I have some very talented friends coming together but I need more time. I'm thinking by the end of summer or late July I should know where I am as far as a band goes. I will be playing CUBWORLD live shows though till then. Also once the album Drops the Hustle begins all over again. To get paid and maybe pay my rent I need to get everyone, their friends, and their friends friends dog (with an email address of course) to download my music and or buy the album. This way we will benefit and see how things work on the next level of SellaBand. So be ready to Digg it on Digg.com and start getting your contact lists together my fellow employee…”

Jake, Maitreya and Alvaro from Second Person

Is the SellaBand dream still alive?

“HECK YEAH!! SellaBand hooked me up, and then some. The dream is very much alive. I have not changed my mind and stance that SellaBand works! Hahaha. Sounds like a commercial. "Sellaband worked for me. It could work for you too." LOL. I truly feel blessed to have gotten so much support and to have recorded an actual album. SellaBand has inspired me and educated me more on making music. I have been writing more songs and want to continue singing and writing and would totally consider coming back again to SellaBand and go for album number two. But we will cross that bridge when we get to it. SellaBand is the bomb!”

www.sellaband.com/cubworld