Consistency & Credibility

What’s the Representation of Your Brand/Band?!

Have you typed in your brand/band name in Google?! Was it in the Top 10 results? If you have answered no to either of these questions, you have failed your brand. The representation of your brand/band creates a connection between the consumer and the buyer. The consistency and credibility your product/service offers put the icing on the cake.

The Webster Dictionary states, consistency is the firmness of constitution or character: persistency. How many times have you changed your brand/band name? Do you have various url links (Facebook, Twitter, email, etc.) with different url usernames? Make sure your emails, social networks and brand/band name coincide with each other; it makes searching for you easy. Also, be careful about changing your product/ service constantly, people observe those that have inconsistent ‘hustles’.

Every brand/band is the #1, hottest, best and/or most professional. Who’s giving out this credibility?! Speaking of, what exactly is credibility? Credibility via Wikipedia.com refers to the objective and subjective components of the believability of a source or message. With that being said, are you living up to the brand you portray and/or separating yourself from the rest? Take T.I. for instances, he consistently acknowledged himself as the ‘King of the South’, became the ‘King of the South’ and is credited as the ‘King of the South’.

Be consistent and the credibility will follow!

Creating a Campaign

Creating a Campaign

Upcoming artists always want record spins either in the club or on the radio. What would be the sole purpose of doing so, if they have nothing to follow?! Think about it, anybody can write lyrics on a piece of paper, record and promote a single. What makes you different from the anybodies?! Creating a Campaign!!!

According to Webster.com, a campaign is a connected series of operations designed to bring about a particular result. Use an election campaign as an example; they have supporters, flyers, websites, commercials (TV & radio), press release, community activities, special appearances, etc. Imagine having the same effort towards your music career, we all know that the entertainment industry is by far the most competitive.

Get a review from some of the local DJs, radio jocks and/or club promoters, to see what should be your leading single. Make sure that the single is registered and copyrighted before releasing to the public. There are millions of free avenues on the World Wide Web these days, making your grind just that much more cost effective. Then create a campaign execution roadmap. Below is a list of things that should be included in your execution roadmap.

- Put together a Street Team
- Flood Streets/ Internet with Various Single
- Push a Main Single agreed between Artist and Label
- Create various community events
- Radio Interviews/ Shows
- Mixtape Release Party/ Release Mixtape
- Meet & Greets (Closing out Campaign)

Showing this effort, will have Radio Stations, DJays and Club Promoters; asking the upcoming artist for copies of the single, performances, etc. Proving yourself different is the key!!!

Performing 101

Performing 101

As an upcoming artist, you SHOULD ALWAYS be prepared for performances. Whether on the spot, at the club, get an opening act gig, etc., you should always be ready. When networking and meeting new people, think of them as opportunity. Word of Mouth is the biggest marketing tool. If I was to ask you right now to perform, would you know what to do and what I’m looking for?!

You should know what are the demographics (age, gender, race, music genres, etc.) your music caters to so that you can specify your target audience. Below is a compiled list of the basic categories your music performance is evaluated by:

- Sound & Production Quality: Good sound quality and high quality productions will help get you noticed by fans, record labels, booking agents and promoters. Quality influences your music career beyond the “local” music scene.

- Lyrical Ability: Today’s music has been affected by good beats and productions with horrible lyrics but the beat moves the crowd it seems like. Having lyrical ability is the quality of being able to deliver deep personal emotions and/ or observation to connect with your “target audience”.

- Originality of the Song: This is probably one of the hardest categories. It seems as though these days, everyone lives the same exact lifestyle. Money, cars, clothes, jewelry, trapping, weed, sex, hoe or moving work; I’m sorry but, everybody is not about that lifestyle. If your song has lines that people can finish and have never heard of the song before, it doesn’t show originality.

- Appearance: If you want to be an artist, you have to act, be and look like one. Very understandable that you probably spent your last on the production of the song but 80% of what you look likes matters. What you wear to the basketball court, to wash your car, to work-out in or run errands in ARE NOT the look to wear to a performance.

- Stage Presence: More people on stage DOES NOT make a better performance. The more people you have, the more you become irrelevant. There is no way possible that your hype man has more energy than you OR your hype man has less energy than you. The audience will not pay attention, especially if they have never heard of you or your song before.

- Audience Reaction

-Song Appropriate
-Audience Attentive

- Overall Performance

- For Singers (Range, Quality of Voice, Tone)

Presenting Your Music

5 Things People Look at When Presented Your Music

1. You. It is seldom that people realize what you look like matter; not only for social and/ or formal events but in general. Did you know, that 80% of what you look and talk like depends upon, if people opt to listen to you?! Imagine someone selling cookies to you, with dirty clothes on. Would you think about listening to them or brush them off?! Key Point: When approaching someone to sell them a product, you have to sell yourself first!

2. Inventory. Make sure where and what your selling, closes the deal. You don’t want to sell a CD out of your car or book bag with CDs falling out. Why?! 1) It doesn’t look like you’re the ‘Hottest Rapper’ you just told people you were. 2) Did the CD you’re selling now, fall out elsewhere?! If so, am I getting a scratched up CD?! Running out of CDs is like running out of food, sad day. Key Point: Have your product ready with your approach, always be prepared!

3. The CD. Writing on CDs with a Sharpie is automatically trash. Why you asked?! Sometimes we think are handwriting is legible because “we” can read it. Also, when we write on CDs we leave out important information. Go the extra mile to get professional CD printed. The looks of the CD could run questions about the quality of the music, before listening to it. Key Point: If your appearance sells the CD at least dress the CD to sell the music.

4. Contact Information. Distributing quality music with no way of contacting you is like going to the Car Wash with no car… why?! Today’s society has opened up communication through so many avenues that it should be easy to contact you. Come to the realization that when you hand out one CD, at least five people have heard it. Contact information is a MUST on all distributed music. Key Point: Don’t spend so much time, effort and money on yourself and the product; if we can’t reach you afterwards.

5. Graphic Design. Business Cards, Promo Cards, Mixtape Covers, Single Covers, Posters, Press Kits, etc. are great resources. Don’t clutter your CD with information that can place on a card to be attached with it. Graphic Designs are like résumés in the music business. Key Point: After you have sold yourself and the CD and given your contact information…MAKE THEM REMEMBER YOU!!