11-26-2007, 04:48 PM
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#1 (permalink)
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Confused Adult
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A post from John "00" Fleming
Quote:
http://www.myspace.com/john00fleming
Want to make a living from music production?
So the day has come and you've decided that you want to make a living from producing dance music, you have your resignation ready to hand into your day job and you already have your eye on that new car you've always wanted. Many people think the music industry is a wash with riches and come into the music industry blind with blinkers on, and then true reality hits them. I'm here to tell you the honest truth and try and make you have a realistic understanding of the dance music world out there.
There used to be a day when you could earn a tidy living from making dance music but the music industry has changed dramatically over the past decade due to technology, which has bought much good, but there have been many drawbacks. The main culprit was the introduction of the MP3. This little fella has changed the world and done much good but on the other hand has caused so much damage; it's a double-edged sword with an argument for both cases.
Vinyl used to be the only format DJ's could use as DJ CD players where pretty much none existent (and not accepted in the DJ world), so if a DJ wanted a tune he had to go and buy it as there was no other way around it, so the rewards in sales where pretty generous. Today you can buy that track online as an MP3 for a fraction of the cost from the comfort of your home.....well they are supposed too BUT the biggest problem with our friend the MP3 is that it can easily be shared on torrent websites. Most people don't realize what impact and damage is actually done to independent record labels. Outsiders see the music industry like a scene from a MTV Hip hop video with all staff rolling around in money and driving exotic bling cars, so taking the odd MP3 wont do any harm as there appears to be plenty of money around. Yes maybe in the commercial market but the first to get hit from file sharing are the small independent labels and being honest I have no idea how any of them survive today? If they still press vinyl, they'll be lucky to sell 100 - 300 copies in the current climate compared to 40,000 + in the good old days. From my experience you need to sell 500 to break even. So now you can see why most labels are dropping vinyl, as it's not worth the risk. MP3' sales have come along and given a glimmer of hope to the independent labels and sales are starting to increase, but they are still small numbers of sales and each sale brings in a tiny profit thus meaning the producer earns only a small amount.
Most of these labels are now run from homes, as they can't afford to rent an office or staff. This is the harsh reality of the current state of the dance music industry, like me, most of the label bosses I know run their labels as a passion and love for music, as long as the bills are covered they are happy. The biggest problems are if the labels are struggling to keep afloat there's not much of a royalty payment for the artist who make the music.
There are still positives from this shift in 21st centaury technology and that's cost. In the old days if a producer wanted to make a track he had to rent a studio for a week unlike today where we are gifted with PC's and an endless supply of plug-ins. All those plug-ins used to sit as hardware in a recording studio, an average synth would cost around £1500, throw a few of them in the equation along with a sampler, then you needed compressors and other processing gear and not forgetting a mixing desk. £30,000 would buy you a basic recording studio and you wouldn't get much change from £500 renting one for a week with an engineer. Many of today's youngsters don't realize this as the sit in front of their home computers making music. So a huge plus point of technology is that we are seeing many new producers being able to make music very easily with little expense and get it up for sale on download sites by setting up their own digital labels, but again we see a huge negative because the industry is flooded with all this music that isn't being filtered correctly by A&R label managers who ensure production, engineering and mastering are done correctly, to me the most important stage.
Digital labels too befit from the new technology as they no longer have the huge expense of pressing vinyl, bulky postage and packaging to distributors and shops across the world and of course promotion. The aforementioned can be done at the touch of a button and the tracks are promoted across the world instantly and it shames me to say it but tracks ending up on torrent sites become free promotion for both the artist and record label, thus being part of my double edged sword theory. I see this first hand experience as I tour the World and my music is known everywhere I go!!
So yes we have to face it know one on this earth can stop file sharing, but people who use these torrent sites know they're filled with thousands of tracks and its impossible to go through all these tracks to find what you want, this is why we will always need record labels because their brands draw you to a certain style. As I mentioned before, anyone today has access to a PC and can release a track as a digital file, and to be honest there's a lot of cheap sounding rubbish music out there cluttering the shops and this is why record labels will always play and important roll. The A&R guys behind good labels have the ears to source talented producers and also ensure the finished tracks are produced, engineered and mastered to the highest quality. They will advise and guide you to the next level in your career, these guys could have the power to make or break a career and it's why you must respect them. Unfortunately this often doesn't happen as many newcomers come into this industry completely blind with ridicules expectations due to lack of knowledge. Every time I come back from a music conference I hear the same recurring stories of new producers hassling the labels they've signed tracks too because they're simply nieve to what's going on. Some new producers actually think they will sell thousands of downloads then get offended when only a handful are sold, they take it personally and blame the label for the entire downfall of the music industry. They also get confused with how the royalty system works and create unnecessary uncomfortable heated discussions when it comes payment. They also have the misconception that they get signed to a label and then all the work to build their DJ career is done by the label boss?! The only job of the label is to release the track and promote it to the World getting as much exposure as possible for the artist, its then your job to get the gigs. Record labels and DJ agencies are two different things with completely different databases. You'll soon be dropped from the label if you hassle them due to ignorance because they need to constantly educate you, they don't mind giving advice and helping but not to be blamed for the fall of the entire music industry, they need likewise thinking people in the family so they can concentrate on the job in hand, promoting your music across the world.
My advice would be research the industry and climate before you sign your track, then you will have a realistic overview because you need the support of the label behind you.
Like any job, this is why it's so important to come into this industry having some sort of knowledge of how things work; this is the way of the working world. People spend years at collage being trained for a certain career or skill, so treat it like a new job and have some sort of basic knowledge of how things work; what amount of units you might sell, what percentage of royalties to expect, what advance, if any, you will get etc. This makes everyone's life much easier then you'll be a pleasure to work with and will be fully supported.
So reality is these new producers come into this world expecting to make a few tracks then leave their daytime jobs to make a living out of music, when in fact its the other way around, most established producers I know have had to get daytime jobs because the income is now so small form music, unfortunately this is the current state of the dance music industry. They key is to turn your production into live or DJ gigs, as this is where you earn your wage. You (or your DJ agency) need to make this happen working in tandem with your record label as you both benefit from this, the more gigs you do, and the more sales they will get and visa versa. This is why its so important that you work so closely with your label and make their life as easy as possible after all the label isn't earning hardly anything from this, he's doing all the work for you, remember this!!
So make music as a passionate hobby, then you'll enjoy it, that's the attitude I take and a cherish every minute in the studio. If you're making it for a quick buck, then all the bad and frustration will come out of you and eventually you'll lose the motivation and drive to produce, I've seen this happen with many producers.
It's a real shame the industry has turned into this state because producers should get rewarded for their fine work, after all DJ's wouldn't be able to do their job without music but this is reality of how the world is today and we have to accept it because its not going to change. Take this understanding view and you will have more chance of making it out there, be awkward and you'll be looking for another label!
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so this was posted back in august but I just came across it as he's going to be playing here in Seattle soon and I plan on attending. He's got some great blogs about his life and his perspective as a DJ/Remixer, makes me happy to see someone enjoy a relatively successful tour life doing what they love to do and not get a big head about it. But anyways, to the points of his blog, the digital double edged sword, the pricing of studio gear, and what the roles are in the industry, I think it's good stuff. I dunno what the points of contention would be if there were any.
What do you think? |
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