Happy July 4th to all my American friends. To my readers from other parts of the world, nothing signifies this holiday celebrating the birth of our nation like the John Philips Sousa march “Stars And Stripes Forever.” It caps off our holiday festivities amid great fanfare and fireworks, especially when played well. No one plays […]
Continue reading
My guest on the podcast this week is engineer Clark Germain, who started in the business doing live sound around Hollywood for the likes of X, Circle Jerks, Agent Orange and Social Distortion to name a few. Eventually he began working at some of Hollywoods most prestigious studios, gaining credits on records by Michael Jackson, […]
Continue reading
There are a number of digital aggregators that all provide roughly the same services. They’re a one-stop shop that will send your music to Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer, Pandora, Tidal and any other digital streaming service, then collect your royalties and pay you. The problem is that the artist or manager receives the payment, and […]
Continue reading
I don’t think that anyone would deny that, unless you’ve reached the top rungs of the business, being an everyday musician is a tough job. The problem is that it seems to be getting tougher than ever to be an average musician though, as a new study from the Music Industry Research Association (MIRA) discovered. […]
Continue reading
When it comes to a band photo shoot, most artists put their faith entirely in the hands of the photographer. While that might be the best thing to do when working with a top pro, it still makes sense to have an idea of what to look for in case you’re not getting the results […]
Continue reading
Everyone wants to play festivals these days. If you’re a new act then they can provide great visibility, and if you’re established then you can make some real bucks. The problem is that there are now so many festivals that they’re competing for customers, and that means contract language that’s meant to protect the festival […]
Continue reading
Remote recording is an audio discipline that’s distinctly different from many others and something my guest today knows so much about. Steve Remote is founder and chief engineer of Aura Sonic, a mobile and location production company out of New York. Steve’s been working in remote recording almost his entire professional life, and Aura Sonic […]
Continue reading
Facebook has been aiming for YouTube ever since it introduced video a few years ago, and although it’s done an admirable job of becoming a viable video platform, it’s efforts seemed to have plateaued as serious content creators still prefer the Google subsidiary. That isn’t keeping Facebook from trying something new however, and it’s using […]
Continue reading
Facebook has been losing its teen users and its video assault on YouTube has plateaued, so the next logical step is to include long form videos on its Instagram service. That’s exactly what happened as the company announced its release of IGTV, a new feature that will be available on existing Instagram accounts and a new […]
Continue reading
Many times an artist or band is so concerned with their music that they forget about a piece of the puzzle that’s still essential, which is the cover art. Even if you don’t plan on a physical product, the cover art is still the thing that catches people’s eyes and can lead to a listen […]
Continue reading
Radio is declining in influence in the U.S., but it’s still quite formidable thanks to its “heavy listeners” or those who consume more than one hour of radio per day, according to the latest study by Edison Research. It’s annual Infinite Dial report, conducted in partnership with Triton Digital, states that 30% of the American population over the […]
Continue reading
Music Connection magazine has been a bible for musicians, songwriters, artists, engineers, producers and music execs since its first issue in 1977. The magazine has grown from a local Los Angels publication to national distribution, and now features everything from revues of artist’s and band’s live performances and albums to extensive directories ranging from music […]
Continue reading
You have to give Spotify credit. The company realized that for the most part artists weren’t utilizing the streaming platform to its fullest, so it created a site just for artists with a series of help videos called The Game Plan so they could take advantage of all the features it has to offer. The […]
Continue reading
Artists and songwriters have a tendency to rip on streaming for its low payouts, sometimes without understanding the scale and metrics of how it really works. While it’s true that streaming royalties can seem absurdly low sometimes, it turns out that U.S. radio airplay is way worse. According to a post on Roconomic, a spin […]
Continue reading
The last few years have gone better than expected for the recorded music industry, with double digit growth and lots of smiles to go around. With streaming continuing to grow in acceptance, it’s a party that looks to go on for some time, but that’s not what Sony is predicting. Despite the growth in streaming, Sony […]
Continue reading