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International Country Music Association Newsletter March. 2003 Publisher: Colonel Bobbie Patterson
The One Thing You Must Do To Succeed In Music Would you like to be several steps ahead of your competition? Would you like to have doors open for you? If so, read this article and do this one thing. There are two things which make the music industry different from all other industries. The first big difference is the total lack of paper credentials such as licenses, diplomas, certificates, and so forth. In most industries, it is possible to judge people's qualifications, by looking a piece of paper. Doctors, lawyers, nurses, truck drivers, school teachers, etc., can show potential employers a license. The license serves as proof of their qualifications. When most people apply for a job they can refer to a diploma, from high school or college. Welders can prove they are certified to weld stainless steel or whatever. Employers use these paper documents to screen prospective employees. It saves time. It reduces the number of people to be interviewed. People in the music industry are not able screen prospective employees and coworkers, by asking to see a license, diploma, or certificate. There is no such thing as a guitar player's, soundman's, or lightman's license. There is no backup singer's diploma. In the music industry, there are only two ways to determine somebody's qualifications and abilities. You must personally see and hear the person or rely on a referral from someone you trust. In this industry, referrals help to screen prospective employees and coworkers. Referrals serve the same need which licenses, diplomas, and certificates serve in other industries. Think about it this way. Imagine Garth Brooks needs another guitar player. He could advertise in newspapers. If he did, thousands of guitar players would show up for the auditions. How many months would it take him to find the right guitar player? This explains why our industry works the way it does. Garth can save time and expense, by asking his musicians, stage hands, light men, soundmen, bus, and truck drivers to bring their friends to a private audition. Only a few well qualified guitar players will audition. This will save Garth time, effort, and expense. It will prevent him from having to listen to a thousand unqualified guitar players. I know of no other industry, in which referrals are so important. The other big difference is how fluid this industry is. People are constantly changing the role they play. Musicians, soundmen, light men, singers, producers, promoters, photographers, graphic artists, booking agents are constantly changing jobs and positions. On any given day any of these jobs might be performed by someone in any of the other jobs. I call these horizontal movements. They occur 24 hours per day and 365 days per year. Vertical movement is when people move up or down the ladder of success. There are stars today, nobody had ever heard of just two years ago. There are people who were stars just a few years ago. Many of them are getting no radio play, today. Their booking fees have slipped from $50,000 per show to less than $10,000 per show. The same thing happens behind the scenes. Fifteen years ago, Larry Butler was the hotshot producer, in Nashville. He produced albums for a lot of the stars. Most of today's stars wouldn't know him, if they saw him. In this business, you are as good as your last album. These two differences set the music industry apart,
from all others. Together, they make networking the one thing you must
do to succeed, in this industry. People outside the inner circle of success
are fond of saying, "It's all about who you know." The key to success in the music industry is networking. There is no substitute for friends, in the industry. How well you network will determine how many friends you have. The more friends you have, the more opportunities to advance your career you'll have. This is why we support and endorse Ambassador Charlie Ray's Nashville Music Festival. Everything about the event is designed to bring music people together. It's great to get on stage and sing in Nashville. You might be discovered. It has happened. It will happen again. It's fun and educational to attend music business seminars given by experts. There are hundreds of great reasons to attend this event. Each year, I discover new reasons. But, the number one reason I attend every year is the networking. Every person on the festival grounds is either involved in music or there with someone who is involved. It's an unforgettable experience. For an entire weekend, you are surrounded by hundreds of people who share your passion. On the festival grounds, in your hotel, and in the nearby cafes music people are everywhere you look. For details, visit www.nashvillemusicfestival.com ************************************************** The Following Radio Programers Need Music Other DJs who play independent music can be contacted through our DJ message boards at www.radiocountry.org Joris Smits, (Holland) email: jorissmits@wxs.nl Ab Piant, Diligencedrift 3, 3436 AW Nieuwegein, Holland Alex Pijen, Piusplein 46, 4621 Bergen Op Zoom, Holland Cees Vlieland, Parnassialaan 132, 2211 NW Noordwijkerhout, Holland Cowboy Willie, De Hydra 8, 3224 GL Hellevoetsluis, Holland Ingrid Adriaensen, Buysstraat 20, 6828 SV Amhem, Holland Henk Rutgrink, Gondel 13-22, 8243 BK Lefstad, Holland Jac Oerlemans, Karl V Enkelvoorstr 24, LC 5014 Tillburg, Holland Jan Vergouwen, Philipslaan 30 A, 4702 NR Roosendaal, Holland Rein Wortelboer, Akelei 10, 5803 CA Venray, Holland Peter Anderl, (Austria) email: cmi@kabelnet.at E. Rodriguez (Satellite Radio) email: ERodriguez@worldspace.com Job Gathemia (Kenya) email: job@globalaccess.co.ke Jeff Remz, 54 Ballard St.,Newton Centre, MA 02459-1251 email: Countryst@aol.com Alan & Sonia, (United Kingdom) email: footloose.stompers@btinternet.com Alan Cole, 75 East Lane, Stainforth, Doncaster, S. Yorkshire, DN7 5DY, U. K. Barbara Promotions, P.O.Box 180, Caboolture, QL Australia
4510 Dave Peters, PO Box 38, Tuross Head, NSW 2537, Australia ************************************************** Nashville Star Search The American Karaoke Society will be hosting the Nashville Star Search. Friday, May 9, 2003. For details, email info@karaokesociety ************************************************** American Songwriters' Association Announces June Convention The Association will hold their annual convention the
week of June 9, 2003.
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