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Prior to tipping my toe into the music world and running events, in my other life I come from a business background which meant dealing with some really big business contacts up to million pounds. To quote an old saying when signing any contract, “the devil is in the detail!”

I remain amazed that in “the music business” many record contracts are a terrible deal for the artists. This of course is not news, but it surprises me that in this internet age where information is more readily available and music colleges are there to educate students. There’s also often a real lack of awareness about the implications of such transactions! Many artists and super fans are unaware of the implications of signing a contract and imagine that any such signing means the artist “has made it!”

Of course this is a very naive view and all contracts should be properly scrutinised to explore just how good or bad the deal is, The “record business” is like any other business, an entity that seeks above all to make financial profit. The “product: here just happens to be music, but otherwise any contractual arrangements are like any other business transactions, except in this instance often pretty poor for the artists! Here is an overview of some of the different types of contracts.

The 360 record deals

In recent times where streaming has largely replaced traditional product income streams for artists, record companies are looking for other ways to generate income from artists. A “360” as it’s called in the industry, is an exclusive contract between a label and an artist. In a 360 deal, a recording label not only takes a share of the artist’s music sales, but crucially also percentages of revenue from other ventures. These include concerts, merchandise, television appearances, or publishing.

The challenge for many artists starting out is to find a way of funding their music creation and many such artists don’t have the business awareness to know what they could be signing and possible implications. Any record company is going to want a return on their investment in an artist, its of course ‘a business transcation” and its naive to think otherwise.

Non exclusive record deals

A non exclusive record deal can appear attractive, but of course this usually means that the record company is less invested in the artist and once again the devil is in the details. The real question is “who gives what and who gets what?” There’s minimal risk for both artist and label and often minimal reward.

Many artists and fans have the romantic idea that “being signed = musical success” BUT of course any investor will want a return on their investment and record contracts are no different to any other business contract. There’s no right or wrong with deciding how to proceed, and many artists are terrible when it comes to business awareness as well as ignoring professional advice, insisting they know best in such matters.

Distribution record deals

Distribution deals rarely have any money upfront, and the artist is typically responsible for any recording and production, but crucially the artist retains the rights to their own recordings. The artist will approach the label with a finished product and the focus is on how to take the music to a wider audience. This can be a good option for many artists, but as always read the small print.

Major record deals

With major record deals, the label pays for everything, touring, promotion, videos, music production. This is a big committment and these days many labels are nervous about taking such a financial risk in the current economic climate, and many will play it safe. Often the label is looking to see an artist’s established fanbase before even considering signing an artist. The record company of course expects a return on any financial investment and owns the artist’s master recordings even after recovering expenses. A typical deal for a new artist is 11 – 15% of music sales and any ‘advance” is a loan against future sales.

I talked to Jim Glennie from James about this whose band was signed to Universal and was quite shocked at the deal that was in place. In conversations with other established artists I was amazed at how low the advances could be for recording. The myth of “being signed” and the actual reality are poles apart. Many artists are only signed for a very short period of time. Jim confirmed that the band made money from live shows, but never from music product sales. He’s not the only artist to point this out

I’ve never made a dime from a record sale in the history of my record deal.
I’ve been very happy with my sales, and certainly my audience has been very supportive.
I make a living going out and playing shows.

Lyle Lovett

50/50 record deals

These are essentially partnerships between artists and labels and don’t usually mean a big financial advance for the artist. Its useful to remember that it any contractual arrangement, the bigger the financial investment from the company, the more the company will want a financial return from the artist. All “record deals” are trades and each artist would be best advised to consider on whether the deal in place works for them both financially and creatively

Caveat Emptor?

In the era of social media, many artist fans imagine that “being signed” is the end of an artist’s problems, but the reality is that all contracts should be looked at in detail. On one extreme a record company can offer massive financial and promotional investment, but they are goind to want some security to take such a risk. The other extreme with non exclusive agreements can sometimes mean very little actual real committment in terms of financial and time elements, so it may sound wonderful “to be signed” but in the real world of paying bills and having artistic freedom, its not really going to make any real difference to the signed party. Of course there are always exceptions, so the watchword is “caveat emptor’ in all instances!

The average UK salary in 2023 is £33,280 p.a and many artists will earn far less than that, even with regular live appearances. Many who do well are not only playing live on a regular basis but also teaching. Those who drop off the radar from live performances and/or don’t expand their audiences inevitably will find it almost impossible to maintain a living. Some rely on a dedicated small fanbase and constantly appeal for funding, but that’s not a longterm solution, especially for those with families to support. Hats off to anyone trying to earn a living from music these days.

Creativity through collaboration – enter Green Eyed Records

I set up Green Eyed Records as a different way of working, where artists retain 100% ownership of material, but work in a collaborative fashion. I talked to world renowned journalist Sylvie Simmons about this and in my view this is the best hope for retaining creative ownership and reaching a wider audience. The Music for Head and Heart/GER showcases are a great example of creativity through collaboration. It can e a big personal investment, but in my view this is the best way forward.

I’ve seen some real car crash thinking from some artists who spectacularly snatch failure from the jaws of success as they don’t see the bigger picture and are often complaining about their lot in life as an artist! Its 100% their right of course, but the most successful performers have always embraced a wider vision and sought to build connections with others.

In recent years I’ve been increasingly interested in mental health in the arts and music industry. In my professional non music capacity, I’ve worked with many creative types over the last two decades and have noticed some common themes in behaviour.

 In my musical capacity I’ve interviewed many artists at all levels about the reality of being a professional artist as opposed to a hobbyist where you don’t rely solely on creative work to earn a living. I have massive respect for anyone wanting to learn a living from the arts, but I’m noticing an increasing trend where many individuals feel an unhealthy sense of entitlement in being an artist and that kind of thinking leads to all manner of mental health issues. Before you read on, note I say “unhealthy sense of entitlement” The reason for this is that I 100% agree that all professional artists are entitled to be properly paid for their work, but this is about expectations and being fairly rewarded.

I set up Green Eyed Records to discuss and hopefully address some what I consider to be major injustices in the music industry.

The problem with encouraging an “unhealthy sense of entitlement”

Let’s start with a definition of “entitlement”

“The belief that one is inherently deserving of privileges or special treatment”

By “unhealthy sense of entitlement” I mean that in many cases artists have unrealistic expectations. These can be self-created or created by other parties.

Often these misconceptions can occur because artists have not taken the time to really educate themselves about the reality of what it means to be a professional artist. By “professional artist” I mean somebody who earns their money solely from their artistic efforts. Its not enough to have creative skills, other skills are equally important, if an artist wants to depend upon their craft to primarily support themselves financially.

When there is mismatch between expectations of what’s is possible and the reality of what is realistic, creates the perfect environment for problematic mental health issues.

Maintaining good mental health

The term “mental health” is increasingly bandied all over social media and there’s even an outbreak of people setting themselves up as coaches for others, sometimes with good intentions, but few actual skills.

A generally accepted definition of mental health is

“Mental health refers to cognitive, behavioral, and emotional well-being. It is all about how people think, feel, and behave.”

One of the biggest challenges for many artists is to maintain a predictable income source and a work/life balance in increasingly tougher economic times. The changing music business means that many traditional reliable incomes no longer exist and of course record contacts often are leveraged in favour of the record company, as opposed to the artist. This is of course not exactly news, but during covid 19, it became more obvious that the absence of live opportunities removed one of the last good sources of income for musicians. Many artists have to travel great distances at very unsocial hours for not a great deal of income. The unpredictability of work and cancellation of many festivals/events can massively add to stress levels.

Mental health issues usually occur when a person finds that their expectations of what they can do mismatch with the reality of their actual life situation. Many artists become disillusioned when the penny drops and they realise that their sense of entitlement as an artist is not going to happen in real life. There can be many reasons for this, including lack of talent, but its not just talent that will produce a successful life in the arts. There are many other factors that need to be in place and of course many painters and other types of artists could only find success through specific patronage from wealthy individuals who would fund the time needed for the creative process.

Jim Glennie on mental health in the music industry

Jim Glennie is the founder of James, and I recently interviewed him for Green Eyed Records on the music industry and mental health considerations in the music business. I’ve known Jim for 40 years and he makes some excellent observations about the state of the music industry.

 Here’s some of what he said –

“The industry as a whole has a terrible attitude towards mental health. There isn’t mental health problems in the music business. You’re available 24 hours a day, everybody is. Not just people in bands or musicians, but everybody in the industry. That’s just the way it is. And they talk about mental health now, as we’ve been doing for the last few years, but I don’t see anything massively changing in the way that is actually practically done to help people. I mean, the obvious issues of being in a band, at some point, you’re going to have problems with alcohol. At some point you’re going to problem with probably abuse, or the people around you do. Because those things are just considered the norm, they’re considered acceptable. I turn up to work and there’s a table full of free alcohol there, there is. That’s just every time I go to a gig from three o’clock in the afternoon, there’s a table full of free alcohol.”

The Elusive obvious

Many artists have little awareness or quite optimistic ideas of how they will earn a living and spectacularly fail to appreciate “the elusive obvious” in terms of what are the basics needed to earn a living from their craft. My experience is that many music colleges and TV talent shows encourage an unhealthy sense of entitlement for artists. That said, I totally respect anyone who has spent tens of thousands on education in the arts, expecting to get some good future work opportunities. Unfortunately, from what I hear many colleges and universities are complicit in creating totally unrealistic expectations, that of course lead to this sense of entitlement.

I have massive respect for anyone who decides to work in the arts as a profession as opposed to a hobby and have several friends who work in the music industry. They are all very grounded in reality and have spent years developing their craft. They also know the value of collaboration and working with people who have similar values.

Social media, the breeding ground for mutual appreciation

Social media platforms can be invaluable for reaching a wider audience. They also can encourage an unhealthy sense of entitlement for artists. Often fiends of an artist shower them will all manner of superlatives online that are well meant but are not always that useful. Terms like “genius” “awesome” “groundbreaking” are all trotted out on a daily basis online. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for encouragement, but critical feedback often gets bypassed in favour of such superlatives. The same kind of behaviour exists in the coaching and therapy world, and this can create massive problems for people who sometimes begin to become quite delusional in their thinking. That then is a fast track to mental health issues.

Taking action and seizing opportunities

My advice to anyone wanting to be successful in any profession, whether this is the arts, or any other field is to take the time to develop those skills that will allow you to earn a living. This means learning about the details of how the business works rather than how you feel it should work. I’ve seen some artists endlessly moan about “the music business” and how “they should be treated” I’m more impressed by artists who seek out and act on offered opportunities. Over the years I’ve been amazed at how some individuals “grab failure from the jaws of success”

I had one artist who I’d given session work to and offered support slots on some music showcases, throw a tantrum, and even refuse to pick up the phone after he was unhappy about an online comment on social media. I suggested we talk on the phone and then if needs be agree to disagree and maybe part ways! A simple conversation would have given him the option for a big earning opportunity, and I suggested that its at least hearing what the opportunity was before dismissing it! The same character continues online to lament the lack of earning for independent musicians and how at times he struggles to MOT his car!

Here are some other typical scenarios and behaviors which mean missing potentially great opportunities.

• Not replying to offers of paid gigs/sessions – amazingly some artists are incredibly lazy in replying to e-mails and/or calls and miss opportunities
• Giving back word having agreed to paid work. I know one artist that having agreed to a main stage gig, the next day decided the travel was too far.
• Refusing to take professional advice and insisting on maintaining a strategy that clearly isn’t working.
• Not paying attention to your presence online. Some artists don’t even both to have a website and rely only on 3^rd party owned social media outlet

Let’s end on a positive note

This blog points out “an unhealthy sense of entitlement.” I believe that artists are entitled to fair recompense for their work and the world is a better place for great music. The whole creation and consumption of music is itself in my view great for mental wellbeing. The issue here is the unrealistic sense of entitlement and those factors that allow for this. One of the reasons for creating Green Eyed Records is to promote proper discussion and education, that’s how we all benefit. I’ve worked with enough talented artists with mental health problems to know that many could be avoided with some better education and better decision making.

I’ve been thinking recently about “the power of creativity through collaboration” and how there are wildly different artistic visions among artists and every different behaviours. I set up Original Ukulele Songs to provide a platform for ukulele artists who are interested in creating original music. The resource was and remains 100% totally free for anyone interested and some artists have the ability to have their own bespoke pages on the site to promote their music. Its essentially a totally free advert for performers and to date over 150 artists from all over the globe have taken advantage of this opportunity. I then started to look at running live events for some of these artists and in 2017 sponsored a stage at a known ukulele festival. We showcased 7 acts, videoed the event and this also helped promote artist awareness. The feedback was terrific and it was a packed audience that stayed to listen to all the performers, even though most attending only knew a few of the artists. This was a great example of collaboration and artists working together, rather than in isolation.

Expansion to Green Eyed Records platform

After a few years, I realised that the ukulele world was too small and there were too many politics. It made more sense to create 2 bigger music platforms, Music for The Head & Heart and Green Eyed Records. I’m grateful for some great assistance from a number of people who have supported this concept and in particular Sylvie Simmons and Frank Wilkes from Kycker who freely gave me a lot of time in thinking through the core concepts. The central theme for the OUS platform, MHH and GER are to promote the love of great music and the core ethos is doing this through collaboration and sharing. I’ve also realised the value to seeking out like minds and above all working with professionals. Its early days as the GER platform is less than a year old, but the FB page and the main site are getting great attention and feedback. More than ever this is IMO a time for creativity though collaboration to promote great music.

Why isolation is the death knell for most artists…

I’ve been happy to financially fund these resources and its interesting to have a huge range of reactions. On one extreme I have had some great article contributions and advice from seasoned professionals and at the other extreme I’ve had some quite bizarre reactions in promoting GER. On one FB I was promoting a live event cross posting and running ads for all the artists attending and one person hilariously accused me of incessant posting on a particular FB page. I immediately posted an apology for any offence created and politely reminded them that the the purpose to posting about a forthcoming live event was for her chosen artist to reach a wider audience.

Not only was I not taking any fee from the forthcoming event as a support act, but also was personally help fund the event to promote great music. All of this help fell on deaf ears and I realised that some folks don’t real get the value of working with others and prefer to work in isolation. That’s IMO always the death knell for most artists, both financially and creatively. Of course everyone has the perfect right to follow their own beliefs, but its hilarious when those who choose a path of isolation then complain about how isolated they are from reaching a wider audience essential for basic living expenses as well as being able to complete creative work to a good standard! Its a shame, but I have realised that there’s little point in explaining “the elusive obvious” in such situations!

I’m more interested in great music rather than being part of any artist fan club and I have become increasingly more selective about who I work with. In my non musical capacity I have a successful history of promoting events across the globe and running many productive marketing initiatives. The key ingredient in two decades of success is working with those who value collaboration and appreciate that

“No one of us is smarter than all of us”

Working with like minds and creating new opportunities

Later this year the next Music for Head and Heart Platform in association with Green Eyed Records will feature Jon Gomm as the headliner and Towse along with The Heartache as a support act. These evenings are all about great music and its an absolute joy to work with such professionals. Jon had already agreed to be interviewed for Music for The Head and Heart and its a real privilege to host him in a live capacity at a great venue in Leeds. The headline act for 2023 has also been signed and similar to Jon that performer has a very busy international schedule, so we have to plan ahead to secure the booking.

Green Eyed Records encourages artists to work together for the promotion of great music. I’m happy to put my money literally where my mouth is and to sponsor events, marketing and equipment with no strings attached. Many artists regardless of how talented they are, don’t have the individual reach to attract a wider audience. The old argument “We’re not interested in being big” is usually a cop out as many such artists often struggle to maintain paying weekly bills, never mind being able to invest in bringing their creative voice to the wider world.

I recently had to figure out a new name for a music project and it occurred to me that there are several music branding considerations always worth checking before you decide to action any project.

What is “Branding” and how is it useful?

Effective branding sending a message about your music, making it memorable for the public.
It communicates to the wider public about who you are as an artist.
It maintains consistent message about your own creative voice.
It helps develop and maintain a connection with your chosen audience.
It helps audience members connect with each other and celebrate your music.

Key Considerations

What image/impression do you want to create? Does the name of the band or musical project reflect the intention you have in mind? A golden rule of marketing is if you must explain the term you have chosen, then its probably not the best fit for what you want to do.
Is somebody already using the same term? With bands and musical projects, its easy to come up with what you think is a great name, start building the musical image and then find somebody got there first. I used to know the original bass player for the UK band “Embrace” who were going to call themselves “Curious Orange” until The Fall used it in a title for an album.

Is the domain name available?

I am amazed that some artists go to the trouble of selecting a musical identity without checking that they can obtain the domain name. I always check I can get the .com and well as the.co.uk for brand protection. Amazingly some artists just grab the.co.uk or worse still don’t check at all. There is nothing worse than going to all the trouble to choose a musical identity to then find it’s a domain for a strip joint in Vegas or another venture that is not helpful to your own efforts. I’m surprised that many artists don’t both to create their own websites and instead reply totally on social media. All social media platforms are 3rd party businesses, and most people are users and not customers. These platforms exist to generate income for their shareholders not to give free marketing for artists. As the old saying goes “You get what you pay for”. Yes, social media can be useful, but its smart to have a web presence you control 100% that is your interface to the wider world.
Is the artist/project term you use memorable for the public? In one of my consultancy sessions for business I could not (despite being told many times) remember the company name. One of my recommendations was to change and simplify the brand name and once they did their marketing went from strength to strength.
Invest in a good visual image and/or logo and use professional photographs. There is an old saying – “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.” I continue to be amazed that many artists do not invest in good visual images.

Today sees the welcome funding for the arts finally from the government, but covid 19 has created a major problem for both theatres and music venues. I’m hearing that one of the key issues is that most venues need 80% capacity to maintain predictable viable income, but with even a reduce 1m social distancing rule, that will be more than halved.

Mark Davyd of the music venue trust commented

“When we eventually emerge from lockdown, Grassroots Music Venues, the absolute bedrock, the foundations, the cornerstone on which our world beating £5.2 billion per year industry has been built, are going to be essential to live music bouncing back. It is therefore economically short sighted and frankly ridiculous to put a £5 billion a year industry at long term risk for lack of a short term £50 million investment.

The generosity shown towards our #saveourvenues campaign since we launched it in April has been staggering. The £2m we have raised to date has saved literally hundreds of venues in the short term, but the situation is still dire and relying on donations simply isn’t sustainable as we move into a recovery phase. With that in mind let’s act now and protect what we have, because what we have is incredible and it is ridiculous to put ourselves in the position where we might permanently lose it for less than 1% of the income it generates for us every single year. £50 million in financial support and a temporary tax cut, that’s all we are asking.

Who loses if this doesn’t happen? Not just the venues, not just the artists, not just the audiences, not just our communities. The government is the biggest loser of all here; billions of pounds of future tax revenues is on the line. Every other serious cultural country in the world is acting to protect its future talent pipeline…. and they don’t even have the incredible talent and the vibrant pipeline we have in the UK. We need our government to step up we need them to do it now.”

I’m not sure how much, if any of the government package will reach grassroots venues, but my own observations are that many were already struggling pre covid 19. I’m fairly sure that the big venues will survive, but my concern is for all those 100 – 250 capacity venues which IMO offer the best environment for seeing artists.

My heart goes out to all those artists who reply upon such venues in maintaining an income as its a hammer blow to maintaining any kind of regular income. I also feel sorry for all those music students graduating from university, who suddenly discover that the world will be very different from now on.

Streaming options?

Some venues like The Vanguard in NYC have moved to streaming concerts and this maintains an audience connection. It is of course a very different experience, but one that we may have to accept as a substitute for attending live events. The irony is that for years I have lamented the apathy of people attending live events and the classic Joni Mitchell line comes to mind

“Don’t it always seem to go, you don’t know what you’ve got till its gone”

The challenge with streaming as I have previously blogged is to maintain good quality sound. For this reason when we run the Music for the Head and Heart shows with artists from all around the globe, we pre record the material. Social media is currently flooded with online performances and I’m not convinced that there is an audience for this volume of material. The danger is that people literally start to switch off from watching and listening.

Promoting new music?

I know of a number of artists who planned to release music in 2020 and who now are having to rethink how to promote their music. Traditional PR companies are IMO similarly stumped as the whole world has changed. One PR company’s strategy was to only focus on promoting artists via Spotify and personally I am unsure that such a narrow approach is commercially viable.

Live music has traditionally been a key ingredient in music promotion and of course this is how artists develop musically. I was reflecting on all the gigs I did with The Caravan of Dreams and treasure those moments and who knows when such opportunities will return? Last year I was lucky enough to see the last Martin Simpson gig of 2019 at Firth Hall in Sheffield that was one of those magical evenings of entertainment, which is never the same when watched on video.

Conclusion

Even if a vaccine appears in the near future (the best guess is around 12 months) I suspect the world of entertainment has fundamentally changed. Major concerts like Glastonbury have indicated that they will not be viable if they cancel in 2021.

Personally I’d like to see a return to smaller venues where people come to watch and listen to artists, but who knows when that may be possible? One thing is for sure, I massively value all those great gigs I have both attended and played at in days gone by.

I am fortunate to know many excellent professional musicians from around the world and all of them have been by Covid 19. This is requiring a massive rethink and live appearances have all been wiped out. Its an extraordinary situation and it is not going to change anytime soon

Local musicians affected

Many local musicians were already struggling pre pandemic and I recall one niche musician saying he was struggling to make ends meet and wondered if he could MOT his car.

With the advent of covid 19 he is one of the many that may have to rethink whether its viable to continue to reply on music as a predictable source of income. I’ve long thought that many artists live literally from one gig to another and of course there is nothing new in that, but covid 19 creates all manner of additional problems

People and venue challenges

There is a current argument raging about the acceptable distance people for people to socially distance during covid 19. At 2 metres most indoor venues are not viable. Theatres generally need 80% capacity to be viable and the 2 metre rule means they can only accommodate 20%, which is not economically viable. Regardless of whether this changes, many smaller clubs and venues will close. As one producer said

“Many artists are gonna have to drop a division when playing live”

The second issue is whether people will even return to attending live events in the same numbers. Most people are creatures of habit and a three month total change of habits is going to have a lasting effect. My guess is that it will be a long time before audiences return to live events in the same numbers.

The Online solution?

As soon as the world went into lockdown many artists immediately and understandably shifted to running online events. There are many challenges with these format including the technical challenges in maintaining good sound and visuals.

My own experience is that the quality is massively variable. Some online efforts have been like watching a car crash, while others have been really excellent.

Jack and the Vox from USA have been putting out pairs of songs on a daily basis and have been terrific entertainment. What both these examples have in common is the attention to detail and really superb performances. They remind me of Daryl’s House, always engaging and unpredictable.

Martin Simpson‘s first live show was exceptional, really terrific sound, a great set and of course a superb performance. Martin is shooting a lot of video from home and as always he is truly engaging and fascinating to watch

The online medium is a different environment, like a TV show but without the high production values. This is totally different to a live experience. I’m personally not a fan of calling pre recorded material “festivals” or “mini festivals” as they are nothing like a festival experience.

Captain of the Lost Waves has done a series of terrific shows that have delighted his growing fanbase as well as connecting to a new audeince

All these artists have a strong work ethic and crucially smart strategic thinking.

The difference that makes the difference

Many people I know feel that social media is swamped by online events and many unfortunately are not that great. I suspect the ones that are more creative and themed will survive whereas the others will disappear.

Artists with strong fan bases will in my opinion do well and as always artists will need to find new ways to capture public attention. This is perhaps not a bad thing as it means there will be more focus on quality as audiences will have less spending power. Smart artists are always moving forward and exploring how to connect to new audeinces. This means focussing on differentiation and avoiding just doing exactly the same thing as everyone else.

Snatching failure from the jaws of success?

Unfortunately having great talent is not in itself enough to generate predictable income for artists, you have to also have some business skills. I’ve known some very good musicians who spectacularly “snatch failure from the jaws of success”

Usually they are too polarised in their ways of thinking and can’t seperate social and business interactions. I set up Music for the Head and Heart and Songs of Hope as a free resource for artists to connect to new audiences. This is one of many initiatives that I fund personally to help musicians.

Smart musicians appreciate that in order to earn a good living rather than just scraping by, you need to embrace a wider audience and that means building new connections all the time. I learned from my non musical persona teaching business skills, that often you have to expand thinking and work with a wide range of people rather than a narrow niche of people who agree 100% with everything you already think!

Conclusion

I predict new and more innovative ways of connecting with audiences will emerge. Many artists that were just scraping by will I suspect disappear if they don’t adapt to the new dynamic. I can’t imagine a world without great music and hopefully the “new normal” will result in some real great new entertainment. Of course its 100% up to the artists what they want to do and whether that want an audience of thousands, millions or just themselves, BUT for most people time needs to be funded in some way and these thoughts are on strategies that help make that happen.

The Covid 19 pandemic has brought massive change on the planet and of course the music industry is hugely affected. These are very uncertain times and I suspect the musical landscape post covid will never be the same again. As soon as ‘South by South West” was cancelled I realised that we had a massive problem.

All my professional artist friends had every single live performance cancelled and that meant zero income. Nobody really knows how the musical landscape will appear lost covid 19. My hope is that live music will return as such events are one of my true loves in life.An “egg in one basket” and the use technology? I have of course blogged in the past about the myth and reality in the music business and covid 19 will in my view create a massive reset for the music industry.

Use of technology during covid 19

Many artists earn a living with income from one gig to another and suddenly that income stream vanished. I have previously blogged about how tough it is for artists to generate a working wage from music and the pandemic has highlighted as one friend said “My egg was in one basket, and now that basket is no more!”

Many performers have started to use technology to stream live appearances with varying results. There are all manner of challenges with the technology and of course the number of people online is at an all time high. This affects bandwidth globally and that affects the quality of what is streamed. With the Music for the Head and Heart platform, we opted for recording artist material for this reason. That way we can ensure the picture and sound quality are at a high level.

Streaming and “festivals online?”

A number of friends have commented that social media and especially Facebook are now full of artists streaming music. The term “festivals” is now being applied to such events. The quality of what appears is variable to say the least and it will be interesting to see if this trend continues over a longer period of time as this is of course a few different form of interaction without mass human gathering. I was surprised to see one niche group of music promote a ticketed event as a “festival” when it was lot a live stream, but a series of artists having recorded in their homes! Personally I think this is a bit of a stretch in calling this “a festival” but that’s just a personal view and I appreciate that many people have to try and scratch a living in whatever way they can.

The biggest challenge for many artists in terms of generating income from online video is that the public to a large extent, expect video to be free. Youtube has a huge amount of free content, including full gigs often in high resolution with great sound. The experience of watching online is of course very different to attending an event, but with all the current uncertainty nobody knows what the future holds in terms of live events.

There’s an even bigger challenge for ukulele and many other niche music events is that in many (but not all cases) the audience are not there primarily to listen to artists but rather to play. As a longstanding ukulele player and teacher commented

“Nick, they don’t want to listen to music, they just want to jam with each other”

My experience is that this is true for some ukulele circles, but there are artists like Victoria Vox who are reaching a much wider audience. Similarly the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain also attract a mainstream audience and are great entertainers. As the uke festival audience enthusiasts are generally older, this poses additional problems for future festivals as covid 19 is more problematic for that age group.

Studio recording during Covid 19

Studio recording in the traditional sense has of course been massively affected. During lockdown artists can’t go to studios to do recording so remote and home recording methods are going to be on the increase. I’ve been blogging on using Steinberg VST Connect Performer. This is probably the most advanced technology for remote recording and we’ve had good results to date. However this is not an easy option for many artists and even a seasoned producer may find that this is a very new way of working and Steinberg would do well to update their instruction videos as many aspects of working this way are not as clear as they could be.

I’ve also been using a UAD Arrow with an Acme DI into Reaper DAW to great effect. This is a simple set up which is producing some great results. I’ll send over files to my producer and we’ll then use VST Connect Performer to add additional tracks. I’m also using the Ear Trumpet Myrtle mic for all vocals and loving the results. I’m lucky to have amassed all this gear just before the pandemic and this allows me to work up new material at an accelerated rate. Its a bit of a baptism of fire, but I suspect that the future of artist recording will involve a lot more home recording than in days gone by.

This is a great time for learning about recording as there are many great low cost resources out there. One superb example is the Reaper DAW which can be used for free during the covid period. Check out Reaper HERE I use this DAW for all recording and it took just five minutes to set up.

Future live music events?

People are mostly creatures of habit and the pandemic has meant that live events have all disappeared. Some festivals and clubs may disappear of course through financial difficulties. One scenario may be that people value music more and flock more to live events. Another scenario is that people become more cautious about group gatherings and stay away.

My instinct is that the musical landscape will be very different and there will be a substantial reduction in live opportunities as even before the pandemic many festivals and clubs were already struggling. I’m a massive fan of live music, although I favour smaller venues these days and the idea of a huge festival is not that attractive. The major festivals in 2020 were all cancelled and I suspect many will be cancelled for 2021 until there is some kind of cure for covid 19. These are very strange times and I feel like I’m in some strange alter universe.

Final thoughts

Nobody knows what will happen post covid 19, but in my opinion the musical landscape will be very different. Adaptability will be crucial and this means thinking in very different ways. One thing is certain, artists will continue to entertain and in my view the world needs as much of that as it can find right now.

One of the biggest challenges in creating and promoting music is to be able to fund the time needed to make this happen Unless you have a wealthy patron or other financial support, it can become a real issue. Here are some thoughts and observations on this.

Predictable income challenges

In recent months I know three musicians who have returned to full time employment as they can’t earn enough predictable income fr om music alone. I’ve blogged extensively about how paid work is tougher to find for artists and its no surprise that ecomonic consideraions ultimately prevail. I remember reading that Tom Verlaine from the iconic band Television was still working part time in a book store in New York even when his classic Marquee Moon album was released.

In 1980s my friends in the band James in the early days were volunteering for drug trials in Manchester to generate income and for years lived on a shoe string. Even when signed by Sire, it was hard work and only 30+ years on are those in the band capitalising on decades of work.

Image v working reality in music

Many artists don’t in my view fully appreciate that if they want to connect to a wider audience, image is important. I’ve seen many posts on social media which to put it politely are in my opinion ill advised. Examples include begging for accomodation in a city at short notice from anyone online and other photos of being very drunk online. Yes, this is part of daily life for many folks, but as the old saying goes “You never get a 2nd chance to make a first impression”

Its not just individual artists who are unaware. I saw a festival once try and position themselves as the next Glastonbury for a niche music concern. The ad copy online was as impressive as the claims for what they said they were going to achieve. I then saw a photo of the headliner and thought it must have been during a soundcheck. The reason I thought this was that there was a small group of people huddled under umbrellas which suggested a very different image, but yes this was the final audience…

Funding Time for recording & Gigs

I just finished my third album and I have realised that in order to work up material for the studio and live tracks means a lot of rehearsal time. My policy is to pay the band for all their time and I fund this from my other work. This means working very hard to make this possible. I also pay all band members for gigs, irrespective of whether we get paid by the promoter. These costs can really accumulate, but its an effective way to get the work completed without resorting to Kickstarter style operations. Such operations work well for some people but I’ve steered clear to date.

Regarless of finance, simply being able to get a band to all meet is a challenge. I joke that “thank god, we are not a 12 piece band!” I have learned that the best model for my ensemble is to have a core trio and then hire in other musicians. I have an inner FB group for all those involved in musical projects and that allows for good communication.

Reciprocation & Shared Values

I’m a big fan of reciprocation and shared values. I’ve run music events where some artists have been brilliant in their cooperation and involvement. In contrast I’ve had artists want to bring a crazy number of people as guests, many of who disappear after their friends have performed! Neeedless to say, such folks will not get future opportunites from me. Fortunately these individuals are in a minority and are often seriously unaware of opportunities. With one artist I offered them all manner of possible commercial opportunities and they simply didn’t respond. Yes, its for each artist to determine what works for them, but to not even check out an opportunity seems seriously daft to me…

I’ve learned to pick and choose who I involve in projects and as band members. There are some really nice folks out there, but it can be a massive amount of working organizing them. This inevitably leads to a lot of frustration so now I’m super careful about who I involve in work. Another issue is that many artists can’t work in an organized manner and that is essential if you want to build and release a body of work. My advice to all band leaders is to work with people who are like minds and who have shared values.

Music for The Head and Heart Platform

I set up the Music for The Head and Heart platform to bring together artists and work in collaboration. To date we have run a terrific launch party and the second live event is Jan 25th and we still have a few tickets here. To date we have interviewed 35 artists from all over the globe and its been fascinating. This means allocating a great deal of time and some financial investment. I fund this to date from other work and by year two my plan is that at least the live events break even. The main investment is time in organising artists and planning video and audio. People who attend actual events often don’t appreciate the crazy amount of time and goodwill involved in many these showcases happen.

All this time has to be funded in some way and that means thinking smart and working with people who have shared values. In terms of the platform I have a policy of inviting people and then sending a reminder if I don’t hear anything. Many such artists simply don’t have the momentum and stamina to create a body of work and to reach a wider public. Often they are by nature too insular and inevitably never create and release a body of work.

Time to think and plan

Personally I need chunks of time to plan and to create new music. I don’t work with a regimented work schedule for writing, but I like to always have instruments to hand and free time to play around. Its also invaluable to be able to step back from projects and take a second view on how to proceed. I think its also invaluable to have a variety of interests in life which can inspire the creative process. That means using time in a particular way to not just get stuck in one medium of musical creation and to embrace working with all manner of other people. As Nick Cave would say

“A rock musician’s career is short-lived. To extend it, you need to do other things to keep yourself fresh.|
Nick Cave

Final Thoughts

Collaboration and sharing skills and resources are the best way to being about any vision. Many performers can be tunnel visioned in how they work. That’s fine for them, but IMO its not smart business. A better way is genuine cooperation and collaboration to bring great music to a much wider public.

We are just a few days away from the launch of the Music for the Head and Heart evening and I’ve been once again reflecting on the whole issue of music promotion. I confess to having a problem solving brain and in my non musical life I teach problem solving internationally to groups.

It occurs to me that artist/music promotion follows many of the same rules as promoting any service or product.

Get attention

The first rule of any marketing or promotion is to get customer attention. “The good news” is that there have never been so many free mediums to connect with a wider public. “The bad news” is that there have never been so many free mediums to connect with a wider public! The advent of social media and YouTube are both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand these new mediums mean great opportunities, but the downside is that the promotion noise level is at an all time high.

Great video and photos are essential in getting the public’s attention. Increasingly people have very short attention spans, so “good” is not enough, visual mediums need to be great! I appreciate that artists will have financial budgets but its IMO better to have a few great videos and or photos than dozens of average ones. As I have always said

“You never get a second chance to make a first impression”

The importance of continuity and diversity

In my other life I have worked with many successful longstanding musicians. One of them had severe anxiety about live performances and was about to go on a major tour. I floated the idea of taking a break and he commented

“The music industry is very unforgiving. Once you are off the radar, that’s it”

The noise level in music promotion means that its easy to be forgotten very quickly if you don’t maintain a regular stream of creative musical output. The challenge of course is to maintain both quality and quantity. Artists can get known for just one classic track which can then define your entire career. Below is a wonderful spoof from Ralph McTell illustrating this with his classic track “Streets of London” Who reading this blog could name another of his songs?

Time and money investments

The most successful artists I see, have spent years developing their craft. In the era of talent shows there can be a belief that a person can achieve a level of fame really quickly, but that is often a myth. Many artists start off with great intentions with a musical college education, but only a few earn a living as a professional artist. Like any profession success depends on many factors including luck, but always a significant investment of time and money.

The money investment would often historically come from a record company, but the music industry has changed and those opportunities are less frequent. Many artists now self fund or will use some form of crowdfunding. This can work, but again this has become so common that it doesn’t have the same unique appeal as it once had. Pledge music was one of the biggest crowdfunding platforms, which ran into serious trouble, recently putting out this statement

“PledgeMusic entered liquidation with $9.57 million in debt and assets worth just $20,000,” it reported. “With an ‘estimated deficiency’ of $7,405.502.48 and secured creditor Sword Row, LLC first in line, there is ‘little prospect’ that artists and other creditors will be paid, according to the court-appointed receiver.”

So, what’s the good news?

If all this sounds somewhat depressing, then in my view there is also a wealth of good news to report. Its entirely possible to record and promote music to a wider audience in an effective manner, if you take into account many of the points raised here. I increasingly come across many superb artists and its my firm belief that the future is through artist cooperation. This is the thinking behind Music for The Head and Heart which follows the spirit of Robert Fripp’s DGM initiative, where the artist is front and centre.