The secret to a
successful music career is free, easily available, and most artists want
nothing to do with it. That statement is surmised from many industry
professionals sharing that the questions they get asked the most are music
business basics. Without getting the basics, the dream of making a living doing
playing music will remain a dream.
The best illustration
of someone who learned the basics and continuously worked the steps like he was
earning chips is singer/songwriter John Taglieri (J.T). The current tally is 10 CDs selling over
20,000 copies and he hasn’t seen a day job since March 10, 2005. This New
Jersey native resides just outside of Boston but spends every other month performing
in Key West, FL. When he’s home he
either gigs locally and/or puts on his producer hat for clients he books in his
studio. In this series of articles, I try to tap into his firsthand experiences
in hopes of finally cracking the hard nut that is the human ego and to get more
artists fruitfully working toward their own “retirement” from their day jobs.
Put
the Ego Back in the Box
At some point, every
musician wonders why they’re not successful yet. The answer is simple. “The simple things are
the hardest…and I finally figured out what the problem was – me and my ego”
said John Taglieri (Wiki). Ego fuels the entertainment business but it
is best served on stage. Off stage, artists need to make good business
decisions. They can’t make good business decisions when their egos make all
their choices. “You just set yourself up
for failure.”
John Taglieri’s
shows make every bar and backyard he plays, a party. It’s a mix of known
favorites and original music. But he was
once scoffed at by other bands for being ‘a cover guy.’ “I bought a ticket played The Rock Boat for 8 or 9 years just jamming everywhere i could and meeting people.” Many
artists have a chance to get booked on land gigs after performing on the Rock
Boat. “But a lot of guys didn’t take them because covers were beneath them. I
always say yes. And the way I can do
that is to put my ego away.” Now those bands who passed on the gigs he took are
asking him for advice on gigging so much. “There was just a lot of work between
then and now that their ego just didn’t want to do.”
J.T is the first
person to say that he’s not the world’s greatest musician. But he is very
successful and very good at what he
does. “I do what I need to do. If anyone
does what they need to do, eventually they can get what they want.” Don’t wait
for the easy path to come down from the sky, light up with a giant arrow
pointing the way to a new tour bus driven by Clive
Davis. That doesn’t even happen in Spinal tap.
Wanna
Retire? Work For It.
Put the work in
where the want is. If the majority of thought and effort goes into getting a
good annual 360 review for that coveted 2% raise, then it’s not going towards playing
music. Ozzy Osbourne used to pack his gear and wait outside clubs in case a
band canceled and his band could play. Harrison Ford was a carpenter on a movie
set before he was Han Solo. Follow their lead and get involved in the business.
Although he wanted
to be a touring musician, he left a full time day job to work 3 days a week
touring with a sound company. It wasn’t
exactly what he wanted but it was in the business and gave him a chance to use
all that schooling in audio engineering. But that left 4 days a week he could use to
work on his music while keeping a hand in the business and making connections
the other 3 days. The better he got getting music gigs, the less he needed his
sound gig. “So I got my boss to fire me. I never looked back.”
It should be noted
that J.T is a solo artist and plays with a band for select gigs. Is it easier
to set off on a musical adventure for a solo musician than a group act? “Nope.
A group means more people are working towards the goal.” Everyone in the band should
have a job. A real job. A band
related job. Assign jobs to each band member: booking, promotion, finance, etc.
No one is above the grunt work.
“The practices I use
are Business 101.” While playing music to crowds is addictive and the party
life is really the fun it’s made out to be, those are for the ego. Success in
the music business is the science (yes – science!) of selling. Sell your
product. “And find a way to outsell everyone else.” Don’t worry about fame or
being a big rock ‘n roll star, that’s just ego. Leave the id on stage.
When ego is finally
put aside, you can finally do the work you need to do to get where you want to
go. Then artists can finally retire to their own little paradise.
[Watch this spot for
a continuing talk with John Taglieri and his Tips for touring and why Sweet 16
parties rock more than bars with Goldschlager ice slide.]
