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Sue Basko Interview with The Record Shop

Sue Basko, Lawyer for Music and Film, was kind enough to feature The Record Shop as part of her blog…

Sean Giovanni, Nashville Music Producer/ Balcony TV Nashville

by Sue Basko

The Record Shop is one of Nashville’s new creative, up-and-coming recording studios. Sean Giovanni is The Record Shop‘s owner/ music producer/ recording engineer.

Giovanni also runs Balcony TV Nashville. Balcony TV is an internet music show that brings in well-known musical acts to do one acoustic song apiece out on a balcony overlooking a scenic part of a city. Balcony TV was founded in 2006 in London and has since been franchised worldwide to Dublin, Hamburg, Poznan, Brighton, Auckland, Paris, Brisbane, Edmonton, Rennes, Prague, Toronto, and Mexico City. Nashville was the first U.S. city to have Balcony TV, and has been followed by New York and Austin. I love Balcony TV!

Sean Giovanni offers these insightful answers to my probing questions: Read The Full Interview Here……

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Yourmuzik.net

Our friend Randy Brunson drops by to share the news on his new digital download widget available at yourmuzik.net

In 2007, I had just spent 3 years developing a piece of property in Spring Hill , Tennessee. Until then,……..thats what I did. Building and Development. But music was always a passion.  Coincidentally, by developing where I did, all the new friends I made were in the music business. My longtime friend and business partner, Jim Heaton, was involved at the time building a Nashville based spa business, with partners that were/are in the music business as well. His immediate partner is a great singer/songwriter, and her sister was well on her way to becoming a celebrity with Dancing With The Stars, and eventually a recording contract of her own.

Jim and I have always had our own passion for performing, but an equal passion for the creation of something that would outlast us. Our idea at the time was, in the aftermath of the collapse of Napster,   that someone needed to give independent artists a platform to perform and expose their talents at an affordable cost to them, to  build a facebook for musicians, and a digital download widget that would give independent artists, (as well as established) the ability to directly sell their music to the public digitally, but “RETAIN MOST OF THE MONEY”.

So came the birth of the initial concept for Yourmusik.net.   In 2009, we created a venue for independent artists to perform at  my farm in the Spring Hill, Tennessee area. Billed as “Howling at the Moon”, it was an instant success with over 20 acts, and 350 people attending an afternoon event that lasted for several hours into the night. We initially had hoped to launch Yourmusik.net at the second party, given this summer, but unfortunately had too many problems with the programming of the download widget.  We had another great day managing to bring in “Younger than Yesterday, Former Members of the BYRDS” as a headliner.  Three years later, thousands of dollars poorer, and beat up on by every software programmer that could get their hooks into us, we are finally at a crossroads with a piece of programming that actually works, and does just what we set out for, gives over 80% of the  proceeds of the sale of music back directly to the artist.

I say crossroads, because I feel even after all this, we still have a long way to go to establish everything we set out for.  The rest of our concept is to create a website that gives musicians a resource to turn to other musicians for camaraderie and support, and to the site itself for the least expensive resource for recording, equipment, vocal and instrument lessons, videos, and on line practice and recording, to name just a few things.

What I will say, is that we are proud to present the Yourmusik Download Widget to  independent artists of all genres, and are working constantly to improve the
speed and performance of this programming. We have built in all the necessary reporting/accounting details so that each artist can monitor the results of their sales with this widget.  We  are essentially licensing the use of this widget directly to each artist who would like to use it, to copy and paste to whatever site they wish, be it Facebook, Myspace, or independent.

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Social Networking: the Five Biggest Mistakes Nichepreneurs? Make

Social networks have become a major element of artist marketing campaigns. Susan A. Friedmann (TheNichePreneur™ Coach) shares her five biggest mistakes made in marketing through social networks. How have you utilized social networking to build your brand? Share your stories for a chance to win a free day of studio time at The Record Shop!

Over half of all Americans between the ages of 15-34 consider themselves active social network users. They regularly visit well-known social networking sites, such as MySpace or Facebook, or log onto specialty social networks, like Ravelry (devoted to the fiber arts) or GroupRecipes (for the foodie set). While industry research tells us that television watching is declining, especially among this age group, social network use is on the rise: average users spend seven to eight hours a week online. read the full article here….

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Gene Simmons on Illegal Downloading.

Matthew Lasar of arstechnica.com shares news on Gene Simmons’ recent comments on illegal downloading. How do you feel about the effect of illegal downloads on the industry and what has been done to discourage P2P users? Share your thoughts for a chance to earn a day of studio time at The Record Shop!

Gene Simmons has made headlines after airing his very strong opinions on P2P and music piracy. Earlier this week, Gene was speaking at the MIPCOM convention in Cannes, France, and he advised people to protect their brand and be ready to lawyer up at a moment’s notice. read the full story here…

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Converse ventures into the studio biz?

Austin Carr of fastcompany.com shares the recent news of how Converse is jumping into the music industry for a unique method of promotion.

Converse is testing a new way to get its foot in the door of the music industry.

The shoe company is building a studio in Brooklyn called Converse Rubber Tracks, which will provide artists with free recording time in exchange for future promotions. Converse is not looking for revenue from the songs themselves–artists will actually keep ownership rights–but it is hoping to gain access to on-the-verge bands, which will generate good will for the brand for helping to break them and get Converse in on the ground floor. read more…….

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How Facebook sells you

I read an interesting article this week in Bloomberg Business Week. The piece looks into the new advertising strategies that Facebook offers for businesses. While reading, I wondered if these methods could be implemented by musicians, and labels, as well. Click the link below to read the article and let us know what you think. 

How Facebook Sells You- Bloomberg Business Week

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Sonoma Wireworks teams up with Terence Higgins for DrumCore

Sonoma Wire Works Releases HigginsPack, a New DrummerPack for
DrumCore

–New Orleans funk drum grooves by Terence Higgins of The Dirty Dozen
Brass Band–

Los Altos, CA – August 19, 2010 – Sonoma Wire Works has launched the
HigginsPack DrummerPack for DrumCore. Terence Higgins, drummer for
The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, brings DrumCore users unique New Orleans
marching style drum loops, variations, fills and drumkit sounds with
a dash of hip hop, funk, R&B, and soul. Higgins says this DrummerPack
is “guaranteed to add a little grease to your tracks.”

HigginsPack was recorded by the original Submersible Music team, and
was pre-configured by them with metadata for use with the DrumCore
search engine, which will help you find content based on feel
(straight, shuffle, etc.), time signature, tempo and other criteria.
Songwriter-friendly “GrooveSets” group related beats, variations
and fills to serve as a construction kit for song creation. All audio
is 48kHz/24-bit and created in a pro studio using state-of-the-art
digital (ProTools HD3) and analog (Neumann, Neve, etc.) recording
equipment. DrumCore works with all the major audio applications and
supports dragging audio and MIDI directly to tracks in applications
such as ACID® 7, Digital Performer® 6, Live 6 and up, Logic Pro® 8
and up, Pro Tools® 7.4.2 and up, Cubase® 4 and up (32 bit), and
Sonar™ 8 (32 bit).

HigginsPack includes 3.5GB of content including 7 DrumKits (24 pads
each) that match 7 GrooveSets (360 audio loops, 427 audio fills, 97
MIDI loops and 41 MIDI fills).

HigginsPack GrooveSets:

Bourbon Street Strut – A traditional slice of New Orleans march.
Intricate rolled snares with some bouncing toms thrown in for good
measure. 70 – 130 BPM

Dirty Dumpster – A trashy, choppy breakbeat groove with funky snare
work and sloppy hats. Great for Hip Hop. 70 – 120 BPM

Fix The Levee – Funky rhythms played on a poppy kit. Sounds great at
the faster tempos. 70 – 130 BPM

Go Go Grease – Upbeat and swingy, this groove is perfect for multiple
genres including Pop, Hip Hop, and R&B. 70 – 120 BPM

Nolafied – A laid back, funky breakbeat that only “The Big Easy”
could provide. 70 – 130 BPM

Swampburn – Thick and murky Nawlins’ march beats. Snare heavy with
some great tom sections. 70 – 130 BPM

Zigawho – Another funky beat with some great snare variations. Start
and Stop breakdowns and splashy cymbals. 60 – 110 BPM

HigginsPack is priced at $79.99, is available at drumcore.com,
sonomawireworks.com, and will be available via most music software
retailers. Demo tracks and HigginsPack info:
https://drumcore.com/TemplateMain.aspx?contentId=100

Requires DrumCore (2 or above) and 3.5 GB of disc space for
installation.

About Terence Higgins and his Drum Kit:

Born and raised in NOLA, Higgins is well versed in the New Orleans
funk style. He is currently touring with The Dirty Dozen Brass Band,
John Scofield’s Piety Street Band, and Swampgrease. In the past, he
has played with Widespread Panic, Dr. John and Norah Jones to name a
few, appears on dozens of albums, and has just released his solo “In
the Bywater” CD. Terence used the following drum kit to record
HigginsPack: Pearl MRX Masters Series Vintage Sunburst with black
hardware, 22×18 bass drum, 8×8 tom, 10×9 tom, 12×10 tom, 16×14 tom,
14×6.5 snare drum (Steve Ferrone Signature), 13×6.5 snare drum (Joey
Jordison Signature), and a 14×6.5 snare drum (Sensitone).

About DrumCore:

DrumCore gives songwriters and composers access to grooves and
instrument sounds of over a dozen famous drummers and percussionists.
It includes a groove library of both audio loops and MIDI files plus a
VST/AU/RTAS software instrument for Mac and PC. DrumCore is expandable
with add-on DrummerPacks. https://www.drumcore.com

About Sonoma Wire Works:

Incorporated in 2003 and headquartered in Los Altos, California,
Sonoma Wire Works develops products and services that help musicians
enjoy playing, recording and sharing music. Sonoma Wire Works’
flagship product is RiffWorks™ guitar recording software with
InstantDrummer, effects, RiffLink™ online music collaboration, and
the RiffWorld.com online community. These products have received
multiple awards for performance and innovation. FourTrack™ and
InstantDrummer™ iPhone Apps, AudioCopy/AudioPaste technology for
the iPhone, the GuitarJack™ audio input device, and the
StudioTrack™ multitrack for the iPad are also by Sonoma. Drum
products by Sonoma include the DrumCore and KitCore plugins and
DrummerPack library, as well as the Discrete Drums multitrack drum
library. https://www.sonomawireworks.com

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DIY Publicity Campaigns; Why You Need to Do Them, And How to Get Started

Eric Normand, author of “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide” and accomplished guitarist, teamed up with “For The Record”, to provide some insight on climbing the ranks as a musician in the Nashville music industry. Eric’s upcoming book, “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide” provides a comprehensive reference of what it takes to persevere in the competitive Nashville music community.

You can learn more about Eric and his upcoming release at nashvillemusicianssurvivalmanual.com

Whether you are an obscure musician trying to get your music heard, a first-time author putting forth a new book, or an independent filmmaker introducing your first film, you all share something in common; a desire to introduce your art to a world that has yet to learn of it. How do you create an awareness of your project? These are tough times and the aforementioned endeavors are not easy ones. The list doesn’t stop there either. Photographers, artists, songwriters, and others are in the same boat.

The new global economy and a variety of other factors has created an extremely competitive dog eat dog world when it comes to business, and this means we all might have to take some alternative approaches to getting the word out. Without the proper publicity and promotion, no one will know about your great project, products or services. Traditional advertising is too expensive for most, and not necessarily that effective anymore. There is no right or wrong approach, but many believe that social media combined with Internet marketing are essential to most startup creative businesses at this point in time. If you’re ready to take the plunge, here’s how you can dive in.

  1. Build your social pool: Interact regularly on Facebook to slowly build a group of friends, fans, and followers on the Internet. With hundreds of millions of users, it shouldn’t be hard to find a couple hundred that are interested in you. Over time this can grow into thousands. Twittering can be productive as well.
  2. Start blogging: At this point in time, blogging is a powerful tool and can be used to promote literally any business. Create your own blog and write about your areas of expertise. The information you put forth should not only be directly or indirectly related to your products and services, it should also be useful to your targeted audience.
  3. Build a website: While a .com domain is optimum and will help to give your business a legitimate “face”, not everyone can afford one initially. There’s nothing wrong with starting out with a free WordPress (or similar) site. This will allow you to begin building your brand. Your blog should be built into this site or linked to it. This website/blog will serve as a central hub to all your Internet activity, with links to Facebook, Twitter, etc.
  4. Guest Blogging: It can take a while to create heavy traffic on your site. Blogging as a guest on a higher traffic site can help build your readership and drive more traffic to your site.
  5. Online Discussions: Find message boards with themes that relate to your project and interact with group discussions. Offer advice and perspective where pertinent and provide links to articles on your site.

There is a recent article regarding working in the new social media paradigm that offers some useful tip’s that I highly recommend reading – Top Seven Reasons Why Artists Strongly Resist Social Media by Ariel Hyatt.

The online social interaction approach to publicity is no secret, but it is still a new concept to many. Over time, if done correctly, you will build a “readership” that is genuinely interested in what you have to say, so always strive to provide useful information. By building a large group of readers, or “friends”, fans, and followers, you are connecting with an audience that will potentially come to your shows, buy your book, watch your film, and enjoy your art.

Is this easy to accomplish? No. Does this take time and effort? Absolutely, but then again so does any career. Without the proper promotion, nobody will ever hear about your project. If you think you have something good to offer the world, put it out there. Sometimes the best way to learn how to swim is to just dive in to the pool. You might sink and then again you might not, but you’ll never know if you don’t try.

Are you ready to take the plunge yet?

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Getting Started in Nashville

Eric Normand, author of “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide” and accomplished guitarist, teamed up with “For The Record”, to provide some insight on climbing the ranks as a musician in the Nashville music industry. Eric’s upcoming book, “The Nashville Musician’s Survival Guide” provides a comprehensive reference of what it takes to persevere in the competitive Nashville music community.

You can learn more about Eric and his upcoming release at nashvillemusicianssurvivalmanual.com
So you just moved to Nashville, you’re a good solid player with a good attitude and excited to begin working. You don’t care about being a superstar, you just want to play music with others but you are quickly learning that this can be hard to do. You are having a hard time getting off the ground. What do you have to do to get started in this town?

Regardless of your talent level, the truth is simply that talent alone isn’t going to get you work. Nashville, like any major music Metropolis, attracts talented people by the masses. They literally flock to this place in droves. This creates a supply and demand problem that works against the musicians. Knowing and understanding this is crucial. Ultimately, the only way in is by slowly nurturing relationships that will lead to opportunities. The best place to build these relationships is in the nightclubs around town. There is no shortcut to this, it’s going to take some time so be patient.

A newcomer to Nashville recently told me his story. He moved to Nashville about a year ago with the goal of becoming a part of the country music scene here. He has been frequenting the clubs downtown with the intention of sitting in and getting to know some of the players. Even though he’s familiar with most of the standards that are being played, he’s having a hard time getting past the idea of hustling to sit in. He said that he views his reasons for networking as self-serving, and this prevents him from talking to musicians because he feels self-conscious about it – like he’s using them. The end result is that he just walks around watching bands, never talks to anybody, and then goes home.

I, as well as many others, can relate. When I first moved to Nashville I was in a similar situation. How does one introduce them self to all these total strangers and maneuver his or her way into sitting in without coming off to self-serving?

One thing that worked for me was seeking out groups of players and artists that I related to musically. This makes it much easier to form real relationships that can evolve over time. Try to find a group of players, or singer that you really connect with. Maybe you really dig their song list, or are inspired by the performances of one or more of the players in the band. If you can feel a real connection through the music, it should be easy to engage in some genuine conversations – the music is your common ground. Find out when they’re playing again and become a regular. Over time they’ll gradually get to know you and sitting in will be part of a natural progression. Maybe try to cultivate a handful of different situations like this. Also, try to find these kinds of inspiring groups that are playing either earlier shifts and/or at the less popular bars. Those situations will be more laid back and might make it more likely for them to take breaks. And that combined with a smaller crowd in general will make it easier to engage in conversation.

The key to gigging in Nashville is relationships. It’s hard to force friendships and relationships to happen, they need to naturally evolve. You need to regularly put yourself in different kinds of situations where this can happen. It just takes time, persistence, and patience. Most importantly, be a good person. Of course being proficient on your axe will help to.

There is no guarantee that this approach will allow you to achieve the kind of success you envision. But for that matter, there are no guarantees in the music business, or life in general. So just suck it up, be in it for the long haul, and get out there and start pounding the pavement. Be friendly and outgoing and put your best foot forward. Talk to people. Take an interest in their careers and lives. Try to find some common ground and build relationships with players that you relate to. If you have already tried this and haven’t yielded much results, try harder.

That’s what it takes to get started in Nashville.

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Pier Music Group teams up with The Record Shop

Pier Music Group is an Artist Management Agency with a network of young, energetic, and driven individuals, rooted in the music industry, working together to provide artist management, development & booking.From the artist management side, Pier is involved in planning, coordinating and organizing the careers of its artists. Also from a productions standpoint, Pier can provide every artist with almost everything they need to be successful.

The Record Shop has joined forces with Pier Music Group to offer yet another outlet for emerging talent to develop their projects. You can learn more about all that PMG has to offer by visiting their website at piermusicgroup.com

Be sure to check out Pier Music Group artists Queens Boulevard and Feedback Revival performing on our viral music show Balcony TV Nashville!

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