|
Daylle's News & Resources |
|
Issue # 21 |
|
Hello
to you all! Happy holidays to you all! It’s kiddie time for me again as I joyful roam the streets of NYC, relishing how beautifully my neighborhood gets dressed up this time of year. I especially love to walk over to Rockefeller Center to see the Christmas tree and watch the ice skaters. I hope that you’re all finding your own special joy in this season! : ) I returned from my Indie Music National Book Tour on November 21st after an enjoyable event at University for the Arts in Philadelphia. It was raining and I was tired after arriving home in the evening. But none of that could dampen my spirits. I did it! Drove around the entire country by myself. 10,500 miles!!! There were so many highlights it’s hard to condense them. Since my last newsletter I signed books at many Borders and other bookstores around the country. Powells Books in Portland and Malaprops in Asheville were especially packed with enthusiastic musicians. Speaking to students who have their whole lives ahead of them was especially rewarding. I enjoyed seeing heads nod and eyes light up as I enlightened my college audiences. Since my last newsletter I spoke at Augsburg College (Minneapolis), McNally Smith College of Music (St. Paul), Montana State University (Billings), University of Idaho (Moscow), Eastern Washington University (Cheney), Portland State University (Portland), University of Portland (Portland), Whittier College (Whittier, CA), San Francisco State University (San Francisco), Mesa Community College (Mesa, AZ), Houston Community College (Houston), Dallas Baptist University (Dallas), Morehouse College (Atlanta), Spelman College (Atlanta), Fisk University (Nashville), George Washington University (Washington DC), and University for the Arts (Philadelphia). Five events in the gulf region were canceled due to Hurricane Katrina. I still drove through New Orleans to say prayers. I was also blessed to speak for many organizations. It was an honor to be the keynote speaker at California Lawyers for the Arts Music Business Conference at USC. And what fun to speak at an event for LA Women in Music at the Bel Age Hotel! There was also a workshop for the Vera Project and speaking at the Out of the Ashes Northwest Music Explosion Conference in Seattle. And I also participated in an event for the Austin Music Foundation. I began a blog about indie music and my book tour. Unfortunately, time hasn't allowed me to stay up to date but I’ve documented over half the tour. I continue to add to it and figure out how to add photos from the tour. Please come and read it! :) http://www.daylle.blogspot.com/
Having
a street team made a major difference for me. Thanks to all the people
who volunteered to give out fliers. You are all major blessings! However
many or few you gave out, I appreciate your offering to help. Many
people invited me to stay with them. When my accommodations in LA fell
through at the last minute, my friend called indie artist Jeremy Buck,
who got me a hotel sponsor for 4 nights! We’d never met but now
we’re friends. In Houston I had the pleasure of staying with Madalyn
Sklar, founder of gogirlsmusic.com. She’s a hardworking supporter of
indie music and now my good friend. : ) Madalyn drove me to all my
events and I got to know her well.
Successful songwriters Tanya Leah and her husband Arnie shared their home with me in Nashville. Indie artist Canjoe*John, who’s in my new book, opened up an 1856 antebellum B & B that he owns in the Appalachians, just for me. I got a private fiddle and canjoe concert and got to meet this old friend in person. And Dave Currier, who I’ve done consulting with for years, and who’s advised me on sponsorship as that’s his specialty, gave me my own wing in his house near Charlotte. They’re all friends now! : )
--------- Please
forward this newsletter to your mailing list or anyone you'd like. If
this was forwarded to you and you'd like to subscribe, send me an email
that says "subscribe" in the subject header with your name and
city/state. If you'd like to post it on your site, please ask for
permission and I'll give it. Read past issues at http://www.daylle/monthly.html
If you prefer to be taken off my list, please say unsubscribe in the
subject header of an email.
http://www.indie-music.com/modules.php?name=Newsandfile=articleandsid=4256 --------- My other newsletter, Self-Empowerment Quarterly, for the body, mind and spirit is free. If you'd like to subscribe, please send an email to subempowernews@daylle.com with you name, city/state. You can read the back issues at http://www.daylle.com/daylle/newsletter-growth.html ------- Please
visit my new website, http://www.idontneedarecorddeal.com/
to take advantage of the many resources for developing a career in
music. ------ In
this issue, I've got an interview with Jon Lowy, co-founder of Echospin,
which offers new options for selling downloads off your website. I also
have one with Alex Woodard, who has been a full time musician for many
years. I also have a phenomenal offer for a SUPER cheap deal for a pay
as you go cell phone (#6). I hope that you'll find the other resources
in this issue helpful too. Please feel free to write with suggestions
and questions that I can answer in future issues. Revenge
Productions http://www.daylle.com
---------- 1.
Getting Past Fear of Success 2.
Selling Downloads off Your Website - interview with Jon
Lowy, co-founder of Echospin 3.
Daylle’s Seminar & Books 4.
Making Money from Your Music 5.
Interview with indie artist Alex Woodard 6.
Minding Your Music Biz: Cell phone bargain!! ---------- 1.
GETTING PAST FEAR OF SUCCESS:
I got a big response to the last issue’s article on getting past fear
of failure. Someone wrote and asked about fear of success. So I’ll
talk about that in this issue. Fear
of success might seem odd at first. After all, isn’t success what most
of us work to achieve? In theory, success is a positive. It can mean
your career is advanced, you make more money, and you get closer to
realizing dreams. Where’s the fear factor? The
hardest fear to deal with is being scared of the unknown. It’s not
quite reality based –you’re afraid of “what ifs” instead of
concrete situations. If someone threatens you, it’s normal to be
afraid. Jumping out of a plane can cause a legitimate set of frazzled
nerves. But fear of the unknown is worrying about things that your mind
conjures up. Your
imagination can create a variety of scenarios that keep you stuck. And
for those of us who don’t know what success may bring, fear of success
can create blocks that prevent us from achieving it. What are some of
the common worries that contribute to fear of success? *
Will it change me or the way others see or treat me? People change when
they become successful. Sometimes you have no choice when you’re
pushed to maintain an image or people expect too much of you if you’re
too open. Sometimes change is an ego thing and you should be scared of
that! : ) But, if you’re conscious of who you are and where your
passions lie, you can be true to you. Be the same person you are now and
your real friends won’t change, even if you have to don a façade at
professional events. My friends have orders to kick my butt real hard if
I ever get an attitude. : ) Ask the same of yours.
* Will I be disappointed when I get what I strive for? You might
be successful but it may not generate the money, higher profile gigs,
and fame that you expected. Or, if you’re not happy already, you may
not feel as happy as you expected to be from reaching this level. When
you’re not happy on the inside, you look to external factors for
happiness. That often creates a let-down when you get it, because career
success doesn’t create real happiness inside (check out my
self-empowerment newsletters for a better perspective of true
happiness). Always focus on following the passion in your music, which
leads to more satisfying success. *
Can I handle success? Subconsciously, you might be used to struggling.
Some people find it challenging. Needing to pay bills is a good
motivation for working hard. Or, deep down you might not feel worthy of
success or of being able to live up to people’s expectations of you.
Write down what success means to you. What expectations do you see?
Figure out if any of it makes you nervous, and why. Become conscious of
these things to find ways around them. Then make a list of all the good
things success will bring you. When you get scared, focus on that list. * Will there be pressure on me to increase my success? There are a lot of one-hit wonders. Maintaining success can seem daunting. You may be okay with achieving the initial success. But going beyond that to write more hit songs or reach more music supervisors for licensing your music or book another successful tour or anything else that will surpass what you’ve already done may be the scary part. Take one day at a day. Faith in your higher being, and in yourself and your music can help you get past this kind of fear. *
Will I have more decisions to make? Many worry that their lives will get
more complicated when they get to the next level of what they’re
doing. More opportunities mean more decisions have to be made about your
career. Which manager or agent do you work with? Should you take a
record deal or stay indie? It’s great to be in the position of having
to make these types of decisions. But they can be tough to make and
detract from your freedom of creative flow. Success can rein you in a
little but it also allows you to make a living from your passion. Always
keep that in the forefront of your thoughts! * Will doing what I do still be fun? Success brings more obligations and restrictions on some things. When I interviewed Shawn Mullins for The Real Deal, he said he missed being able to stay with his fans while touring. Being on a major label meant keeping an image and staying more aloof from them. That can change the interaction you have with those who love your music. Also, labels and publishers will have a definite direction in mind for you and your creativity can get cramped. Keep that in mind when you make decisions about whether to sign with a company or stay the course of an independent route. Fun should always be a big consideration in your choices. For
years I wrote books based on classes I taught but didn’t get
published. Nobody turned my books down. I turned me down by not
submitting them to agents or publishers. It seemed ridiculous, even as I
went through the process. Yes, I was scared of being rejected, which
could kill my dream of being a writer. But I also was afraid that my
writing would be successful, which might make me lose my passion for it.
When
you’re hungry you push more. I liked that urgency to work hard. It
fueled me to write and I didn’t want to lose it. But eventually I knew
I was more likely to lose the passion if I kept writing books that no
one saw. Having achieved a decent level of success, I can attest that my
passion is stronger than ever. Knowing that my books will get to a
receptive audience is a bigger motivation than struggling. ----------- 2.
SELLING DOWNLOADS OFF YOUR SITE:
Echospin, a technology company based in Manhattan, has invented a new
way for musicians and record labels to take back control of selling
music online. I met Jon Lowy, its co-founder at CMJ and then asked him
some questions about his site. What does Echospin do? Echospin provides a unique download experience that blows the competition away. It does everything the iTunes Music Store does, except that it’s faster, easier and it does it all right from your own site or email message. It doesn’t get any easier that this. Simply send Echospin your album and artwork, and tell them what you want to charge for it. Echospin gives you back a simple link to place on your website, your emails or anywhere else you can think of. How
does it work? When a fan clicks
your link, the Echospin Delivery Wizard installs itself in seconds.
Without ever needing to leave your environment, the Wizard lets fans
preview all your tracks, collects payment, and then automatically
downloads the music to their computer, saves it to their music folder,
burns a CD, copies it directly to their iPod (without going through
iTunes) and even prints out the album artwork and launches their default
music player. Users have never seen software like this before. Instead
of being confused and frustrated by different formats, applications,
devices and restrictions, Echospin delivers the music just the way they
want it, instantly, without any effort or technical knowledge required.
Best of all, there are no signups or commitments to think about.
Echospin does its magic and then gets out of the way so they can enjoy
the music their own way. What are some of the other perks? Echospin throws in a lot of extras such as a virtual street team feature that instantly turns every fan into an empowered promoter. They also give you a real-time, secure website where you can see all your sales info, fans’ emails, zip codes and referrals. They even do free weekly Nielsen SoundScan reporting. You
can check out Echospin at http://echospin.com.
I’m researching many of the new technology advances for selling
your own music. If you know of any good ones, please let me know. In the
next issue I hope to have info on how to sell ringtones off of your
website. ------ 3.
DAYLLE’S SEMINAR & BOOKS:
My next seminar is Start & Run Your Own Record Label on Saturday,
February 25, 2005 from 11 am - 5:30 PM at The New Yorker Hotel, on the
NW corner of 34th Street & Eighth Avenue. The seminar is $99 in
advance or $125 at the door. http://www.daylle.com/seminar.html Credit
cards can be used on my website or the payment can be mailed to:
Revenge
Productions,
PO Box 8016, FDR Station
New York, NY 10150 My
new book, I Don't need a Record Deal! Your Survival Guide for the Indie
Music Revolution, is doing really well! Here are quotes from some of the
reviews: American
Songwriter Magazine: Dec.
issue: “I’ll admit it, I was skeptical. Another book on how to be a
musician? Come on. They’re all alike. But I
Don’t Need A Record Deal! was different…it wooed me like no
other music-biz book has. First off, Schwartz assumes that you want to
remain an independent artist; to that end, she doesn’t offer a
glossary of royalty-speak or advice on how to kiss industry tuckus. What
she does provide is loads of creative ideas on how to be successful as
an indie…This one doesn’t stand a chance of joining the dusty tomes
at my next garage sale.” ZINK: “…I Don’t Need A Record Deal! Your Survival Guide for the Indie Music Revolution is definitely required reading. Nicknamed Indie Music Guru, Schwartz will have you pumping and flexing your indie muscles in no time with expert tips to work the press, make a livable musical wage, secure radio airplay and handle your own publicity. If you need help with anything else . . this book’s got your back and then some. . . . With Schwartz’s help, D.I.Y. stardom is finally yours for the taking.” Crave Magazine: “Schwartz uses her own unique style to give you an insider’s view on the guidelines necessary for success. With interviews from 150 industry executives, she will walk you through putting out your own recording and marketing it yourself. If you listen, she can be the voice that will teach you how to make a business out of your music and run it yourself, while avoiding typical industry pitfalls.” You
can order this book from me by sending $25 ($20 + $5 priority mail
return) in check or money order (made out to Daylle Schwartz) with your
name, address, and email address. My other books, The Real Deal: How to
Get Signed to a Record Label and Start & Run Your Own Record Label
are also available from me at the same price. Please specify if you want
it autographed. Send it to:
Daylle Schwartz
PO Box 8016, FDR Station
New York, NY 10150 --- 4.
MAKING MONEY FROM YOUR MUSIC:
Do you want to make a living from your musical talent? Successful indies
have learned to create as many income streams as they can that can add up
to a full time living. That’s what I Don’t Need a Record Deal! is
about – finding all the income potential for your music. It can add up
to a full time income if you’re creative. Look around you. There are
many less obvious sources of musical income. Whenever you hear music being
played, there’s a good chance someone is getting paid for its use. Why
not try to take advantage by researching to find the people who license
music?
One example is a company called Trusonic. This internet based company licenses music for use as background music. And, you know how music often plays when a company puts you on hold on the phone? That music earns its writers royalties! Trusonic licenses music to companies for that purpose too. You may not make a lot of money getting your music on their site but why not try? They have a non-exclusive agreement that you can end at any time. It might not be a lot of money but 50 bucks every once in a while can add up, especially when you find other income streams. Trusonic’s website explains how their program works. It’s worth a try! http://trusonic.com -----------
5. INTERVIEW WITH ALEX WOODARD: Alex Woodard quit his day job in 1997 to become a full time artist. He’s been touring and marketing his CDs ever since. Alex’s band has included players from other top acts. His latest album was recorded with Pete Droge. He gets airplay on commercial and colleges radio stations and his songs are licensed to film and TV. Alex also has steady CD sales in Europe. Someone forwarded my newsletter to him several years ago and he contacted me. We kept in touch ever since and I interviewed him for my new book.
Where
does your main income come from?
"I make most of my money off of shows and merch.
On a good night I'll pull in 400 bucks from the house, and another
couple hundred in merchandise. I'll get a solid guarantee and then sell as
much merch as I can."
How
do you get nationwide radio play?
“The first and most important thing is to write songs that people
connect to and record them with talented players who put their own soul
into it. Then, get on the
horn and start sending it off to stations. You can hire an indie promoter too, but you need to put your
own sweat into it no matter what.”
What
are some of the highlights of your career?
“The highlights for me, in all honestly, have been the people I
have been able to work with. I have had an amazing band (guys from
Fountains of Wayne and from the Posies) who took my songs to a whole new
level. I remember the first
time, the actual moment, that I ever heard them play a song I had just
shown them, and I thought ‘this is it.’
Writing and recording with Pete Droge has been a highlight too,
since I was a big fan when I was living in Seattle.”
What
were your goals when you began? “Getting signed was a
big goal right when I started. Of
course, I wanted the same thing that most songwriters want... to write,
record, and play songs that people connect to. But at the beginning, I
thought the only road was traveled by getting signed. That changed
quickly.”
What
motivated you to do this independently? “I
didn't have a choice. If no one else was going to take a chance on me, I
had to take a chance on myself.”
How
do you get record sales in other countries?
“Mostly it's been from independent stores contacting me through
the website. One man in Spain emailed me saying that he wanted to carry my
record and what should he do. I have my entire catalogue up on a website
with the streaming versions and downloadable mp3s. If someone in the
industry wants to get a song really quick, I send them to the website and
they can get the song. I sent him the album art but not 20 CDs to Spain,
not knowing if they’d get there because of customs. I told him he could
download the music and burn the CDs and sell them. He sent me a check
after he sold them and that was it. He could have burned 400 CDs for all I
know but I trust him. Since then, he’s emailed and asked to buy more and
I’ve sold them to him. That was a different way of using the technology
approach to sell records. It wasn’t even a physical record. I sent him
the booklets and stuff and he just put them together on his own. I think
he gave me ten bucks a record or so and there’s nothing wrong with that.
How
do you keep yourself pumped mentally? “Balance
is a big factor. I try to keep my life supported by things that aren't
dependent on music… my dog, my family, surfing, the list goes on. That
way, music and the business of music doesn't drain me like it does some
people, and I stay pumped about continuing down that path. Sometimes it's
tough to always be inspired, and I let the moments when I really am
inspired hit me before I write songs. I don't force it. But the main thing
is that I can't imagine doing anything else.”
What is the Rockboat and how did you hook up with them? “The Rockboat is a 4 day floating concert put on by Sister Hazel and their management company. They rent a Carnival cruise ship, get some great bands, invite a bunch of fans on board, and play every night while the ship sails. My stage manager at SXSW was involved with the company that started the Rockboat, and enough people called on my behalf that they brought me on as the only artist from west of the Mississippi.”
How
did you get your records into the furniture store in Chicago?
“All of it has been word of mouth. Somebody on the Rockboat was a
friend of a friend of the one who has the store and he asked me if I
wanted to do that. It was very successful. He had it playing in the store
and then had a box of records up by the cash register. My music is the
kind that you can have playing in the background while you’re shopping.
You can be shopping and hear it going on in the background, and then when
you get to the register, the CD’s there. It’s a little better than
going to the traditional route because there’s no competition.”
You do living room shows that are booked and promoted through your street team? “We give the people who are running it the option to do a couple of different things. First they have to guarantee that they will get at least 20 people in the door. Then you charge them ten bucks and give them a CD. Usually you sell more CDs and more than 20 people show up. You can sell a lot of merchandise too. Sometimes for street team members who are really active, I won’t ask for that, and we’ll just see what happens. In general, though, we ask for 20 people and we give everyone a free CD. It’s all about word of mouth.”
What’s
your best advice?
“The best advice would be to take responsibility for yourself and
your career. Good things will happen if you do. Be the absolute best you
can be, and when you are that good, get better. And don't suck. Sucking is
subjective of course, but if you are connecting to thousands and thousands
of people with your songs, that's a pretty good sign that you don't suck.
And don't waste your time complaining about not being where you think you
should be, or bitching about all the bad music that's out there when it
should be yours. Guess what? There aren't many folks out there with
absolutely amazing songs that play them with everything they have. Spend
your time being one of them instead.”
Alex’s
latest album was released through a distribution partnership deal with
33rd Street Records. Check him and his music out at http://www.alexwoodard.com
----------- 6.
MINDING YOUR MUSIC BIZ – Cell
phone bargain!!: I tend to be in most of the time so I don’t use my
cell phone often. Then there are times I need it a lot. I had over charges
during my book tour. Friends get mad that I won’t give them the number
to call and chat – I don’t want personal calls when I’m out! But as
a businesswoman, there are times when people need to reach me. It’s
important to be easily available by phone and to return calls promptly.
Opportunities come and go quickly. So I’ve always had a cell phone.
Since I don’t use it much, I grudgingly paid 40 bucks a month for it. I
used it for all my long distance calls to at least get some of my
money’s worth. But, I prefer speaking on my regular phone. That’s why
I was so thrilled to find out about this very special bargain. Cheaphones.com
has made me very happy with what I think is the best deal out there for
the new type of pay-as-you-go phones provided by Stimobile through the
Sprint PCS network (but you’re not a Sprint customer). No monthly fee,
10/12 cents, and an LG VI-5225G folding phone that’s free after the
rebate. You can choose between 2 plans, which can include cheap
international calls. For an extra $49 you can get a cameraphone. This is a
prepaid service, so there are no monthly fees, and no contracts. You buy
prepaid phone cards to get your minutes. The package includes a car
adapter for charging.. You can check coverage in your area at http://www.stimobile.com/coverage-map.aspx I called the company and asked if my readers can get their best deal. The final cost to you after the rebate is 75 cents, including shipping. The phone is $105.00. But if you use the coupon code – PAYMECELL – when you check out, you get 20% off ($21). Shipping is $5.75, which puts the total at $89.75. The rebate is $89. There’s a $4.95 activation fee but it’s taken from the $10 phone card that’s included in the purchase. Some sellers require a $50 refill card purchase to get the rebate on the phone, but that requirement is waived for my readers who use the link below. The rebate offer ends January 31. Click Here
----------- 7.
ASK DAYLLE: I’m very shy and
just want to play my music. People tell me I need to loosen up. Does this
really matter? Yes,
it does. Networking is critical in this industry. People laugh when I
advise that if you don’t have a personality, develop one. You don’t
have to be super outgoing but practice speaking in an upbeat, friendly
manner and force yourself to smile. Smiling makes a big difference. Watch
how other people interact and try to mimic some of their ways until they
become your own. Music supervisors and producers say they want to work
with people who they enjoy being with. People support those they like.
This isn’t a world of the
shy and un-shy. Most people are basically shy and fall into 2 categories -
the ones who are passively shy and those who push their shyness aside and
force themselves to talk to people in a way that seems confident and
friendly. I’m in the second group, though people who meet me don’t
believe I have any shyness. But I do. I just hide it well behind a big
smile. Understanding the importance of putting myself out and controlling
my shyness motivates me to just do it. Try it! You can fake an outgoing
personality until you find your way to a real one.
----------- Bruce
Barton said, “Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those
who dared to believe that something inside them was superior to
circumstances.” Reviewers may pan your music. Labels may turn you down.
But you can’t let them stop you from getting your music out. If success
isn’t yours yet, look inside. Do you have the goods to succeed? If you
believe you do, use that belief to change things. There are
complainers/whiners, and there are do-ers. The first group blames
circumstances for not achieving. The second group defies the circumstances
and changes the expected outcome. When
someone tells me I can’t do something, I respond, “Why not?” Unless
it makes perfect sense to me, I refuse to listen. I was warned that I
wouldn’t be able to put a 3-month tour together on my own since I had
not assistance and I’d never done it. But I believed in the message I
HAD TO get out and also knew that I could do it. I booked over 50 events,
routed the tour and did everything else necessary. Having spiritual faith
makes it easier.
When
my initial sponsorship fell through, most people advised me to cancel my
tour. People threw lots of reasons at me. All the naysayers waved fingers
to stop me. But I knew that God hadn’t gotten me that far to fail. So I
continued making calls, picking up smaller sponsors and many hotels.
National Car Rental came on board at 4PM the day I picked up the car. I
KNEW with all my heart that the circumstances HAD TO change, and faith
kept me going until they did. The only circumstance that can truly stop
you is quitting. On many occasions I’ve said out loud, “I know this
doesn’t look good BUT I still intend for it to work out well.” It
ALWAYS does! Your talent and passion for music is a great motivator.
Until
the next issue..... Keep
your passion strong, Daylle
©
2005 Revenge Productions http://www.daylle.com http://www.idontneedarecorddeal.com |