JasonShadrick

Music Success in Nine Weeks is a book that tells you exactly what is found inside.  Author Ariel Hyatt is a music publicist who specializes in developing an online presence for independent artists.

First, let me tell you what this book isn’t.  This book isn’t a collection of case studies of artists who were in the right place at the right time. Nor is this book a way to make your music better.  This book gives you the tools and strategies to use the Internet to make you a more successful independent musician.

I love how this book is organized. Each chapter covers a list of tasks that you are to accomplish over the course of a week.  Topics such as developing your pitch, understand Web 2.0 tools and getting into blogging are covered.  Along with those tasks, Ariel gives you worksheets, quick tips and assignments to make sure you keep on the ball as you are developing. This is an EXTREMELY practical guide (something I wish more books strived to be) and anyone who picks this book up will find something useful immediately.

The best part of the advice Ariel gives is that it applies to more than just musicians. If you are a freelancer of any kind, these exercises and methods will work just as well for you. I found a few ideas that I am going to put to use with this blog.

Essentially, this is one of the best books of it’s kind around.  Ariel is great at what she does and this is a handy DIY version of her more expansive CyberPR Campaigns.

Make sure to check out Ariel and everything she does at www.arielpublicity.com.

Disclosure: Ariel is a good friend and she sent me a free copy of this book for review purposes. She is great at what she does and you should take a serious look at this book if you want to spread your gospel.

I just read Ariel Hyatt’s great post about how the mainstream music media (Billboard, in particular) is so out of touch with the independent musician.  I would post a link to the original list, but you have to be a Billboard subscriber to read it.  Come on, 20 bucks a month just to find out how many CD’s didn’t sell this week?

Anyways, the idea behind the Billboard list is what would be the best way for an artist to gain the maximum amount of exposure.  Featured on Oprah? Song used on Dancing With The Stars?  As you can see, these are very realistic goals.

Ariel came up with her own list of what would be most helpful to indie musicians and she did a great job.  Many people helped her with this (you can read that list here), and it is a great example of how you don’t have to be super famous to make an impact.

If you are a musician, or know a musician, or have heard the word music, please download this article and send it to your friends.  They will thank you for it.

The Indie Maximum 100 by Ariel Hyatt and Friends

Before I started here there were a few blogs that really inspired me to start my own.  Considering my job, many people were asking me to somehow document all the great musicians I come in contact with on a regular basis.  Here are 9 blogs that helped me figure out how to blog, why to blog and what makes a blog succesful.

In no particular order:

GuitarNoize.com is one of the first guitar centric blogs I started to read on a regular basis.  It has a great look and feel and is a great place to find the latest guitar news that sometimes is overlooked by the mainstream.

Ariel Hyatt is a publicity wizard.  She was the first one to tell me how to make Twitter work for me and for that I am grateful.  If you are an independent musician, please do yourself a favor and check her out.

GuitarVibe.com is a really great site for concert reviews, gear reviews and some really nice interviews.  Since Zach is in the the tech industry, I really like the reviews on some of the guitar technology that is out there.

What is it with Australia and amazing guitar blogs? iHeartGuitar is a guitar news blog that features both some incredible interviews (Dave Mustaine, Ace Frehley, etc.) but lessons, album reviews and more.  I am really looking forward to finally meeting Peter at NAMM next January.

The Rock House Method Blog is not only a place to keep up on the latest Rock House news but a great resource for tons of lessons, articles and more from other websites and blogs.

John is one of our instructors at NGW and is always willing to help students (and fellow bloggers).  He has some great coverage from the summer and is one of the best examples of how to leverage the internet to create a great teaching studio.

Easily one of the most read music business blogs around, Hypebot is a great way to learn more about what is changing daily about the music business.  Bruce Houghton and his staff really do a great job of explaing complicated concepts in an easy to understand way.

Bob Lefsetz is a longtime commentator on the music industry.  Starting out as an actual letter and then progressing to an emai list, his blog is read by a large amount of the music industry.  He posts A LOT, so I would recommend checking it out from time to time and catch up.

Derek Sivers is the guy who started CDBaby and in turn empowered a generation of DIY musicians.  Much like his hero, Seth Godin, Derek’s blog is full of short useful posts that really make you think.  If I had to choose one of this list, this would be it.  HIGHLY recommended.

One of the most viewed posts I have written was the post about Pat Metheny‘s Orchestrion Project.  Nothing was especially groundbreaking or news-worthy about it, I just thought it was really interesting.  Since that time I have been thinking about what little we know about it and how (or if) that will effect the success of this project.  I have even spoke directly with Pat about this and I am still confused.

I decided to make this really easy for Pat and come up with a few things that he (or his people) can do to help make sure this project attracts not only his core fan base, but new fans as well.

Make it Accessible

I know how difficult it is with the economy and all to make a living on tour.  However, I think it is important to realize that you can’t make new fans when tickets are $60 or more.  Period. In order to get a buzz going about a certain project, you need to identify the influencers and evangelists and make the project not only appeal to them but make it accessible. The youth market is doing all the talking today and you need to convert them.  Student discounts on tickets is a great idea that has been around a long time, but I think you should take it a step further.

Anyone in college or high school comes to the show for free.

Yes, free.  If you really want to reach new audiences and influence the next generation, you need to take away any reason why they SHOULDN”T go to the show.  Let’s face it, this is probably some pretty experimental stuff and you want to make sure everyone in attendance WANTS to be there.  There are a million things to do that don’t cost anything, but if they choose to come to your concert, you know they want to be there.  If they end up really liking it, they are more likely to buy some merch as well.

Spread it Out

For me, the biggest thing I take away from a truly great concert experience is the ability to re-connect with the music when I get back home.  Ever wonder why all the “jambands” are so popular?  They allow their fans to take a piece of their music home.  It not only gives your core fans an amazing memento, it makes it easier for them to turn their friends onto the music as well.

Allow everyone to videotape and record EVERYTHING

From the looks of it, I think that each night on this tour will be completely different both in sound and material. Why not document it all?  Your fans are willing to do this FOR FREE.  Let them.

Tell A Story

I was really surprised about how little Pat really described this music when I spoke with him about it. It not only made me more curious, but it raised a little doubt in my mind.  Is there something he is hiding?  How different will this be from his other material? In today’s “real time” culture, it is important to be up front an honest with your fans.

Create a conversation with your fans about why and how you are doing this project

This could take the form of a blog, a short video(s) or even a column.  Both DownBeat and JazzTimes should be tripping over themselves to help you with this.  The point is to start a dialogue with your fans that is both meaningful and authentic.  Start now.

Be Transparent

This does tie into the point before, but I think you can take a different angle.  What if you made your soundchecks open to the public?  Do you think your ticket sales will suffer?  I don’t. Many fans would love to watch how your rig is setup and then see you make sure everything is working.  Not only would it give them a unique experience, it would make them feel like they are in a “Secret Society.”

Make your fans feel special.  Because they are.

I am no expert on this by far, however I am a huge fan of your music.  These are just a few things I think might help in someway.  In my opinion, too many artists aren’t taking advantage of the new way of thinking when it comes to consuming live music and the feeling of community. Also, any of these ideas I guess would work for any artist.  I didn’t mean to single you out, but this project is on my mind.

Don’t worry Pat, I will come see your new project no matter what.  I feel like I am a true fan.

Now off to listen to my favorite record.

I just came across a post on the Umphrey’s blog about some new events they are planning called “Stew Art Series”.

Here is the description of the events from the website:

An (S²) event is an experiment in crowd-sourced improvisation. One hundred percent of the music performed at a (S²) event will be improvised, and you are the ones who will serve as directors. Using several communication mediums - which could range from text messaging to prewritten cue cards to chalk boards - you will kick out ideas, descriptive words, phrases, pop culture references . . . pretty much whatever comes to mind. These will be presented to the band who will compose jams on the fly based around those ideas, and ideas will be added to, changed, and deleted as the event progresses. For instance, a fan might toss out the phrase “frightened rabbit,” causing the band the play a frantic, nimble jam and after a period of time, the word “rabbit” might get changed to “brontosaurus” which would take the jam in a heavy, slower direction (though the word “frightened” is still in play). Then perhaps the word “skydiving” morphs the “frightened brontosaurus” jam into a soaring, powerful piece of music that evokes the feeling of being airborne . . . until the phrase “without a parachute” gets tacked on which changes the jam into something else entirely. And so on. No one will have any idea where the music is headed, well, and that’s all part of the fun. The event will also include a Q&A session to provide an opportunity to ask about what you’re witnessing (or ask anything else for that matter). Fans will become a part of the music like never before.

To me this is a GREAT idea that I wish more bands and artists took part in.  Obviously, UM is an incredibly forward thinking band that really looks to push the envelope in order to give their fans the best and most unique experience possible.

Do you think this type of event could apply to different genres of music?

Can you imagine a jazz group using the audience as a source for raw material for their improvisations?  I think this would make the audiences feel more involved and make the live music experience more personable.  If bands want to get people to their performances in this day and age of so many distractions, they need to offer something new.

Well done Umphrey’s.  I look forward to seeing where you go from here.