How to Get Managers, Agents, and Labels Looking for You
Ty Cohen
In a word: buzz.
All industries want to stay ahead of the curve but the creative arts have a history of being the pop culture trend setters. Think of all the music acts that directly and indelibly affected culture, from Elvis Presley and the Beatles in America to the Sex Pistols in England. And today, Taylor Swift has further blurred the lines between country and pop.
Long before the public came to know and embrace these performers, they had garnered the attention of managers, agents, and labels by creating a buzz within the music community and developing a strong, loyal local fan base.
There is no more potent or valuable promotional tool than positive word of mouth. And the way to generate word of mouth and develop that core fan base that will follow – and spend money on your music – is to play, play, play. Before REM became national recording artists, they performed 300 nights a year in and around Athens, Georgia, where they were based. As their reputation and popularity grew, they began playing in more cities and were soon a well-known regional band.
So to create a buzz, you need to get in front of potential fans. Play whenever and wherever you can, for money or for free. A gig at a free street fair can be just as important as a paying gig at a well-heeled music club. The goal is to reach as many people as possible.
But the most important key to generating a buzz is to be distinctly original. For a band, especially, that means writing your own songs. Not that you can’t cover songs, but some of your set list needs to be your own work. For example, you may be able to reproduce Green Day down to the last chord, but there already is a Green Day; managers, agents and labels are looking for a new musical voice.
For singers it’s not as vital to write your own music – Christina Aguilera was signed based solely on her vocal abilities. But no performer is valued more than the singer-songwriter because those artists tend to be unique and original since they sing songs borne from their life experience.
Augment your performing with viral marketing via Facebook, Twitter and other social media groups. If you generate enough buzz, the music industry will notice and will want to check it out.
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