I self-produced my debut album. Over 1000 Compact Discs for approximately $3,500. I discovered though, after you have the product is when the real costs start to accrue. Lawyers, distributors, advertisements, promotion, all of them want their pound of flesh.
I had something that I needed to say with the album. I wasn't looking to become a Superstar I just wanted to make my money back. A lot of people were really supportive of my songwriting. Requesting my songs in the clubs. I'd been interviewed by reporters, signed autographs, and won a competition with one of my songs. I figured if I could get $5 per CD then I could sell 700 and break even. Leaving 300 sample/promotional CDs.
I got a distribution deal, UPC barcode, top spine label strip on the CDs, and got one of my songs onto a compilation CD that was sent to approximately 400 radio stations here in America. I'm thinking why would anybody need a record label? I can do this all on my own.
Then I found out that this is when the hard work really begins. Everything I've done until now has been for naught. I've got boxes of CDs that no one knows about and I don't know how to promote them. I'm a songwriter, not a salesman. I can hire independent promtional teams for as "little as $250 a week" they said. They'll get my name out, put stickers on walls, give away T-shirts, etc. Of course I have to have the stickers and the T-shrits, after I've spent thousands making the CD.
Well I'll just play, I thought. The music's what important. Until I got a phone call at home from a club owner saying they couldn't allow me to play my songs there, because someone had threatened them with legal action. Appearantly my songs are "intimidating" and they took offense to them. I don't who it was, but it was probably the same person that was sending certified letters to my P.O. box saying if I didn't apologize for my music they were going to sue me within five days.
I was getting requests for my CD from radio station DJs in Europe (Great! I've promotional ones I can send them). I didn't figure the cost of mailing them out. The shipping costs added to the price, dollars depending on where it was going. Some countries have import tariffs, customs requirements, etc. I either had to sell more CDs or increase the price. Can't sell them without promotion, which I can't afford.
I tried a free web hosting service to promote the album, but the bandwidth was far too limiting to allow MP3 downloads. So I pay monthly for improved reliability Shameless self-promotional plug. More money. More cost.
Then the distributor sends me an E-mail saying Valley Media, which is their link into main distribution channels, has gone bankrupt and I won't see any money for any of the CDs they had in their warehouse.
I've been threatened, harrassed, investigated (3 times now), insulted, lied to, stolen from (by companies not fans). I understand why some bands say they don't want to be famous. I found out what real parasites some people can be.
I finally put all the songs on my website as free MP3 downloads. I rather give the music away that have it used against me. Besides it's not that good. (Told ya' I not a salesman)
P.S. Did you know that managers at some chain record stores don't have the authority to buy CDs? They're only allowed to stock what they've been shipped from the corporate buyers.
I recorded, released my own CD, got international distribution, and radio promotion without a big, or any, record label. I've been banned, signed autographs, threatened with lawsuits, and had requests for my CD from Europe (I'm big in Mol, Belgium!). It's appears among musicians this is getting to be a growing trend. Do it yourself. The problem though is promotion. The big record labels spend most of their money (that I can see) promoting their most profitable artists. The same types of songs get heard on commercial radio, because artists are punished for being creative. The record company wants a proven profit maker. The only alternative is to do it yourself. Without exposure though it's impossible to make a living, and like Norman Augustine said "If you can afford to advertise you don't need to."
I still have my day job (Elec. Engineer, Eunich's Sys. Admin., MCSE, etc.) and don't have any plans to quit. Music is something that I have to do though. If my CD breaks even I will be thrilled, but if it doesn't I won't worry. I didn't do it for the money. Unfortunately I'm a rare breed. Most musicians I know are working in retail, or music stores, if at all. Anybody that wants to complain about how tough their job is should try playing some music and truly know starvation. Medical insurance is a GOOD thing.
I'm not going to be so quick to damn the record comapnies, because I've been there. Both artist and producer. I've heard stats that say 92 to 95 percent of the records released don't return their investment costs. I believe it. I understand that music business is a business, but it is a business based upon exploitation of people, and a lot of artists get hurt. But, the music buying public get shortchanged as well. They hear the same things from Radio, MTV, etc. because the record label is promoting the exposre of their money makers.
Just my two cents worth.
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I had something that I needed to say with the album. I wasn't looking to become a Superstar I just wanted to make my money back. A lot of people were really supportive of my songwriting. Requesting my songs in the clubs. I'd been interviewed by reporters, signed autographs, and won a competition with one of my songs. I figured if I could get $5 per CD then I could sell 700 and break even. Leaving 300 sample/promotional CDs.
I got a distribution deal, UPC barcode, top spine label strip on the CDs, and got one of my songs onto a compilation CD that was sent to approximately 400 radio stations here in America. I'm thinking why would anybody need a record label? I can do this all on my own.
Then I found out that this is when the hard work really begins. Everything I've done until now has been for naught. I've got boxes of CDs that no one knows about and I don't know how to promote them. I'm a songwriter, not a salesman. I can hire independent promtional teams for as "little as $250 a week" they said. They'll get my name out, put stickers on walls, give away T-shirts, etc. Of course I have to have the stickers and the T-shrits, after I've spent thousands making the CD.
Well I'll just play, I thought. The music's what important. Until I got a phone call at home from a club owner saying they couldn't allow me to play my songs there, because someone had threatened them with legal action. Appearantly my songs are "intimidating" and they took offense to them. I don't who it was, but it was probably the same person that was sending certified letters to my P.O. box saying if I didn't apologize for my music they were going to sue me within five days.
I was getting requests for my CD from radio station DJs in Europe (Great! I've promotional ones I can send them). I didn't figure the cost of mailing them out. The shipping costs added to the price, dollars depending on where it was going. Some countries have import tariffs, customs requirements, etc. I either had to sell more CDs or increase the price. Can't sell them without promotion, which I can't afford.
I tried a free web hosting service to promote the album, but the bandwidth was far too limiting to allow MP3 downloads. So I pay monthly for improved reliability Shameless self-promotional plug. More money. More cost.
Then the distributor sends me an E-mail saying Valley Media, which is their link into main distribution channels, has gone bankrupt and I won't see any money for any of the CDs they had in their warehouse.
I've been threatened, harrassed, investigated (3 times now), insulted, lied to, stolen from (by companies not fans). I understand why some bands say they don't want to be famous. I found out what real parasites some people can be.
I finally put all the songs on my website as free MP3 downloads. I rather give the music away that have it used against me. Besides it's not that good. (Told ya' I not a salesman)
P.S. Did you know that managers at some chain record stores don't have the authority to buy CDs? They're only allowed to stock what they've been shipped from the corporate buyers.
Look it up:
Daimon or alternate spelling Daemon
It's a name for a type of spirit that assists people in their daily lives. It has nothing to do with Christianity, Paganism, Satanism, etc.
I recorded, released my own CD, got international distribution, and radio promotion without a big, or any, record label. I've been banned, signed autographs, threatened with lawsuits, and had requests for my CD from Europe (I'm big in Mol, Belgium!). It's appears among musicians this is getting to be a growing trend. Do it yourself. The problem though is promotion. The big record labels spend most of their money (that I can see) promoting their most profitable artists. The same types of songs get heard on commercial radio, because artists are punished for being creative. The record company wants a proven profit maker. The only alternative is to do it yourself. Without exposure though it's impossible to make a living, and like Norman Augustine said "If you can afford to advertise you don't need to." I still have my day job (Elec. Engineer, Eunich's Sys. Admin., MCSE, etc.) and don't have any plans to quit. Music is something that I have to do though. If my CD breaks even I will be thrilled, but if it doesn't I won't worry. I didn't do it for the money. Unfortunately I'm a rare breed. Most musicians I know are working in retail, or music stores, if at all. Anybody that wants to complain about how tough their job is should try playing some music and truly know starvation. Medical insurance is a GOOD thing. I'm not going to be so quick to damn the record comapnies, because I've been there. Both artist and producer. I've heard stats that say 92 to 95 percent of the records released don't return their investment costs. I believe it. I understand that music business is a business, but it is a business based upon exploitation of people, and a lot of artists get hurt. But, the music buying public get shortchanged as well. They hear the same things from Radio, MTV, etc. because the record label is promoting the exposre of their money makers. Just my two cents worth.