Why Should I work with Distrophonix?

Why Should I work with Distrophonix?

There are literally hundreds of companies out there that can get your music into iTunes, Amazon, eMusic, etc.  With all of those choices, why should you choose Distrophonix over the other guys?  Here is why!!!

1.    

  The other guys charge a sign up fee.  We do not!  It’s ALWAYS FREE to sign up with us!!!  Those that charge a sign up fee only care about getting that initial money.  That’s how they make their money.  We on the other hand care about you as an artist.  We want you to be successful!  The more success you have, the better we do.  So we have a major motivating factor to make your music sell, unlike the other guys!!!

2.       

The other guys get your music into just a few stores, in just a few select countries. We are different! We will get your music into 300+ stores WORLDWIDE!!!

3.     

We help market your music through the use of internet radio, podcasts, blogs, and social networks.  We even offer opportunities to get ads in major publications like AP and AMP magazine!  The other guys don’t offer that!

4.       

We help to get you sponsorship and licensing opportunities.  Most recently we have helped some of our bands get deals with Microsoft, Airwalk, and Warped Tour!

5.       

We are REAL people!  We want to get to know our artists and help them in anyway possible.  As a Distrophonix customer you are free to contact us anytime to get advice on recording, booking, ordering merch, and any other music related questions you may have.  Our team is made up of ONLY musicians!  Some of us have been in the music industry now for 20 years.  We are experts at what we do!  So next time you have a question and need some advice pick up the phone and give us a call.  Or better yet, if you happen to be in Baltimore go ahead and stop by for a visit!

Want to learn more about what we can do for you?  Check us out at www.Distrophonix.com!

Should You Move to Nashville, NYC, or Los Angeles?

Should You Move to Nashville, NYC, or Los Angeles?

Got this in my email box...

I live in Ottawa, Canada and have been struggling for the past 5 years to keep a band together long enough to build momentum with my music. Every time i start building, some idiot quits for what has become an encyclopedia of reasons. I've heard them ALL. I have a professionally recorded and partially mixed album (which i wrote and co-produced) filled with what people describe as 'bloody awesome' tunes. Mike Turner (Our Lady Peace), Dave McMillan, Jason Pierce, Shawn Lefevbre and Adam Kasper all worked with me on it. People keep saying 'if you can't conquer your city 1st, don't expect to conquer the world', but i can't get anywhere here. 
My question is this: Would you recommend packing up and moving to a better music mecca, or staying and marketing myself as an individual artist (rather than my band), maybe getting interest from an indy label that way and hooking up with the right musicians then??

Good question! Am going to answer it in two parts. The first about the general concept of moving and the second with something specifically regarding Ottawa (and Canada in general)...

I think it's great to be in a "music center" like Nashville, NYC, or Los Angeles. You'll have a lot of opportunity that you won't have in a city without a similar infrastructure of all things music business, such as labels, managers, studios. or other quality musicians.

With that said, you don't have to be in one of these cities to do well in the music business. Sometimes, it may actually be better that you're not, since the "that's the way we do things around here" mindset is common and may not work for what you're doing. I love Nashville as much as anybody, but an inability to think differently from what everybody else is doing has killed off (or changed beyond repair) a lot of really cool projects that simply didn't fit the mold.

So the answer is, "I don't know." But I do know that keeping a band together can be tough anywhere you are. If you're thinking of moving though, I'd suggest a couple of trips to check out where you want to move to-- one during an event such as a music conference or festival and one on a random week when nothing special is happening. I'd also try to connect with "locals" online, via songwriting and musician organizations.
Before doing that though, the first thing I'd look at is yourself... In this case, specifically about how you're connecting with other band members.

From my experience, the best results come from when you're very clear about who you are, what you want, and where you want to go. Clarity if half the battle...at least.

For more info on the subject, check out this episode of Music Business Radio with Chris Pandolfi. He's in a band called The Infamous Stringdusters and talked a lot about keeping a band on the same page and moving forward. And The Infamous Stringdusters has six people, so he knows as much as anybody!

About your specific location...

One of the things about Canada that I love is that you have an audience that is hungry for Canadian acts. It's very easy for many countries, especially one so close to the United States, to get lost in the music that is created here. The upside of that though, is that the "local boy makes good" act can absolutely kill it.
So why aren't more acts conquering Canada? The main one is that it's huge and you're going to have to hit the road to make it happen... That means playing all the little towns from Toronto to Vancouver. If you can though, you can have a long career. Just ask Trooper or any of the other Canadian bands still working after 30+ years of doing it.
Best wishes!

Source: www.MusicMarketing.com

How to Reach Your Music Business Goals in 2012

How to Reach Your Music Business Goals in 2012

Here's a quick exercise you can do to reach your music business goals (or any goal) in 2012.
         
1. Make a list of 10 goals you want to achieve in 2012.
       
2. Below each goal, list three things you can do right now take to make it happen.

For example, if your goal is "Play 50 shows in 2012," action steps can include, "Call the booker from Club ABC," "Update press kit," and "Call Band XYZ about an opening slot."

3. Take action.

Do this daily and you'll be amazed when 12/31/2012 rolls around. Your goals should be big enough that it will take a while for you to achieve them. If you can achieve a goal this month, you're thinking too small. Stretch yourself.  Can a goal be too big? Only if it's something that will cause you to sabotage it. A good rule of thumb I use, especially when a goal is sales related, is to think of the highest number that you can realistically sell now and then double it.

By doing this exercise every day, your capacity to make things happen will be expanding, so take that into account. The goal has to be something you can get your head around though or else you'll give up, using the excuse that it's "impossible."  Impossible only means it hasn't been done yet. Still, you have to sell 10,000, and then 100,000, before you can get to 1,000,000. Take things in chunks and you'll get where you're going.

Source: www.MusicMarketing.com