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 A note from the FNO
newsletter editor...
Howdy FNO Bands and Performers,
Author Steve Moore shares his opinion about where the music industry is
heading in this article below,
I hope you enjoy it.
This month's featured FNO band is Kelly's Lot from California. Dig her!
If you're on myspace, be sure to send us a friend request! http://www.myspace.com/festivals
Have a great day!
Julie Cochrane
FNO Marketing
julie@festivalnet.com
800.200.3737
Festival Network Online
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THE MAJOR LABELS HAVE A CANCER AND THE
PROGNOSIS IS NOT GOOD… by Steve Moore
 The problem is systemic
and there is no known cure – as of now. The day of the Indy label or
independent artist is upon us and the timing has never been better for
a do-it-yourself, grassroots start up to find its core market. In
short, find a niche and you can reap the benefits. You CAN make a
living as independent – but don’t expect to get truly “mad money” rich
– unless you are pretty lucky. But the old adage that the harder you
work, the luckier you get and luck truly is when preparation meets
opportunity!
I remember when I was
working as a music attorney in Nashville during the early to mid 90’s,
the music business was experiencing the best times ever, old vinyl
recordings were being released and CD’s were selling, the major acts
were all over the radio and thus concerts were actually in large
arenas, and most major acts didn’t have a hard time filling them. But
that did not last long as the internet was changing EVERYTHING. I
specifically remember watching everything changing and thinking “now is
the time to start an independent label”. With everything that’s
changing out there…it won’t be long before physical CD’s won’t be worth
much and the music stores will start to die. And that’s exactly
what has happened.
At first P2P and the
over-pricing of CD’s started to show smaller sales overall, and
this was only a small cut on the heel of the major labels.
But the majors did nothing and that cut began to fester. In
today’s world of the Internet, MP3, P2P, iPods and a host of other ways
to get music out there, the major labels through their lack of
understanding of “digital rights” (possibly the cure) is killing
them. Their failure to take any preventative steps to allow
the cut to scab over and heal has left a festering wound that has grown
worse in time. The problem has gotten so bad that this once minor cut
has now become an open bleeding sore with no real quick fix that could
possibly help. In fact, it’s going to take major surgery,
possibly life threatening, to cure what ails them.
The Major Labels are not
going away as BIG BUSINESS will find some way of saving itself, and
there is a still a place for them in the larger scheme of things as
there are no shortage of acts that are really good enough to actually
break through on the major scene. The piece of the pie for these
artists will shrink even more as the labels ask for more rights and
hence more of the artists’ money! In record deals offered today
the Majors want your management, booking fees, your merchandising, in
short EVERYTHING they can get their grubby fingers on leaving the
artists to have to break EXTREMELY huge or end up never recouping a
dime and thus never able to get out of their contract to try to make it
on their own.
With the proliferation
of home studios, and a wide variety of ways to get your music out
there, you just have to find your core market and niche and exploit it
the best way you can. And there’s so many ways to do it now –
your chances have never been better.
You may not be able to
quit your day job but if you work at it – you never know what could
happen. There are bands out there that have used their website
and myspace pages to sells hundreds of thousands of CD’s on their
own. Even if you sell the CD’s for cheap or even give them away
if you bundle them with a t-shirt you’re probably going to make more
money that if you give a major label 90% of your profits! So the
plan should be to record EVERYTHING you can – whether it’s live or in
the studio and get your music out there. Once you honed your act
into a viable, solid act – hit the road and tour, tour, tour! You
will be surprised what you can do all on your own – and once you’ve
made a great reputation for yourself and you still want those major
label dollars behind you to break it really big – at least now you have
some negotiation strength to get the best deal possible.
If you’re interested in
learning more, I recommend you read my book The Truth about the Music
Business. Go to http://www.truthaboutmusicbiz.com
and click “Buy The
Book”. I also have a solid business plan that I’ve worked on for
the past 5 years that I’m willing to share. Just contact me at steve@truthaboutmusicbiz.com.
Thanks for
reading! RIF
Steve Moore, B.A., J.D.,
Author of The Truth about
the Music Business
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Featured FNO Band
- Kelly's Lot
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 FNO
Member Kelly
Zirbes can really rock. She's been using Festival Network
Online for three years now to get bookings for her "Roadhouse Rock and
Blues" sound. Her vocals pack a punch, and her band is
tight and talented. Kelly is touring Europe in May and has
released a new album, "The Light" this month.
Kudos to Kelly, an unsigned independent artist touring, recording, and
having a helluva time doing it! Her spirit and gusto shine
through in her lyrics. Check out her sites!
http://www.myspace.com/kellyslot
http://www.kellyslot.com
To be a Featured FNO Musician, email me! julie@festivalnet.com
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We're always
looking for ARTICLES about working in the festival biz, tips, ideas,
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