As a recording artist, I decided that
implementing live venues performance into my career path was a necessity. Over
the past several years, I have had the opportunity to sit and speak with many
different music industry executives about my career. The first thing that I was
informed of in each case was the importance of doing live performances. Taking
the information that I was given, I started researching the careers of
successful singer-songwriters and entertainers. To my surprise their road to
success was initiated by the unique qualities delivered by them during live
shows and gigs. “Shows build relationships…there are moments and memories to be
had and made when you see anyone play live” (Perretti, 2012). However, not only
is performing live a great way to build the brand of a recording artists, it is
also a primary source of incoming that financially sustains their careers.
Building financial stability in the world of
music is very different today than in the day of the traditional way of record
labels. The money received from the sale of physical music media such as
compact disc became stifled by the continuous growth of digital media and
technology. However, record labels and recording artists did not let this push
them into a financial corner. They learned to adapt to the situation and fought
to maintain their place in the industry. “Life pushes all of us around. Some
people give up and others fight. They welcome life pushing them around”
(Kiyosaki, 2011, p. 27). For recording artists, this fight is done through the
implementation of live tours enabling them to earn revenue from ticket sales.
Most importantly, the ability to share video footage from your live shows using
social media and other online digital sources allow musicians to substantially
grow their fan base. Therefore, advancements in technology combined with the
efforts of recording artists can have a positive, financial impact on careers
within the music industry.
Kedrick "Rick" Mahoney
References
Kiyosaki, R. (2011). Rich dad, poor dad (1st
ed.). Scottsdale, Ariz.: Plata Pub.
Perretti, V. (2012). The Importance of Live
Shows » My Music | My Entertainment World. Myentertainmentworld.ca. Retrieved
11 May 2014, from http://www.myentertainmentworld.ca/2012/02/liveshows/
Hello Kedrick,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your post on surviving in the music industry. As an artist myself, I agree with you that performing and doing live shows is very important for your career. As you stated above shows help build relationships with the promoters as well as the disc jockeys plus you do not know who may be in the crowd. A&R’s as well as other record executives come to local open mics and showcases looking for new talent, another reason why you should perform, as much as possible. Yes, we are in a digital world and putting videos on YouTube and Vimeo can help boost your career and possibly gain you a record contract, but it’s rare unless you have a huge fan base. Performing live is your best bet you can build your fan base and then start to profit from your shows by selling T-shirts, Hats, CDs and any other promo items you have. Overall, I believe if you combine the two it will make your career a bigger success.
Best Wishes,
Paula Walker