VibeDeck is a service that provides a simple way to sell your digital music directly to fans. What’s so great about this is the fact that they take no cut of your sales. The service is completely free and they promise to never charge for it in the future nor add advertising to profile pages. VibeDeck handles the commerce transaction via Paypal, so the only thing you pay is PayPal’s service charge. Upon first glance, VibeDeck looks a helluva lot like Bandcamp, another service that I have high praise for. VibeDeck is easy to use and it’s pretty straight forward when it comes to jumping in and getting a page set up. They’re still developing new features to help enhance the Read the rest of this entry »
Some emerging hip hop artists have absolutely no plans of going the independent route. Their plan is mostly centered around finding one of these industry gatekeepers that will open up the magical gates of the hip hop mainstream, and that little industry elves will do all of the promotional and marketing grunt work for them. First of all, none of the people on the other side of that gate is going to take interest unless you have built a substantial buzz on your own. The “BUZZ”rules and the bigger the Read the rest of this entry »
Not much commentary to add to this video other than the fact that I like finding stories of other indie hip hop artists doing it themselves and making it happen. You can do your own shit, march to your own drummer, and find an audience that’s feels you. Be inspired! Read the rest of this entry »
Building a fan base takes more than just having good music. People can connect to a great song and not give a shit about the artist who made it. Listeners like to connect to an idea, an experience…a personality. It’s not essential that you use social networks like Twitter and Facebook, but if you’re going to use them, use them to magnify Read the rest of this entry »
Some music bloggers communicate with each other. We share ideas, likes and dislikes about life in the blogosphere. This post is about some major dislikes. Particularly, the way artists go about getting their music featured on these blogs. This is important because these issues could very well be the reason why some never get their music posted. So I present to you these 5 music blogger’s pet peeves… Read the rest of this entry »
Tyler the Creator and Odd Future have a massive industry buzz at the moment. What’s intriguing about it is how quickly this independent hip hop group seemed to go from almost underground obscurity to rippin’ sell out shows and gracing magazine covers. Christian Clancy, now Odd Future’s manager, ran the marketing department at Interscope back in the day. Christian has been labeled as the scientific “man behind the curtain” responsible for building on the foundation this group established and putting it in overdrive. The first project he’d ever worked on, back at Interscope, was The Marshall Mathers LP. So he knows a thing or two about a thing or two. Check out this video clip to get some info about his background and his connection with this fascinating indie hip hop group.
Hip hop artist Wax got the attention of Def Jam executives by building a strong buzz using YouTube. His frequent release of rhymes and entertaining skits was effective in amassing a strong fan base. This led to him signing a joint venture with the label. Wax, in this video clip, demonstrates one of the many ways he keeps his fans involved. Take notes. Read the rest of this entry »
Internet marketing is essential to creating your buzz. Not everyone uses the same strategy. These up and coming hip hop artists share their thoughts and some experiences about the topic. Check it out. Read the rest of this entry »
In this video clip, producer, musician and label owner George Howard, breaks down the importance for artists to become creative entrepreneurs. He also gives examples of how some musicians have used this mindset to create and sustain successful careers in the music business. And while the musicians talked about in this clip aren’t hip hop artists, this same mindset can be applicable to any artist in any genre of music. If you’re not doing this music thing just for fun, you must remember that YOU ARE A BUSINESS.
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