Increasingly record labels are taking less chances with the artists they sign. At the recent Great Escape music conference we got a chance to talk to a major label A & R person and ask them about some of the things they are looking for. One of the most important things to note is that labels expect you to already be making waves. You should already have a fan base, be selling records and have a large mailing list if you want to get labels interested in what you are doing. One figure mentioned was a few thousand people on the email mailing list. The days of bands being developed by labels and labels taking risks are long gone. Here are a few things they are looking for:
- A proven track record – To really get labels interested you should have so much buzz about your music that they find you themselves. Bloggers are talking about you, fans are looking out for listings on Live Unsigned and your music is being shared on torrents and across social media. Focus on fans and the media and eventually the labels will find you.
- To be great live and have people coming to the gigs – You need to be an amazing, confident, controversial live act. Ideally you’ll already have an audience coming to gigs and will be confident performing in front of them. There are some tips on becoming a great live act here.
- To be young and look good but have a potential to sell to an older audience – Labels still want to sign bands under 30, but increasingly they have an eye on the the over 30′s audience as they still pay for music. If you are a young band who can cross over to an easy listening audience then you have more of a chance. Otherwise focus on building a niche loyal fan base within a supportive genre for example metal, hip hop etc until you have so many fans people take notice.
- To have great songs, ideally – Great music needs to be at the route of everything. You still need that, it costs more in marketing if the music isn’t good enough so they want the acts to have great songs.
- To work really, really hard – This isn’t like winning the lottery, a record deal is just the start of the hard work. Forget seeing friends and family and make sure you have a good relationship with the other people in the band because you’ll be spending a lot of time with them, in often unpleasant conditions. You need a really serious work ethic.
- To sign a 360 deal – All new artists labels want to sign are offered a 360 deal, this means the label gets a cut of tour revenues, publishing, merchandising and other income streams. They will have a cut of anything you make, rather than just record/download sales. Most artists and managers prefer to avoid these deals if possible as it gives the label far too much control of your career.
The above is just the start of what labels are looking for. The best way to get them interested is to just ignore them, build relationships with fans, bloggers, podcasters, journalists and eventually there will be so much buzz about you that they will come to you. Then you can argue your case for a decent record deal, not the first one you get offered. Remember signing to a record label is only one option, for many artists they are no longer required.
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Tags: DIY Musicians, mailing list, record contract, record deals, record labels, releasing albums., the great escape, Ustream
