Avoid These 4 Things, and You'll Fall Flat

The simplest things separate the products with a growing buzz from products that go nowhere. The buzzworthy product comes first -- one so good it can sell itself -- but a good businessperson still will not leave it to fate. It takes teamwork, research, organization, and the ability to make educated decisions quickly.

Teamwork, as explained in an earlier blog post, is essential to getting and staying on task. The right team will motivate and inspire creativity. The team is bigger than your inner circle; networking with others and understanding their experiences helps avoid wasting money on unnecessary marketing tactics.

Music Writers: Point, Blank, Period

Sources say Safaree "SB" Samuels writes the
majority of Nikki Minaj's raps.

There are many different ways to earn a living making music. One route that is rarely explored in independent hip-hop is that of a writer. When it comes to music in general, fans know songwriters write most of the songs, not the artists. Songwriting usually gets a pass in all genres once you’ve reached a certain level of success. But in hip-hop, once it is exposed a certain level of credit is taken from the artists. This mentality, plus the fact that just about every hip-hop songwriter wants to be the artist, makes it a less desirable route for that industry. But here are some facts that just might change your mind.

DreamWorks Press, Timing is Everything (Publishing)

There is nothing more memorable about being a child than the stories in Dr. Seuss books and Disney Movies. The Internet is quickly dissolving books, but they may have a new chance at life. DreamWorks Animations, SKG has launched DreamWorks Press, a division that will take the DreamWorks and Disney experiences back to the basics. Of course they will more than likely distribute digital copies as well as hard copies but nothing is for certain just yet. They have stated in a press release that their mission is “To give fans a meaningful way to interact with us (DreamWorks) on a year-round basis.”

What is an Artist Manager?

YMCMB's Drake and Manager Cortez Bryant.

Every artist knows that they need a manager, but most don’t know to the extent that a manager is needed or the services a manager offers. A manager becomes the artist’s best friend, which is why a lot of the times it ends up being a parent or the smartest friend. But a manager has to have experience, connections to gatekeepers, and a proactive attitude. There are also certain responsibilities that self-proclaimed managers don’t know about and their young artists don’t know to have them handle.

The number one thing artists should know about their relationship with their manager is that the artist is the employer and the manager is the employee. Putting your future in the hands of your employee is both a gift and a curse. With this knowledge you know that the final decision is yours. The problem is you have to trust the decisions of your manager because they’re supposed to be the expert in getting your career from point A to point B. This is why it’s important to have a manager with experience.

SHOFLO: The Future Of TV

I’ve discovered a great and innovative creation for live broadcast events. The self-proclaimed new standard in industry cue sheets is called SHOFLO. It truly is an amazing way to keep business flowing even when the key personnel are spread across the world. It has so many features to ensure full connectivity between everyone you need that it will make your head spin. It is full compatible across almost any of today’s standard platforms, it is web based, and it lets you keep everything you need for your event in the cloud.