How To Get Fame In This Age?

[DogmaticRock]

Okay, maybe I'm a little ahead of myself but still.

 

In this age of repetitive pop divas and rappers, how is one supposed to get out of the parents basement and into a mansion doing what he loves, being a rocker through and through? For the last decade it seems like rock has been avoided like the plague. The big name magazines and the labels will have nothing to do with rock musicians like myself. Sure you got all these indie bands but in the long run, you've barely left a footprint.

 

I'm done being a hobbyist, I'm ready to be someone.

 

But unfortunately, it seems like both execs and listeners have become blinded. It seems people rather watch Miley Cyrus act like a pole rider on her wrecking ball than recognize the beauty that is music.

 

How is a musician in this day of age supposed to achieve the fame he deserves when the world has developed such a perverted image of what music is?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Just1L]

My theory is it will have to start at a grass roots level. As long as they're raking in the cash, It doesn't seem there are too many in the music biz that are even remotely interested in taking a chance on a different formula. If you were to get a large fan base and the higher ups smelled money, they'd be all over your shit to try to take it from you. Part of me thinks there needs to be a movement in music that bypasses the music execs altogether and makes them look like fools. Rock would seem an obvious choice of music style to do that but I'm not sure that'll ever happen. Plus, it'll be hard without a fairly large amount of cash to help promote the movement.

 

I do believe the average music listener (and the majority) are pretty easy, they follow what they're given for the most part. If all the new music that is currently on the radio was gone tomorrow and replaced by rock, they would like rock. There still are kids out there that delve into underground-type genres like I did with punk rock, and alternative back in the early 80's. But even then those genres took a while to get into the mainstream. And a lot of those that did make it into the mainstream were shunned by their followers. Thinking Green Day and punk rock there.

 

I do hope there is a change in music at some point. I'm getting tired of the whored out, plug-in-play formulas of the music biz today.

 

Furthermore, it's a perfect reflection of the path down the shit hole that at least America is taking in general. Sex sells. Money talks. If you've got the money, you're good to go. If you don't... good luck.

Edited December 19, 2013 by Just1L

[Stova007]

Hopefully, fame isn't your #1 priority (it's a long shot) Being the best musician that you can possibly be should be your focus. Being a great musician and being famous don't always go hand-in-hand.

 

 It's hard to deny great sounding music, no matter what the genre is. So, make great music and get as many people as you can to listen to it. It's possible to do this without a major record label. A lot of musicians are bypassing the major label route because music is so easy to access now with social media. 

 

Ask yourself this: What sets you apart from every other talented musician out there right now? If you have a good answer, then use that to your advantage.

[DogmaticRock]

My theory is it will have to start at a grass roots level. As long as they're raking in the cash, It doesn't seem there are too many in the music biz that are even remotely interested in taking a chance on a different formula. If you were to get a large fan base and the higher ups smelled money, they'd be all over your shit to try to take it from you. Part of me thinks there needs to be a movement in music that bypasses the music execs altogether and makes them look like fools. Rock would seem an obvious choice of music style to do that but I'm not sure that'll ever happen. Plus, it'll be hard without a fairly large amount of cash to help promote the movement.

 

I do believe the average music listener (and the majority) are pretty easy, they follow what they're given for the most part. If all the new music that is currently on the radio was gone tomorrow and replaced by rock, they would like rock. There still are kids out there that delve into underground-type genres like I did with punk rock, and alternative back in the early 80's. But even then those genres took a while to get into the mainstream. And a lot of those that did make it into the mainstream were shunned by their followers. Thinking Green Day and punk rock there.

 

I do hope there is a change in music at some point. I'm getting tired of the whored out, plug-in-play formulas of the music biz today.

 

At times I believe you have to be a band from the 90's just to get any publicity. I have always thought maybe we're going through another phase like we did in the 70s and 80s before shit got real. You had the pop divas and the synth fanatics reeking up the airwaves, while good wholesome stuff like Slayer and Metallica were in the crackpot. That's much like today, with Miley Cyrus and Skrillex. Problem is, its a monster revisited with a bigger, more nauseating recipe for disaster. You have more computer based technology than you did back then as well as the meteor showers of rap that weren't so potent in the 70s and 80s. Consider music the Mushroom Kingdom then Bowser (Eminem) comes in and causes havoc.

 

Mario (us) isn't able to foil Bowser's plot because there isn't a way out visible. And with every year the kingdom becomes more and more corrupt. Maybe a Nirvana like movement will bring in some star power and defeat the beast, but it seems like for now that's a pipe dream (sigh).

 

A new dog needs to lead the pack, take over the one that retired. Reason that hasn't happened is because I think musicians are either confused or scared to make that move. In their minds it may be too much. But I'm not, and others shouldn't either. It's time to take back what's ours and rescue the princess (talent).

 

Edit: Actually if I can get the fortunes 50 Cent and Kanye West have, I'll be set.

Edited December 19, 2013 by DogmaticRock

[Just1L]

At times I believe you have to be a band from the 90's just to get any publicity. I have always thought maybe we're going through another phase like we did in the 70s and 80s before shit got real. You had the pop divas and the synth fanatics reeking up the airwaves, while good wholesome stuff like Slayer and Metallica were in the crackpot. That's much like today, with Miley Cyrus and Skrillex. Problem is, its a monster revisited with a bigger, more nauseating recipe for disaster. You have more computer based technology than you did back then as well as the meteor showers of rap that weren't so potent in the 70s and 80s. Consider music the Mushroom Kingdom then Bowser (Eminem) comes in and causes havoc.

 

Mario (us) isn't able to foil Bowser's plot because there isn't a way out visible. And with every year the kingdom becomes more and more corrupt. Maybe a Nirvana like movement will bring in some star power and defeat the beast, but it seems like for now that's a pipe dream (sigh).

 

A new dog needs to lead the pack, take over the one that retired. Reason that hasn't happened is because I think musicians are either confused or scared to make that move. In their minds it may be too much. But I'm not, and others shouldn't either. It's time to take back what's ours and rescue the princess (talent).

 

Edit: Actually if I can get the fortunes 50 Cent and Kanye West have, I'll be set.

 

It all comes down to perspective and what you like. While I like Slayer and Metallica, I also see them as some of the bands that started the beginning of the downward slide out of the rock era where radio and the masses are concerned. Metallica softened up with Black which is why that was so popular with the mainstream. Slayer, Pantera, Megadeth and the likes I believe were too hard a genre for the masses to follow. Don't get me wrong, many, many, many people, myself included, did follow them. But we followed them straight out of the mainstream. Then when Nirvana kicked in, as grungy rock as it was, it touched a nerve of the masses again and voila, grunge was the mainstream. There were/are much grittier and grungier bands than say Soundgarden, Nirvana and Pearl Jam, but most folks didn't follow them because they were too grungy. 

 

The advice of Stova above is very good. Hone your craft, make it as good as it possibly can and ask yourself if there is anything about it, or you, that makes it stand out from the crowd.

 

It's kind of funny. I work at a newspaper and we regular get ads from music schools that advertise as teaching rock. I laughed yesterday saying, If there is one kind of music that isn't popular now, it's rock. Yet there are quite a few schools around that are pushing just that. It's all ebb and flow. The tides will change eventually. They always do.

 

I will say there are a lot of rock musicians that currently could make it big if that is what record labels and the fans were looking for. The talent is all over the web, the masses just haven't been given the OK to like them because they don't hear them all over the TV, web and radio. I'd be really interested in knowing what the music scenes are from various locations such as LA, New York, London. They always seem to have something brewing that's stirring up the kids... at least they used to.

Edited December 19, 2013 by Just1L

[john]

While I agree about honing your craft etc, I take that AS A GIVEN.

 

Sure there are those who pursue fame only caring about being famous, but  fame need not be a dirty word. Certainly not the dirty word it has become.

 

I never understood why wanting to make a good living from music was wrong, or indeed frowned upon by some sections of musicians. Nor why wanting to be rich is bad either (despite my own lack of interest in it all). I am not saying that is Michael or Randy's opinion.

 

Will it make for a fulfilling life? Who knows. Being rich may well result in less stress about keeping a roof over your head and putting food in your mouths.

 

So in reading your message as "I already develop myself as an artist, I hone my craft and strive to improve, but how do I now make some money from it?", that is a fair question.

 

Making money isn't necessarily easy. Making money from the arts is above all hard to predict. I will say that:

 

You need to learn about the business side of music, including the legal side and the marketing and promotion side. I would also recommend reading up on entrepreneurship and running a business of any kind.

 

You almost certainly cannot do it alone.

 

Draw realistic boundaries. Be prepared to cross them almost immediately. lol I joke but really most who get into the biz end up doing a lot of things they never thought they would.

 

Learn about controversy. Learn about PR. Controversy makes for a cheap, easy promotion tool.

 

There is a lot, lot more but I'm going to go eat some food!

 

One questions I would ask is... what are you prepared to pay? Not me, although I love having money to spend on food and heating like anyone else, but becoming famous COSTS. Sure it may eventually pay, but in the meantime, it will cost you more than simple hard work. You have to invest in yourself, even if that is to have a publicity and promotion budget!

 

Then of course it can cost in other ways, such as hiring agents, managers etc You hire them because of experience and contacts etc and in exchange you give them a slice of the profits.

 

I digress. I need food.

 

TTYS

[john]

oh quickly, you know there is no guarrantee, in fact it is highly unlikely. Still, if it is your aim, and you are serious about learning about theindustry and about developing the skills you need, then your chances go up a millionfold from an artist who just expects to "hone the music", which is already a millionfold above the beginners who think "I want to short cut developing skills in music or in business, I just want to become famous and someone to hand me money"

[Just1L]

I never understood why wanting to make a good living from music was wrong, or indeed frowned upon by some sections of musicians. 

 

It baffles me too. Being a musician is just like any profession. Why would you want to do it for free and be broke? Yeah, I get a lot of enjoyment when I write and record a song. A LOT. But I'd be a doofus to think that being broke is better than being able to afford medical expenses, the mortgage and go on vacations every once in a while.

 

I know I'll never be famous. Don't want to. But I'd sure be happy if I could make enough money to be able to pay for the above mentioned and also afford to get the tools necessary to keep writing more songs and have them properly recorded.

[DogmaticRock]

A couple things work in my favor.

1. I have a unique voice and style. While I don't like hearing it, it could work in my favor.

2. I can shred on the synth.

 

Controversy can be a good or bad thing, and it can destroy or work in your favor. Look at Marilyn Manson, highly controversial but it has worked in his favor. Or how about Ted Nugent? His controversial political views have gotten him a visit from the Secret Service. I have done a fair amount of research on what John has said. As I told my dad, a little controversy in life never hurts. Luckily, the days of sending in a CD and hoping a A&R listens to it are over (some labels still request this, like Metal Blade) and many are much more open than they were a couple decades ago. You email your demo, which usually is requested to be a Facebook or SoundCloud page no MP3's or attachments. They must be weary of viruses.

 

As some musician friends have told me, and I have come to the sobering conclusion to believe it, that you make much more moola in concert sales than you ever do CD sales, let alone digital sales. Don't necessarily tell yourself that Just or you'll be led to believe it. Living is better than believing. In addition, YouTube has also become a excellent promotional source. That's how that Bieber guy started (luckily he's retiring) along with a couple other artists. Those who work hard for it truly deserve the fame and fortune, not those who have the easy way in. YouTube also has a monetary option, which you could profit off of.

 

Millions would work wonders for me. Get me all the synthesizers, both vintage and modern that I've ever wanted, buy a twenty million dollar home in Southern Cali, explore the world in touring, everything my dad unfortunately has not been able to do because of being a middle class citizen.

[M57]

The money pyramid in original music is incredibly steep at the very top.  Not only do you have to have your musical skills together, but you also have to have tenacious marketing skills, and the will to sacrifice and put yourself out there.  Assuming you do all of these things, it's still a lottery. The marketing skills part is probably the most important of these, especially given that the economic music machine is a moving target that's so tied to technology.

 

Don't get me wrong, there's money to be made. Music is easier and easier to make and purchase. There are a related fields, from just playing out  - teaching - running a studio - to writing incidental music for movies, etc.  This is where most end up - and those jobs require just as much dedication.

 

But the bottom line is - if someone wants it badly enough and thinks they really have a shot at the top - they should already have a plan and know what to do.  All that time spent practicing and playing music is probably wasted if you haven't been invested in learning about the other parts of the career.

Edited December 30, 2013 by M57

[Jackrustedapple]

yeah im not really into fame..but i do like it when people like my stuff! i play multiple instruments (not at the same time LOL) im indipendant in the likes of making music i cant for the life of me find dedication..so i dont bother forming groups for a while...im maily writing everything a the moment..but at this very moment i have no recording equipment..so i cant really make jack squat....but i know places for cheap mics n such...i ussaly go with cheaper stuff..then get better stuff later on...anyway

the thing about me is im not that creative with lyrics..but i read peoms and other lyrics to get more creative...

i make techno on the side just for fun..i eventally will sell my techno stuff when i feel ready..but for now i aint sellin crap...

i dot really want to get famous maybe popular..but not famus..i couldnt handle the pressure...i only played a handful of shows....no plans on booking anytime soon...but i will make more and more music till the day i bite the dust....i love music and muic is my drug

[MikeRobinson]

Heh ... laugh all you want to at Miley Cyrus, but that girl learned a very good lesson from her equally rebel (and, equally brilliant) father, Billy Ray.  (The guy who made a fortune from "Achy Breaky Heart" on his first album, and "gave the finger" to the Nash-vegas moguls ever since ... while continuing to make them millions of dollars.)  Miley also learned from Madonna (the original), and from Lady Gaga:  "you must have a schtick, or else you are doomed to be Hannah Montana® for the rest of your days, 'workin' for The Mouse.' "

 

I think that we can comfortably say that Miley Cyrus will never be confused with Hannah, whom she well-played for many years.  (However, kindly note that Miley has never "bit that hand" which, I surmise [if Billy Ray has good lawyers, as I am quite sure he does ...], probably still feeds her.)  She distanced herself completely from that persona, without damaging it.

 

I personally think that you should strive to write and to produce the very best music that you can ... to learn all that you possibly can about both music-making and lyric-making ... to seek to master the craft as well as you are personally able, then to seek to top those limitations.  If you absorb yourself in that pursuit, you won't have time for anything else.

 

Then ... get your music "out there," in front of as many people as you can, and to as many markets as you can:

• It's not all about The United States.  There's a world out there.
• It doesn't have to be broadcast-radio and/or music-album sales.  Television and movies have an insatiable need for music, for example.
• It is "a numbers game."  Johnny Cash had more than 1,200 songs in his "catalog."  Dolly Parton has more than 3,000.  How many do you know?  Some of them are hits; some of them are bow-wow-wow howlll-lll scratch-a-flea.  Nevertheless, all of them make money.
• The Internet changed everything, of course, but the most-important thing that it did (along with the rise of the Digital Audio Workstation) is to completely remove barriers to entry:  for production, distribution, collaboration, marketing.
• "Copyright is Forever.â„¢"  Here in Nashville, there are production companies devoted to licensing the works of artists who have been dead for a very, very long time.

You're "planting seeds."  Hundreds of them.  "God only knows" which one will make bear fruit or how much, but "the more seeds you have in the ground, the more likely you are to have a crop."  (You, and your heirs.)  But, just as "a watched pot never boils," you should be too busy planting more seeds to be sitting out in the fields watching for greenery.

Edited January 10, 2014 by MikeRobinson

[scotsman89]

don't know much about the music industry, but being older  and having read quite a lot of books about it .   It strikes me that most of the people who have made it get out there and do it , Busking , playing every little bar, hall , toilet that they can.   that way they make hardly any money for years but grow a fan base  that recommend them to friends who in turn do the same , but maybe now with the internet everybody thinks sit at home put a video on you tube and bam I'll be the next big thing . Yeh you and a million others if people don't see you hear you like you the best song , guitar rift .drum solo means nothing, just my penny's worth.

ps. lady gaga played a lot of dives ( see her on you tube before she became gaga)  that was her way in not over night .over years

Edited January 12, 2014 by scotsman89

[LayneGreene]

One thing I hear a lot of people talk about is waiting for their lucky break. Don't wait for opportunity to come to you, as a good friend of mine is fond of saying 'the harder you work, the luckier you get'. Working hard isn't enough though, you need to work smart too. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how hard you work either if you aren't working towards the right things. Sit down and write out your goals, how you're going to achieve them and set a time line. Be realistic with it, and when the first deadline comes up, re-evaluate the timeline (this should be a constant thing, timeline will always be changing). If you haven't met your goals figure out what happened and why it didn't work, if you did reach your goals think about any problems you met and how you solved them. You need to divide you the artist from you the business and put just as much work into each side.

[Rudi]

Once upon a time, when there was always an expectation of 'the next big thing', all you had to do was be there. It happened about every 6 years.

 

Then someone cheated and invented it. Once that was realised, there never really was any next big thing anymore.

 

Well there have been candidates, but they were unable to flourish, because everything concerning the media has become so fragmented since then.

 

Its a shame too, because 'the endless stream of sh*t' referred to by David Crosby (this was exemplified by 'White Xmas' in his example) is certainly back with a vengeance today and the time is ripe for something *real.

 

*not contrived or straightjacketed. But fame by this means seems to be a byproduct of what you do; not an objective in itself.

 

If I'm honest, wishing for fame seems to be what x factor is for. Why not just apply?

[MikeRobinson]

The traditional notions of "fame and fortune" are probably gone for good in this day and age.  "Record labels" could pour the marketing-dollars into an act when they comfortably knew that they were the only way that the music thus produced could find its way into the hands of the buying public.  But there are no such barriers to entry now.

 

There are now many diverse and very direct pathways between "your music" and "someone who might wish to buy it," and there have sprung up quite a few companies – "taxi.com" comes immediately to mind – who are helping artists along those now-foreshortened paths.  None of them, though, are promising fame or fortune.

 

Still ... maybe "fame and fortune" was never a good bet, to start with.  Perhaps, instead of "betting all your hopes and dreams on one grand throw," you should strive to put many songs into many viable sales-channels, in hope that in aggregate they will produce a dependable residual income-stream.  After all, oil-drilling companies count on this:  they know that they might never "strike a Spindletop," but that they might well be able to develop an inventory of several hundred "nondescript" wells.  Even though each of them might "merely" produce an "unremarkable" flow every day ... "it adds up."