Principles of Artist Management

When asked how she broke into the Music Row Community of “Good Old Boys,” Sharon Dennis of Dennis Management replied, “the ‘Good Old Boys’ opened doors for me when they found out I’d spent more time behind the ‘chicken wire’ than they had.” She began her professional career in Texas at twelve years old playing drums in beer joints. When asked, what kind of a father would allow his daughter to do that, Sharon said, “a father with great perspective. You see, my daddy was a beer distributor, and those were not beer joints, they were prime-retail-outlets!”

Unlike most artist managers, Sharon knows what it’s like to be a touring artist because of the time she spent “behind that chicken wire,” working as a fulltime touring musician. That experience gives her a unique perspective and desire to help artists develop their talents and find their path to success. She has established a set of principles that she feels is key to success in the management game.

“Success as a manager is based on the success of the artist,” she contends. “So it’s important to listen to the artists and work toward executing their dream. When the artist’s best interests are given priority, the manager’s best interest will follow. We work for them.  We present options, possible outcomes, and make recommendations, but the artist still has veto power.  They decide, we implement.  We can disagree behind closed doors.  When the door opens, we’re a team.”

Even though she enjoys working with established artists, such as the platinum selling country artist, Michael Peterson and gold selling artist, Jeff Carson, her inspired approach to the craft lends itself to artist development. 

“Not all managers are skilled at artist development, nor do they enjoy it.  We love the challenges and rewards associated with the process. We have always saved space on our roster for promising new artists.”

What constitutes a “promising” new artist?  “An artist with an identifiable sound in the voice, with a good sense of self who knows who he is as an artist, and one who has global, commercial appeal.”

Sharon loves the hands on work during the development process of fine-tuning an artist’s vocal skills, writing ability and stage presence.  She works with a team of professionals, such as vocal coaches, image consultants, and established songwriters to turn her hopefuls into potential stars.

Additionally, with the glut of artists on the scene, a manager “has to think out of the box, and be creative” to ensure that his or her artist rises above the pack to create a career, not a one-hit-wonder.

An example of Sharon’s out of the box thinking is the soon to be released debut project from eighteen year old Mary Sarah.  The album features vocal duets with ten of the greatest living legends in country music, including the late Ray Price.  “Bridges” introduces the young performer to longtime country fans and familiarizes young fans with the contributions made by these country greats.  Artists who participated include Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Ray Price, Vince Gill, Ronnie Milsap, The Oak Ridge Boys, Tanya Tucker, Lynn Anderson, and Big & Rich. There is a Bonus Track with Neil Sedaka singing “Where The Boys Are.”

“This project is unique,” says Sharon.  “There have been duet albums before, but never featuring a young up and coming talent with so many giants of the genre.”

“It’s important to think globally,” she continues, “and create a universal presence via social media and other global avenues.”

Television is one of those global avenues, and she is currently working with CMT and Leftfield Pictures on a reality show project for one of her newest clients.  “Tobacco Wars” is scheduled to air this summer, but until CMT makes the announcement, we can’t divulge the cast (sorry!!!)  Read the tidbit in Variety!

“If an artist wants to act,” she says, “I encourage it.  TV is a powerful medium. TV can take an artist to the masses and broaden the audience demographic; however, it’s important that management guards the artist as he diversifies to avoid losing momentum in his primary career. “

Sharon’s strategy is simple and straightforward.  “We are managers.  We’re not booking agents, accountants, attorneys, or business advisors.  The role of personal management is to guide and support the artist in developing, growing, and sustaining his career.  We’re aware of pitfalls, and we have access to resources that can help avoid them.  We fight to protect the artist's interests with record labels, producers, publishers, booking agents, promoters, sponsors, employees, and fans while the artist remains a friend to all.  In other words, we are a combination of co-planner, chief operating officer, resource analyst, opportunity creator, option presenter, negotiator, monitor, buffer, respite provider, truth teller, and confidante.  We are managers.”

Between the Lines – Making Sense of Music Licensing

The excitement of getting that first song placement can be clouded when the paperwork arrives. As intimidating as the paperwork may seem to be, understanding the forms, the terms and legalese can help you retain the joy of getting your song in a great project.

Let’s talk about song clearances, synch licenses and cue sheets.    “Clearing” a song is simply taking the appropriate steps to get permission to use that song in a film, TV show, commercial or video game.  That includes determining who owns the rights to the publishing and the recording; contacting them and negotiating a deal for the use of the song. As a songwriter, its important to remember that unless you are self-published, your publisher owns the composition, and the production will negotiate with them.  The master owner is usually a record company or a producer, but can be the artist or even the publisher if they financed the project and retained ownership.

During the clearance stage, you will usually receive a confirmation letter that outlines the general points of the deal and the amount of compensation that was agreed upon. These points will be spelled out in the license.

The term “synch” refers to any use of music set to a moving picture, and would thus be synchronized to the film.  However, in general usage, a Synch License is associated with clearance of the composition.  A Master Use License is associated with the recording or master. When one entity owns both portions, a producer may issue a Combined Synch/Master License.

Many producers and music supervisors prefer “one-stop shopping,” because they only have to deal with one entity to get a song cleared and licensed, which is a plus for indie artists who own both their publishing and masters.

Deciphering the license agreement.

First of all, “buy-out” does not mean that producer is “buying” your song, or even requesting any sort of ownership of your music.  A licensing agreement is just that, an agreement to license a piece of music for a particular project.  The production can only use your music in that project for the amount of time you agreed to and in the media formats that you OK’d. 

Term & Territory refers to the amount of time license is in affect and in which countries.  Most producers currently license in perpetuity (meaning forever) and most licenses cover the world.  Of course, when clearing big songs, a production may limit the term (Five years is common) or limit the territory (U.S. and Canada) because limiting the use will decrease the asking price for the song.

Media Format refers to the broadcast formats the program will be seen on.  In the past, most songs were cleared for only Free TV and Cable, but with the invent of numerous broadcast formats, most music is now cleared for “All Media” which includes the internet, mobile devices, DVD’s, etc.  As with term and territory, the extent of media covered affects the negotiated price of the song.

Popularity of the song or the artist also affects the asking price, so an unknown artist will usually be offered a much lower fee for the most possible rights. 

(simpsonsmusic500.com)

Lastly, don’t forget the cue sheet!  The production is required to provide performing rights societies with a cue sheet, or list of songs used in each project.  As a licensor, the production should also provide you with a copy of the cue sheet.  The cue sheet is invaluable in discussing royalty matters with your PRO (ASCAP, BMI, SESAC).

Build An Artist, Build A Brand

Build An Artist, Build A Brand

As the music industry continues to shift and develop new methods of creating revenue, many have looked to alternatives to the traditional label deal. The introduction of Artist Nation, Live Nation’s artist promotion division, has opened the door to a number of interesting new possibilities. The company has courted some of the industry’s biggest artists, including Madonna and Jay-Z and has entered into unique partnerships that encompass the management and promotion of their recordings, live performances, merchandise, and more. In essence, Artist Nation has perfected the “360 deal” by bringing to the table all the assets at its disposal, including radio, sponsorship and marketing.   

Of course, emerging artists have not been invited to this lucrative table. So other companies are utilizing similar models to develop and promote new talent.  This week we spoke with Nan Cassidy of Tunesmith Entertainment. Tunesmith began as a website showcasing the talented array of promising songwriters in Nashville. In time the company has grown into a national organization that discovers, develops and nurtures talented songwriters and artists from all over the country. 

Tunesmith has recently instituted its "Build an Artist, Build a Brand" division to foster corporate partnerships for talented new artists.  “Our Build an Artist, Build a Brand concept using corporate partnerships as music distribution bases and performance opportunities is the future of the business,” says Cassidy.  “
Corporate America can be a good friend to the music industry and play a larger, more lucrative role in the future of music.”

Cassidy and her team research artists and potential corporate partners, looking for the perfect fit.  “It’s essential to provide companies with the right music/artist combination,” she continues.  This is particularly important when seeking sponsorships for new artists who don’t bring millions of fans with them.

“These deals work if both sides benefit mutually,” says Cassidy. “We have to consider not only what they can do for us, but what we can do for them.  For instance, in a recent negotiation with Boot Barn, they pointed out the promotional value a deal with them would bring to our artist, and we were able to bring to their attention the revenue streams and advertising value of utilizing our artist.”

“Our artists are available for a wide range of promotional activities, including in-store appearances and/or performances, radio remotes, and the use of the artist’s likeness on in-store product promotions, e-mail blasts, and social networking campaigns, activities a major artist might not be available for.”

Cassidy calls herself a “mission-oriented negotiator,” concentrating on the interests motivating each side. “When we began, we would submit big budget proposals.  But we learned that these companies did not want to put a lot of money behind a new artist.  We learned that emotions are a very big part of these negotiations. When you believe in a project, you want others to see what you see, to persuade them that your idea has merit. And conversely, the sponsors want you to know where they’re coming from.”

She works hard to produce a final package that is fair to both sides, including points generally anticipated, but adding accommodations unique to the potential sponsor. 

“We spend a lot of time building a relationship with the company.  It is important to know the person you’re dealing with, and a key component of any negotiation is to build trust on both sides.”

Cassidy notes that for her, a negotiation is successful when it creates a lasting two-fold relationship that “provides support for new artists and achieves strategic objectives for participating companies.”

Music and Technology Collide

Ireland’s Mick Kiely and Seattle game designer, Chanel Summers visited Nashville this week with an exciting new interactive platform to generate music for videogames, television and film.  Score Music Interactive is a revolutionary new software that allows users, i.e., game designers, music supervisors, producers, to build unique musical content for their projects.

Conceived to meet the needs of game designers, the platform opens new creative solutions for video game soundtracks, and more.  “Indie games use unconventional instruments and pair unexpected styles, creating new genres, such as acoustic frontier hip-hop,” says Summers.  "This breakthrough in game music platforms allows designers to customize the music, giving them the power and control to get exactly what they want at an affordable rate.”

“Every composition is unique,” Kiely continues. “The same piece of music will never be licensed again as a different arrangement is generated every time.”

Many game designers and indie film producers have been using stock music from production houses and music libraries, but since this music is not designed for games and may not be just right for many movie projects, producers and designers need another option, when hiring a composer might be cost prohibitive.

“Designers want to brand their games with unique music,” Kiely asserts. “With stock music websites, there’s nothing stopping another developer from using the same track, something that will never happen with Score Music Interactive.” 

The platform uses music created by live players as the foundation for instrumental blueprints that users can build upon.  “This is not artificially generated music,” says Kiely. “These are real performances recorded live by composers and session musicians from around the world.  We are working with flamenco guitarists from Spain, steel guitarists from Nashville, blues players from New Orleans, etc. The music is authentic and compelling.” The user then becomes part of the process, choosing the specific tracks that he wants to use - essentially producing his own musical cues. A major breakthrough for licensed music.

Not only is the manner in which the music is created innovative, so is the payment model.  Every track (or stem as they’re called by the SMI team) is an individual performance, and when that stem is integrated into a licensed piece of music, that performer receives a percentage of the licensing fee. Session players will be listed on cue sheets and be credited for their contributions to the finished song. “This is a positive direction for musicians, as well as composers,” says Kiely. 

SMI is actively auditioning musicians and composers for the platform. For more information, send an e-mail to composer@scoremusicinteractive.com.

About Kiely and Summers

Mick Kiely is one of Ireland's most accomplished video game composers, best known for his work with the highly successful titles, Codemasters and Bodycount.  He recently established Games Music Ireland, a non-profit organization connecting Irish composers with the global digital gaming industry.

Chanel Summers is an award winning game and audio designer who has worked with Mindscape and Velocity, Mattel Media, and Microsoft where she was part of the original Xbox development team.  Chanel co-founded Syndicate 17, an audio production house based in Seattle and Los Angeles that specializes in original music, and sound effects for films, television shows and video games.