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Underground > Radio & Music >

How to Survive the Music Industry...by ?uestlove

  
 
garyancheta
01:07 / 03.10.07
?uestlove, drummer for the Roots, made this thoughtful and fascinating post on Okayplayer.com about life in the music industry. Am I crazy to be inspired by it?

--
occasionally i gripe cause its alot of preaching to the choir (it took "men at work" in Va for the Clipse cats to realize that Riq was a monster---but those cats come from a "classic hip hop" base ---meaning they aint going around talking "they dont listen to earth wind and fire, or afrika bambatta" (my nameless labelmate)---i mean okp is like preaching to the choir.

but a cat like hov (who has yet to watch a complete roots show) or the rest of my label, this is a hard sell (basically riding with cats they "heard" have critical acclaim but pretty much are too ADD to find out themselves (yeah he was miffed at rich's xxl interview)

but i can really say that the grass aint greener on the other side (from what i hear). there is nothing like talking to a person that CLEARLY had attention some years back and now is thrown like yesterday's trash. i mean i can name some cats but im not trying to draw attention to that light.

compared to what i was working with 18 years ago....i can truly say that we come a long ass way. the lesson i learned the most is how not to overstep bounds.

i mean we can use anyone for an example for that.....it was assumed in the mj camp that he will make 9 million a month (the cost of what it takes to operate neverland---lights, staff, upkeep, etc)---but times are even hard for mj. so off the bat i don't assume that i will make my monthly survival quota.

so that said: yes i can afford an mtv crib. but does it make sense?

no wife/kids/dogsand a tour/dj/production schedule that keeps me in a hotel for about 9 months out of the year (had new house for about a year....i say i been in it maybe 3 months and that's being generous)

i don't really like baller ass cars (i love my scion) so i have no short dick/turning 50 dreams of some SUV i dont like (i do like the 2006 S class however lol)

and i aint big on jewlery.

so already i saved myself about 500,000.

so its easy to survive in this business if you live within your means...

if you make $100,000 a year you live like you only make $40,000
if you make $1,000,000 you live like you make $400,000

in this business you live 60/40...cause after loan outs and taxes and bills and etc..that is pretty much what you left with.

and you must be disciplined.

that is key.

shawn gee should be in this post. i got my first big check in 99 after tfa and this mofo was talking "we need about 10 more of these and you are gonna buy a house"---of course my ass was like "pssh man!" but he told me id thank him later.

another friend of mine stopped me from buying a car i couldn't drive. and told me to invest in my future by starting a website. (thanks ang)

the point of this whole post is that i have seen the mountain top (other peoples mountain tops) and some perks are cool.

i mean hanging with some cats in this industry that have shit like 10 cars in their garage, everynight the ratio of chicks to dudes is like 3 to 1 and mofos get on some rick james shit ("make love to ?uest bitches!!!!!!"---when im old i'll write the book)

but on the other side of that coin is....

the hits can stop
and people's loyalty aint worth shit
and if you do make it to the top, mofos dont even wish you all that well.
even if its just playing around... (--looks at com's cell phone....goes to "J"...jolie. --grits teeth--"must...be ...nice....huh rash?"--) jokes...but yeah man....let's ask wil, or kanye, or rash or mos or jay or whomever has held a 7 figure check in their hand (and let me put another myth to rest....just because you earn 7 figures a year dont mean you a milllllllionare---bbeeee leeeee meee on that shit....for every person that is able to achieve 7 figs i'll show you his staff of 20 that helps his world go round and the irs right around the corner)

so---in closing...yeah...a white girl could be the answer to "winning"
but there is a price to pay.
now that wil has tasted that success, he now MUST deliver the goods each and EVERY time
that is a pressure i dont know i wanna live with. one year i'll like breakbeats and the next thing i know, someone gives me some west african music and it will inspire me to want to do that....but then i just remembered im part of a money making empire and west african music don't appeal to jena, la or middle america to the other jena's out there (and they make the world go round dont doubt it)

so there it tis.

hope this makes sense.
 
 
pfhlick
01:30 / 03.10.07
Sound advice for the young rich musician, I 'spose, but I doubt I'll see the day I write 100k on my tax return, let alone $1,000,000.

The Roots have always struck me as more conscientious and scrupulous than most artists with mainstream potential, and have certainly proven their staying power in a fickle scene (been together at least a decade now).

Was this post in response to something in particular?
 
 
Jot Evil Rules During Weddings
05:20 / 03.10.07
Steve Albini, the former producer of Nirvana's classic album In Utero, wrote a very interesting article about the state of the music industry and just how the record companies exploit the artists on their label. Albini really know what he is talking about since he has worked in the record industry for a long time. I also know a relatively talented band that got screwed by its record company and ended up breaking up. You can find this article here, The Problem With Music
 
 
werwolf
10:57 / 03.10.07
this thread makes me think of DIZZEE RASCAL's 'hardback (industry)' off 'maths + english'.

anyway, ?uestlove makes a vrey valid point there. one that has been repeated over and over again by so many industry and artist peers. this is actually one of the things that a manager worth his/her money should also take care of for his/her acts. and if you're on your own, you should always treat the act of commercially exploiting your music like a business enterprise - taxes and people will have to be paid, unexpected expenditures will arise and so on and so forth.

and regarding mr. albini - that article of his has become a historical hallmark for independent record companies and artists. but some things i always like to point out that is easily overlooked and forgotten:
- that article was written 1994
- it was written by someone who was seriously fucked over by unscrupulous business makers and embittered by that
- it refers to a bloody terrible thing [no doubt] that was done by virtually everybody [indies and majors alike] and was the result of shortsightedness on behalf of record companies and artists alike [they had the same kind of deals in 70ies, but back then nobody noticed, because there was still enough money to be made and costs weren't quite as dramatic]
- and, what's most important, that kind of practice was abandoned in the same decade the article was written, because it just wasn't ecnomically viable anymore

[my experience in 2 major companies [i've started working in the industry in 1999] was quite contrary to what mr. albini wrote... and i actually had a good look at a variety of contracts.]

back to topic. again, i believe that to survive in the music industry (alone) you will need to treat your activities the same way as if you're starting your own business. and if you don't trust yourself with making proper business decisions you will need to find someone to do that for you. otherwise all mr. albini has written will come to pass - because there are still way too many dickheads out there eager to make a quick buck off some naive youngsters.
 
 
Jackie Susann
21:04 / 03.10.07
What's the Clipse situation he refers to at the start? God, I am so behind on rap gossip.
 
 
ronfinch
13:24 / 09.10.07
werewolf -
I work in music too - am a recording engineer - and this year have done almost exclusively major label stuff either as engineer/protools engineer/programmer... (Other than major label stuff we have had a few projects through the door with budgets between £20 - £40k where people are financing the production/release themselves - this seems more common nowadays)...

I have often wondered what kind of contracts the bands coming through the door are being offered nowadays. I generally know roughly what price the band have got for the studio for,but that is about it for the financial side (other than what I am being paid - of course).

Any chance you could put down in broad strokes what kinds of deals bands are being offered nowadays? Obviously you wouldn't post anything here that is confidential in nature in any way and I certainly am not asking for anything like that... I would really appreciate it though if you get the time..!
Cheers
Ron
 
 
werwolf
10:23 / 11.10.07
ronfinch, that is quite variable. even within a major company there are significant changes from label to label.

basically i can say that there still DO exist labels [major and independent] that try to force artists into the trappings of the past [clearable expenditure, returnable advances and so forth], but they are few and far between.

most new acts will instead have record companies [also both major and independent] that will carry the initial risks of breaking a new act. what's new is that these companies will clearly state that for their risk and groundwork they are looking for other streams of revenue or cost-reducing factors from the artist.
obviously this will vary greatly from artist to artist, so there really is no general outline i can tell you about.

another thing that has changed is the duration of contracts. while in the 90ies it was still rather common to sign artists for 3 records minimum, these days a 2 record deal is already quite unusual and is being viewed as strong commitment from label and record company.
that's actually contrary to popular belief that labels will chain artists to their contracts for as long as possible to get the most out of them.
advantage for the artist: more flexibility and control in their own output. yet on the downside it puts some of the risk, that was usually the labels and record companies own, on the artist's and management's shoulders. personally i think that's not a bad thing if partners share risks equally. for instance promotional costs are these days being spread out between parties more evenly - yes, that means that artists and their managements will often pay for things they did not back in the day. yet it is immediate expenditure and with absolutely visible and tangible results in all parties interests, rather than something that goes unnoticed on a slip of paper for years and then falls on somebody's neck without anyone knowing what the hell it was for.

i've also experienced that quite a lot of acts would rather control their own expenditure for recording and so on and then look for a deal that would balances these costs [e.g. licensing the record to a label or having the costs rebated].

hope this was helpful, but can't go into any more detail without breaking my vow of confidentiality. *g*

may i ask, do you work independently or for a studio? and how long have you been doing that? i gather that things have changed for recording studios a lot, too, these past few years.
 
 
ronfinch
14:51 / 13.10.07
werewolf thanks for your response, I definitely would like to know more about the business end of things... I have been working in studios the past 5 years after doing degree in recording... I am freelance but have worked the vast majority of this year at one studio.

My experience has been that mid-level/bigger recording studios (not Abbey Road/Metropolis level but decent gear, say SSL/Neve equipped rooms) are generally struggling, there does seem to be some exceptions. The odd one that appears to be doing well are doing so by selling their studios very cheaply - it seems to be a combination of developments in recording technology and lower recording budgets means lots of producers do lots of stuff at home. You regularly hear of one or another established studio closing down nowadays. It definitely isn't like I know it was in the 80's with bands booking rooms for 6 months at a time at a grand a day or whatever they charged then. Some people are getting paid

Having said all that I have worked at another place recorded lots of music for film/tv - orchestral stuff mainly. That end of the business is much healthier.
 
 
werwolf
09:28 / 23.10.07
[sorry, took me a while to get back on barb.]

what exactly do you mean by 'business end of things'?
i'm glad to share what know [to as much an extent that i can and am allowed to], but perhaps you could clarify in more detail what information you are looking for?

seems obvious that orchestral music or any music that demands specific accoustic prerequisites to be met that can't be easily recreated at home or replaced by technological means are still well off.

something i've been wondering about these past years and perhaps you can tell me your opinion: so, if technology is allowing more and more to be done in your own flat with a pc and a few pieces of equipment, why is it that producers don't get together and organize something like a production wheel or ring?
i'm thinking along the lines of specializing on certain parts of the recording and production process and then working together and pass artists along and on. wouldn't that mean more jobs for more people, but still affordable for labels / managements / artists / record companies?
 
  
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