Tips & Tricks
New Rules (Lefestz)
by djelroy on Aug.17, 2011, under Elroy's Editorials, Tips & Tricks
http://lefsetz.com/wordpress/index.php/archives/2011/08/11/new-rules-2/
The New Rules for all aspiring artists. These are a few general things everybody would be wise to follow, but I’ve expanded on them a bit to fit our underground scene. Some are more relevenant than others, but all are important.
1. It doesn’t matter what kind of music you make.
“You build your own audience. There’s an established niche for every genre. Don’t worry about playing to everybody, just play to somebody.”
Some music will be aimed at mainstream crowds and the commercial market, but most will be targeted at the underground scene. In theUS, anyway. Know what you want to do, what you want to sound like, then do it.
2. You’ve got to be good.
“This is about practice. We’re in a music era, not a marketing era. Ignore those who
tweet and Facebook their goings-on instead of focusing on the music.”
DJs are a dime a dozen nowadays, and producers aren’t far behind. But you need something that sets you apart. “Good” isn’t good enough anymore. You need to be great! You can’t go into the club expecting to win them over by mixing two records. Not anymore. You need to have something they can’t get from anyone else.
And it takes practice. I’ve seen a lot of new artists hunting for gigs before they’re ready. Don’t waste your time in the field until you’ve spent the time in the bedroom. Save yourselves (and us!) from a bad show.
Dubspot – “10 Tips for DJs”
by djelroy on Aug.03, 2011, under Elroy's Editorials, Tips & Tricks
http://blog.dubspot.com/ten-tips-for-djs/
Like most of these “Tips for DJs” articles it’s pretty common-sense stuff. But it never ceases to amaze me how many people just don’t know (or simply ignore) some of the most basic DJ etiquette.
1. Thorough preparation is very valuable, especially with the constant barrage of new music DJs must face on a daily basis. I generally won’t play a track in a live set until I’ve: Beat Gridded it, Run it through Mixed In Key, Marked every key section of the song with Cue Points, Set strategic loops on cool parts and vocal phrases, Written appropriate notes in the comments field of my browser, and Organized it into all the appropriate playlists. This way even if a song is brand new, I can play it as if I’ve known it for years. - DJ Shiftee
Thorough preperation for music is key. Back in the days of CDs (and vinyl) I used to love flying by the seat of my pants, playing to the mood of the dancefloor. But I’d always know my music inside and out — when the breakdowns were, where do mix in and out, etc. It takes a bit more prep work with digital, but it’s well worth it to make a smoother mix. And it’s not just music; make sure you have back-ups of everything, extra cords, plugs, and headphones. A flaslight, a roll of tape, and other “DJ survival kit” goodies are worth getting together.
How Dance Music Producer/DJs Connect With Their Producer/DJ Fans
by djelroy on Mar.20, 2011, under Culture, Elroy's Editorials, Tips & Tricks
One of the spectacular developments in music in the last 20 years or so, has been the democratization of the means to produce music. Combined with the internet and the social web, this democratization has enabled a lot of people to create and publish music that probably wouldn’t have been able to otherwise. As Seth Godin says:
“This is the greatest moment in the history of music if your dream is to distribute as much music as possible to as many people as possible, or if your goal is to make it as easy as possible to become heard as a musician.”So what some producers do when they blow up, make it big, or (for the ‘haters’) sell out, is they start sharing their expertise with their ecosystem of fans. Being a professional DJ/producer is very intense and time-consuming, so I figured I’d highlight some exceptional cases of DJs that free up their time to engage with a part of their ecosystem in a language they all understand: that of making music (and English).
Check the full story w/vids @Techdirt ~
Bottom line: Network. Don’t be afraid to give your stuff away. Think of it as an investment in your musical career.
BeatPortal: Anatomy of a #1 hit
by djelroy on Jul.10, 2010, under Culture, News, Tips & Tricks
Came across this article on Beatportal a few days back and found it interesting and informative (not like so many of their other advertisements-disguised-as-articles posts)… If only there was a formula for making hits! All the charts, stats, promotion, and marketing won’t work if the music isn’t what it should be. Well, let me rephrase that: You may be able to pop out a hit or two by hustling but you won’t have any staying power without consistency. How relevant will Ke$ha be in 5 years? That said, it’s just as important to have a good understanding and plan of attack for your marketing. After all, you can have the greatest song in the world, but if nobody knows about it do you really win? I’ll leave the music-making up to you but suggest taking notes on the strategies outlined here ~ djElroy
Becoming ‘One’: Anatomy of a #1 hit
A few weeks ago, Jonas Tempel (Beatport Founder/CEO) and I (Beatport COO Matthew Adell) were asked to speak at the International Music Summit in Ibiza, Spain, presented and organized by Ben Turner and Pete Tong. Ben Turner asked that we speak to the evolving trends we see in the world of retail music for DJs.
We decided to use the opportunity to share our view of the digital music space today, explaining what aspiring artists and DJs can do to stand out, and what steps our most successful artists have taken to make it happen.
We want to share the knowledge that we’ve learned over the years, talk about how we see trends developing, and explain in detail how artists are improving their success on Beatport by taking advantage of new opportunities across the internet.
We’ve built a case study that shows actual data on some marketing strategies that were deployed recently on one particularly successful track. The outfit responsible is a relatively big brand, but the tools they used are largely free and available to everyone. Contrary to what many people believe, hitting #1 doesn’t just come down to being featured in a slide on Beatport. We get between 7,000 and 15,000 new releases a week, and we only have about 32 slots to feature content. Now, I’m not knocking Beatport, because we rock, but getting a slide featured on our homepage actually pales in comparison to what you can do for yourself.
That DJ Podcast #7 : A Friend In Me?
by djelroy on Jun.29, 2010, under Culture, News, Tips & Tricks
That DJ Podcast, Episode #7 : You’ve Got A Friend In Me
On This Weeks Episode :
- PCDJ Update
- Fair Share Music
- Ibiza Classics
- Beatport’s Summer Classic Sale
- Guitar Center Sale
- Interview with Nate “DJ Conduit” McIntyre
- Opinion: What is something you know now that you wish you knew when you started DJ-ing?
- Your Feedback
This Week’s Featured Artist :
This Week’s Links :
Good Digital Music Strategy – Pt4
by djelroy on Jun.10, 2010, under Culture, News, Tips & Tricks
Danny M @ Vinyl (Photo by djElroy)
The fourth part of the Digital Music Article…
You can download a PDF here or check out the full article here ~ djElroy
What is a Good Digital Music Strategy?
4 – Do become a geek, be obsessed with your stats
Don’t be afraid to use as many data analysis as possible in order to focus on what will produce the best rates. That way you will be more efficient. You have to analyze every single action, so that you get rid of the less productive ones and improve the others.
Those free data analysis from Google or Soundcloud will show you where people listened to your music thanks to a specific action, where they came from, where they went, if they shared it, bought it and what are their tastes. You should be able to analyze the opening and click rates on your newsletter and email links.
What tools can help: FB Insights: You will know what your fans do on your Fan Page. You will be aware exactly of your impression numbers at specific times. It’s like segmenting per gender, age, country of your fan. To know more: FB Insight.
FB Insight is alright, but in comparison to Google Analytics, it won’t get you far since those Stats are only about fans. So, if you are not afraid to get your hands into the dirt, you will use Google Analytics to analyze your FB stats. Yep, it’s possible. Follow the guide.
FanBridge: Regarded as the best email management tool at present. You’ll be able to appreciate its real efficiency on your email campaigns. Who opens them, who clicks on links, who forwards… Service charged!
ReverbNation: Regarded as the second best email management after FanBridge. It gives you a sort of stats summarize when you log on your account. You will access “All Areas”: how many new fans, daily listenings, widgets uses…
Next Big Sound(free): This free of charge service will track down how millions of fans interact with your music on a daily basis. They will keep a record on the number of plays, views, comments, mentions, etc. on over 400 000 FB, MySpace, Last.fm, Twitter artists… On the top of it, Next Big Sound will send you daily emails to let you know what’s up around you.
Band Metrics: Gives the opportunity to groups / labels / managers to identify its fans, measure their regularity and commitments as well as identifying new markets, tracking down online radio listening and discovering new hypes
Sound Cloud: Online platform. For stocking, saving and sharing your tracks. It also offers widgets as well as gives you access to stats in regard of your tracks. There are many more to try (which I am at present). You will quickly see how you’ll get excited about your stats on your site, charts about your visitors.
(continue reading…)
Good Digital Music Strategy – Pt3
by djelroy on Jun.09, 2010, under Culture, News, Tips & Tricks
Lights @ Vinyl (Photo by djElroy)
The third part of the Digital Music Article…
You can download a PDF here or check out the full article here ~ djElroy
What is a Good Digital Music Strategy?
3 – Monetize
Let me give you a tiny advice: It’s great to get an iTunes link on your site, but it’s even better if your visitor can buy directly from your site.
First, because of proximity: (s)he wants to buy from you.
Second, because it might be a compulsive purchase. Don’t get a “chance” to lose him/her by sending him/her on another platform.
Third, not everybody is on iTunes or another platform.
Check out: the last UK study shows that almost 60% of 15-24 years old have no clues about legal platforms. What a shame if (s)he pirates somewhere else when (s)he was about to buy it on your site.xt
(continue reading…)
That DJ Podcast #5: Vs A Glass Door
by djelroy on Jun.05, 2010, under Culture, Tips & Tricks
That DJ Podcast Episode #5: That DJ Podcast Vs. A Glass Door
On This Weeks Episode :
- Pioneer Rekordbox Software
- Professor Dr. Fritz Sennheiser
- Second Annual Product Review Contest with Chauvet
- Audiofile Engineering MIDI Surface
- Projection Mapping
- Bieber Watch
- Chauvet Colorado Fixtures
- Opinion: How and Why Did You Become A DJ?
- Your Feedback
This Week’s Featured Artist :
DJ Steve Martin – www.freshbeat.ca
This Week’s Links :
- Pioneer Rekordbox Software
- Dr. Fritz Sennheiser
- Second Annual Product Review Contest
- Audiofile Engineering MIDI Surface
- Projection Mapping (LINK) (LINK) (LINK) (LINK) (LINK) (HOW IT WORKS)
Personality Counts
by djelroy on Jun.05, 2010, under Culture, Tips & Tricks
When Bob Lefsetz isn’t shooting from the hip with his naive political/economic diatribes he’s usually got some good (although sometimes hard-to-swallow) insight into the music industry… His newest post pretty much sums things up. Common sense? Sure it is. But it’s too often ignored. ~ djElroy
1. Are you willing to work?
Plan on giving up television. Nights out with your friends. Marriage. Children.
Making it is about sacrifice. Talent is at best fifty percent, desire is the rest.
2. Can you interact with other people?
Sure, history is laden with abusive rock stars. But they weren’t abusive at the
beginning. Hell, Bob Geldof abused programmers at a big radio convention and it
halted the Boomtown Rats’ career in America permanently. I’m not saying you’ve got
to kiss butt. It’s just that you’ve got to appear rational. And you’ve got to be
thankful. Which brings us to:
3. Show gratitude.
Thank the guy doing radio promotion, or maintaining your Website. Thank the guy who
opens the door. People love to help, you’ve just got to pay them in attention.
Sure, if you’re abused, go off on them. But if someone’s going out of their way to
treat you nicely, to do a favor for you, let them know you’re appreciative. Labels
have more than one act. And most successful managers do too. If you’re an
ungrateful sonofabitch, they’ll focus their efforts on someone else.
Good Digital Music Strategy – Pt2
by djelroy on Jun.04, 2010, under Culture, News, Tips & Tricks
DJ GHOSH @ Vinyl (Photo by djElroy)
The second half of the article from yesterday…
You can download a PDF here or check out the full article here ~ djElroy
What is a Good Digital Music Strategy?
Social Networks
In regard of social media marketing, I don’t agree with many “gurus” who pretend that social networking is the only way to make it as an artist.
In my opinion, it shouldn’t because social media is a fan management extension. Social networking’s purpose is about building a bridge between you and your fans who will then use words of mouth to “promote” you: positively or not.
Therefore, it’s better to look for your fans and build up your online social presence. The main objective is to get your fans on your website. That way they can discover you, share, interact and buy (which is the point actually)…
