It’s well worth a quick browse, so head on over to Mashable and have a gander.

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So What Is It?

Last.fm is a website that consists largely of user-produced online ‘radio stations’. You sign up, you fill in a box of what artists you like seperated by commas (I literally just copied and pasted the list from my facebook page) and Last.fm puts together your ‘music library’. One that’s done you can download a little application that will play you random tracks from all the artists which are in your library, as well as playing you loads of ‘recommended’ artists based on what artists you like.

I was skeptical of how well this ‘recommended’ stuff would work as all the ones I’ve tried in the past have been pretty poor - but I’m pleased to say that the Last.fm system is absolutely brilliant and really does play me songs which I haven’t heard before.. and like!

I now have the music player open in the background all-day every-day at work and it’s become a staple part of my waking hours.

Why It’s Useful For You, The Artist

Well I’m probably preaching to the converted here for the most part but it’s useful to you because you need to stay on top of the music industry and “what’s hot” - and by that I don’t necessarily mean what’s in the charts at the moment!

Here are 5 good reasons why you should sign up to and actively use Last.fm

1. You can and will discover at least one new artist every day.
2. You’ll broaden your musical tastes and knowledge.
3. You’ll meet and network with loads of other people in the music industry who may be able to help you.
4. You can promote your own music through a personal profile
5. It’s brilliant for inspiration when you’re writing songs.

How Last.fm Can Make You Famous

It can’t. Like anything else in this world it takes a lot of hard work and effort, though I’m sure you’ve heard that so many times by now that you’re sick to the back teeth of it!

It’s basically like a really good facebook that’s just for musicians, once you’ve set up your profile page, people will be able to listen to your music, add you to their library, comment on your page, see your recent activity, upcoming gigs, music which you listen to, most popular songs, and the list goes on and on and on!

Take a look at Reuben’s profile to get a better idea of just how much you can offer your listeners.

Is It Important?

You bet! From what I’ve seen so far (and granted I’m a latecomer) Last.fm is going nowhere but up! They’re doing a really outstanding job with the site and have already launched multiplatform applications to support their software, including the recent iPhone app - which I have to say - is genius.

Sign up now, or regret it later! Definitely some more specific Last.fm posts to follow at a later date.

What Do You Think?

Are you using Last.fm ? Are there any great features I’ve missed out? As an artist what would you say has been the most influential thing that you’ve done with your Last.fm profile? Drop me a line in the comments below!

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What Are Loyal Fans?

Loyal fans are best classified as borderline stalkers, they love you music and you style so much that they are prepared to go to extraordinary lengths to help you and to follow you. Loyal fans are the guys who get on a bus in London to watch you play a gig in Dundee, they’re the ones who post on your website messageboard twenty times a day, and buy your merchandise at every gig, not to mention three copies of every bit of music that you release. I won’t bother covering why you want loyal fans, if you haven’t worked that out by now then you’re in the wrong industry.

How Important They Really Are

About four years ago I was part of a pretty large but niche fanbase for one particular band who were just ‘breaking’ at the time. We would do all of the things above, and more. I’ll give you an example, when the band in question released their first UK single we got word that one obscure scottish radio station had picked up the track early but hadn’t played it yet (I can’t remember how or why we knew that). Anyway, we (about 30 of us) emailed this radio station non stop for three hours to play the song, at which point the DJ gave in, and not only played the song, but read off all of our messages, mentioned the band website, and talked about them for a good three or four minutes.

Needless to say this got them instant exposure and by chance or otherwise, the single was picked up by a LOT of national stations throughout the following week. The point here is that a small group of crazy people influenced the media and made something happen. We promoted the band on the most simple level imaginable and it worked brilliantly, the band themselves didn’t even lift a finger.

How You Can Attract Loyal Fans

You need to get these crazy people on your side, and I’m here to give you some tips on how to do it.

• Talk To People! - The number one most important thing of the lot, there are lots of people at your gigs who like you, but are too shy to talk to you (sounds silly, but is true). Try and pick them out of the crowd when you’re on stage, and talk to as many people as you can after you’ve played. Tell them about your website and your music, and take some interest in them personally too.
• Show Some Respect - The easiest way to pick up fans is by playing gigs with other bands with the same musical style as you, the idea is that their fans become your fans. Don’t EVER say things like “we blew the headline act away!” it’s not a fucking competition! Respect and praise the artists who you share the stage with, even if you don’t like them or their music. Respect might make their fans like you.
• Have A Forum - Crazy music people love talking to crazy music people. Some of my best friends in the world to this day are crazy music people who I ‘met’ for the first time on band forums. Give your fans somewhere to talk to eachother and soon they will be arranging meetups and grouping up together to go your gigs. Make sure that you post on the forum regularly too, and appoint a good team of moderators to keep stuff under control.
• Have A Mailing List - And only use it for decent information! Don’t spam your loyal fans with gig dates or useless news, tell them about new merch that isn’t available yet, tell them about your new tracks and give them information that’s not available anywhere else. Make sure that they have a reason to be on your mailing list and that they want to stay on it!
• Make Them Feel Special - Take notice of what people show up consistantly to all your gigs, even if it is only friends and family to start off with. Once you’ve done that, thank them! At every opportunity show your appreciation for their support, drop forum-member names into radio interviews, dedicate songs to them at gigs, and mention people because you can guarantee that the second they feel like you don’t care… they’ll stop caring too.

Once You’ve Got Them…

Keep them! Don’t ever let them go, these guys are your most important asset, they are your most loyal customers and often your biggest revenue stream. The great thing about them is that they will likely recruit more of their own kind, but only if you make it worth their while (so make sure that you do).

What About You?

Do you have, or have you been one of these hyper-loyal fans? Or have you seen any that have really gone to far? Let me know and leave me a message in the comments section below.

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What Is The Leader Of The Band?

The leader of the band is typically the person who gets everything done, they’re the person who organises the gigs (at least in the early days), who are on top of all the updates to myspace, they’re the person who take control during band practice sessions. The leader of the band is the person who the rest of the band look up to, and the person who takes charge of situations which the band are placed into.

Why You Should Be The Leader of The Band

It’s a bit of a double-edged sword, the leader of the band gets a lot of attention, a lot of air time, and is at the forefront of it all. The leader of the band is often the lead singer because that type of personality (the one with the balls sing his or her heart out front and centre on stage) works well in a leadership role. At the same time however this person is also likely to have the most responsibilities, for example taking on the majority of work that needs to be done and really going the extra mile when no one else wants to.

If you aspire to be the person who’s name everyone knows, and the person who gets spoken to the most then this is definitely something that you need to be.

How To Tell If You Already Are The Leader

It isn’t always instantly apparent who the leader of the band is, particularly in newly formed bands you may find yourself wondering “actually, who is leading us here?”. Here are some things that you can ask yourself to find out if it’s you:

• Are you the person who decides when to start and stop playing during practice?
• Are you the person who’s typically on MySpace more than anyone else adding new friends and updates?
• Are you the person who usually calls up the rest of the band prior to a gig to arrange transport for instruments and times for soundcheck?
• Are you the person who is listened to by the other members?
• Do you find that you get the most attention after gigs or during interviews? (and not just because of your good looks!)

If so then you may already be leading your band (well done!) if not, then maybe you have some idea of the things that you need to do to take a more significant role in progressing your group.

What Makes Being A Leader Tricky

Being the leader has its advantages (as mentioned) but there are also some tricky situations that you can be placed into. Generally if you’re the leader of the band then to an extent you are holding the band together, and without your continuous input and dedication there is the potential for it all to break down. To be the leader you need to work hard and you need to work hard continuously. If other members argue it will most likely be down to you to keep a cool head and help resolve it because no one looks up to someone who’s always in the middle of the fights.

Effective Leaders of Current Popular Bands

Here are some band leaders who you may have already heard of noticed in the industry:

• Billy Joe Armstrong - GreenDay, he commands the stage and the 60,000+ people in front of it with just one hand, I’ve seen it and it’s quite a sight to behold.
• Nicole Scherzinger - Pussycat Dolls, all the other girls surround her and she is always the centre of it all, and she does a pretty good job of it too.
• Adam Lazzara - Taking Back Sunday, he prances all over the stage like a pony and commands every ounce of attention that the audience have. He’s also the centre of almost all interviews and at the front of most band photographs.

Conclusion

Is it worth being the leader of the band? Absolutely, be prepared for a long road and a lot of hard work but don’t let that get you down. Every band needs a good and efficient leader, and that person can generally make or break a band.

So, are you the leader of your band? Or do you have any other great examples of people you’ve seen leading a group of modern musicians? Drop me a line in the comments and let me know!

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So What’s The Big Idea?

Well merchandise is big business! The idea is to produce your own and sell it on your myspace profile, on your website, at every single gig you play, and to every member of your family! Think of it this way, if you’re trying to save up money for some studio time that costs £800 - that’s only the equivalent of selling 80 t-shirts at a tenner each!

Of course you need to take into account what they cost you in the first place, but the point here is that you can make some very decent money of selling band merch and people will be even more inclined to part with their precious cash if it means that the funds are going towards producing more of the music which they love so dearly!

Let’s Get Started

Before we start designing or printing or ordering anything we need to establish what you’re actually going to put on your shiny new products! In all honesty, it doesn’t matter that much what’s on your products as long as it fits in with the style of your music and your fan base but there are three very important things that you should make completely sure are on all your products!

1. Your Logo - Don’t even get me started if you haven’t got one yet! More to follow on designing a logo at a later date.
2. Your Name - Bit of a no-brainer but you’d be surprised just how many people fail to do this.
3. You Website Address - If you haven’t got a website address then it should be your myspace address!

What Sort Of Merch Should You Be Considering?

Think about this one with a little creativity and a lot of common sense, coffee cups seem like a great idea until you realise that very heavy box of breakable items in the back of your tour bus isn’t actually the genius plan that you had first envisioned. If you still think coffee cups or mugs are a good idea, then take it from me, they’re difficult to store, they chip and break easily, they’re heavy (and thus expensive to ship) and unless you’re a jazz musician with a fanbase full of caffeine addicts then the chances are that you’re going to have a hard time shifting them!

And just to make a short list of other things to not do:

• Coffee mugs - I’ve given enough reasons I think!
• Mouse mats - cheesy, and with optical mice as the industry standard these days few people use them
• Clocks - for the same reason as the coffee mugs
• BBQ Aprons - ultimate cheese

So here are some things that you definitely should consider:

• T-Shirts - An all time band favourite, pretty cheap if you buy in bulk, and they sell like hotcakes if you put a decent price on them.
• Hoodies - Good for the winter season, don’t bother stocking up on these in June!
• Hats - Generally good for the summer season and pretty easy to get your hands on.
• Notebooks - Everyone uses them, particularly students. Even with computers everywhere people still like to write and draw.
• Posters - If you get some decent pictures taken then this is a no brainer, they’re cheap to produce and relatively easy to transport.

Consider Merchandise Purely For Branding Too

Part of the idea behind merch is to make money, but it’s also to get your name out there - to spread the word and make sure that as many people as possible know about your band. So that when someone here’s your name they go “That sounds familiar”, or “I’ve heard that somewhere before”, as we all do so often!

What am I talking about? The free stuff! There are things that you can produce that fans love, they don’t cost much to produce and they aren’t worth charging any money for, but they absolutely are worth manufacturing and bringing to all your gigs.

Here are some great ideas that are very popular at the moment:

• Pins! - Everyone loves them and they tend to get plastered all over bags in particular.
• Stickers - Brilliant for brand (logo) recognition and tend to find their way in to the most bizarre places that can make for great competition ideas (most creative use of band stickers, etc).
• Lanyards - These cost a little more so arguably you could charge a small fee, but my preference would be to give these away too.
• Key Rings - Brilliant, cheap, and compact. Also the sort of thing that get carried around everywhere - exposure!
• Pens - A little old-fashioned but still fun and easy to produce, and tend to get lost and make their way into unsuspecting hands which can often be a good thing.

Other than the above try not to waste too much money on free stuff, while there are definite pros to these items it’s easy to get carried away and start stocking up on ridiculous novelty items like band matchbooks, band condoms, and band balloons - none of which are practical or effective.

What Else?

What else have you given away or sold that has been really effective? What have you tried that’s been a complete flop? Drop me a line in the comments and let me know!

Next Time

I’ll be putting together a big list of companies which you can use to get your merch printed, produced, and shipped!

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What Is MySpace

For anyone who’s been out of the loop of global news for the last 5 years, MySpace is a website that allows its users to create personal profiles, and allows musicians, comedians, and film makers to do the same in order to showcase their work and connect with their audience. This is where you come in, MySpace is a central place to connect with your fans, it’s a way of keeping in touch with everyone who enjoys your music and of letting them know the next dates of your tour, and release dates for you latest material.

MySpace Is A Tool

It isn’t the be all and end all of online music promotion and it certainly isn’t the only place that you should focus all your efforts, as a lot of bands seem to do these days. In addition, MySpace is a tool in the sense that it’s only as effective as the person using it; a really great artist can do really badly on MySpace and visa-versa.

What You Can Do To Build You MySpace Profile

Invest time into it, if necessary assign a member of your band or team to it and make it their full responsibility to constantly work on and update your profile. Here are some things that you should constantly be doing.

1. Add friends - constantly seek out friends of musicians who are similar to yourselves, and send them friend requests. This can sometimes be considered spamming, so be careful how much and how often you do this.
2. Keep your profile up to date - post every new gig date as and when you get it, update your profile with every review and piece of news that you get.
3. Respond to messages - every single one! Even if it’s simply another band doing the same as you and trying to get exposure, talk to them, build up a rapport, who knows - someday you might need to ask them for help and they will remember you for being friendly.
4. Treat everyone with respect - it’s very very easy to get into petty internet arguments, particularly on social community websites. Try to steer well clear of confrontations like this and remember that you have a reputation to consider.
5. Send bulletins - but not too often! No one likes constant bulletins filled with useless information so only update everyone as and when you need to. For example to promote a new release, tour, or item of big news. Not to remind everyone that you’ll be playing the local pub this Friday.
6. Hold Competitions - give away CD’s, merchandise, guest-list places, backstage passes, hell even a dinner invitation is something! You don’t need to be famous to give away great prizes, people who like your music are happy to receive almost any freebies that you offer them.
7. Have a GREAT profile designer work on your ’space’ - there are so many band profiles out there, you need to stand out, and look professional. Have a look for a band with a great profile, get in touch with them and ask who designed their page for them, see if you can get that person to do some work for you. It may cost a little cash, but you can guarantee that it’ll be worth it in the long run.

Don’t Forget

MySpace is full of musicians, record label scouts, pr companies, booking agents, and many many other people who can help you. Be nice to everyone and take a little time out of your day to respond to as many people as you possibly can. It may seem like a bit of a chore but it’s well worth it if you get a new contact somewhere along the way.

What Else?

Who have you met on MySpace who has helped you out? What other tips would you give to people looking to succeed on MySpace that haven’t yet been listed here? Leave me some ideas in the comments and I’ll add any good suggestions to the article itself!

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You Need To Completely Rethink You Game Plan

Back in ‘the olden days’ the most common cause for someone breaking through the ranks and (often controversially) standing out from the crowd was down to three things.

1. Sex (Elvis)
2. Obscene Language/Behaviour (The Sex Pistols)
3. Music with no apparent melody or rhythm (Slipknot)

I’m by no means suggesting that any of the above names were the first to do such things, but we could sit here debating who was all day so for now I’ve simply given well known examples.

The point here is that it’s far harder to shock people nowadays, there are very few people who are going to be impressed by musical ability, semi-naked performances, or downright offensive behaviour. It’s all been done before.

Like It Or Not, Your Band is a Business

Music has evolved tremendously over the last ten years alone and more than ever the music industry doesn’t care about music, it cares about making money. You’ve more than likely realised by now that you don’t need to be a good musician to make money, you need to be able to sell products.

When it comes to selling products you have two choices, you can either keep blindly “being loyal to yourself and your music and waiting for a legitimate record deal” which will give you a minute chance of getting anywhere, and if and when you do it will be because the record label dropped so much money into your promotion that it was impossible for you not to get famous, not because you were so extraordinarily good at what you do.

The other choice of course, is to face reality. Music is the industry, and your band is the business.

Let’s Make a Comparison

Have you ever watched Dragon’s Den? If you live in the UK I’m going to bet that you have, or at least that you’ve heard of it - and if you live in the US don’t worry, I hear they’re starting up a brand new series over there.

Week after week on Dragon’s Den you see half-hearted businesses being ripped to shreds by some of the wealthiest people on earth because they have no investment potential. Once in a while, someone comes in with an exceptional idea that makes sense, and these same people all claw to be the first to invest.

Now consider it like this:

The ‘Dragons’ are record labels, and you are the business - why should they invest in you, and what potential return on investment are you going to give them?

It doesn’t come down to your music, and it doesn’t come down to your haircut. It comes down to your track record.

Nearly all of the businesses who get offered investments from one (or more) of the Dragons have already sold hundreds of their products, and have already been offered contracts by major suppliers. They come seeking further investment because they need help to dramatically increase the size of their company.

Remember the Arctic Monkeys? You should do, for some reason they’re still around despite their questionable music, yet none of that matters. When they were unheard of they proved themselves by distributing their music for free. At every gig they gave away free demo CD’s to everyone who came to see them. They realised that they shouldn’t be charging people for music when all they wanted was for more people to hear them. By the time a record label noticed them they had already built up a huge fanbase across the country of people who already had their music, and had passed it on to their friends, who had passed it on to their friends, which in turn caused the many sold-out gigs.

As a record label, that looks like a pretty sound investment doesn’t it?

You Need to Stop Being Naive

Your amateur MySpace page and your gigs once a week just aren’t going to cut it. You need to stand out from the thousands of other unsigned bands, and not just with your music. You need to come up with a plan, and you need to prove that you are a worthy investment to the business-savvy record label.

And if you don’t want a record label, you want to do it all yourself - then you’ve got an even longer road ahead of you, because not only do you have to be a good investment, you have to be the business-savvy record label too.

How Are You Going To Stand Out?

Not just with your music, but with your career as a whole. Who have you come across who’s done something really remarkable? Do you think it’s a coincidence that you’ve heard of that person? Let me know your thoughts and leave me a message in the comments below.

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