dahkter
Ill Muzikoligist
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 4
Copyin and Pastin this blog from Myspace, some wisdom regarding the industry from Phonte of Little Brother, good read IMO:
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Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Chicken Noodle Soup for the Broke Rapper's Soul
Niggren,
I'm in Baltimore prepping for our show tonight at Sonar and I have approximately one hour before I have to get so krispy and go downstairs, so I'mma make this as quick, easy, and painless as possible....
Aspiring producers/rappers/songwriters always hit me on the email asking my advice on 'gettin in the game' and so forth. I've never been the one to really give advice, but with the record business being on the edge of shambles and so many cats trying to make sense of it all....I thought I'd give you guys some insight straight from the front lines at Ground Zero:
1. Good music is not good enough anymore.
You have to have incredible music. Outstanding music. Music that is simply excellent beyond all measure. As artists coming along in the digital age, the key thing to remember is that we are not fighting for people's money, so much as we are fighting for their time and attention. I mean, real rap......content is everywhere. Free downloads, screensavers, raingtones, Youtube clips, etc. Consumers are constantly bombarded with free shit, and finding your way through the bullshit to get to the good shit is TRULY a labor of love. Part of the reason why me and Pooh made Getback a slim and trim 11 songs is to help cut through much of the clutter in today's market, and to give the listeners the straight story.....people don't have the time to sit through 18 songs, an intro, 5 skits, an outro, and 2 more 'hidden' tracks. As artists we should always say what we have to say and PROMPTLY shut the fuck up when we're done. (For those of you not convinced and still pissed about the short tracklisting, don't worry, there will be plenty of bonus cuts and exclusive material available at other outlets...) In our present age, brevity is golden.
2. There is no better marketing strategy than great music.
Yeah, I'm talking to you, the nigga on his myspace page with his shirt off...AND you, the chick with 'falling objects' on her page with the words "R&B PrInC3SS and First Lady of *insert startup label/money laundering operation here*"
While it is very true that all artists require an image to some degree, a great image means nothing if your music is shitty. Your image may get people to look, but your music is ultimately what will KEEP them looking. I can honestly say that in my few years in this game, everything I've ever gotten has been solely off the fact that people respected my music and understood what I was bringing to the table as an artist.....not because I had a big label budget and a video directed by Steven Spielberg and shit, just my hard earned respect. Respect, in my opinion, is the cornerstone of any successful career.
Now, I will say that there's another side to this: To keep people's attention, you must have either great music.....OR really, really, really, really, really shitty music that's just so hilarious and niggerish beyond measure that it makes people laugh. There's a reason why the Chocolate Rain nigga got over 2 million youtube views, folks.....and its not because we are laughing WITH him..
*moves away from the mic to breathe in*
Most of the music that gets passed to me from cats at shows, is quite frankly, just aiight. Not terrible and definitely has potential, but not particularly great either. In my opinion, this is the WORST kind of music you can make because it doesn't evoke a listener response either way. So either be really great or really horrible....either way, people won't forget you and you'll grab their attention. The kind of attention you want to grab is all up to you though....
3. The 'rap as a hustle' ethos is pretty much dead.
Make music for the right reasons. If you're looking to do this solely as a way to get paid, you will be very surprised (and disheartened) once you find out that there isn't much money to be made. Not to make myself out to be Mr. Wendal or no shit, because I do pretty well to be a nigga with practically no mainstream radio/TV exposure.....but I gotta be real with y'all and hit you with a quote from the Holy Book of Elevators, Chapter Andre, Verse 3000:
"I live by the beat like you live check to check...."
This rap shit is uncertain, yo. And with the industry being in the state of transition that it is now, its even worse. My heart goes out to every one of you pursuing your dream of making music in this digital age......I couldn't imagine what its like to be a brand spanking new MC trying to be heard in 2007. Trying to make it as a rapper in today's marketplace is like trying to convince a woman who's been raped to have sex with you. I mean, imagine a woman who's been beaten, brutalized, sodomized, pissed on, Wesley Pipe'd, fucked in and out of every hole, forced to perform any and every depraved sexual act you can think of...........and here you come, the nigga with flowers and candy whispering in her ear and telling her that with you 'things will be different....'
Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight....... (c) Dr. Evil
This is the uphill battle that we are all facing as artists: an ever-changing marketplace, an artform that arguably has peaked financially, and a base of consumers that are much more cynical than ever. *sigh* Good luck...
4. This shit really ain't that major yo....
Always, always, always remember this key phrase: It's just music, people. Yeah, I know its art and the voice of God workin through us and all that cosmic shit, but when all is said and done, school will still be open on Biggie's birthday (c)Chris Rock So many of us throw our lives into this, often to the point of self-sacrifice and self-sabotage, and we often forget what is really important: the lives of those around us, and the people we really love. So whenever this music shit gets you down, just fall back, log off, go outside and get some fresh air, have a raspberry banana smoothie, hug your girl/wifey/kids and tell 'em you love em, and thank God that you're blessed to see another day.....
....or if that don't work go get the autotune plug-in for ProTools and saing all your songs like my nigga Terrycloth Pain.
Godspeed and best of luck, my fellow artists......you're gonna need it.
Getback 9/25
In the club with his shoes off,
Tigallo
***
***
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Chicken Noodle Soup for the Broke Rapper's Soul
Niggren,
I'm in Baltimore prepping for our show tonight at Sonar and I have approximately one hour before I have to get so krispy and go downstairs, so I'mma make this as quick, easy, and painless as possible....
Aspiring producers/rappers/songwriters always hit me on the email asking my advice on 'gettin in the game' and so forth. I've never been the one to really give advice, but with the record business being on the edge of shambles and so many cats trying to make sense of it all....I thought I'd give you guys some insight straight from the front lines at Ground Zero:
1. Good music is not good enough anymore.
You have to have incredible music. Outstanding music. Music that is simply excellent beyond all measure. As artists coming along in the digital age, the key thing to remember is that we are not fighting for people's money, so much as we are fighting for their time and attention. I mean, real rap......content is everywhere. Free downloads, screensavers, raingtones, Youtube clips, etc. Consumers are constantly bombarded with free shit, and finding your way through the bullshit to get to the good shit is TRULY a labor of love. Part of the reason why me and Pooh made Getback a slim and trim 11 songs is to help cut through much of the clutter in today's market, and to give the listeners the straight story.....people don't have the time to sit through 18 songs, an intro, 5 skits, an outro, and 2 more 'hidden' tracks. As artists we should always say what we have to say and PROMPTLY shut the fuck up when we're done. (For those of you not convinced and still pissed about the short tracklisting, don't worry, there will be plenty of bonus cuts and exclusive material available at other outlets...) In our present age, brevity is golden.
2. There is no better marketing strategy than great music.
Yeah, I'm talking to you, the nigga on his myspace page with his shirt off...AND you, the chick with 'falling objects' on her page with the words "R&B PrInC3SS and First Lady of *insert startup label/money laundering operation here*"
While it is very true that all artists require an image to some degree, a great image means nothing if your music is shitty. Your image may get people to look, but your music is ultimately what will KEEP them looking. I can honestly say that in my few years in this game, everything I've ever gotten has been solely off the fact that people respected my music and understood what I was bringing to the table as an artist.....not because I had a big label budget and a video directed by Steven Spielberg and shit, just my hard earned respect. Respect, in my opinion, is the cornerstone of any successful career.
Now, I will say that there's another side to this: To keep people's attention, you must have either great music.....OR really, really, really, really, really shitty music that's just so hilarious and niggerish beyond measure that it makes people laugh. There's a reason why the Chocolate Rain nigga got over 2 million youtube views, folks.....and its not because we are laughing WITH him..
*moves away from the mic to breathe in*
Most of the music that gets passed to me from cats at shows, is quite frankly, just aiight. Not terrible and definitely has potential, but not particularly great either. In my opinion, this is the WORST kind of music you can make because it doesn't evoke a listener response either way. So either be really great or really horrible....either way, people won't forget you and you'll grab their attention. The kind of attention you want to grab is all up to you though....
3. The 'rap as a hustle' ethos is pretty much dead.
Make music for the right reasons. If you're looking to do this solely as a way to get paid, you will be very surprised (and disheartened) once you find out that there isn't much money to be made. Not to make myself out to be Mr. Wendal or no shit, because I do pretty well to be a nigga with practically no mainstream radio/TV exposure.....but I gotta be real with y'all and hit you with a quote from the Holy Book of Elevators, Chapter Andre, Verse 3000:
"I live by the beat like you live check to check...."
This rap shit is uncertain, yo. And with the industry being in the state of transition that it is now, its even worse. My heart goes out to every one of you pursuing your dream of making music in this digital age......I couldn't imagine what its like to be a brand spanking new MC trying to be heard in 2007. Trying to make it as a rapper in today's marketplace is like trying to convince a woman who's been raped to have sex with you. I mean, imagine a woman who's been beaten, brutalized, sodomized, pissed on, Wesley Pipe'd, fucked in and out of every hole, forced to perform any and every depraved sexual act you can think of...........and here you come, the nigga with flowers and candy whispering in her ear and telling her that with you 'things will be different....'
Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight....... (c) Dr. Evil
This is the uphill battle that we are all facing as artists: an ever-changing marketplace, an artform that arguably has peaked financially, and a base of consumers that are much more cynical than ever. *sigh* Good luck...
4. This shit really ain't that major yo....
Always, always, always remember this key phrase: It's just music, people. Yeah, I know its art and the voice of God workin through us and all that cosmic shit, but when all is said and done, school will still be open on Biggie's birthday (c)Chris Rock So many of us throw our lives into this, often to the point of self-sacrifice and self-sabotage, and we often forget what is really important: the lives of those around us, and the people we really love. So whenever this music shit gets you down, just fall back, log off, go outside and get some fresh air, have a raspberry banana smoothie, hug your girl/wifey/kids and tell 'em you love em, and thank God that you're blessed to see another day.....
....or if that don't work go get the autotune plug-in for ProTools and saing all your songs like my nigga Terrycloth Pain.
Godspeed and best of luck, my fellow artists......you're gonna need it.
Getback 9/25
In the club with his shoes off,
Tigallo
***
