Selling beats to low budget emcees
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warzone (nov 5-9) signup begins in...
Scholar
willing vic to the music
ill o.g.
well i dont, I feel like if im going deal with a dude with no chips, I'll just sign him to a lil contract. That way you can use him to perfect mixing and beats and he has access to some heat. The whole Biz is about connections, get with the cat and see if he's interested,but if you do sell the beat for $25 bucks make it non exclusive. Hope this sheds some light Fam.
ONE!!!
ONE!!!
NobleWordz
ILLIEN
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 4
They get what they pay for, $20 is going to get you a throw away beat. Unless its mutually beneficial, if an MC is actually talented I'll give him my best work for nothing.
~NW~
~NW~
^ yeah what scholar said..
I have trouble getting people to pay for them at all..
Firstly I dont sell a track for less than $150 non exclusive..
That runs cats off for starters, but they aint serious as they think they are if they aint payin because you pretty much get me to produce the song for that, and a lot more, but they dont know that cuz they are too cheap to get past that part generally.
If they are good then I just add em to the team..But bein on the team costs too.
Hadnt found too many that are serious and good.
I have trouble getting people to pay for them at all..
Firstly I dont sell a track for less than $150 non exclusive..
That runs cats off for starters, but they aint serious as they think they are if they aint payin because you pretty much get me to produce the song for that, and a lot more, but they dont know that cuz they are too cheap to get past that part generally.
If they are good then I just add em to the team..But bein on the team costs too.
Hadnt found too many that are serious and good.
shadeed
Go Digital or Go Home
ill o.g.
Seoul P, you gotta take what you do serious - your time has to literally be valuable to you - In general, you gotta screen artists properly before it even gets to the $$$.
In my opinion, lack of finances shouldn't be a deal-breaker, the artist's talent and willingness to work should be.
My rule is this:
If the artist is HOT, meaning very professional, talented, and releasing music independently (that's the key), and willing to work (good work ethic) but his/her bread is low, then I would work with the cat for FREE and build together and leverage each other's buzz.
If you're up and coming and he's up and coming, it don't make sense to beat him over the head with a price - the main thing with up and coming artists and producers is to build a buzz and GET YOUR NAME OUT THERE, so when A&R's come to the station in your city and ask "Who is Hot in Maryland??" They will say, "Seoul P is making noise, he got 3 mixtapes out with.........."
Hope this helps. Peace.
Krazyfingaz
ILLIEN
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 2
Thats really the best advise you can give when it comes to low budget cats, if the cat has mad talent than the money is definitly gonna come.
Thanks people, but he's an alright dude. You can peep his music here: http://www.myspace.com/shogun_assassin
His quality isn't great, but the lyrics are cool.
And the beat he wants is the one I flipped in the most recent sample flipage thread.
But shadeed, thanks bro, i'll def. use that when something like that comes up. Thanks people and yeah def. non-exclusive rights.
@ Relic - $150 for non-exclusives? That's kinda much man, a lot of top people on soundclick lease it for like $20-$75. Have you sold anything at those prices?
His quality isn't great, but the lyrics are cool.
And the beat he wants is the one I flipped in the most recent sample flipage thread.
But shadeed, thanks bro, i'll def. use that when something like that comes up. Thanks people and yeah def. non-exclusive rights.
@ Relic - $150 for non-exclusives? That's kinda much man, a lot of top people on soundclick lease it for like $20-$75. Have you sold anything at those prices?
i need at least 200 for non-exclusive joint. But I will work for free if the cat is nice. But dude has to be NNOOIIICEEE (meaning extreeeemly talented or already somewhat estabilshed and up and coming). and more importantly dude has to have a purpose or something he is doing with the music. Usually I SEEK OUT people who i give free joints to rather than they hit me up. Shadeed said it perfectly.
also professionalism means alot... some cats hit u up mad arrogant and dumb sounding. Some cats act like they know me even though we have never met and then get mad when I charge like they are entitled to freebies or something lol. If cats come correct with there business, I am willing to sell a bit cheaper or possibly slide something for free if im feelin em... I like when dudes hit me up wit a definte plan and a bugdet. Thats wassup.
also professionalism means alot... some cats hit u up mad arrogant and dumb sounding. Some cats act like they know me even though we have never met and then get mad when I charge like they are entitled to freebies or something lol. If cats come correct with there business, I am willing to sell a bit cheaper or possibly slide something for free if im feelin em... I like when dudes hit me up wit a definte plan and a bugdet. Thats wassup.
Yeah I agree with the beats for free thing. That's the only way I'll give free beats out. Do people buy non-exclusive rights for $200?
Yeah, when people are ready. You can get straight to business. That's when you know they're serious. Thanks for all the input fellas. I just sent him a message letting him now how its gonna go down.
Yeah, when people are ready. You can get straight to business. That's when you know they're serious. Thanks for all the input fellas. I just sent him a message letting him now how its gonna go down.
T
TheMost
Guest
Thats exacly what im thinking. Im making moves right now with this guy who knows a few people in the city where im at. Now im not gona charge him because this guy will help me get my name out wich in the long run is worth a lot more money.
But to answer youre question about selling beats i guess if its a throw away i would let someone lease it for maybe 50 bucks.
Another thing too is if a artist is realy serious about it i will tell him, bring me to the studio you are gonna record it and mix it at and let me sit in on the session. That 2 me is worht a lot more the money. I get to study the studio, meet studio engineers and producers.
yeah people buy non-exclusives for $200 and way more. Depends on the artist. Weeding through the bullshit is the biggest hurdle. There are actually indies and up and commers that got money, but most people front like they are balling when they really aren't. Most rappers would rather spend $600 on an outfit instead of a beat. and how many times have we seen that generic myspace pic with the cash in the safe? lol I seen the same pic on like 6 diffrent niggas myspace page lmao. Frontin ass rappers/ceos. A good way to see if the artist is serious is if they do live shows. Generally rappers that do shows or have booking agents that they work with are the more serious artists.
Selling beats = BIG ASS HEADACHE!
Your tracks are worth more than 20 bucks, man! But is hard for me to say hey don't take the short money because its still money and someone gonna get it.
DON'T THAT SHIT BURN YOU UP!!!!?
This cat was on my sack like I was "Dr. Dre's little brother! Just straight luvin' it! I told him I charged X amount of dollar for a particular track... then this fool starts bashin' my shit. "YOu have no right to charge me cause no one else does... I make your shit better!
I wish I could have got my hands thru the monitor and choke the shit out his ass!
Your tracks are worth more than 20 bucks, man! But is hard for me to say hey don't take the short money because its still money and someone gonna get it.
DON'T THAT SHIT BURN YOU UP!!!!?
This cat was on my sack like I was "Dr. Dre's little brother! Just straight luvin' it! I told him I charged X amount of dollar for a particular track... then this fool starts bashin' my shit. "YOu have no right to charge me cause no one else does... I make your shit better!
I wish I could have got my hands thru the monitor and choke the shit out his ass!
D
David_Edwards
Guest
My feeling is how much do those 15 bucks really matter for non exclusive rights? I'd even give away free beats if you need to. A lot of people have trouble believing this but your best interest is to get as much exposure for your work as possible. Do it by any means, even if it means selling beats on the cheap. Cool & Dre make 75k a track now and they started giving away stuff for free.
Ash summed it up for me , but yeah I can give away beats if the mc is nice and we vibe pretty well.
I DONT like to name a price and hear "You aint nobody you gotta give these away free if you wanna make a name for yourself"..(not directed at you Dave this is real life experience)
Because:
1) YOU aint nobody
2) See number 1
I been in this thing for a long time and if I aint vibin I aint givin jack away free.
To me beats are like kids and I dont really just let em run off until they get old enough.
I DONT like to name a price and hear "You aint nobody you gotta give these away free if you wanna make a name for yourself"..(not directed at you Dave this is real life experience)
Because:
1) YOU aint nobody
2) See number 1
I been in this thing for a long time and if I aint vibin I aint givin jack away free.
To me beats are like kids and I dont really just let em run off until they get old enough.
shadeed
Go Digital or Go Home
ill o.g.
Thank you sir, you said it the best. I know we all put a lot of time/money into our equipment set-ups but I promise you if you focus on building your buzz and VALUE as a producer, soon you won't have to worry about money because everybody in your city will hit you up when they want a hit.
Haggling over prices with up and coming dudes in your city is a waste of time.
If anything, you should be working on new ways to build relationships with the best your area, instead of worrying about what to charge for a exclusive/non-exclusive joint.
An exclusive is only an exclusive when people want to hear it, if your joints aren't in demand or on the radio then you should be hustling to get there.
Working industry Producers don't make money selling beats/ they make money because of the V-A-L-U-E of their music. Artists don't pay Dr. Dre 300k and points for a single because his beat may be the greatest ever heard, they pay for the experience of working w/ Dre and his track record.
D
David_Edwards
Guest
Yeah I hear what youre saying Relic, thats true for sure. I guess when I think of giving away free stuff its more because a kid is riding a bus to the studio, has no money for anything, and genuinely can't pay for beats but is also very talented. But even with that, I'm still a big believer in giving away free beats. More and more people on your beats in my mind is always a good thing for your personal brand, because if they're hot sooner or later someone is going to come knocking with some money.
This is a good point> THE BIG PICTURE. I never looked at it like this cause I'm so stuck in the now. I know beat cats, like me value their creations so it's hard not to but a price tag on their work.
Words well spoken...what scholar said is the bottom line.
This one is a wrap...
MAN ON FIRE