"Just Sign Here."

“Just sign by the X,” says the record exec as he leans in towards the artist.  The artist, who appears to be a young man approaching his thirties, sits there contemplating, but only vaguely reading the lengthy contract as he turns page after page. 

Before the sweat on his forehead can be visibly seen, the artist reaches for the pen and begins to sign a contract that does nothing more than make the record label rich off of his successes.

Unfortunately, this is a scenario all too familiar for many artists. Knowing your business is something that all artists need to know.  This is the situation for many artists who come to the deal by themselves.  Having a manager who is a trusted advisor is like having a family doctor or dentist.  This is someone who you rarely question, because you know that they are making decisions in your better interests.  Having a manager allows you to focus on what you do best.  The manager can handle business while you focus on your music.  At the end of the day, you need a strong team around you.  Some people want to think that they don’t need anybody, but in all reality, we all need somebody.  As a music artist by yourself, you can be good, but with a team you can be great.

One of the best examples of artists who did not have a strong team around them is TLC.  As young artists these ladies had the talent to get them that rare opportunity that so many artists pursue.  The problem, however, for these young ladies was that they lacked the proper support team.  This ultimately led to them signing one of the worst record deals of all time.  This Grammy award winning multitalented trio of women sold millions of albums to only make peanuts.  Well…okay, they made a little more than peanuts, but not by much. 

As the late Lisa Left-Eye Lopes explained in their 1999 VH1 Behind the Music special:

This is how a group can sell 10 million records and be broke, and everybody get ready to do your math. There are 100 points on an album, TLC has seven; every point is equal to 8 cents. Alright, seven times eight is 56 cents. That means every time an album gets sold, TLC gets 56 cents. Sell 10 million records: $5.6 million. So, LaFace Records had to spend about $3 million on [CrazySexyCool], so that automatically gets deducted from the $5.6 million before we can see a penny. Now, we have $2.6 million dollars left to split between the 3 of us. Well guess what? When you have that much money you’re in the about the 47, 48, 49% tax bracket, so that immediately gets deducted to $1.3 million.

The profit is then split three ways, with the additional funds going to managers, lawyers, accountants, and others.  Each member of TLC took home approximately $50,000 that year.  This, ladies and gentlemen, is why you need to know your business.  Knowing your business will help you to understand the music business as well.  You can’t be in the “music business” without the “business”.

Getting the record label to say, “Yes”.

The ultimate goal for an artist is to get a deal and have their sound be heard by the masses.  So many young artists strive to reach this goal, but have done little to be prepared for the opportunity.  For aspiring artists, there are not many textbooks that boast that they have the guaranteed steps to success and there is little to no information available for preparing the artist for if and when the label says, “Yes”.  So…let’s be realistic. There is no for sure method to guarantee success and while music combines are being held to help educate the ambitious artists, many artists are still not equipped to take their act to the next level. 

As much as I feel that I am educated on this subject, I still cannot say even I can provide an artist with the top strategies to guarantee success, but I can share what I believe is the top methods an artist should use to become more efficient and effective. 

The first thing any artist should realize is that this is the road less traveled. Don’t get hung-up on where you are career wise and start looking down on yourself.  This will result in becoming depressed, upset, and nonproductive.   Second, own your craft.  What all artists have is a unique skill.  Take ownership in that.  Just be aware that your skill is what gets people to hear you, but your image is what gets people to listen. 

This third strategy could easily be the most important.  “Know your business”.  You can bet if you don’t know your business, the label will, and make you pay them for it.  Register your name, register with SoundScan, and surround yourself with people you deem as assets.  Consider yourself a small business, because in all reality you truly are.

Having a goal is great, but a goal without a plan is just a dream.  Take the proper steps to make your goal a reality, and then seize the moment.  

What Hip Hop artist would you pay for to see live?

What hip hop artist will get you to come out to a live performance?  Nowadays, it’s hard to find that one act that will get people to come out and spend a couple dollars.  Don’t get me wrong, for major acts like Lil’ Wayne, Eminem, and Jay Z they have no problems filling the seats at any venue, but how does a promoter find the right act to get a good turnout without losing his pants? 

Will the Lox make you move?  How about Joe Budden?  J. Cole maybe?

For most businesses when planning they utilize break-even strategies.  When organizing an event of this nature, you have to do the same.  The trick is to be able to at the least make your money back.  I recently attended a concert at Indiana University of Pennsylvania that featured rap artist Fabolous.  For those who follow the hip hop music scene you would think that a Fabolous concert would sellout or at the least be a couple chairs just short of it.  Wrong!  There were approximately 400 – 500 people there, tops.  But how could this be?  Here is your answer.  While there were a couple hundred of black people in attendance, there were only a handful of white people there.  The key to a great turnout is to get white folks to come out and attend the event.  Statistically, blacks only make up 13.1% of the U.S. population according to the U.S. Census Bureau.   With that being said, it is very difficult to get a successful turnout with only capturing the black audience. 

White people buy 75% of hip hop albums sold, so is it the actual event that keeps white people away?  Maybe white people are not comfortable at these types of events, but if that was all the way true, then people like Lil’ Wayne and Drake would not sell out either?

So many things came to mind as I wrote this blog.  This article can go many ways, but I hope those who read this leave their opinions.

Planning any event can be tough, especially when the overhead becomes too much.  Remember, planning a break-even strategy is imperative for preparing for an event, but the key to a successful hip hop event is to find an artist with mass appeal for a fair price.  

Negotiation and Deal Making Part 2.

Let's Make a Deal!

With negotiation and deal making being such a critical part of getting what you want from others, how do we get better at it?  As a continuation of the Let’s Make a Deal series, I will build on from the previous blog Negotiation and Deal Making Part 1 and continue to present my readers with interviews from those actively working in the entertainment and media industry in a deal-making capacity.  For this blog I reached out to Lee Davis. 

Lee Davis is an entrepreneur, organizer, mentor and youth advocate, who has seen his fair share of negotiations in his 18 years of experience in the music and entertainment industry.  He co-owns Promotional Push, which is a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania based and nationally recognized urban marketing and promotion company.  In 2012, Davis worked with Universal Music Group and R&B star Ray J, and executive produced a compilation album entitled “Pittsburgh Hip Hop AllStars” that was released nationally in January of this year.  Through a partnership with Universal Music Group, he has recently become the new Co-CEO of the national record label Mission Control Recordings, which has placed him amongst some of the music & entertainment industries top executives.  Lee Davis is considered to be a one of the "go to" consultants for local and national record labels and artists to help create balanced music and cultural expression.

I spoke to Lee about his experiences with negotiating and this is what he had to say.

Ron:  How do you separate the people from the problem when you are negotiating?

Lee:  Speaking from the management side of things.  I separate the artist from the negotiations.  The artist normally has nothing to do with the deal.  Typically the artist does not know their value.  You have to separate the emotion and talk to the facts.

Ron:  How do you handle positional bargaining tactics? 

Lee:  Bring more value to the deal.  Avoid the “back and forth”.  A lot of times it’s about wants and needs.  Address the needs and cut out the nonsense.

Ron: When does it make sense not to negotiate?

Lee:  When someone is trying to devalue you or not bring much to the table.  It also depends on the relationship.  Sometimes you have to bite the bullet when you see the potential. 

Ron:  How do I enhance my negotiating power?

Lee:  With Google and free libraries there shouldn’t be a person who is not educated in negotiating.  Study the craft and be educated on the topic.  Find a mentor that you can learn from.  Mentorship is very big at any level.

Ron:  Have you come across any “dirty tricks” others have used while negotiating?

Lee:  9 times out of 10, the dirty tricks come out of the paperwork.  That’s when you utilize a good attorney.  Be aware of the small print and always have someone in your corner who has experience in going over paperwork.

Ron:  Do you find yourself in more deals that you are negotiating the position or the underlying interests?

Lee:  There are always underlying interests.  Most of the negotiations are based off of the underlying interests.  At the end of the day, it’s all about what they bring to the table.

Lee concluded the interview by saying, “The point that you are already at the table shows your worth.  Show the value in what you are bringing to the table.  State the facts. Work towards a common ground.”

Let's Make a Deal!

Negotiation and Deal Making Part 1.

Everybody wants to be a winner, but sometimes it takes a little compromising.  It’s not always easy to get what you want, but sometimes you have to ask yourself, “What is it going to take?”  Sometimes it just takes some negotiation and deal making.  Believe it or not, you are a negotiator and have been all your life.  Whether if it was bargaining with your friends as a child for a candy trade or compromising with your mother as a sixteen year old to take the car out for the evening.  Like it or not, you are a negotiator.  Think about it.  Haggling price with a car salesman, discussing a raise with your boss, and even discussing the cost of an item with the cashier at your local retail store, makes you a negotiator.  With negotiation and deal making being such a critical part of getting what you want from others, how do we get better at it? 

In today’s entertainment industry deals are made everyday. For this blog I decided to interview a professional who is actively working in the entertainment and media industry in a deal-making capacity.  Please let me introduce you to Donna Baxter.  Donna M. Baxter is the CEO and WebMistress of Soul Pitt Media, an African American Internet marketing and graphic design firm based in Pittsburgh, PA. Founded in 2000, this award-winning company helps individuals, businesses, and corporations reach African American consumers through online advertising, print and radio.  Former rap artist turned Internet Tech Diva, Donna Baxter has gone from “Rhymer to Digital Designer”. This “Cool Nerd” explains technology in ways you’ve never heard all while making it easy to understand, funny, and entertaining and leaving audiences motivated to “Get Online or Get Left Behind!”  Donna was recently elected as the President of the National Women’s Business OwnersAssociation.  Find out more about her at www.donnambaxter.com. 

I asked Donna a few questions about negotiating and this is what she had to say.

Ron:  Can you give me an example of how you worked toward a mutual benefit when you were negotiating a deal?

Donna:  Doing some “give and take” works.  You have to throw something in that would be valuable to them, but not cost you a lot.

Ron:  When does it make sense not to negotiate?

Donna:  Where you don’t benefit.  Sometimes stuff is just bad business.  It may be a conflict of interest.  I won’t negotiate when the result hurts one of my clients.  Especially when a potential client is a competitor of an existing client.

Ron:  How do I enhance my negotiating power?

Donna:  Try negotiating more throughout the day.  Commission sales experience helps.  You really learn some things doing that.

Ron:  Have you come across any “dirty tricks” others have used while negotiating?

Donna:  Yes, when someone gets me in a comfortable setting and sounds good, but vague, then when it is time to get down to business, it was really a facade to get me to the table, just to talk to me about some nonsense.

Ron:  Do you find yourself in more deals that you are negotiating the position or the underlying interests? 

Donna:  In sales, I’m usually negotiating the position.  You have to add value to the sale without much expense to yourself.  Find the value and make them see it.

Donna closed by saying, “When dealing with negotiations, have confidence with your own value.  Go in with confidence.  Deal with the issue and know your value.  Have them see the value."