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Welcome to MusicBizAdvice.com! MusicBizAdvice.com contains music business advice and lifestyle tips for working musicians, bands, songwriters, indie artists, and behind-the-scenes music industry professionals from the local to international level. Whether you work in songwriting, publishing, recording, live music performance, artist management, production, concert promotion, or as part of the crew, we strive to provide you with the most accurate information. As of July 1, 2009 MusicBizAdvice.com has readers in 77 countries and territories.

MusicBizAdvice.com's content is primarily the equivalent of PG-13, as outlined in our Terms of Use. (Our Body and Soul musician's health & lifestyle section may contain material intended for readers over 18.)

Remember: Legitimate music industry companies will never ask a minor to come to a meeting alone. The parent or legal guardian is required to be present and must sign any contracts on the minor's behalf.

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Also on Facebook, Become a Fan at the new MusicBizAdvice.com Fan Page. (If you have trouble finding our Fan page, type MusicBizAdvice.com in the Facebook search box. Our logo will pop up.)  

This month on MusicBizAdvice.com:

Graduation season means a slew of new, inexperienced promoters & small labels popping up. This article explains what to ask an unfamiliar promoter, plus gives you easy tips on how indie bands and small label touring musicians can keep from getting ripped off by someone who may not be telling you the real deal about their company finances (especially in light of the mortgage & credit crisis).

Want to analyze what happened with American Idol? We've got the complete rundown for Season 8 (and for previous seasons too) in the MBADC American Idol Armchair Quarterback.

In Features, Boston Hip Hop Alliance co-founder Darcie-Nicole Wicknick has written a provocative op-ed about use of the n word and the b word in pop culture.
 Also
in Features, Darcie gives you the scoop on the difference between a record label and a production company, and explains the history and evolution of the production company. There you can read about The Production Deal, the Imprint Deal, the Joint Venture, and Pros and Cons of Recording and Production Contracts, as well as things to consider in a major label deal. 

In How To, we discuss why double-bookings should never happen, along with five easy ways to prevent them (whether you're a DIY indie band or an artist with an agent). Also in How To, our own Office Guru Jinjer Hundley gives you simple tips on how to manage your band's schedule with Outlook.

Over on our blog, MusicBizAdvice.com Editor-in-Chief talks about the state of the live music industry in light of the proposed Live Nation / Ticketmaster merger.


In our Body and Soul section, Darcie-Nicole Wicknick writes about the ups and down of the music industry in Music Business Survival: Finding the truffles in the Music Industry Dirt

Think a Poor Man's Copyright (mailing a copy to yourself and not opening the envelope, or emailing yourself a copy of the song) will protect you against copyright infringement? It won't. Read this, as well as the MusicBizAdvice Blog, to find out why.


Speaking of Copyright, did you know that the U.S. Copyright fee has increased, and that there is a new, all-in-one form called Form CO? Or that online registration now available through the Copyright office will save you money? Try it out here on the Copyright Office website and save $10 on your copyright registration fee (regularly $45)!

Meanwhile, if you're confused about how to fill out the new copyright form CO, Darcie-Nicole Wicknick breaks it down for you here in our How To department. Also in How To, we offer a Quick Tip on how to use MySpace more effectively to gauge response to your tracks, and
we've updated How to Read a Live Performance Contract (the AFM Standard Performance Agreement) to reflect varying currency rates. In this article you'll also learn the important aspects of Deposit and Payment Terms, Radius clauses, Transportation, Settlement, Force majeure, What Happens When a Show is Canceled, and Why Artists, Agents, and Managers Won’t Work with Promoters they Don’t Know.

In Q&A, we answer a new promoter's question about hiring an A-list band, how to become a preliminary round judge for reality show talent competitions such as American Idol, we update our advice about double commissions for artist managers, and advise a young songwriter how to stop making excuses and just write. Also in Q&A learn why it’s important for artists to write their own songs, why label execs don't smile much when they go to see an artist's show, How to Find a Manager and What You Need to Know Before Contacting Management Companies, and what the biggest factor is in deciding whether to go for an Indie label deal or a major label deal.

The MBADC Performance Coach helps you learn how to turn an unusual performance setting into a winning one, getting more emotion out of the lyrics during your performances, and how to make a cover song your own.  

Soraia's single "Not The Woman" is playing on Sirius Radio's Alt Nation Channel 21, and that you can check out their video on MaxMouth. (Gee, that Sonny Bono-esque guy in the video looks awfully familiar, Mr.O'Brien...) Meanwhile, if you missed it, check out our interview with Soraia's Sue Mansour. In it, Sue tells how she went from studio intern to recording at the legendary Henson (former A&M) Studios with Bon Jovi recording engineer / producer Obie O'Brien

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Rock City magazine, Jinjer Hundley has new updates to her article, Where Are They Now: The Decline of Western Civilization Part ll: The Metal Years. In it, Jinjer tells you whatever became of the of the L.A. bands that populated the Sunset Strip and were featured in the documentary The Decline of Western Civilization Part ll: The Metal Years.

In Music Business Lesson from Berklee Press
check out The 5 Primary Functions of a Music Publisher.  Also in Music Business Lessons:  Management: Finding it and Making it Work for You,  3 specific things focusing on one musical genre does for your songwriting or publishing career, and more.


Body and Soul has HIV/AIDS Prevention Tips and Facts, voice care tips,  how to prevent getting colds or flu at your band's next Meet and Greet, and more.

Check out James Auburn's interview with Red K Records CEO Clayton Savage
. In it Clayton talks about his work with Sugar Hill Records, the early days of Hip Hop and how its musicianship and live performance have changed over the years, and ugly breakups in the music industry...stuff any artist can relate to, regardless of genre.

Ever wonder why some talented, hard working local musicians never make it past the local level, or why some artist's careers seem to stall out just past the starting gates? Check out 20 Reasons Why Musicians Get Stuck at the Local or Regional Level, which helped inspire an article in Independent Weekly this past summer. 

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Bon Jovi, whose single for "Who Says You Can't Go Home" made them the first rock band ever to hit  #1 on Billboard's Country Singles chart, have been going strong for 25 years now. Maintaining visibility in a music industry career for over two decades takes as much business smarts as talent, and our MusicBizAdvice.com Case Study: Why Bon Jovi is Music Business 101 highlights some of their key marketing decisions. Meanwhile, Jon will be speaking at the Advertising Week Billboard Live seminar in New York on September 25, 2008 at 12:00 noon.


If someone you know still insists on using online modeling and talent agencies, show them our ScamAlert Safety Alert report about kidnappers posting fake audition notices. Although some of the facts of the story sound hard to believe, we verified it with Emmy Award winning reporter Kristin Stinar, who first presented the story on The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch. This story contains material some parents (and parental filters) may find objectionable, but it's important to get the information out there.

Also in ScamAlert, see if you can spot the 6 red flags that indicated the audition notice was fake. They apply to other online modeling and talent agencies as well. (The Red Flag Safety Quiz Answers contain no material that parental filters should object to, so you can still learn the red flags that indicate a potential scam.) 

Did you know that as of 9/30/08 MusicBizAdvice.com has a new reprint policy? Check it out here.

This week on our Ed in Chief's MusicBizAdvice MySpace:

When you join us on MySpace you'll find:...A playlist of some of my favorite tracks from unsigned bands in my Friends list, two new MySpace blog entries, and a new photo album of stuff from my archives. Enjoy! --RR

MusicBizAdvice.com is also on Facebook under MuzBiz Advc. (I'm very new at it, so stop by and help me out!--RR)

We're also very active on Twitter, at MusicBizAdvice .

Not done yet?  You can also check out our Editor in Chief's blog at http://musicbizadvice.blogspot.com


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MusicBizAdvice.com recommends Barbara Brabec's home business books, such as this one.

For a list of Barbara's other books, click
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