Im thinking of getting together a demo CD and sending it off to a million labels and stuff
i figure ill ask you guys seeing as how youre all old and wise
how many tracks, how much of a variety, how should i send it
all that stuff
please and thank you
:)
BTW I wanna send TWO to Andrymi, lol
I might as well ask the same question. Nonni says I should send the new Likn cd to EMi and those people. I don't have an idea. I think though, that the formula is:
your 3 strongest songs
nice cover
a letter stating openly and without arrogance what your doing
your contact details nice and clear.
what i've heard is that you have to send it through somebody they know, else it won't get listened to.
perhaps you should hire a PR in the music biz person to do it
that's the best i can do.
I never had any luck with those things, except with Paradigms, which a friend pointed out as a good label for me, they had found him on myspace.
I think though, the more cd's you send out, the better. eventually people will start to know who you are.
it's a small world!
Most major labels won't accept unsolicited submissions. Meaning, you'll have to do some legwork first, like finding the names of A&R people there, and contacting them. Once you can find someone to give you a verbal "yeah" then send it to that person. This is where music biz conventions come in, you can meet a lot of these folks at these things.
Otherwise, you wind up spending money on postage only to have your stuff come back unopened.
Once you get a verbal "yes" from somebody, or their secretary, put 'em on the list and start sending your stuff. Two or three songs is all you'll need, be aware that these people probably won't listen to more than thirty seconds before they make a decision.
So that means-get right in there to the strongest stuff immediately, no two minute thunderstorm sound effects, no waffling about. I actually did get a demo one time with five minutes of spooky sound effects before the first song! And, yes, that was the best part.
Smaller labels may or may not require advance contact, but it's a good idea to establish some kind of contact in advance. Contacting these people after the fact is pretty much pointless, it's a 'don't call us, we'll call you' kind of thing.
Don't be discouraged once the rejection letters start coming back, record labels receive hundreds of demos per day. Less than a fraction of one percent wind up getting record deals.
Another thing: packaging. Don't. Just the Artist's name, and contact info, and song titles/publishing info. And...PUT THE INFO ON THE DISC OR TAPE ITSELF!!
I've seen soooo many demos with elaborate packaging and lousy music. I found that the BEST stuff was the stuff that came in bland, fresh-out-of-the-studio packages-white label, black lettering, basic info. And again: PUT ALL YOUR CONTACT INFO ON THE DISC OR TAPE ITSELF as well as on the insert card.
I came to the conclusion that the people with the 'boring' packaging KNEW SOMETHING that all the other artist's didn't. These people knew that fancy packaging isn't what a record company wants, it's what they DO. You're not gonna impress them with your full color Xerox cover. People at record companies want one thing: good songs. If they like your songs, they'll contact you. If they don't like the way you look, they'll buy your songs.
Same goes for production. Elaborate production isn't all that important if you're submitting a demo to a record label.
It's the same deal as with packaging: record companies aren't interested in how you produce or package your stuff-because that's what THEY'RE gonna do. What they can't do, and don't do, is write songs.
Record companies want good material, first and foremost. They know that if the music is any good, they can produce, package, and promote it...because that's what they do.
There was one small label I remember looking at, and in their 'submissions requirements' they actually stated that they didn't want to receive anything that had been packaged and marketed already-even locally. They were not interested in re-releasing anybody's self-released CD.
Basically, the only area that record companies are interested in that you can work towards on your own-is SALES. If you're out there on your own, successfully making and selling your own records, record companies will take notice, and they'll want a piece of the action. How did Nirvana get signed to Geffen? because they were selling records for Sub Pop, and getting great press and college radio airplay. They were also touring all over the place already, had a worldwide fan base. Everybody knows that, right?
Well, almost the same goes for Jane's Addiction (who were selling records for the XXX label and getting a lot of attention in the L.A.press and college radio airplay everywhere).
Pretty much the same goes for Motley Crue, who put out their own record and it sold like hotcakes...at a time when 'Glam Metal" was thought to be extinct.
true. it seems that these days, the labels are looking for people who have already put out one album and have a fanbase.
Either that or the total pre-fab model who can dance while she lip-synchs to prerecorded tracks. That's still real popular, right?
Well it looks like even the Material Girl herself has gone D.I.Y.-in today's news:
http://www.investorvillage.com/smbd.asp?mb=445&mn=115826&pt=msg&mid=3190967
so, yeah...I guess the big record labels are pretty much over and done with.
Guys. To those not already familiar with this tome, welcome to the Encyclopedia Musica that is our beloved Breakfastime ;D
on the EMI page it says
sending a demo cd is not the best way to arouse a record companies interest. because of the volumes of maaterial we get, please make sure not to send your master without making a copy first.
^Bwahaha!...can you imagine somebody sending off their sole master tape? geez....
I bet it's happened a million times!
* * * * * *
"Dear Record Company,
You may or may not remember me. Last Autumn, you received a tape submitted by my band, 'the _________' for release by your label. Since then, we have not heard back from you.
We're wondering...when will our album be released, and when does the tour start? We were pretty sure that you would sign us right up, so sure in fact that we sent you the ONLY COPY of our master tape.
So, you see-it is imperative that your company go ahead with the release of this masterpiece, since you are in possession of the original and only version of this work of art.
Either that, or could you maybe send us the tape back, or at least a cassette copy?
We'd like to hear it again, as we've forgotten some of the songs...
Thanks,
Johnny Songwriter & the _________"
* * * * * * * * * *
(no phone number or return address)
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