Today's Music Biz

I’m told by some that Drake is a “reverse rapper”.  Most successful rappers go to TV. Drake was a teenage TV star on Digrassi The Next Generation before his rap career took off.

Either way, there is no denying DrizzyDrake is everywhere with the fan base to follow.

So what are some of the secrets to Drake’s success in Today’s Music biz and what mistakes can you avoid?

1)  Build your brand.

If you Google Drake you’ll come up with DrizzyDrake (Drake’s AKA) and Octobers Very Own or OVO.  Drake’s brand. He built this brand before he signed to a label.

2) Listen to constructive criticism from your fans.

In a recent interview with Billboard magazine, Drake states that he’d “rather have great reviews than numbers”. Implementing feedback can take your music to the next level. I’ve seen it happen.

3) Positivity matters.

Drake’s song “Successful” and the lyrics to the majority of his songs are aspirational.  They talk about what he’s accomplished, or wants to accomplish (even if it’s marrying Nicki Minaj).  This is how he connects with many of his fans.  You have to have dreams and goals to be successful in Today’s Music Biz.  You have to believe in them, sing or write them to act on them.

4) Get your music cleared before announcing a release date.

Drake’s first album Thank Me Later release was pushed back due to licensing issues after the date had been announced.  It may work for someone with a large enough, established, fan base but you don’t want to build anticipation and then let your fans down by not being able to release your album on time.

5)  Leaks can be good.

He’s quoted in Billboard.com saying “the night that it leaks is the night by album release is…that’s when you start hearing feedback. That’s how we gauge things now”.  His latest release ended up dropping on the night of an awards show where he had the opportunity to let everyone know on national TV during his performance that it sold 700,000 units.

6)  Be loyal to those who give you a chance.

Drake’s first album with Lil Wayne’s Young Money hit #1 on Billboard top 200. His most recent deal for the release of Take Care was signed with Young Money/Cash Money/Universal to make sure Lil Wayne got paid off everything he did.  Just for believing in him!  This album just hit #1 on the Billboard top 200 as well. My guess is he’ll be winning more awards next year and thanking Lil Wayne.

 7)  Fame is fleeting.

Drake Says you get 30 days for an album, of media and radio air play. Drake connects with fans by singing about situations they are going through.  But everyone’s situation changes day by day.  Whats hot in music changes from day to day. That’s why we teach you to The ABC’s of Music Marketing.

There are  more lessons to be learned from this successful rapper.  One we’ve talked about many times at TMB is collaboration.  Drake’s success in working with others such as Trey Songz,  Jay-Z,  and Mary J. Blige and so many more has been phenomenal. Drake even wrote Un-thinkable (I’m Ready) with Alicia Keys.  Collaboration done right always leads to success and other opportunities.

We’re here to help you Succeed in Today’s Music Biz.

What are the 4 Music Business Marketing Elements that every Musician promoting their music should know?

We’ll get around to that in a few. But first, imagine your music product done? Your music is ready. You’ve got your song ready. Heck, you may have even went to DiscMasters and got a few hundred CD’s pressed and ready for sale.

The problem is, you haven’t done any ‘Music Marketing Research’. So you stand there with your head spinning with ideas to “get your music out there”.

The not-so imaginary scenario above is common among musicians, songwriters, producers, managers…Everyone at some point has to figure out how they will “get their music out there”. With this in mind, below I’ll go over the 4 Elements of Music Marketing

1. Product: Why does Jay-Z, Willi.i.am, L.A. Reid and other Professionals in Music Promotion speak of their music, they say “Records”? Because they understand that a Record is a “product”. A product is anything that can be brought or sold.

2. Place: The great Rapper Rakim said, “It ain’t where you’re from it’s where you’re at”. I’ll bet if you’ve dabbled in any kind of Marketing, you’ve heard the word “placement” being thrown around. Picture placement as the location? You’ve most likely heard the phrase, “Location…location…location”. There is a sound reason for this.

3. Promotion: After you’ve got your Product, and figured out the places you want to be, it’s time to focus on how you want to promote your music. Did you know that a great majority of excellent records fail to sell because of a flawed Promotion Strategy? How you promote your music product is as important as where.

4. Price: iTunes, Ticket Master and many big players in the Music Industry have heard back-lash from Fans and Recording Artist (like Prince). That is because some people believe those companies charge too muc. Yes, you can charge too much money for music.  You can also charge too little money for your music. Charge too much and you’ll turn off too many. Charge too little and your fans may turn your offer down.

Speaking of Prince, I few day’s ago I heard him say, “People tend to de-value stuff they can get for free”. I’ve seen it myself in the products that I sell. Doing a favor for a friend, for free will likely be forgotten – or, keep them coming for more free stuff.  The same is true of Music Buyers. Today’s Music Fan asks, “Why pay if you can get it for free?”

The good news is that successful Music Marketing is now easier than ever before. That’s because I’ve shared the basic marketing structure. You didn’t get this valuable information from me for free. You had to pay some attention to what I was showing you.