The Music Gardener - Artist Manager, Music Marketer

This past week,  Artist Garden Entertainment made a trip to New York. We had scheduled some meetings with Atlantic Records and Manhattan Records to pitch artists that we manage. This was probably my 50th trip to New York over the last twenty years and I realized how I had begun to take it for granted. Reflecting back, I can remember how in awe I was on the first visit. The tall buildings and mass of people were overwhelming for a small town boy from Georgia. That initial trip was my first music industry convention which happened to be with Capitol/EMI Records. I will never forget that trip as I somehow found myself on stage with a group of fellow employees dancing with Vanilla Ice. How could that ever be forgotten? Over the last twelve years, I had the opportunity to do some amazing things in New York. Probably, one of my favorite things was lunch at the Sony Club. The Sony Club is on the top floor of the Sony building and was designed as a place for Sony execs to wine and dine their artists and clients. During the years I served as the liaison between Epic Records and Word Records, there were many lunches at the Sony Club. Another memorable time was when I was stranded in New York during the major  black-out on August 14, 2003.  That was definitely one I would not wish to re-live, even though it was a once in a lifetime experience seeing Time Square in total darkness. One thing I had never experienced until this recent trip was taking the train from Manhattan to Long Island. I had never really had a reason to go to Long Island, but this trip we needed to check out an artist who was performing on Long Island. Much to my surprise, the train ride was extremely pleasant. It reminded me of train rides in the UK as we made our way through the train yards and then neighborhoods with rows and rows of brownstone. Long Island turned out to be a very pleasant place and was surprisingly quite considering it’s proximity to the city.

Every American should make it a point to visit New York at least once in their lifetime. And when you do, see everything you possibly can. While I’m not sure I could live there, it is one of my favorite places in the world to visit!

http://www.artistgardenentertainment.com

Circleslide Live

Our kids have two categories that they like to put people in, “Corporate” and “Road Dog”. My wife and kids have spent much of their lives traveling as artists so they feel a sense of pride tagging themselves as “Road Dogs“. I on the other hand have spent the bulk of my life working on the business side of music in marketing and as an artist manager so they tag me as “Corporate”. The big difference in the two is that “Road Dogs” can supposedly adapt to any travel conditions where “Corporates” need a well organized schedule and comfortable place to rest. While I am definitely up for a good “roughing it style” camping trip, I do like to rest well and comfortably while traveling. I normally don’t rest well in the bunk of a tour bus as I’m a bit too claustrophobic and have seen the Metallica bus crash on VH1’s Behind The Music too many times. However, last week I decided to try the “Road Dog” thing for a short run with Circleslide, a band we manage. I figured a short little run to Atlanta in a van couldn’t be that bad?

A mile out of town, I realized I forgot my pillow. Bad start but I wasn’t going to have the band turn around and take me back by the house. That would be a little embarrassing? Turns out that I did fine without my pillow. The trip was different as I wasn’t in control of driving and the stops we made, so I had to regulate myself for food and bathroom breaks. After some adjusting, it actually was kind of nice having a road manager in control of our schedule and someone else driving.  Normally, I do all of the planning, driving and thinking when I travel, but now I had this wonderful road manager, Debbie, planning everything. My mind was able to take a break! We played musical trivia with an iPhone while I tested the youngsters knowledge of 80s pop metal. A little Ozzy Osbourne, Metallica, AC/DC, Van Halen, Winger, Bullet Boys, Cinderella, Motley Crue and of course Autograph! We then moved onto Southern Rock trivia with Molly Hatchet, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blackfoot, 38 Special, and The Outlaws. By this point, I was realizing that “Road Dogging” is quite fun! After the show that evening, came the down side of “Road Dogging” which consisted of load out, leaving the venue at midnight and arriving home at 4am. That pretty much killed my productivity for Monday as I am a man who needs eight hours of good sleep in order to function well.

My conclusion on “Corporate vs. Road Dog” is pretty simple. As a “Road Dog”, you get to turn your brain off while driving down the road and that is actually quite nice. “Road Dogs” have to adapt to a much different time table for sleep but they don’t seem to mind. While I thoroughly enjoyed my “Road Dog” experience , I think the sleep thing and my age will prevent me from ever becoming a permanent “Road Dog”. It’s probably best that I remain “Corporate” for now and leave the “Road Dogging” to the professionals!

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We are excited to announce The Music Gardener’s new Pick of the Month is The Glorious Unseen! Their sophmore release on Tooth & Nail , “The Hope That Lies In You”, streets Tuesday, August 2. To learn more about The Glorious Unseen please visit our Pick of The Month page.

The Glorious Unseen

Remember the song “Free Ride”? I used to get such a sense of freedom when I heard that song. It appears that we Americans have decided to live that Edgar Winter song as a way of life. Everything is free! Isn’t it great? I have personally heavily bought into the idea of “free” myself. I love free downloads, free iPhone apps, free software. As a matter of fact, I am growing so accustomed to getting free stuff that it makes it difficult to make a decision to purchase anything. Very few things in life hold value in the minds of this new “free generation” and especially in the entertainment world. Consumers no longer want to pay for music, art or software. Free was such a great thing in the beginning. The concept was originally designed as a marketing tactic to give consumers a sample in hopes that they would quickly return with cash in hand to purchase. Somehow many marketers have missed the most important part of this marketing tactic which is to only give a taste, not the entire product. Even drug dealers know that people will return with cash once they are hooked on your product. I love to go to Sam’s Club during the day when the food sample carts are out in force. As much as I enjoy the free food samples, I know if there is something I really like then I have to break out my wallet in order to take some home. Why do some people in the music industry think we have to give the entire product away? I recently read about a label’s marketing plan which consisted of giving away the first 50,000 cds of a new release from one of their new artist. WOW! That’s awesome. Instead of giving consumers a taste, they are giving away the entire product. I’m sure those consumers will race back to buy another cd as everyone needs two of the same cd don’t they? If there is no value in the cd the consumer was just given, why not burn their friend a copy? After all, isn’t the label sending out the message that free full length cds are okay with them? Now, the label is probably looking at making their money from touring and merch as the artist is most likely  signed to a 360 Deal but the “free generation” isn’t going to be satisfied with only free cds. They are also going to expect a free t-shirt and a free concert ticket. The scary thing is that if the cds are being given away for free then there is no money to pay the artists, songwriters, producers and engineers. If the people who create the music aren’t being paid then creating and making music technically becomes a hobby. Maybe the Hobby Lobby retail stores should begin carrying Pro Tools and Music Industry Dress Up Kits? Yes, I have heard the story about some artist who gave away his cds and his live shows became huge and turned into big dollars. That’s great but just because it worked for one artist doesn’t mean it will work for all artists. I think the important part of that story that some people missed is that his marketing strategy was unique.  Being unique and creative is the key, not the free part. I remember when iTunes started the “free download” of the week, I couldn’t wait for Tuesday to come. Over time it has become less and less special to me. I honestly can’t remember the last time I downloaded the iTunes “single of the week”. While I do believe we need to be thinking differently and creatively about marketing music, I don’t think free is the ultimate answer. Being creative and unique in our marketing is the answer!

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That cool dude below, for those of you who don’t know, is Carter Beauford, drummer for the Dave Matthews Band. When I say cool, I mean really cool!  I already knew Carter as one of the best drummers to ever hit the rock/pop scene, but after spending some time with him in London, I now know the super nice and cool side of Carter!   http://www.artistgardenentertainment.com

This morning I randomly plugged my Twitter user name into Twittergrader.com and it appears I am ranked #7 for the Elite Twitterers in Brentwood, TN  It was initially exciting but then the horrible sin of envy kicked in as I peered at the number 1 Twitterer. I asked myself why are they better than me? What are they doing that I don’t do? How can I overtake them?  But then I remembered all of the great things about #7. First of all that puts me in the Top 10! The number 7 is associated with perfection as God created the earth in 7 days. The number 7 plays an incredibly significant role throughout the Bible as a holy number. 7-Eleven has the ultimate Slurpies! 7-up is the Uncola and my favorite all time best fitting jeans were made by 7 For All Mankind.  Rob Thomas is #7 on the Billboard Rock Album Chart this week. Hannah Montanna is #7 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart this week and Garth Brooks Double Live is the #7 all time best selling album in history.

I am feeling kind of special now and thinking maybe I should throw a #7 party! Come on and follow me at

http://twitter.com/KeithStancil

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The photograph to the left is often my view while listening to music and dreaming. The picture probably sheds a little light on why I refer to myself as The Music Gardener and why our management/marketing firm is called Artist Garden Entertainment. I wish I could share a picture that would show you what our garden looks like in the evening but my photography skills don’t compliment low light pictures. Looking at our garden in the evening is when I get the most inspiration. We work with our artists and our marketing much the same as we do our garden. We plant ideas, fertilize and water them and are sometimes amazed at how they develop. Some end up creating much more than we could ever dream while others seem to wither away. We constantly weed out the dead ideas and replace them with new ones. It is always a work in progress but so rewarding when something incredible blossoms. We are so fortunate to have the opportunity to work with the talented artists we have on our roster. Many times I wish we could see 5 years into their future to get a glimpse of how they develop. Part of me is glad we can’t because we would miss the best part of what we do which is watching them grow!

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Last week Artist Garden Entertainment had the opportunity to attend Randy Elrod and Spence   Smith’s Lifework 2.0 seminar again. Lifework provides a wealth of web 2.0 knowledge  that helps us as artist managers and with our music marketing. One great bonus with the seminar is that they allow alumni to attend future seminars at no cost. This has been a huge help as there is so much information being taught in a single day. It sometimes takes me a few times to really grasp the techno talk and Randy and Spence are constantly introducing new developing web 2.0 techniques. Lifework is responsible for the Music Gardener blog. I didn’t have a clue as to how to begin to blog until taking their class. Even though I still have much to learn, I finally have a solid understanding of blogging, Twittering and SEO. If you work in any aspect in the music world, I highly reccomend taking their next class!

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We have been buried in contracts the last couple of weeks around Artist Garden Entertainment. Everything from artist management contracts to booking contracts. While I do enjoy the challenge of interpreting contracts, there is always a bit of language that only attorneys can understand. I have come to the conclusion that some of the language is intentionally used soley for the sake of job security for attorneys. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not attorney bashing as I think a great attorney is one of the most valuable assets to any business.  However, I do think the legal system goes a little overboard with this cryptic language. I also find it amazing at how important a comma can be in the interpretation of a contract.  All that being said, I have some advice for navigating the artist manager contract negotiation in an economical way. Treat your contract negotiation in the same manner as a non-contested divorce. The two parties involved should attempt to negotiate as many of the major issues as possible without the attorneys. This method is gauranteed to save you a great deal of money! Once the major terms are negotiated, then you should have your attorney write up the initial draft. Before getting the other party’s attorney involved, look over the draft together again to see if there are any major issues that can be resolved outside of the attorneys. Once you feel comfortable with the initial draft then volley to the other attorney with the pretense that you have both agreed on the major issues and the contract just needs tweaking. If either attorney has concerns, you should definitely listen but remember that time is precious as the cash meter is running.

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Artist Garden Entertainment has been flying the social network banner for quite some time now. We are believers in this new cost effective way of marketing. So much so that we sometimes wear out our artist with constant reminders of how they need to spend more time with the social networks engaging their fans and followers in conversation. A good friend of mine and expert in web 2.0 marketing, Spence Smith, recently made the statement that drastically changed the way I look at marketing. He stated that “marketers need to stop thinking campaigns and start thinking conversations” WOW! That should rock some marketing minds.

I want to share one of the most creative social network promotions that I have seen recently which was launched by producer/artist Dallas Austin. Dallas recently released his album “8 Daze a Weakend” and will soon release a movie with the same name. He created a “conversation” with his fans and followers on Twitter with an incredibly creative promotion. Dallas has 34,000+ followers and only follows very few of them back. He made the offer that he would begin following anyone willing to change their Twitter picture to his 8 icon and simultaneously launched a scavenger hunt consisting of leaving paper bags with the number 8 spray painted on them around the country. The bags contain quantities of 8. Some $8, others 8 t-shirts etc. His goal is to reach 88,888 Twitter followers and I would be surprised if that doesn’t happen soon.

Social Networking really is the new frontier for marketing giving everyone the opportunity to be creative at $0 cost. It is such an exciting time for marketing. As a friend of mine recently said “Its scary to wake up every morning knowing exactly what you will be doing that day. What’s freeing is waking up not knowing what will happen as there are no limits to what you can do”  Social networking presents limitless marketing opportunities at little or no cost so take advantage and test this new marketing freedom!

http://www.artistgardenentertainment.com