Managemental Podcast With Blasko And Mike Mowery

Original Article: https://bandzoogle.com/blog/the-8-things-that-should-be-in-every-band-s-digital-press-kit Today on ManageMental, Blasko and Mike answer a question from Chris, a loyal listener, and discuss an article written by their buddy Dave Cool of Bandzoogle to talk about press kits and EPK’s. You might remember Dave from Episode 55, check it out if you haven’t already. This is gonna be killer, so let’s get mental! I have an idea for a topic to be covered on the podcast, as I haven't heard much about it and I think it would be really beneficial for anyone in the underground scene to learn more about: Press Kits Now this is another two part question, as the platforms for press kits are delivered in both physical and online forms. So the first question to you and Mike, What are you guys looking for in online press kits? Is there a model you use with the bands on your roster to fit certain criteria? The second question: I imagine you and Mike are constantly bombarded with press kits from bands looking for

Here we are at Episode 60 over a year after episode 1. On that episode 1 we had no listeners, no comments on iTunes, no one writing us asking questions or sending messages of support. We had no sponsors and no guests. No one knew what this podcast was gonna be all about, nor did any of our listeners know that they should be listening to us. Over the course of the last 60 episodes we have delivered concise information, input, strategies and opinions about the music business for 30 minutes one day a week - consistently. I feel like what we have done with this show is a good example of how you should treat your band business. Just dive in. Just get started. Seth Godin is a master marketer and successful author. I won’t dig too into it, but we will post a link to his website in the show notes. In reference to a previous episode about mentors, Seth would definitely be one of mine. In a passive way of course, because I don’t know him, but I absorb his books, his blog and now his podcast. Today’s episode is inspire

This week Blasko and Mike take some questions about starting a promotion and management company from Tim, one of our loyal listeners that is also an aspiring manager. This is gonna be killer, so let’s get mental! I just wanted to start off by saying thank you guys for doing the podcast shows on management mental. I really do appreciate it a lot and listen to your shows more than I even listen to music. It is a really amazing show. I am planning doing a promotion and a management company.  I just wanted to pick both of your brains. If you both don't mind doing so. I understand if you both don't have time to do it, because I know you both are busy people. I would greatly appreciate it. 1.) What is the best ways to promote a shows to get the most people to show up? 2.) How do you get on the radio to help promote shows and how do you own a radio station to help promote local shows and the bands? I figured iHeartradio and sirius xm radio. Doing podcast shows could maybe help out I'm guessing so, but I'm talking ab

This is How the Instagram Algorithm Works in 2018: https://later.com/blog/how-instagram-algorithm-works/ Tip #1: Spend More Time Posting To Instagram Stories. A great “hack” to get around the algorithm is to take advantage of Instagram Stories engagement opportunities, including the polling feature or “Swipe Up” option (if you have over 10k followers). Tip #2: Keep Tabs On Your Instagram Comments. This year it will be more important than ever to stay on top of your incoming comments, especially within the first hour of posting, otherwise your posts visibility may drastically decrease. Treat Instagram comments like a conversation. Tip #3: Stop Them In Their Tracks with the Perfect Instagram Caption. If you want to beat the Instagram algorithm, crafting great Instagram captions might just be the key. If you have an engaging caption, people are more likely to actually read it or click the “more” button, which increases the time spent on your post. Tip #4: Keep Your Instagram Followers engaged. Know that videos

This week Blasko and Mike check out a guest post on Revolver by Lamb of God frontman Randy Blythe on his top 5 tips for up-and-coming artists. This is gonna be killer, so let’s get mental! Original Article: https://www.revolvermag.com/music/lamb-god-singer-randy-blythes-top-5-tips-aspiring-rock-stars Lamb of God frontman Randy Blythe is the anti-rock-star rock star, a salt-of-the-earth punk at heart who happens to front a world-famous metal band. And yet, in that capacity he excels — hence his reputation as one of the most captivating and ferocious frontman in heavy music. Considering his status within the scene, and the dues he has put in to get to that place, we asked Blythe to give us his top five pieces of advice for those about to rock. Get a college degree. Be nice to everyone.Treat your crew with respect.Don't trash the fucking dressing room at the venue.Don't blow your money on a bunch of stupid shit like drugs and alcohol if you can help it Rockabilia is your One Stop Shop for all band merch with t

This week Blasko and Mike talk about how to find a music career mentor. This is gonna be killer, so let’s get mental! Hypebot Guest post by Angela Mastrogiacomo: How To Find A Music Career Mentor http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2018/02/how-to-find-a-music-career-mentor.html In the music industry, it can sometimes feel like you’re going it alone. There’s so many tasks to be done, decisions to be made, and moves to make, and oftentimes it falls on you to make it all happen. Sometimes this is due to lack of budget, but oftentimes it’s due to our need to feel in control, to handle everything in our own way. The simple truth is that you can’t be successful on your own. No one has ever reached the top without the help, influence, and guidance of others. In fact, if you ask most successful people how they got where they are, they’ll attribute a good chunk of it to a mentor who took them under their wing in the early days. Someone who helped them understand how the business worked, guided them in how to make their de

This week Blasko and Mike sit down with Dave Cool from Bandzoogle and why websites are important to your bands marketing strategy. Today’s episode of ManageMental is powered by Rockabilia.com. This is gonna be killer, so let’s get mental! Band Marketing Basics Original Article: https://bandzoogle.com/blog/marketing-your-band-13-essential-strategies Author: Lisa Occhino is the founder of SongwriterLink and the Director of Marketing & Communications at Soundfly. She’s also a pianist, award-winning songwriter, and graduate of Berklee College of Music. Use your email newsletter: Your email list is an incredibly valuable direct line to your most dedicated fans. You have no control over Facebook’s ever-changing News Feed algorithm, but you can always use your newsletter to reach the people who want to hear from you the most. Have a website: Investing in a great band website is one of the most important things you can do to maximize your marketing efforts. No matter how many newsletters you send out or how many Fac

When Is The Right Time to Begin Touring? Original Article: https://www.joinmyband.co.uk/classifieds/american-solo-artist-seeking-band-for-uk-tour-t1049842.html?sid=055fb84ca9da25fa2da3e9ac0c8ebe0c Amanda Palmer Kickstarter (referenced in episode): https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/amandapalmer/amanda-palmer-the-new-record-art-book-and-tour/description This week on ManageMental, Blasko and Mike talk about when it is the right time for a band to begin touring, inspired by a question from one of our loyal listeners, Javier: Hey Blasko, Loving the podcast. Been a listener for a while now, keep it rocking! Lately you've done a few episodes on helping bands, like tour etiquette, advice on a band's image, etc. So I would love to hear both yours and Mike's thoughts on the following... ~ It's an ad from a dude in the states who wants to come to the UK to do a headlining tour, and he is looking for musicians from the UK to be part of his backing band, as he does not have the resources to bring his own. He says do

This week Blasko and Mike dissect the Hypebot article ‘5 Myths of Making it in the Music Industry’ and chat about some music business myths that could be detrimental to your career. Tune in to hear what the dynamic duo has to say. This is gonna be killer, so let’s get mental! In this industry it can be easy to get overwhelmed with all the information being blasted at us 24/7. Do this, don’t do that. This works, that doesn’t. It can be tough to know which advice to follow, and which to stay far away from. There are a few myths that I see bands still living by, despite any proof they actually work. Here they are: If your music is good enough, the labels/managers/festivals will find you. Labels want to see strong proof that you’re actually marketable (IE: you’ll make them money) before “taking a chance” on you, which means before they’re even remotely interested you need to have proven yourself through engaging social media pages, successful tours, fans that are willing to support you, etc. Once you’ve done all

This week Blasko and Mike check out an article by Bobby Owsinski and talk about developing the image of your brand. http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2017/12/8-steps-to-brand-development-as-an-artist.html Make sure your brand image accurately portrays your music and personality. If you’re a biker band, you probably don’t want a website that’s all pink and flowery. On the other hand, the pink works great for Katy Perry. Likewise, if you’re an EDM artist you wouldn’t want your site to show the woods and trees, although that could work well for an alt rock band from Minnesota or someone doing music for meditation. Keep it honest and simple. Don’t try to be who you’re not, it’s too hard to pull off. You are who you are and people will either love you for it or they won’t. Best to keep things simple and be honest about who and what you are and where you came from. Differentiate yourself. While it might seem tempting to proclaim that you’re just like Coldplay, that doesn’t immediately make you their equal in the e

Article: http://www.hypebot.com/hypebot/2017/12/etiquette-for-opening-bands.html Author: Rich Nardo. Rich is a freelance writer and editor, and is the Director of Public Relations and Creative at NGAGE. This week we are talking about the proper etiquette for opening bands. Tune in to hear more. This is gonna be killer, so let’s get mental! 1. Headliner is King (or Queen) Whether you’re the local opener for a touring band or actually on the road with someone, the headliner will set the tone. There will be certain things that they require pre-show and you should make sure to adhere to their wishes. The less their pre-show routine is interrupted by your own, the more likely they’ll be to invite you back, especially if your performance is awesome. 2. Stick to The Schedule; You’re Part of the Team The headliner will create a schedule that works best for them. You will work your schedule around theirs. Most importantly, it’s imperative that you are on time for everything. 3. Do Your Own Promoting for the Show T

This week on ManageMental, Mike and Blasko take inspiration from one of their loyal listeners on the subject of either hiring or collaborating with guest musicians on your songs: The Question: Guest vocals. Is it worth it for underground bands to shell out big money to get reputable and well known artists to feature on tracks. It seems this is a promotional tactic that has increased in popularity over the recent years, and I'd like to hear your and Mike's input. Seeking Advice: Recently my band has contacted a few artists to feature. A few middle tier and a few household names. We got responses from two out of our list. We contacted one of them directly and he proposed 1000 USD to feature on our song. This was a higher budget than we would have liked, but entirely plausible for someone as well known as he is. We contacted the other band through their website, and got a response from their manager. We proposed  $500 and their manager proceeded to cut down our offer very aggressively. In our email chain I pol

Happy New Year! In this week’s episode, Mike and Blasko go over their Top 10 music industry predictions for 2018. Here is a brief overview of what was discussed: 1. Traditional record sales will continue to decrease. 2. Apple we begin to shut down the iTunes music store with an estimated final closure date of Jan 2019. 3. Spotify will go public. 4. VR technology will not replace the live experience. 5. Cryptocurrency will not become an overly accepted form of payment for anything music related. 6. Print on demand services will become more of a necessity. 7. More independent artists will cross over to the mainstream. 8. Streaming only record labels will begin to sign and break bands.   9. Festival attendance will level off or decrease.   10. If we are looking for different results we will need to implement different strategies.   Tune in to ManageMental to hear more!   --- Rockabilia is your One Stop Shop for all band merch with the largest selection of officially licensed music merchandise in the worl

In last week’s episode Blasko and Mike walked you through examples of industry scams and how to avoid them, referencing the Digital Music News article How I Got 10,000 Spotify Plays For a Totally Fake Song. This week they take on a listener’s questions and concerns based on a specific scam that was mentioned last week: So I was listening to ManageMental, Episode 47, and I believe I was almost suckered into one of the scams you and Mike were talking about. So I flew out to Denver on my own dime, and met with this dude. He and his company are interested in managing us, and have told us that they can get us tours and a deal, and endorsements, and all that good stuff. They also have an in house publicist and social media manager that would be included in their offer. They want us to pay them $10K upfront as a retainer + an $800 monthly fee. They also want us to cover any expenses they incur as a result of representing us (travel, etc.). I’m skeptical as hell on one hand, but on the other, they do have a band & a

In this episode Blasko and Mike walk you through examples of industry scams and how to avoid them, referencing the Digital Music News article How I Got 10,000 Spotify Plays For a Totally Fake Song. Several months ago, a playlist plugging service offered popular independent musician Ari Herstand $500 for 50,000 to 100,000 plays on Spotify. Another offered him a four-month plugging campaign for $5,000. A third offered him 50,000 streams for just $150. Herstand chose that one. Herstand’s songs were quickly added to a popular user-generated playlist on Spotify. It had around 50,000 followers. It didn’t take long for Spotify to notice. The company quickly took down Herstand’s 2014 album, Brave Enough. Through his distributor, he found out that the playlist plugging service, Streamify, had likely used click farms to generate plays. While a lot of labels, promoters and such are genuinely enthusiastic and out there to help acts reach a higher level, sadly there are also a fair amount out there who exploit aspiring a

In this week’s episode Blasko and Mike revisit one of the first ever episodes and discuss how their predictions for 2017 and Paul Resnikoff’s article: http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/2016/12/19/music-industry-anti-predictions/ Wireless headphones won’t take over the world (yet). Apple won’t close its iTunes download store (yet). Streaming music won’t reach 250 million paying subscribers. (Currently at 100 million.) *According to IFPI’s Global Music Report, streaming now makes up the majority (roughly 60%) of digital revenue and for the first time, digital revenues make up 50% of the share of total recorded music industry revenues. Rough estimates show that if 10% of the global population eventually subscribes to a music streaming service, the music industry’s worldwide recorded music revenues will far exceed its best year ever in 1999. In fact, a recent Goldman Sachs report predicted that streaming will hit $34bn in revenue in 2030, as part of a healthy $41bn industry.  The Grammys will not be spectacular.

This week we take some questions about playing live from one of our loyal listeners. Tune in and follow along as we address the following questions:   Thanks for answering my questions a few months back. I have more, this is a random list related to touring and live shows.    I get frustrated when I go to a show intending to see band #2 or #3 (in addition to #1) on a bill and they only play 30-35 minutes.  Is it strategically better to be low on a 3 or 4 band bill and play shorter sets, or play with fewer bands and longer sets?  I vote for the latter.  I'm an old guy and have a regular job, so I hate having to stay up late for shows.  But I've been whining about this for 20 years when I was a young guy.  Will it ever change?  Finish by 10pm would be ideal for me.  When bands design their set list, is the best approach to go mostly with Spotify popular with a few oddities thrown in?  Different set list every night?  Let the audience request 1 or 2 songs?  There seem to be more bands touring with fewer members

The Vans Warped Tour has announced 2018 will be the last year for the seminal summer festival that has run across the country for 23 years. Mike and Blasko reflect on the history of Warped Tour, what the end of this era means for summer tours, and consider what could be next for the Warped brand. To learn more about the final Vans Warped Tour head to http://vanswarpedtour.com/2017/finaltour/ --- The hosts also comment on the current sexual harassment allegations in entertainment, specifically in music and give perspective to young bands. To reference the article mentioned in this episode go to https://www.spin.com/featured/fyf-fest-sean-carlson-sexual-harassment-assault-allegations/ --- We want to hear from you so please don’t hesitate to email any questions or comments to askblasko@gmail.com Find Blasko on Twitter and Instagram: @blasko1313 Find Mike Mowery on Twitter and Instagram: @mikeoloop ManageMental is part of the Jabberjaw Media Network www.jabberjawmedia.com and sponsored by Rockabilia www.rockab

Article: http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/music-distribution/biggest-myths-music-streaming/   Author: Chris Robley http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/author/chris-r-at-cd-baby/   This week Blasko and Mike get into the myths of music streaming and digging into the article “The Biggest Myths About Music Streaming” by Chris Robley, tackling the following points:   There’s no money in itFor artists who own 100% of their publishing and sound recording rights, all their streaming revenue flows to them. No label advances, catalog licensing deals, or complicated splits to contend with.  In the major label world though, most songs are written by teams of people. If the artist is lucky enough to be credited as a writer, they’re still often splitting those publishing royalties three, or six, or twelve ways. As for the royalties generated by the streaming of a sound recording, well, let’s just say the labels have done a fine job keeping much of that dough for themselves   It killed the albumStreaming didn’t kill the album. Dow

Join Mike Mowery tonight at 8pm EST for an Outerloop Coaching Facebook Live event at facebook.com/outerloop.group.   For more information on Outerloop Coaching visit www.outerloopcoaching.com   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices