It’s not everyday that you get to get to say this, but this image shining over Times Square in New York is our very own Karin Ann, who we developed at 360!
Karin goes from strength to strength and has now been chosen as a featured artist by Spotify themselves for their playlist “Equal” and her song “in company” is first on the playlist!
It is a pleasure to work with Karin. She is from Zilina in Slovakia and her dedication to music saw her coming over from there to Leeds to work on a number of songs and artist development with us.
Since then she has continued to work with well known producers and music industry professionals and is touring in multiple countries, due to land here in the UK for Reading and Leeds festival later this month (August 2021).
Karin and her family said of working with 360 “It’s been a really good experience. Thank you for being the start, you were there in the beginning to give the first stone for the successful building of the project, thank you for your help” and we couldn’t be prouder of what she has gone on to achieve.
Congratulations Karin, you deserve this success and may you have a long and successful career in the music industry!
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Knowing what to expect when you visit a recording studio can take away a lot of nerves and ensure you have a great session.
Even if you don’t write your own songs you can record onto backing tracks. A lot of rappers will buy beats online and then visit a studio to record their rap over the top and some studios provide or produce beats themselves.
If you’re a singer who doesn’t play any instruments, ask your local studios if they have any writers on the team who can help you come up with an original song.
A good place to start if you are completely new to recording in a studio is going there and simply recording a cover song. You will learn what it’s like to record and when you are more comfortable you can come back and do original songs.
First time in recording studio tips
When you visit a studio, you will meet the engineer -the person who controls the recording equipment. They will talk to you through headphones on something called TalkBack and they will explain to you what you need to do, when you need to start singing etc.
The producer is somebody who directs what should happen to get the best performance from you. So they might say:
“let’s do that again”.
“A Little Bit Stronger”.
“Let’s put more emotion into that”.
“How about you try singing it like this”
Often in small recording studios, the engineer and producer are the same person.
You have a choice as to whether you want to be produced.
Most really appreciate the help of an experienced producer to tell them what they need to do to get the best performance, but some don’t.
A great producer can put you at ease and get a great performance!
There is usually separate room that you go in to record your vocals. You stand in front of the microphone (which will be height adjusted) and they will ask you about whether the volume levels are right for you.
You can say “turn my vocal up, but keep the music as it is”
“turn the music up, but keep my vocal as it is”
or “turn them both up (or both down)”.
It’s really important to get the right levels so that you aren’t straining or under-singing because of wrong volume levels.
I’ve seen some people sing with one side of the headphones off and the other on. Should I do that?
There is no right or wrong. Having both on there will be less chance of the microphone recording what is coming out of the headphones while you do your take and some artists love to be fully immersed in the music, but others find that by having one ear off they can hear themselves more naturally and therefore put a better performance in. So it’s just personal choice.
You may be wondering “what do I need to bring to a recording session?”
Usually this will just be you, lyrics that you need and links to backing tracks or actual files you want to be used. It’s a good idea to talk to the studio beforehand and agree what you need to bring because there’s nothing worse than turning up with your iPad which has your track on, only to find that they don’t have a cable that plugs into that in order to get your song off of it!
Remember, recording is not a live performance
‘Doing takes’ means recording the same thing over and over and this can be edited perfectly later on. If you make a mistake, just carry on because the next take can be chopped in later. By the end of the recording session you might have done five, six different takes and the producer or the engineer can cut up all of those into one perfect take.
Some physical considerations for singers
It’s important to look after your voice. Don’t go having just eaten, avoid dairy products, bananas, alcohol and caffeine (tea/coffee. Consume lots of water so that you sound the best you possibly can.
Emotion
Your voice will be compressed after its recorded, which basically means that the loud parts will get quieter and the quiet parts will get louder. This ensures that your voice sits properly over the music.
This can cause a problem if you’re relying on ‘quiet’ to be your basis of what sounds emotional. Work on real emotion in singing lessons before you go and then give it your all!
Final points in how to prepare for a recording.
Never give the engineer or the producer the lyrics to the song that you’re going to sing.
Ask them to tell you what they think you’re singing. There are a lot of songs out there where misheard lyrics happen and the reason is all around poor mouth shapes. If this happens to you in a recording session, it can only be spotted by somebody who doesn’t know what the lyrics are because as soon as you know, you will naturally hear those words!
Go and visit your local Studios, get a relationship with the. Ask to come down and have a look at the place or book a session in. You don’t lose anything and you might gain so much.
Please Subscribe to us on YouTube and you’ll then be able to pick up all of our #TuesdayTopTip series for free.
https://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/HQ-Inside-1-scaled.jpg18292560matthew@360artistdevelopment.comhttps://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/360-artist.pngmatthew@360artistdevelopment.com2021-08-11 11:19:122021-08-11 11:19:12What Happens When You Visit a Recording Studio
Every year artists of a certain age group come to us and ask what the difference is between mainstream music education and an artist development program and it’s a great question. We appreciate the need to understand the difference between the two, because it can affect your future.
It’s important to understand that an artist development programme may not be right for you and mainstream music educationmay actually be the best option for you.
I’m going to talk about the benefits of mainstream music, education and compare them to the benefits of an artist development programme, so that you can decide which is the best option for your future.
Going to university or performing arts schools is a big life decision. It’s the first time for many young people when they will live away from home and it’s also the time when students get to decide what option to take through UCAS which will hopefully give them the skills and qualification to do the career of their choice. But what if your career choice is to be a singer or a performing arts entertainer?
Then you will be thinking “are performing arts courses better than artist development?” Or even wondering “what’s the difference between artist development and university courses?”
Before thinking of applying for either you will of course need to ensure that you meet the entry requirements. This could be a certain level of grades, or passing an audition.
When I went to college I wanted to take Music, Psychology, French and German. I arrived at the college and they told me that if I wanted to be a sound engineer I had to take Maths and Physics and I changed my options because of it, only to find I hated both and dropped out to go back to most of what I’d wanted in the first place.
Since becoming a successful and award winning music production professional, I can honestly tell you that you do not need maths and physics qualifications to do the job!
Whether money, moving home, a focus of career training (over general syllabus training) or gaining a qualification is driving your thoughts to this blog post, I hope that you will get some benefit from weighing up the different options to make the right decision for you.
The Benefits of Mainstream Music Courses
You might be looking for a performing arts course, or popular music diploma or similar and one of the best parts about a higher education music course is that you will be in a classroom environment with other musicians, learning alongside them.
This can be great for:
Making friends
Making Connections
Working with people
Experiencing the general buzz of being in that kind of environment
You may get the opportunity for work experience
Learning alongside your peers is a great part of college or university education and can set you up with friendships for life.
Other great parts of working in mainstream music education are:
The overall experience of being at a university or a college, such as things like freshers’ week and the ability to live somewhere else in the country and experience that ‘growing up’ part of life.
Getting a qualification at the end that may allow you to add letters to your name
You may have to do mainstream education up until the age of 18. In which case, you really have no choice and can therefore choose to do a music course or work on a development programme alongside it.
The Benefits of an Artist Development Programme
Great considerations in relation to artist development programmes are that:
Everything is focused around you
You learn exactly what you need, to get you to be a professional artist as it is specifically designed around you
No more learning about topics that you’ll never use
It’s one-to-one training
You could take a programme and do a different subject at university as a backup
So you won’t get the friendships that you would if you were in a mainstream education setting, but you will get the training and impetus to succeed because it’s just about what you need and it’s pushing you forward for your career.
Also, consider that with a development programme:
You are working with a team of industry experts
Everyone is focussed on:
Working on your songs
Working on your recordings
Working on your promotion
Working on building your fanbase
The drawbacks of Mainstream Music Education
There are a number of aspects about college and university music courses that have a downside. Some of the more obvious ones would be that:
Performing arts degrees / general university courses can cost upwards of £30,000 and you will end up having to pay that debt back over your lifetime
You have to study for 3 years
You are in competition with the other students who want the same thing
A lot of music industry jobs don’t actually require degrees in music subjects
You will not have a team specifically working on the management and development of your career
Let’s compare the above to the drawbacks of development programmes
The drawbacks of Artist Development Programmes
You won’t get a certificate or any official educational recognition from the course
You aren’t involved in it full time, so if you need a structured, classroom based timetable to keep motivated this won’t be for you
You won’t necessarily live close to the development company, so will have to do more travel than if you lived close to university
You won’t be working with other musicians, so will not have the friendships that a mainstream course would bring you
Should I do a University Course or Artist Development?
Considering all of the above, you should be able to decide whether a development programme is right for you, of if mainstream education is a better option. Perhaps you will choose to do both simultaneously?
Certainly either option will give you:
The performance skills you will need
Experience of live events
Teach you about a wide range of subjects, including the music business, artist management and record labels as a whole.
Either way, we wish you all the best with your future career.
https://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Masterclasses-1.jpg20483072matthew@360artistdevelopment.comhttps://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/360-artist.pngmatthew@360artistdevelopment.com2021-07-27 17:29:292021-07-27 17:31:04Mainstream Music Course vs Artist Development Programme
In this blog we will look at how to approach a music manager and things to consider when doing so. It is true that they can take your career to the next level but it’s also important to only contact them when you are ready.
We will give some real world examples of when that would (and wouldn’t) be the case. The music business is just that, a business and you’ll need to plan for management like you are looking to get hired – full of facts and figures about you.
When you contact a music manager (if you’re at that stage where you need one) you need an electronic press kit or EPK. You need to make sure that it’s formulated with:
Photographs
Biography and general information about yourself
Links to your songs to promote your music
Any video links of things that you’ve done
Stats in relation to your fan base/your earnings/any gigs that you have booked and any gigs that you’ve done
This is particularly important if you’ve toured around or supported any known bands or musicians.
Make your electronic press kit buzzing – this is the music industry! If you want to know how to get a management deal – make the manager want to sign you! They want to see that you’re blowing up as an artist – and as a singer you have to make them want to get involved with you, hear your music and know it’s a match for them – so show yourself off in the best possible light!
“I’ve had a hundred thousand streams in this record” “I’ve been featured on BBC introducing” “I’ve been been on television” “I’ve been on a tour around the UK” etc.
One caveat to this is don’t ever lie or overcook information because you’ll get found out, and by lying or overstating something that you’ve done, it doesn’t help anybody in the long run.
Finding a manager is hard but like all work relationships, once you do find the perfect ‘manager for singer’ relationship, it is one that’s built on trust.
You have to trust your manager, just as much as they have to trust you.
So often, people will send emails asking for management when they do not need management.
People have an idea that you need a music manager in order to be signed by a record company and that is not correct. You need a manager when your music career is so involved that you can’t handle it yourself. That’s what a manager does. They handle your business.
Music managers will be doing things like working with tour managers, booking agents, other key music industry professionals. They’ll be finding you gigs. They’ll be helping you with your accounts, liaising with record labels, helping with promotions and finding sponsorship.
They’ll be doing all this sort of stuff around you as an artist, but if you’re a brand new artist who has 5,000 streams on Spotify and maybe two to three hundred fans – then you do not need a manager.
If you haven’t got any songs yet, you do not need a manager
If you are contacting music management companies because you think it’ll help you get signed or get live gigs – you do not need a manager
You DO reach out to music management contacts when you have a really decent fanbase, you’re earning money through your music and importantly when you have something to manage, because that’s when they also earn money – this is a business that works on commission from your earnings, so if you are earning nothing at all then guess how much your manager will be earning? And who in this world works for free?
There are certain management contracts where you can pay them per month to manage your business. But then you have to ask yourself, what am I paying for? Why am I paying somebody to manage my business if I don’t yet need my business managed?
If there’s no way you’d pay a music manager to work for you on a monthly retainer basis right now, then you know deep down that you’re not at the stage where you should be contacting them to make that great first impression.
Let’s say you’ve read the above and you’re ready to go out and find the perfect music manager for you.
How do we approach potential managers? How do we even find them? Well, you can find managers in a number of different ways:
You could subscribe to magazines such as Music Week in the UK, where you will often see that managers are either interviewed or they post adverts for their artists saying congratulations on certain Awards.
You could look at the unsigned guide and contact people there.
You can look online, searching for managers of particular artists that you’re interested in or you could search for the actual artists themselves and then look at their Wikipedia or social media to find out who manages them.
Once you have a name, then go on to their website and contact them.
It’s actually a lot easier than you might think contacting artist managers, because at the end of the day everyone needs each other. Music managers need great singers like you in order to be able to continue in their business and great artists like you need great managers in order to propel their careers even further forward.
Just remember that this is a business and everything has to be mutually beneficial in any business transaction.
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https://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Proud-to-be-me-1024x1024.jpg10241024adminhttps://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/360-artist.pngadmin2017-05-06 15:41:192018-09-06 13:54:36Despina VIP To The Urban Music Awards 2017!
https://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/famous.jpg500700adminhttps://www.360artistdevelopment.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/360-artist.pngadmin2016-09-20 15:21:312018-09-06 14:20:49What does it feel like to be famous? Watch VIP, access all areas video!
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