A couple of days ago I spoke for the LA Chapter of Songsalive! The topic was technology and strategies to treat your music business more like a business. During the workshops, a lot of material was covered but at the Songsalive! meeting and during the tour, a common theme popped up. FREE Samples!

I had just completed a mini-tour involving 5 workshops and 5 performances over 10 days or so. On the way back I stopped back over in Utah and had coffee with my friend Marc. He had hosted a house concert for me to start the tour.

As we talked he said I should have a FREE CD with my songs and asking for people to spread the word. He’s right. He told me to look up the book FREE: The Future of a Radical Price by Chris Anderson (The Long Tail). Turns out, you can get the unabridged audio for. . . free?

During the workshops across the country and by no less than 3 people at the Songsalive! workhshop, I was asked variations of this question.

Should I put FREE 30 second music samples online?

My response was varied…

How many albums of previously unknown artist have you purchased based on 30 seconds of music?

Are you more interested in $10 or 10 fans?

A 30 second sample isn’t really FREE, is it?

Would you buy your music based on a 30 second clip? Come to think of it, would you buy your music based on a 2 minute clip? (that’s a tough question).

Of the first question, one person responded that they occasionally purchased new music based on samples. I’m certain they were lying – mostly to justify their heels in the ground position that they never need to offer their music for free. It’s their product for God’s sake. You wouldn’t expect a grocery store to give you something for free?

I would but that’s a discussion for another day.

CD Baby, Amazon, and Others

A closely followed and associated question was how they could put their music for sale online…(Amazon, CD Baby, iTunes, etc.)?

The notion that many of these performers have is that by being available on these websites and having 30 second clips of their music, they are going to start making money! Whether they admit or not, they want to, hope to, dream to, make big money! If they didn’t, they wouldn’t be so determined to pay to put their songs online – without any radio play, exposure, or marketing.

The idea of being “discovered” is intoxicating. The idea that the web makes it easy to be discovered is the silver-bullet.

Unfortunately, these musicians, many others, and myself at times, is placing the value in the wrong column. Which brings us back to my initial premise…

Music is Cheap! Fans are Priceless!

When I performed at the house concerts and the venue in Vegas, I was asked by several people at each venue if I had a CD. I am in process of recording a new CD and re-recording the tracks from last year’s CD, so I did not press more of last year’s CD. In fact, I had left my t-shirts at home and had NO CD’s with me.

That was a big mistake. Almost un-forgivable. People wanted to take me home with them and now I am not there to consummate our relationship. I’ve heard the consummating the relationship is the funnest part and I missed it!!!

I am in process now of creating a CD with a smattering of songs from last year’s CD, working demos of this year’s CD, and some additional songs – acoustic workings of new and old tunes.

I’m going to also have some recorded narrative explaining the songs and telling the story. I have a spindle in front of me with 100 CD’s. It cost me about $20. I have a CD burner and I have black and white labels. The labels list the songs, my website, my facebook page, and ask the listener to connect. To get on the mailing list. To pirate my music and spread it around.

I’m making a sign that says

“1 CD = $10.

2 CD’s = $0
If  you promise to give 1 CD away”

The CD label also says, “If you like what you hear, copy this CD and then give it to a friend. If you don’t like what you hear, give it to an enemy!”

I will ask that people who listen and enjoy consider a Paypal donation to cover future FREE CD’s distribution.. the cost of the CD and the cost of mailing them out.

The truth is, my music is valuable to me. And it is thankfully, valuable to a few others. But, for me, until some type of critical mass is reached – and maybe not even then – passionate listeners (AKA fans) are the most valuable commodity. I am happy to buy them with my music. It is a fair trade.

What about you?

I’ll be traveling through various cities both performing music and providing workshops on various technologies and strategies for musicians who wish to both organize and promote their music business.

July 24, 2010 – time to be determined Sam Ash Music, Westminster Workshop: An Effective Roadmap for Online Success

Other performance and workshop dates

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The idea was initially full lyric sections. Then just the hook/song title. For Dangerous Girl and A Little Bit of Everything, it made sense to do a 2-sided shirt.

She’s a Dangerous Girl was simple…

Front: She’s a…
Back: Dangerous Girl!!

She’s a little bit of Everything is more complicated.. so I did 2..

Front: She’s a…
Back: Little bit of Everything!!

or

Front: She’s a little bit of…
Back: Everything!!

Which one? All?

Here are some of the other designs:

“The boots come on when the sun goes down From lace to leather, suburbia to downtown She’s a Dangerous Girl!!”	“She’s  a Sangria with her toes stuck in the sand. She’s a little bit of everything”
“She’ a Dangerous Girl!!”	“She’ a little bit of Everything!!”
“Dice have never rolled eyes of blue but Lady Love can, I’ll bet my 3 to your 2”

One of the items on my plan – a logical next step – is for me to open for some more established acts. I am still booking some shows on my own and will be announcing some house concerts in the next several weeks but am also starting discussions with some booking agents about opening for one or more of their acts..

I hope to leverage and offer assistance with their artists web updates, social media, editing and publishing video, and more. For the more established act, they could have video and images from a performance being added to their website during – and within hours of completing their show.

Really, with my laptop and a video camera at a show, I could be getting pictures of and from their fans, and publishing them in an online album or on Facebook – tagging that person at the same time. This is a great way to get the fan even more engaged.

In poking around online over the past several months, it is surprising how many great acts do not have much presence here. And so, an idea was born.

In return I will have the opportunity to play a 6-8 song set to open their show, have merchandise available, and build my personal mailing list. My hope is to create the ultimate win-win and build great connections with forward thinking artist and music professionals.

I’ve already starting talking to some “friends” of another artist – who might be able to use me in this capacity plus as a rhythm guitarist/accompanist for their set.

Look for more announcements soon. While you are here, sign up for my mailing list or connect with me at one of the social media below..

twitter	facebook	facebook	Myspace
youtube		reverbnation

next para

The frustration is that I am typically giving a house band a hand-written chord chart or simply a key. You learn a lot about house bands at that point – sometimes we sounded great – like we had rehearsed. Other times.. well.. not so much so.

I am now formalizing a band project for some recording and future gigging. Details can be found here. If you know of players who might be interested, point them here.