Networking 101

How many of you know someone who is extremely talented, but never made it because they never got the opportunity to be heard? How many people miss out on their opportunity to "make it" because they didn't know the right people in the music game who could open the door for them?

All of us do...but in this day and age, with the internet, and sites like twitter, facebook, and myspace (yes, labels STILL scout talent on myspace), not knowing the right person or being able to connect with people who can advance your career is no longer beyond your control.

First things first - before you start trying to link with people in positions of power in the music biz, you need to make sure your skills are up to par. Presenting something to an A&R that is subpar quality will only make them angry that you wasted their time, and will get a door shut in your face. In the music biz, once a door is closed, only GOD can reopen it. Don't wait to see if He will; get your skills up.

Once you've got product worth presenting to the labels, you need to develop an online presence. Our big break came from a site I'd never heard of, called pmpworldwide.com, where songwriters and producers can pay a (sizeable) fee, and post their material. A&Rs, artists, and label execs then can come to this site and scout for songwriting and production talent. Our manager, Nick Velo, an A&R at Beluga Heights (J.R. Rotem's label, home to Iyaz "Replay" and Jason DeRulo "Whatcha Say", and Sean Kingston) happened to be in the back room of Chalice Studios going thru pmpworldwide looking for talent, and by the grace of God, he found us. I'll never forget getting that message from him thru the site saying, "Here's my email. Let's build." Few words, but life-changing, especially considering all that's come from that one message.

You need a twitter, a facebook page, a myspace page, and I recommend a GMail account as well, as most of the A&Rs and producers I talk to on a daily basis on twitter also have GMail accounts and are often available to chat thru GTalk. If you sing or produce, think about starting a YouTube page to showcase your talent. Justin Bieber was discovered from the series of YouTube videos he made singing various cover songs, and now he is the hottest young pop artist next to Lady GaGa, and sold more than a million copies of his debut album in about 3 months, which rarely happens anymore. Make your pages look as professional as you need them to; i'm a writer and not an artist so I can pose with my shirt off because i'm not selling my look; if i was an artist, i'd have an artist pic and professional looking layouts. Develop relationships...this is the MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU CAN DO. Don't just send a tweet or message about sending them your material, and then only contact them when you need them. Develop relationships with the A&Rs, producers, writers, artists, label reps, etc. that you are fortunate enough to connect with. They have so many people coming at them for what they do that you will get lost in the shuffle. Some of our best relationships, I only rarely even mention music. Treat them the way you'd want someone to treat you if you were in their position.

Also, learn to adopt new technology and networking sites early; myspace made quite a few artists very wealthy because they joined early and promoted themselves and their music tirelessly, and they got discovered from their buzz. That still happens now, but it's rare, due to the exodus from myspace to twitter, facebook, and other sites.

Once you've developed an online presence and have material worth presenting, start reaching out to the people you are interested in working with. Be concise, and honest with them. If you want to know if you can write to their music, say so. If you want to send them beats, say that as well. But understand that if they're established, hundreds, if not thousands, of people are doing the same thing. Be patient, and be respectful. With time and patience, you will start to build a network of powerful people with the keys to the doors you seek.

Finally, once they extend an opportunity to you, FOLLOW THRU! You are only as good as your word...if you can't write or record or produce, etc. what they are asking you to, say so up front. Once you prove that you are unreliable, that is a door that will be closed to you. Make sure you say what you mean, and mean what you say!

Good luck, networkers!