TALK TO ME!!!

THATS HARD TO CALL. I THINK TREY SONGZ HAD CRAZY PROMO ON TWITTER, USTREAM AND SAYNOW HE HAS CRAZY RADIO SPINS BUT HIS NUMBERS WERE NOWHERE CLOSE TO WHERE I THOUGHT THEY WERE GOIN TO BE. ONE THING TREY DIDNT HAVE WAS ANY REAL PROMO FROM HIS LABLE SO MAYBE THATS WHERE THE DIFF IS.

Stay connected to their fans (especially with today’s tech) …& push ur own ish….if u dont GO HARD & PROMOTE ur own project…(why would any1 else.) Twitter does cut out a lot of the BS!!!! (the same happen with MARIAH)… Back in the day.. it on the radio…tv ads..u saw posters…tshirts…all kind of ish that promoted up coming projects…I GUESS EVERYBODY JUST THINK THEY’RE JUST THAT GREAT THEY DONT NEED 2 PROMOTE THEMSELVES…again i aint no expert..jus my opinion=-)

Have it promoted correctly…I didnt know either.. Not the radio, online, mtv, bet, nothin…..If I was him I would have been Twittering the shit out my my drop date..

I honestly think artists need to promote themselves and engage their fans. Labels act like they have ZERO budget to promote their artists. What’s the point in spending money on making an album when no one knows its even coming out? Trey Songz wouldn’t have sold half as much if he wasn’t on twitter, ustream, and the like. It’s all about viral marketing to build that rep. Artist needs to get back to old hustling days of selling cd’s out their trunks, making numerous appearances, and not sleeping until the job is done.

I feel bad for Mario and others like him who have true talent and are being looked over. I love the fact that, despite it all, he has remained true to his craft. With that being said, everyone needs to go pick up a copy of DNA…it’s certifiable!

This is all Mario’s fault.. Artists don’t wanna promote, advertise or sing anymore.. Everyone thinks their good looks is all that they need to sell. I have not seen this brother advertising anywhere and neither have YOU… So there.

I agree with JD. Twitter has helped me reach out to alot of independent and major artist looking for national radio airplay. We are a national radio marketing & promotions company based out of South Florida. Office 954.753.2700 and would love to work with JD. We are a huge fan! – Thanks

personally i think they need to spend more on marketing digital presence, radio promo, and get more involved with your fans as you do and fabolous

i agree cuz i was one of those people tht tweeted u back and said i had no idea..i didnt even kno the name of tha album until u tweeted it..i think they jus need to go ham for themselves…cuz ifu go ham for urself then ur tru fans will go ham for u as well..and the fact tht he’s on tour i think his label chose the wrong time to drop it..he shoulda waited after the tour or at least did promo..Trey Songz did hella promo..with his tour..crazy meet and greets crazy interviews i mean he went in and when a artist does that u get more interested..i mean homie has 5 songz spinnin right now..and had at least 3 b4 tha album dropped..plus he released a mixtape b4 his album came out buildin tha anticipation..So my point is if Mario did more promo and more interviews and went on ustream or tweeted more..or if his street team was doin heavy promo more ppl prollie wlda known..but hey if u want more sales u gotta go those extra 1000 miles..thts how i see it

I believe in order to SALE an artist must be seen at all cost at award shows, 106 and Park (is a must), and every outlet available so many times we see artist think they will sale off there name alone…..which causes an EPIC FAILURE

ARTIST THESE DAYS REALLY HAVE TO USE THE INTERNET TO THERE ADVANTAGE. YOU ALMOST KINDA GOTTA GET IN THE NEWS. YOU HAVE TO USE TWITTER, FACEBOOK, MYSPACE, EMAIL, TMZ, PEREZ,CONCRETE LOOP, MEDIATAKEOUT, USTREAM ALL THAT. I MEAN ALL THE POPULAR WEBSITES THAT PEOPLE GO ON EVERYDAY YOU HAVE TO USE. ITS ALMOST LIKE YOU HAVE TO BECOME POPULAR WITH THE PEOPLE OVER AND OVER AGAIN. I HONESTLY THINK TWITTER IS THE BEST THING, CAUSE IT GIVE THE PEOPLE THAT IS GONNA BUY THE ALBUM A CHANCE TO KNOW YOU. ARTIST NOW AND DAYS HAVE TO JUST DO WHATEVER THE NEWEST THING IS. I MEAN IT SUCKS THAT YOU CAN’T JUST DO THE NORM AND BE SUCCESSFUL BUT ITS JUST THE TIME. JAY-Z WILL NEVER NEED TO GET ON TWITTER CAUSE HE HAS ALREADY MADE A NAME FOR HISSELF, HE WAS HOT WHEN EVERYBODY WATCHED TV/. NOW THE INTERNET IS ALL PEOPLE DO. AT WORK, AT SCHOOL, AT HOME. I MEAN I DONT REMEMBER THE LAST TIME I WATCH 106 AND PARK OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. IDK I GUESS ARTIST HAVE TO WORK MUCH MUCH HARDER NOW AND DAYS.

I agree with the self promotion aspect but that only goes so far. The labels need to stop putting albums out until the people are begging for it (aka Drake). Keep putting out singles to build anticipation. If the singles are hot enough people will demand the album. It’s a double edged sword cuz the label isnt always gonna give an artist more singles, especially nowadays and you want people to be suprised by whats on the album, but thats where creativity comes into play (Youtube, Twitter) and people aren’t buying albums anymore unless your an established artist like Beyonce or Justin. New artists are struggling, but it all comes down to the singles. Look at Lady Gaga…she’s done it..If the label is f*cking up, artists and the other people behind them gotta get more creative. Hell, if The Oceans can get their songs written about in newspapers and get free promotion just from Living The Life (without even trying), then these artists can do something to maximize exposure and bring attention to their music. Holla jd!

Trey Songz was a pure example of what you should utilize Twitter & further more the internet for as an artist. Hit us as fans up @least 2-3 times a week on twitter with updates…create an entertaining YouTube, I personally feel like Myspace is kinda dead because it’s over flooded with alot of garbage, yet @ the same time having a page is essential for those who haven’t realized that yet. Create a great blog that can unite all the elements that separate you from the rest & keep all your links updated. The mixtape game is crazy these day’s but I rather hear some original material (Drake, Trey Songz) than those jackin for beats re-mixes. I mean Drake been doing it big for a long while, but as soon as he created a completely original Mixtape (“So Far Gone”) he blew up like crazy. Always be ORIGINAl & set trends…. connect with fans & stay on your GRIND! Soulja Boy is another person that utilize the heck out of the internet (alot good, some not so great)…. U know… look @ Dondria!

I just found out by watching 106 today, which i dont normally watch. That being said, ummm someone isnt doin their job. Its all about marketing and getting the word out. There are to many outlets out there for people not to know. Twitter and FB are really great ways to reach out to the audience. Making appearances on different shows always helps. Pump up the album release date. If you aint excited why would I be. Dont get me wrong, im gonna go buy the album tomorrow, but if i wouldve known in advanced and wouldve be hyped about I might have been @ best buy when they opened up. Twitter and FB are great outlets, but you have to remember everyone is not tuned into the 2. Therefore other sources have to be used. Trey and his team did an excellent job of promoting READY!!! Just my thoughts….

msbadyella

I think JD the radio stations are missing out on an untapped market, because a lot of radio dj/personalities are on twitter and are following the artists but are not giving out the twitter pages for the fans to learn what is going on with their favorite artist. This would help the artist out a great deal, also they need to hook up with cell phone companies since everyone has the internet on their phones. This would help the artist with their promotions. Also female artist need to stop alienated their female fans because guys (straight) are not buying any Beyonce cds. Also most people don’t watch videos anymore so why waste money on making them.

First in foremost image…on one of videos u & sinatra said “IMAGE AINT EVERYTHING, BUT IT AINT NOTHING” I absolutely agree, you have to have some type of appeal to your audience. Promotion i believe is the most important!!!! who the hell will know your album is out if you or your label doesnt promote it? Most of these labels are lazy and there focus is on something else so really self promotion is HUGE in the industry right now ie; youtube, skype, ustream, TWITTER, myspace etc. . hell if u have to sell ur albums on the street corners DO IT! noone will go as hard as u. Relivancy is a must! stay in the blogs, award shows because you can quickly be forgotten. I can go on for hours

i really think they need a twitter. twitter is better then facebook & myspace for promoting. rihanna’s first tweet was about her album. that’s a huge plus for her cause now everyone know about her album coming out in november.
they really need to put out a single ahead of time and if that single don’t do good then they got to release another one. basically their singles make it happen. if they’re singles aren’t big and aren’t playing on the radio no one is gonna know about they’re album.
i found out about his album from you. he didn’t do much promoting cause basically everyone didn’t know about it. if he did promoting, then he did it wrong.
mariah did great at promoting her album. her single came out & it went sky high. then she released another one right before her album was about to come out. people were counting down for the release of her album. that’s how promoting should go.

WELL FOR MYSELF AS AN ARTIST I FEEL NOW MUSIC IS IN THE TRANSITION PERIOD LIKE FROM CASSETTE TO C.D. NOW C.D. TO MP3. FOR ME I DONT SEE MYSELF COMING OUT WITH AN ALBUM BUT A COLLECTION OF SONGS THAT WILL ALL BE MY SINGLES. WHEN EVER ONE SONG PLAYS OUT AND GETTING OLD ON THE RADIO I WILL BRING THE NEXT IN. ALSO IT WILL SAVE TIME AND MONEY BECAUSE YOU WONT BE TRYING TO MAKE AN WHOLE ALBUM HOWEVER LONG IT MAY TAKE. JUST SINGLES.

i think that they got to get out there and be connected to their fans, but i don’t like the word fans so i will say supporters. they have to make it known every time they open their mouth. like when trey songz album was getting ready to drop he kept talking about wheather it was onfacebook, twitter, say now, tv, he was out their making it known. you can’t expect for the label to do that for you anymore because they are lacking that right now. you have to get out there and do it yourself if you want to sell, it’s just called grind andif they want to know how to do it is ask trey songz. he got it in.

What’s good JD? I’m a first time poster and I’m definitely going to make it a regular thing. What artists need to do is start working with as many different bloggers as they can not only in the states, but internationally as well. For instance, Japan is the 2nd largest music market behind the states and promotion here is nonexistent in spite of the fact that there’s a huge market here. (PLEASE tell artists that these Japanese companies will NOT promote anyone properly).

There are a number of things artist need to do in this world since the music industry is digital now.

Work nationally and Internationally with producers and put music out in different markets i.e. East Coast, West Coast, South, Midwest and Internationally.

Don’t be afraid to put make a hot mixtape. – Some artist want to hold on to what they think are their hot singles and save them for their albums. Put that ish out now and keep making more music.

Use Youtube. – Need I say More

Put your mixtape out and do shows off that mixtape and singles off your forthcoming album.

Hit your bloggers up and give them your music.

In closing, the internet to the club is the way to market yourself today. Nobody watches tv as much anymore because it B.S. (No more Rap City, MTV is joke, and you gotta upgrade your cable to have MTVJ)

Artist need to take note from players in the game like Wayne, Drake, Gucci Mane, Curren$y, Trey Songz, Wale, OJ The Juice Mane because these guys don’t live off their previous work, they live to work on more music.

i agree that music execs need 2 know the times we r living in. and if the powers that be r not marketing the artist properly then the artist needs 2 get their shit 2gether and do it themselves. release dates r known way ahead of time so if 6 weeks b4 ur album is coming out u dont see any advertisement then u need 2 get on the ball and do what u can on ur own. a lot of artist leave it all up 2 the record companies 2 do everything. all they want 2 do is appear, perform, and get paid but its more 2 the work than that. see , we remember when u and ur crew had 2 drive from place 2 place and sell records out of the car and beg dj’s 2 spin ur joint. u also had 2 make appearances at fairs, clubs, conventions, carnivals, step shows, homecoming parties and where ever else a crowd of folks was going 2 be 2 get the word out that u had new music coming. and a lot of times u did these spots free or u paid 2 be on the bill. i believe that the marketing/promotions dept of a rec company needs 2 be on their A game but if they r not, then the artist needs 2 step up and do what they gotta do. every chitchat, and blogging website offers open advertising so spend some money 2 make sure that when folks log onto myspace or concreteloop they see ur album promo. hell 4 a whole month b4 letoya luckett shit dropped we saw ads on cl of her release date. and mario got a little change that he could have done some stuff his self. hell i just saw pics of him all in dubai and shit last week. he should have been over here making us sick and tired of seeing his ass on every show letting us know his release date. thats my take on that. thanx jd. i appreciate u. l4l

JD, Janet and you back together JD, tell me ture. please tell us you and Janet back together again
poeple are talk about on twitter please JD, just say . why stop do interivew on talk show? you should go on Tyra banks show to talk about your new project just maybe you has go on Tyra banks show befor I think be coo you go on Tyra banks.

I think Trey Songz had on of the best promotion ideas I’ve seen in a long time. So did Drake. I think releasing mixtapes and keeing new music coming out was a great idea for both of them. Also being on Twitter, streaming, and staying in the media will create a buzz about the artist which will in turn make people look for upcoming projects.

PJ Morton also has a great strategy at the moment. He’s setting up street teams in different cities that are setting up listening parties and engagments where he can interact with fans. It gives him the chance to see what fans want, it gives fans the chance to meet him and give input, and they are creating quite a movement for him on FB and Twitter.

YALL NEED TO PUSH YALL ARTIST 9TH WARD I THINK HE CAN SELL ALBUM HE MAKES GREAT MUSIC

Hey JD,

I’ve actually done social networking campaigns and ad buys online for musicians and record companies. However, I think a lot of the old school marketing tactics are HORSE SHIT now-a-days. Everything and anything the fans want, they can get, at anytime, and for free. Release dates, mass media publicity, and even publicists are becoming old school.

Today, in 2009, it’s all about direct communication between the artist, and his/her fans. Demand has turned immediate. To fulfill that demand efficiently enough to continue engaging your consumer, you need to use tools like Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, Myspace, UStream, Youtube, etc. When you keep feeding your fans with content, they stay engaged, they become loyal, ultimately making them more likely to buy your product (music, magazines, clothing, etc). They trust you have a relationship with them, and once you put that into the hands of another person, or professional, it becomes mechanical, and no longer sincere. Thus, the consumer (fan) will move onto another product. One that may keep them engaged.

Even if you engaged fan base only consists of 60,000, it’s more valuable than 600,000 occasional listeners. Proof? Jada Kiss! He pulled off 60,000 units first week, without all the bullshit tactics of a major. Impressive? I think so!

The answer isn’t black or white but of course very gray. I feel that artist need to do a certain amount of major push but the majority of the push should be micro. There are hundreds of social networking sites, twitter, myspace, facebook, aroundtheway, moco and so many others. Everyday people, everyday fans go to these sites 24/7 like you said it is a new era and fans need to feel like they are closer to the artist and not just in the ways being done now. All promo being done by most artist is too worn out, invent something new or something different, PURPLE COW. I feel like artist and execs need to do it new and connect with their fans JD you connect to yours with a blog, twitter, a label, a group Oceans7, and even a movement TheLifers. I feel the answer is so complicated yet so simple artist need to be them and connect to their artist in a real manner. I could type about this all day. Plain and simple artist and labels need to be more original with putting content out to their audience. PLEASE MAKE MUSIC/BRAND STAND OUT AND NOT SEEM LIKE THE OTHERS.

They need to follow the Lil Wayne and T-Pain model and get on as many tracks as they can and make sure their verse/hook is on point. That’s how you have to build your name. Then, you perform wherever you can. Release your video on youtube; it can be low-budget (fans don’t care as long as it’s put together well). And announce your album as often as you can. Like Jenn said, “you need to use tools like Twitter, Facebook, Blogs, Myspace, UStream, Youtube, etc. When you keep feeding your fans with content, they stay engaged, they become loyal, ultimately making them more likely to buy your product (music, magazines, clothing, etc)”.

MAN WHITE PEOPLE BUY SHIT BLACK PEOPLE STEAL SHIT UNLESS REALLY A CONSUMER OF ALBUMS BUT THINK ABOUT IT THO IF YOU HAVE THE WHITE POPULARITY ON YOUR SIDE YOU WILL SELL. FOR EXAMPLE I GO TO A PRODOMINATELY WHITE COLLEGE WHITE PEOPLE KNOW LOL SMILEY FACE I NEED A GIRL . THEY ONLY KNOW ONE OF MARIO HOT JOINTS THE BREAK UP SONG. TO ADD TO THAT NIGGAS NEED TO FIND A DIFFERENT WAY TO GET THERE ALBUM OUT THERE DO MORE PUBLIC EVENT EVEN IF THEY MIGHT NOT BREAK YOU OFF WITH A LOT OF BREAD BUT SHIT ITS BREAD THO !! RIGHT?? MAN ARTIST NOWADAYS NEED TO GET SMART THERE SELVES FORREAL REMEMBER ITS A BUSINESS !!!!!!!!!

Honestly, I feel that artist has to go hard as hell, they can’t just sit around waiting for the label to promote for them you gottta want it more than anybody else including the label. (does that make sense?)

“MAN WHITE PEOPLE BUY SHIT BLACK PEOPLE STEAL SHIT UNLESS REALLY A CONSUMER OF ALBUMS BUT THINK ABOUT IT THO IF YOU HAVE THE WHITE POPULARITY ON YOUR SIDE YOU WILL SELL.”

Speak it!!! I tried to avoid saying it… Market to white people or gay people if you really want to make money. Say what you will about her, but Taylor Swift is racking up…especially after Kanye pulled that nigga moment. Beyonce has a huge gay and white following.

DAMN!!!..,Mario album came out?!!!.,WTF?!!.,*smh*

I personally feel like every artist has to handle their own business!!!.,thats their lively hood!!.,you cant depend on your “team” to do it ALL.,You gotta have a hand in gettin’ the buzz out too. Nobody will take care of you like you will!!.,I have to agree with @Kandi!!.,Jay-Z was trending for damn near a month.,LOL!!.,and in the process made history by breaking Elvis Presley’s record!!.,and let me add that I feel bad for Mariah.,I don’t know what the hell happend with her team or wtf Def Jam is doing but her first week sales were bad!! .,and she is signed under a major label and appeared on Oprah!!*smh*.,,she couldve done that without being signed to Def Jam.,my personal opinion!!
The key is to interact with your fans.,get them involved and go where they are!!.,You gotta BE SEEN!!!.,Im no record exec or anything.,but I will say this,.,Jay-Z kept me interested!!.,I couldnt wait to go and cop Blueprint 3!!!.,He was workin’ the net, the blogs, and where I live.,D.O.A didnt even get that much play on the radio.,but on the day Blueprint 2 released.,It was sold out and on back order!!.,Jay-Z worked the hell out of the media and internet!

Make a sex tape, get arrested for DWI or have a gay affair…JUST KIDDING. If I knew the answer, I would be “livin’ the life: for real son.
Social Work Flo

Artist need to stay current in 2days world to sell! They need to network all the vehicles that are available Twitter, FB, Myspace for example. This is hard especially wit other commitments , but a very necessary tool in this current market. It also wouldn’t hurt to actually communicate wit the fans, even though they want your first born. Just give them an update wit a few shoutouts every now and again. It tells em that you care about them, and they should care about you. Fans and fan base are the keys to selling. Crossovers will happen b/c everybody knows everybody, so talking to 10 can get ya 50 and so on. Radio, websites, and television are big vehicles too. Then its how to use them. Make every opportunity count like its your only one!
Piggyback off what’s already making sales. Mixtapes, celebrity word of mouth, touring, listening parties and GIVEAWAYS are huge! I knew Mario’s CD dropped b/c of Twitter, but he should’ve been streaming, tweeting, and shouting it out daily. Yes even on tour…..Trey Songz keeps his finger on the pulse. Now others might not get down like Trey, but get down in some way, form or fashion. It hard to know exactly what will work, but there are blueprints available and they’re being updated hourly to stay on the bus. Ride the bus until the wheels fall off, and share your seat but don’t expect nobody to SAVE you ONE!

PR people are still needed to help develop an artists brand. Unfortunately artists have gotten a raw deal since downloading became the way most people get their music. That is why brand management is so much more important. Twitter can be a gift and a curse. Say too much or not enough you lose fans. There are numerous examples of why and how people hurt their careers with these poorly managed social networking site accounts. Artists need to diversify. Mario is a heck of an artist and has had some great hooks of late on some tracks getting heavy radio spins in my area, Head Board, and Break Up just to name two. The question is where else is his brand being pitched. If he was in more ads or psa’s for the non-profits he supports people would recognize him and his talent. Artists need to focus on making sure everyone knows who they are and focusing on building a brand to drive their quality albums. He also needs to put together a stellar album, if an album isn’t seen as classic quality or a must have it will get downloaded on LimeWire which doesn’t benefit the artist or his brand at all.

I think that facebook and twitter is a good way to get it out there. Tyrese has thousands of followers and when his show FIRST IN was coming out, he twitted about it almost everyday and posted links to watch clippings, which made me want to check it out. Now its a show that I watch. With facebook, if you ask everyone on your wall to add it to there wall and have their friends to add it to their wall and so on, it will get around quickly. Also what about radio ads. You can get a 2 or 3 minute, 1 month radio ad, which will be played 3 times a day or so, for around 2000.00. Or maybe even look into a TV ad, which will be more expensive. These type of things will get the information out there

Add me to the list of people who didn’t know Mario’s album was out. LOL

That promo is so key. And if the artist is not being pushed hard enough by their label, they need to take the initiative to push themselves and get help from people that actually BELIEVE in them.

Its about exposure…Mario had tht club banger wit gucci but who knew where it came from…it was on dozens of mixtapes and undergrounds releases…u have 2 hit every venue and ave…i feel like artist r lazy these days only relying on 1 or 2 things 2 get their album promoted…u have 2 hit the radio stations the blog sites the net erywhere…magazine pages…posters on walls out side of concerts…u gotta pimp yaself…thts the hustle tho

Its funny but the problem is simple. Although we have all the communicational avenues within our reach, many people forget that coordination is the key to success. if we didn’t hear Mario’s album was coming out…. thats his marketing teams fault…specifically his web team. you can make your presence on the internet immediately. theres no need for bookings, tapings, or interviews…you control your whole push. I’m sure Mario thought that because he had the biggest single of his career that he could just flop on the marketing. his assumption must have been that people were just gonna check for him. WRONG!!! If I’m the artist…I want status reports from my marketing teams EVERYDAY! and every other day, I want to be meeting with them to ensure what we set out to do is taking place.

No one promotes themselves the way they used to. These younger/newer artists should already be with the technology program and know how to get in touch with their fans and stay there. But obviously they don’t and Mario just proved it. Its bad enough his first single is crap but whats even worse, to me, is when no one knew his album dropped including folks in the industry like you and nachojohnny. LOL smh Same with Queen Latifah, I didn’t know she had an album coming out until I started following her on twitter last month a week or 2 before it dropped. Nice album too.

I’m just a consumer & don’t know all of what goes behind what artists have to do to maximize sells,but what mrggfep said is spot on IMO, especially this:
#2 you have to have a strong CD period. A lot of folks do download music illegally, but if they like an album they will go to the store and buy it… if they only like 3 tracks they will continue to ride out to the bootleg. A lot of folks will listen to their friend’s cd or bootleg and make a decision to buy or not. You have a lot of major artists who make 3 killer tracks and the rest of the CD sucks… I am not paying $11.99 for that.

It should ALWAYS start there. Especially nowadays when we can just purchase individual songs off I-tunes,etc, artists gotta do a whole hell of a lot better than 1 club banger/ballad/whatever anybody’s preference happens to be………If all I hear on the bootleg is blah,blah,blah w/ maybe 2 or 3 other songs I like then I’ll buy the single just to get a better quality sound but WILL NOT buy the whole album. & honestly if that 1 criteria can’t be met, then it doesn’t even matter how much an artist promotes on twitter/facebook/all over the TV or anything else.

Another thing that artists might want to take into consideration is that not everybody is in the teen-mid 20’s age range. I understand that that is a KEY demographic for a lot of artists but sometimes content that is appealing to them isn’t what everbody else is checking for. A lil bit of balance for those of us that have moved beyond that stage would be nice. I enjoy some of the “new generation”‘s music & I’m not that far removed from it, but sometimes I hear these songs & I’m just like WTF that’s why I haven’t listened to the radio in years……LOL, I know that’s some shit we used to hear from the generation before us & I never understood it until now, but it is what it is!

Damn, I had no idea Mario’s album drop today. It’s just proof that if you don’t have an online presences you are fuck in this game man because majors ain’t doing shit. He didn’t even do a radio tour though. Damn his label really fuck that shit up. Welll, JD you better not fuck Dondria shit up man. LOL!!! You need to tell her to get her Youtube pass 100,000 subs before she drops that album

The biggest problem that artists have today though is the target audience has more things to compete for their attention than every man. You have TV, Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Video Games, etc. You will never have another MTV made star again. I mean look at Lady GaGa. I think all her buzz is internet driven. She makes the most of her TV appearances but the clips probably gets seen more on the web than on the TV show itself.

A budget and a plan. You need a lot of leg work completed like promo stuff. You gotta get exposed thru
TV, Movies and other medias through wich a large audience tunes in or gives attention to it.
Once you get the audience to remember you, your sales aren’t far off. A good market is needed also.
Creative marketing tactics. Family deeeeeep in the business.

niggas ait buyin shit no mo cause they too busy working on they “album” no matter how talentless they may be. as long as people think they can become stars the microwaveable way i.e you tube, reality shows fuck a celebrity make a sex tape (for the semi famous only) but as long as this way of celebrity is being promoted people could give a fuck about buying a record cause they are too busy in fantasyland!

And I usually jus look inside the Best Buy or Target ads to c what new albums are coming out. Lol. That always helps. Besides seeing Mario in the airport last week (has nothin to do with it. lol) I new his album was coming out Tuesday, jus didn’t have the time or doe to get it, but I’ll support the homie and cop it in the morning. I’m prolly 1 of the last 5 ppl on Earth to ACTUALLY GO OUT AND BUY ALBUMS (It’s only fuckin’ $10 ppl!!!!!).

On the other hand you can get up some real money. Buy your own name and register it. Buy your own logo and register it. You can buy your own domain. Go get some servers and learn about networking or pay for an administrator. Pay for the highest spot on the search engines (all of them) and Advertize online. Build a web page and commerce page to your server and sale, sale sale. Meanwhile, hand out free promo stuff. Throw contests. Be Creative!

Sorry JD, last post. Lol. No disrespect, I like Trey Songz’s music a lot, bought ll his albums (BOUGHT), but his mixtape “Anticipation” was better than his actual album “Ready”. It seemed rushed to me. Not being a hater, but putting out good music is the key to drawing ppl’s attention to ur current buzz and anticipating ur album.

market visit

Yo what up people. I’m fresh from Vacation. Nigeria to be exact.

Well I Havent’ read everyone’s comments so if I say something that someone already said, forgive me.
Mario album is un heard of becasue his song isn’t that hot. I know it did well on 106 but it wasn’t something that stuck to people. DiiGG!! Plus promotion level was very poor.
You see how Jay, Trey, Fab, Jada, Rakewon, and Genuwine promoted their albums. I put it in the order of best to worst promotion. I think the biggest mistakes that artist make these days are not going to every radio station. I know they go to the big name stations like power 105, and hot 97, and others, but what about other cities, like Kansas city, Indianpolis, St. Paul, and the list goes on. The small cities make a difference. Also, they leave the label to do the work of promotion. The label has a budget and the rest up to you. You see how Bow Wow, Soulja Boy, Fab, Trey, and hell even the whole Oceans crew who put a mixtape that got mad downloads, use the web for promotion. Staying in touch with the fans makes a DIFFERENCE!! A big difference. How many mixtapes did Trey put out before he droped his joint? Same with 50, and others.
Keep in touch with the people.

Hunney hit the nail on the head artists need to stay connected with their fans!! That’s what’s missing then they need to self promote like hell Use Twitter Facebook every media outlet available.. Radio spots r another good idea buy some spots for commercials for the cd on tv and radio..go to the stations do live on air spots ,signings all that shyt u gotta pull out the big guns these days… I would do a major city signing tour hitting every corner of the country and lastly make sure u stick to what the public likes from u and make good music!!!

I think artist need to do more radio, internet, and street team type of events to get there records to sell. I aslo believe that artist needed to get out more in the cities and preform at small venues to let the people know that they are still out there and have new stuff out.

Just as LADYT105 said trey songz had a crazy promo, he used every avenue that was given.To do anything they can to promote their album; twitter, myspace, facebook,ustream,saynow,youtube. Radio stations isn’t a guarantee of promoting because of today’s technology, we have ipods, iphones, mp3 players, blackberrys etc. So most people use other devices to listen to music, they get new music of the internet and may not listen to the radio as much as they did before all these devices came out. I know that’s how it was for me.

I knew his album was coming out only because I happen to see it on Itunes…but he should have pulled a TREY SONGZ PROMOTION TOUR……that man did every TV show, every Radio show, Blogged, USTREAM and mean everything he could to let his fans and everyone out there that “READY” was coming Spet 1st and that was a great way to gain fans or just to alert to public and he is still going strong with the BET 106 & Park tour……So Mario didn’t have that drive to put his self out there so thats why no one knows. Now if he was someone like Whitney who really didn’t have to do all that much promotion it would be a different story but Mario is no Whitney…LOL!

damn, im mad late. personally i think artist should start thinking smaller. like, okay, you have a twitter, a ustream, possibly a youtube channel, and maybe you post a blog on someone else website here and there, but really its about lacing up the boats, and just getting hands on. putting your face out there in the streets in real time. look at all these damn colleges in america. if i was an upcoming artist, or even an established artist. the first thing i would want to do is try to book shows at as many colleges as i could. thats your biggest crowd right there, and then get some sponsors and try to hit up some high school events. even more, look at the whole alternative sports thing with skateboarding, bmx, ect.., squeeze your way into there. although the internet is big, and its easy to find what you want nowadays, that doesnt mean everyone has time to scour the internet, nor do they want to make time. im sure mario been speaking on his album through tweet, radio, ect.., but although millions still listen to the radio, overall a lot of people arent. mario is cool, but im not personally peepin for mario, but if mario came out here to vegas to unlv, i would most likely be randomly walking through the campus, peep flyers, and check for him, then that could potentially be another sale right there.

speaking of flyers, get old school with it. take 2 grand, have someone print up some flyers of your album coming out, get a small squad in a few major cities to spread it out, and bam. long story short, i feel like its all about thinking smaller now. everything has gotten so big and easy, people are forgetting simple basics like, yo, im off tour for 3 months, but i gotta hustle, so lets drop a mixtape and spread that shit. im gonna sit here and go to every website i can. from video gaming forums, to hip hop forums, and spread word. im gonna fly to random big city and grind, hit the streets, spread the word. some artist probably just need to lose the pride, and the glamor and just grind. didnt ludicrous make mad bank before getting signed, selling albums out the back of a fucking whip?

its one thing to drop a mixtape and just let the net do the work. its another thing to drop a mixtape, let the net do the work, put in work on the net, and take your mixtape to the streets. mario my nigga, drop a mixtape, get a squad, take 500 of them joints, and literally just walk around baltimore city giving them out for a few hours. besides just getting back out there, and getting your material out there, your also creating a buzz. im sure the news might even give you a few minutes on air.

for those that dont wanna work hard, they need gimmicks, but gimmicks only go so far, and only so many people can pull it off. from an arcade owner, to an upcoming hip hop artist, you need to think small too, and not just let the net do everything for you. shit, if i was grinding to become an artist. i would go to every college in my hometown and post flyers, perform at parties, and even try to get booked for major events. i would spend weekend mornings posting flyers and driving around giving out my cd. i would be on the net. everything. im a part of one of the biggest fighting game websites on the net, with a rap thread thats ALWAYS active. an upcoming artist could respectfully drop through there and link their album, and people will listen and feedback. if its hot, it will become hot, and a thread being hundreds of pages long, you wont that kind of attention.

also, i think little stuff counts too, like soulja boy being on xbox live all the time and playing games. like thats little shit, but he is still drilling his name into your consciousness every time you see his gamertag on gears of war or whatever. artist need to start blending a mass amount of cultures together in their career plot. holla at the people who listen to electronica music. see if you can get a good trance record out there. thats more people to listen to you, and peep your other shit. there is so much that can be done, that people just dont know how to do, dont know that its an option, or just to lazy or enclosed within their little box, that they wouldnt even try to do.

I agree with @Fresha….Trey Songz did a lot of promoting. He put a mixtape out for his fans and to increase his popularity, he toured, did radio, tv, ustream and probably a lot more. I had no clue about Mario’s album coming out. He didn’t say much about it on Twitter and he didn’t promote it heavily. Personally, I didn’t even know that he had a new album coming out myself. It’s all about keeping your fan base while attracting new ones. I didn’t hop on Trey Songz until around August and that was mostly because of his promotion. I downloaded his mixtape and I loved it! He’s also changed his appeal. He’s gotten more muscular, he cut his hair, he made some major changes as an artist and that’s what made people turn heads. He attracted positive attention to himself in order to let the world know….AYE, I’M READY! Hence the name of the album.

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they should make better music LOL im sorry…

OMG! I don’t know. Try every avenue possible these days. It seems even hard as a consumer to keep up with what is going on with artists. It is just hard with so much gonig on out there–the Internet, tv, print, media, radio, international…Work your butt off to stay relevant and in people’s faces. Maybe they should talk to Beyonce about that ’cause chick is everywhere–ching! ching!

I knew Mario had an album due but not the date, that is a fail on the part of his record company… They came out with the Break Up song and they should of been hitting everything hard off the back of the single, their is so much competition these days, people are not just going to spend Dollars, Euros and Pounds for the sake of it.. You have to make them believe in what they are buying in anyway you can.

I WANT MARIO TO DO SOME BALLADS. I’M GETTING TRIED OF THEM CLUB TRACKS.

YOU KNOW WHY I DON’T BUY ALBUMS NOMORE? WELL, FIRST OF ALL, MOST SONGS ON THE ALBUM ARE NOT RELATABLE TO ALL SORTS OF PEOPLE WHO LIVE THEIR LIFESTYLE DIFFERENTLY THAN OTHERS. TODAY’S MUSIC IS ONLY RELATABLE TO PEOPLE THAT PARTY ALL THE TIME, AND GET DRUNK ALL THE TIME, AND DATE ALL THE TIME, AND FUCK WITH DIFFERENT WOMEN ALL THE TIME, AND BREAK HEARTS ALL THE TIME WHEN THERE ISN’T A SONG ON THE ALBUM THAT DOESN’T SPEAK ABOUT EVERYDAY SHIT THAT PEOPLE GO THREW OR STRUGGLE THREW WHEN IT COMES TO EVERYDAY LIFE. THERES TOO MANY ALBUMS OUT THERE WITH THE SAME OL SAME OL TOPICS.
MOST ALBUM TITLES ARE OK, BUT IT DOESN’T DRAW TO MY ATTENTION BECAUSE I WANT TO BUY A ALBUM THAT’S DIFFERENT FROM THE RECENT ALBUMS AND OTHER PEOPLES ALBUMS. THE SONG TITLE IS LIKE THE SAME SUBJECT AS ALL THE REST OF THE SONGS, THEY ALL HAVE THE SAME SUBJECT LINE WHICH IS “LOVE” “SEX” “MONEY” AND “PARTY.”
IF YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN, YOU WOULD KNOW WHAT TO DO THE NEXT TIME IF YOU WANT ALBUMS TO SELL.

I WANT TO HEAR A ALBUM THAT DOESN’T SOUND LIKE EVERY ALBUM THAT’S OUT THERE. THERES TOO MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE THE SAME CONCEPT WHEN IT COMES TO ALBUMS, RELAITY SHOWS, TALK SHOWS AND ECT. THERES 1 KILLION THINGS TO SING ABOUT OTHER THAN THE SAME BULL SHIT ALL THE TIME. I CAN’T RELATE TO TODAY’S SONGS BECAUSE GOOD PEOPLE DON’T BUY THAT CRAP. NOT EVERYONE DO WHAT EVERYONE DOES YOU FEEL ME.

BUT YEAH, IF YOU BUY ONE ALBUM, IT’S LIKE BUYING EVERYONE ELSES BECAUSE IT SOUNDS THE SAME.

wat up jd in order 4 artist to sell records these days the artist and the rec companys need to come out with betta product for 1 every good album u get like 10 bad 1s. I think content is what is missing in music nowadays! there are ppl tlkin about real stuff but real ish dont get paid on mainstream radio! the record labels need 2 change how they market their artist! on the r&b and hip hop tip it has gotten stale because everything 1 maybe doing there own thing but the blueprint and image is basically the same! taking from the blueprints of the michael jackson,madonna, whitneyjanet,dianna ross. etc of the world and have artist b that representation for this era! Record labels need to reach out to these new mediums bring music bac to being about what the ppl want and if they do that the money will come! If u look at the black eye peas they have billboard on lock! not only cuz the music is dope but im sure they have a hella marketing team that make sure they r reaching the fans an connecting with the via fb,myspace,twitter , you tube etc. I think that u r heading in the right direction jd with this new viral medium! In orde for the music industry to surviive the have to break from convention and try something! thats when greatness happens when u try something new and take a chance!

I think there needs to be a limit as far as what you place on Twitter. Although it is a great marketing tool, it can also be a double edge sword. You want to make sure you still have your boundaries and not get too personal. You might interact with your fans by doing what you are doing and simply asking every day questions/opinions of your followers. Anything else only opens the flood gates for criticisms or for people to be TOO much in your business. Rumors about one’s personal life should not be addressed IMO, because that only gives more life for the gossip to circulate.

I think it’s important to do features as well and collaborate with other artists. Especially if you are a new artist or an artist who takes awhile to put an album out. While you do not want to oversaturate the industry, you DO want to keep your name somewhat relevant.

People should really give back to their fans and utilize fan clubs with their websites. Whether that be an exclusive blog, video diaries, or exclusive single previewing. You want to reward the fans that truly endorse you.

CD jackets and album artwork need to be special. You should include maybe a DVD or extra bonus content with your album like video games do. Perhaps a preview of an unreleased song or remixes (Whatever happened to those? Like REAL remixes back in the 90s that changed the beat up and created a whole new song… instead of just throwing a rapper on a verse or another artist a verse?). I mean this is going to make people want a physical copy more. Hell you could even do a Willy Wonka type promotion and put a few tickets to an album release party or a live listening session for those who buy it.

More touring. I think that should be obvious. And I don’t mean those huge arena tours all of the time.. Maybe when the actual album comes out.. But perhaps in between albums you can do a quick mini-tour… a 2 month tour or something with maybe 20 cities where you go to actual live music venues and the ticket prices are reasonable.. So that perhaps people who aren’t hardcore fans of you and willing to pay for those 80 dolla arena venues can get a chance to see you live. You might make new fans and thus have more people come to your huge arena tours if you are a big artist like that.

One needs to understand that the industry now is nearly unified. So you want to do as much as you can do to make sure people hear your music. Maybe get it to be put in shows. I’ve found a lot of great bands by hearing music in tv shows like Grey’s Anatomy or at the end of True Blood or something of that nature. Santigold’s songs have been used in tv commercials… So if possible, you want to license your songs out to advertisers.

Try to get your face out there by modeling… the Gap does great ads with celebrities all of the time, and good commercials too. You can lend your celebrity to up and coming designers who are “on the verge”. Maybe even take SMALL parts in acting if you want to branch out. Point is, you want to keep your face out there BUT not where it is the focal point of everything. (You don’t want people to get sick of you after all).

Buzz singles. Everyone needs them… you want to definitely do a buzz album if you’re a new artist or make sure your songs are featured on mixtapes. Just so that you’re able to get people to hear your music. For established artists.. you might do a “prelude” to your album and just release a song or two… not reject songs from your old work, but maybe a little sampler. Sort’ve like what the Foreign Exchange did for their latest: Leave it All Behind.

And finally…this is my personal preference.. CHALLENGE YOURSELF. Content-wise, lyrically, and sonically. Implement different instruments and do not follow trends. If you do, you blend easily in with the masses.

For rappers/R&B artists, you may want to collab with indie bands like the Yeah, Yeah, Yeah’s or Black Keys or some bands outside of your genre to appeal to a different audience and get that crossover money :).

I FEEL YA JD. BUT FIRST OF ALL ITS HARD TO FIND REAL ARTIST DATS SERIOUS ABOUT THIS CAREER, BUT ANYWAYS IN ORDER FOR AN ARTIST TO SURVIVAL IS TO MAKE REAL MUSIC FIRST OF ALL. TARGET YOUR FAN BASE. EVERYBODY CAN’T REACH DA WORLD. ONLY THOSE WHO MAKE LIFE CHANGING MUSIC CAN REACH DA WORLD. ANYWAYS, MARKET YOUR MUSIC. LET YO MUSIC BE HEARD.

JD,
Different artist require different promo tools. Like trey aint snap till he started rapping/singing on the hot tracks that where out. Lil’ wayne put out a mixtape a day it seemed like to hit a millie in a week. Even icons like Mariah and Jay needed some leaked tracks to guarantee the success of their album sales at least. As a consumer nothing is worse then the feeling you get when u dislike an album or feel like u got cheated, after a month of countless promo radio, tv, etc. So every artist is different the way you would put out bow wow, with an already established fanbase, is different then you would with dondria. A nigga like mario, i feel like it is his fault cause he resting while niggas is out here gringing i seen somebody say they thought trey was gonna do alot more than they thought but honestly trey couldnt have done what he did without the work he put in. Mario should of been on twitter talking shit, youtube showing his ass( figure of speech) and on facebook catching up with his core fans. Take fabolous, he is a perfect example of a nigga the re mastered his career. just off twitter alone he has gardnered a new following that will lead to new sales, deals and endorsements. this is no longer just the music business. This multi-media pop culture rolled into one, no longer to assign a street team to go bullshit in the streets for one hour of one day or week to represent what sales will be 6 months from now. You of all ppl know this is an everyday thing. youtube/ twitter has humanized many artist, so now fans stand shoulder to shoulder with an artist and demnd more and as an artist you either put up or shut up. Niggas my age(22) clown the man but right now he is industry pioneer, soulja boy. He sells but is not solely dependent on record sales. Drake just fucking toured a mixtape!!!!!!!!!! That being said why the fuck does he need to put out an album????? The funny thing is the underground buzzin if he put out that same mixtape to the white ppl it’d go platinum. It was better than anything put out this year. Im very interested to hear your reponse to my post. I respect your vision, movement, work ethic and devotion to excellence. and hopefully we can keep the lines of communication open and i can be as resourceful as possible.

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Не, ну лучше адидаса млжет быть только адидас, што не говорите…

Gaga is definitely silly in my opinion

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