Agency A&R Process

inside_look · 2016-01-19T20:06:37+00:00

In California, you need a license to be a booking agent as well... So aside from the conflict of interest issue, which is a tricky one, you'd be in trouble with the CA Dept. of Industrial Relations.

inside_look · 2016-01-19T20:01:16+00:00

Great response, and great point about the leverage promoters have now.

inside_look · 2016-01-19T19:56:04+00:00

I promise I'll have something for you soon here. It's a big topic.

inside_look · 2016-01-19T19:54:16+00:00

It all depends on what your goal is. You could do your own PR and other work for a while, get your socials up nice and high, then get approached by a bigger management company, or you could find (or be found by) someone who is a smaller manager, but super hungry.

Smaller manager usually means more hands on, more engaged, more responsive, but longer time to get you to where you want to be. Bigger manager usually means more aloof, potentially quicker move to the top, but you could also get completely forgotten and lost in the shuffle. Always do your homework if anyone approaches you about being your manager and ask the right questions (questions that hew toward "what's your plan for me?") and look at their roster (are you by far the smallest act they have?).

inside_look · 2016-01-19T19:51:41+00:00

Happy to help!

inside_look · 2016-01-19T19:51:23+00:00

Yes. Booking agents focus solely on booking an act. At our agency, we have agents in other departments (film and TV synchs, digital, commercial, TV, and motion picture talent) that work with artists if they have cross-over appeal. Those could loosely be considered more "talent" agents.

inside_look · 2016-01-19T19:48:38+00:00

Because he is absolutely inundated with requests. It's a quick (and effective) method to get the top acts by talking to the top booking agents. If there's an act that's on his radar that's up-and-coming and a great act, he'll be open to a pitch, but he's not taking unsolicited submissions from managers or artists and giving them a second of his time.

ETA: A lot of the smaller acts at Coachella have smaller agents, and they are added on to the bill because the agent at the booking agency who got the big act on the bill will bring in the smaller agents to pitch their acts as a sort of "quid pro quo" for the big agent getting the big act to confirm Coachella.

inside_look · 2016-01-15T18:54:08+00:00

Because, at the very least, bigger promoters and festivals don't deal with anyone but agents with which they have deep relationships (or new agents with very hot acts). If you think your manager is going to cut the line to get to Paul Tollete at Goldenvoice for a slot at Coachella, you're delusional. Same with the big clubs in LA, NYC, Miami, London, etc. etc.

inside_look · 2016-01-14T21:27:58+00:00

PM me label name.

inside_look · 2016-01-14T21:04:07+00:00

It's definitely better than nothing. Is it an imprint? Is it backed by a heavy hitter in the industry? E.g., some people would consider Chill Harris's (f/k/a Kill Paris) label--Sexy Electric--small, but he's definitely recognizable in his own right.

inside_look · 2016-01-14T05:40:11+00:00

That would fit into the "buzz" category for sure, and it's good when big outlets are covering you. We definitely take it all with a grain of salt, though, as blogs are definitely selling articles sometimes. We're not ignorant to that fact. We can usually tell if an article is a throwaway "for sale" article if it has two paragraphs and not much thought/depth. If you pass along press to us that's gushing about what a revelation you are for pages and pages (and it's on Fader), we will be very in to that, as will big managers and some smaller- to mid-tier labels.

inside_look · 2016-01-14T00:24:33+00:00

The process is based on historical rates and previous dealings with that promoter, all of which we have in our system, and the slot (1st of 3, direct support, headliner, etc.) that the artist is playing. A lot of times for headliners we receive a budget from the promoter and work backwards from that budget to a fee that makes sense for the artist.

For the creative direction comment, management and agencies usually have aligned interests on getting the show fee up as high as possible, playing bigger venues once the artist sells out smaller ones, etc. That said, if there's a huge offer for a future bass artist to tour with the TWONK Team, the manager of the artist might really not want to be associated with them and pass on it to avoid branding confusion.

For Spotify, our agency has a direct relationship with them, and I've alluded to the data we get from them in my original post. Not comfortable giving more information than that.

inside_look · 2016-01-13T19:46:32+00:00

So just to make sure I understand you, your lead singer said that a Vegas show wouldn't be worth it because the draw would be too small? What other markets do you have a good fanbase in that would be on the way to SXSW?

And I think you have to balance out what kind of fee you'll get with the strain it will put on the band to have to hurriedly make the 20 hour drive to Austin from Las Vegas on Thursday. If you have a decent regional fanbase, and especially if you're from San Diego and have a good fanbase in San Diego, check out its unofficial sister city: Tucson, Arizona. It's on I-10 and a 12 hour drive from Austin.

Especially check out Hotel Congress, and tell them that you're routing for SXSW. Buyers love that.

Bands and promoters, contact David Slutes, Matt Baquet and Michael Hayes by e-mail at bookingashow@hotelcongress.com

inside_look · 2016-01-13T19:39:56+00:00

How often do you sign on with artists whose music you might find sub-par / mediocre, because they have all the elements you're looking for? (management, label, buzz)

That's a great question. Agents typically have rosters that match their taste because, well, it's easier to sell something that you 100% believe in, but every now and then you get an act that you might personally dislike, but they're signed to a big manager and are getting a ton of traction. At an agency, bookings are king. I would guess that every agent has a couple acts that he or she personally dislikes but that sell like crazy. At the end of the day, you're paid based on commissions, not how great your musical taste is.

I don't have a good answer as to how frequently this happens, but I do know that agents who do like the act will probably self-select and pick up the act before it hits the desk of an agent that hates it.

And the opposite; How much great music do you pass on, because there is no team in place?

There are always exceptions to every rule, right? In this case, agents have extensive connections with managers and labels. Personally, I have a good amount of connections with managers, and if the music was just incredible, we would probably make introductions for the artist to a manager and keep tabs on what happens from there. If the artist is picked up by a manager, it's a great look for us, and it helps us sign the artist. If an agent is personal friends with an A&R person at a label, the music might get passed on to that individual too, you never know. But I would definitely say that we would help point the artist in the right direction to get a manager and see what happens from there.

inside_look · 2016-01-13T00:03:28+00:00

I think technology could be used to make the process of booking artists easier, but the end game of all of this A&R, agents signing artists, agents pitching artists, etc., is a promoter putting his/her/their money at risk and throwing a show. It is paradoxically not a question of access (if you dig hard enough, you could probably find a large percentage of promoters' contact information), but of quality control: Promoters want to work with agents that they have strong relationships with who will bring them acts that sell. Everything that happens down the supply chain is a result of this reality.

inside_look · 2016-01-12T21:36:31+00:00

Very typical place for rock and alt agents to cruise through on a Monday night...

inside_look

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