Andrae Palmer

What makes a song successful

In high school a friend of mine introduce me to music production. Before that, i was making mixtapes using PCDJ silver recording it through music match. It was a fun time but making beats or riddims as we call them in Jamaica was different.

I got a copy of FL studio 3.4, and started to make beats as i knew then. It was fun, i had many weird ideas, drum patterns and melodies all thrown together. At that time i knew nothing about arrangement all i cared about i had an idea and i just created a pattern. I would draw out the pattern for 3 minutes long and that was my beat.

When I started sharing my work with my friends, the comments were not as encouraging. Plus when i compare them to popular tracks they just don’t sound the same. They were nice but different. Something was missing and at that point in time he shares with me that my beats needed a bit of structure. This would be useful so artiste can write a song to it.

One of the questions some artiste I knew at the time would ask me is when does the chorus start? Where is the verse? How long is the intro? I was clueless to what they were talking about. Luckily my friend knew some well known producers and they explained everything to me, that I’m about to share with you in this article.

For songs to be useful for both listeners and DJ’s they have to have a certain structure. Meaning the songs must be arranged in such a way when played against another track it doesn’t sound weird or different. That’s if that what you are aiming for.

Popular music has a familiar feel to it and knowing this structure makes it easier for you as a producer to make music that artist can use. The most popular format being used by songwriters and producers is the ABABC format. This is also known as the verse – chorus – bridge format. There’re many variations to this but essentially it bowls down to this.

The A or  verse section

This section of a song is calmer and less busy. The reason being is that you want your listeners to get connected to the heart of the song and move the story along. All songs tell stories in some form of way and the verse is where you get all the details.

For example in Bruno Mars Grenade, in the verses it’s only a piano, a basic drum beat.  The lyrics talk about the details of the type of person he was in a relationship with. The way he pens the lyrics gives us the details of what was happening and a little more into his perspective and what he was feeling at the time.

From a production standpoint as the song moves throughout the verse the anticipation builds to a point where we expect something else to happen and boom the enters the pre chorus. This builds more emotions and changes up the music a bit to lead into the next section of the song.

The B or chorus Section

The chorus is the heart of the song. It’s also called a hook. This is debatable because I have read in book where the author teaches songwriters that every song must have a hook and the hook can be a line in the chorus or the chorus itself.

For a producer this is the section of your beat that’s hype, very busy and has a main repeatable melody. This is what you use to differentiate the verse from the chorus and it helps the artiste and listener knows that the music has changed.

When arranging songs and beats these two are the most important section for any song and as you arrange your ideas utilise them to your advantage.

To build on Bruno Mars song Grenade, the chorus is obvious and it stands out from the rest. The way he sings changes, there’s more musical elements in the background and background vocals thrown in to fill out the spaces and make it interesting and memorable. These little things when added together makes the chorus stands out from the verse.

The C or Bridge section

The last component of the song is the bridge. This is noticeable by the chord changes and at times can be dramatic as well. This section is often useful to give a different feel to the song and make it even more interesting and less boring.

Not all songs have a bridge, and this section is used a lot in pop music as well as r&b and country. Genres like reggae and edm don’t use it a lot. So don’t feel like you are a slave to use it in all your work, you don’t.

Conclusion
Those are the components of a song hope they prove useful to you and your productions as they did mine.

How to create a music marketing plan

 
 

Marketing is one of those mysteries that seems hard to crack if you don’t know anything. We know it’s something that is necessary. Because without it, our art remains unknown to the right people. According to former Coca-Cola marketing head Sergio Zyman, marketing is selling. So when you set out to promote your new song or album what you’re doing is selling it to the right persons.

So, in order for your marketing to be sustainable, you have to be deliberate about how you promote your work. Ryan Holiday says in the new book perennial marketing that everything is marketing. Every activity you do is marketing your work. But before you do anything you need a plan and that plan will help you reach your goals.

Know what you want

The first thing you need to do to get started is to establish the outcomes you want. This will help you know if you are achieving your goals. Here a few you can consider to start off with:

  1. Sell 1000 album downloads
  2. Grow email list to 5000
  3. Book  10 new gigs at new venues
  4. Sell $5000 worth of merchandise


These are only a few but there are countless other goals you might want to achieve. Get very clear on this at the beginning. If you aim at nothing; you’ll hit it every time.

Figure out who want what you are offering

The next key part of the plan is to know who you’re targeting. Who will come out to your live shows? Who is going to buy your music? Who is going to buy your merchandise? These are the questions you need to answer. It will help you narrow your focus and make your marketing effective.

So what does this look like? If you do reggae music, fans of Bob Marley, Dennis Brown and Chronnix, will like your music. If you do rock music,  fans of Linkin Park and other similar groups will be into your stuff. When you target fans of these artists it’s because they will be most likely to listen to your stuff.

Another thing you can consider is the behaviour of your fans. Do they like sports, fashion, or other interest. This information can help you create unique marketing campaigns. This will give you many options when you’re ready to run your marketing campaign to grow your fan base.

Find where your people are hanging out and go there

The next thing you want to do is find where they are hanging out. This will aid in your planning and what you do to market your music.

Direct Marketing guru Dan Kennedy says anything can spread your message. For example, radio, TV, flyers, magazines, ezines, blogs, newsletters and billboards. You name it, it can carry  your marketing message. The aim is to find where all the people whom your music appeals to, get their attention and convert them to fans.

With that in mind find all the places that persons find out about your type of music or where your fans hang out. Make a list of places where you can possible perform that these people hang out. List all radio stations that play your music that you can do an interview. Newspapers, blogs and magazines that your fans read.

This list will help your marketing as you have a starting point to get the word out. Because what you will be doing is reaching out and sharing your music with them.

Execute Execute Execute

Now that you have a solid plan in place and know who you are targeting and where to find them. Get out there and start to spread the word because no one will find you if you don’t have a plan on paper and not use it. It is a lot of work and will take time but in the long run you will grow your fan base.

Things to keep in mind when doing cover songs


Cover songs have long been a part of music over the years. Lots of artist use covers as a way to find new fans and to make their sets interesting.

But can you simply do a cover of a song just like that? Well, theanswer to this question varies depending on the situation. And that is doing public domain songs and songs still owned by publishers.

Public Domain Songs are free to use

Public domain songs are songs which have been released for over 50 years and not owned by anyone and free to use by others legally. You as an artist can use public domain songs as you wish and can get your feet wet with using covers. Hymns are songs in the public domain and a few others.
Songs owned by publishers

Should you release your version of a top 10 billboard song and resell it, say on iTunes, then there’s an issue. Because you have no permission to use the song to sell it.
If you desire to redo a single as apart of an album for resale, there are publishing houses to contact for help re this matter. Depending on the agreement, there may be  arrangements to use the single without pay or to pay a licensing fee. The agreement may differ depending on each situation.

How to get permission?


The basics of getting permission to cover a song are to first contact the publishing house responsible for the artist you want to cover. As for some major labels, they facilitate covers. So, you pay a fee to use the single as a cover or to sell it based on the agreement made.


From a promotional perspective, simply singing the song and posting it on the various mediums online, should not be an issue, granted that you put out the disclaimer, stating the intended use and that you are not the legal owner of the song.


There are known instances where persons are asked to remove an original song published because they did not seek permission to do so.


Just note there is a facility in place to get permission for use of songs not owned by you.

Hope this helps to demystify the world of using covers.

Your questions are valued. Email me at andrae.palmer@gmail.com, to get your questions answered.

How use cover songs to promote yourself as an artiste

A cover song is when an artist sings over another artist’s original song. In the early days of music, in particular, reggae music, a number of the artists sang covers. One such person is Sanchez. He transformed popular songs from  R&B, Souls, and did those songs on reggae beats, and he made the song his own.

An easy promotional strategy is to sing covers that are from artists whose fan base is similar to yours.

eg: you’re an  R&B singer, you have picks from the likes of Chris Brown, Rhinna, etc. As A POP artist, your picks may be from the top 10 Billboard charts. This would normally be done in the early phase of your career, to build your fanbase.

For a deejay or singjay, you can mix it up, for example, using the hooks of popular songs and doing a completely new verse to showcase your lyrical skills

The next phase of the process, You’d have then published your cover on youtube, and so when persons are searching for these originals eg. Steven Marley and Pitbull ” Options” they’ll find your version in the mix.

The spin-off is that persons may check out other singles you have posted as well.
You may choose to do a pristine production of the cover, or simply do a lyric video or a live acoustic performance.

Cover songs can be used to find new fans online. Use this as a means to get your name out to the public. You may release the cover while working on your originals, as this is just a way to ease into the market.

 Covers are an effective way of introducing yourself to new audiences. This may be a way to funnel persons to your youtube, and other social media pages, where they can update themselves and get familiar with your work. Existing fans may also better appreciate your music as a result too.

 Doing a cover though does not mean that you will do the song back in the original form. instead, transform the song in a way that makes it uniquely yours. eg.Sanchez  is known to go all out productions and performances of covers, which, in turn, leaves you thinking it’s  his original.

When you find the cover you want to to do, check out the top 10 or 100 Billboard charts. Get the lyrics and chords for the song. You can get someone to play it for you, and you record the video of your live performances or an all-out production.

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How often Should an Artist Release Music


How often should you release music

The question as to how often a singer should release new material is up for debate. But in this week’s blog post we will look at the EP campaign, and the results,  following the launch of the THUG EP project by Dawit Jeffery and how it, assisted his career, as a recording artist.

What better way than to show a real-life case study as to one way to release music.

In a singles-driven market, it is recommended that you release songs every 6 to  8 weeks.The frequent release of songs can be tied to the release of an album or leading to a show.


THE EP CAMPAIGN

In 2012 Dawit Jeffery and I linked for the first time, and he did a song “Nuh worry Wi” in collaboration with Jason Ramsey (J’Son). This was the first song recorded by Dawit.


The general idea is that you release 4 to 5 singles from the album, leading up to an event. All this is the link to a larger campaign.


To release the first song, we decided to release a lyric video and posted it on youtube, facebook, and Twitter. This was shared with friends. Additionally, the song was sent to a compiled promotion list of  DJs. We also used Soundcloud.  that was basically the campaign.


The second song ” I call on Jesus” was released about two months after the first release, and the same steps were taken. This too for the third and fourth singles, which saw the final release, January before the EP event.


In between the release of each song, work continued to complete the production of the album.


The EP EVENT SUMMARY


About March or April following, we launched the EP. The location was  Dawit’s church in the south side community. The event featured collaborating acts on the album and other supporting friends.


A band was hired to for the event. they were given the instrumentals for the tracks to do a few rehearsals.

Entry to the venue was $JMD300. You enter the venue along with receiving the EP.
Persons received a printed CD, packaged in a designed cardboard sleeve casing. ABout 50 persons turned up to the launch.


I Noticed the crowd’s response to the songs performed. The majority knew the songs word for word. Nothing significant was done as a full-on promotion, and the results were good.


THE RESULTS OF THE EP LAUNCH


From the launching of the EP,  Dawit has received a number of bookings for events, such as concerts, leading praise and worship sessions, and a number of speaking engagements. Recently he was invited to share at a book launch.


Persons have become more aware of his music and the other things he has to offer. This has propelled him over the past four years, as an artist and as a  brand.

Conclusion


When looking to promote an album, or you just want to know if it is wise to do so, you can examine the results of this case study, and other case studies like this.

Frequent music release allows a buzz around your brand. Note you can be easily forgotten. Over time you get support for your music and your fan base grows as a result.

How to use an album as a marketing tool


When you look at the music landscape over the years to now, it can be said that the album as a format, is dying, or probably is dead. Nobody is buying albums, or singles, instead, you find persons streaming. 


The question is,  what’s the purpose of doing an album as an artist, and how can an album be used to maximize the potential of sales, and be used as a marketing tool for self-promotion?


The song selections affect the sound
The music you select will represent you as an artist and will influence the type of persons you want to attract to yourself, such as who will book you to perform.


When putting together songs for your album, you should structure them in a way that is well -fitted for a performance set. When you are booked for a 45 minute to an hour set, and perform live as a headlining artist, you should have a group of songs to perform, representing a complete performance, leaving the audience satisfied.


The group of songs is for you to showcase your sound and style.You may send your songs to persons, or when they discover you online or otherwise, can listen to the songs that you have, and this can lead to one deciding to book you for an event. 


eg; A person may decide on getting Joe Artist for a show, because of their liking for his music, and believes that others will appreciate his sound because he embodies that pulling factor for reaching audiences or drawing a crowd to a concert.


An album is can get you media attention

The music itself is a marketing tool for you to get more shows. This can be what you issue as your flyer, business card to prospects.


Outside of the songs being what they are,  songs are a way to get media attention.


eg: Say you send a single to an editor. the single on its own, would not necessarily get the traction needed. The situation is dependent on the genre, and market. So if you are an established act, you probably would get the media to talk about it, whatever their spin which in turn, would warrant media attention.


The release of the album itself can be an event launch enabling media attention. The album launch may be considered a manufactured event for press coverage. With the media at hand, you are able to give them a press release. This includes the packaging of the album, your photograph, biography, and other related info. With this done, granted that you reached out to the right media contact, you will be able to get write-ups for the different editorials. So with the media attention, is added value to you marketing your work.


Along the lines of hosting an event, say in this case a mini-concert, you could consider inviting other artists who are considered established or are similar in sound to you., and whose audience is similar the same.  


 eg you’re a reggae artist., and your sound is similar to a Chronixx, protoje, or perhaps a gospel artist like a Jermaine Edwards, what you can do, when putting out your album, is invite these persons to the event. This allows you to share the stage with them. Their fans will come to your show. so when you launch your album with these persons performing alongside yourself, persons will pay attention to you, and if your music is likable, persons may buy your album and support you the same.


Can be used to book shows

As an independent artist with 6  to 7 singles, outside of the secular arena, you can do one song and get a break, with a follow up of consistent bookings. For gospel, it’s different.Yes, it can work for others genres as well. However, when you have one song, persons are skeptical of putting you on a show for longer than 10 minutes. if you want to perform for 30 minutes to an hour, with an album out, you’ll be able to showcase a catalog of songs, that persons like, and will keep a crowd entertained for an extended period.


With a catalog of songs Persons are able to decide whether you are an artist they’ll have on their show, or maybe you would add value to supporting a headlining act on a show. Additionally,  you can promote yourself as a headlining act based on the fact that you have a catalog of  work to promote your sound as an artist


Conclusion

  • Your song is your business card. It speaks for how you want to market yourself.
  • You showcase and self yourself through building your song catalog.
  • The album can be a means to get media attention.

let me know whether this information has been helpful. Share your questions and comments.

4 things you can do to Promote your music now

You have finished the recording and mixing process for your new song now what? Here are four things you can do now to promote your music.

1.Email songs to friends

The general understanding is, each person, may know at least five persons.These persons may be friends, acquaintances, family members,  persons you meet, etc. You’d have had their contact email address, or, are friends on  Facebook, for instance.

So this first strategy is simple. You send the song to these persons that you know and talk to on a regular basis. Include a message stating the title eg:” mama don’t cry”, and suggest the need for feedback.

Be it email, WhatsApp, Facebook, make it a personal message to the persons, asking them to listen to the song, and to give their take on it.


2. Share It on social media pages, or Groups online

Outside of emailing friends, you can post the songs for example on facebook, twitter, google+. This is just one aspect. Another aspect is posting the song in groups. You may be a part of different groups based on your interest.


Eg: you may be apart of a football club group, so it’s easy to share the song with them, as you would already have been familiar with them. You could engage one on one with some members, getting feedback on the song. You might say, ” hey guys I have a new song called Mama Don’t Cry, and  I’d  really love your feedback.


It’s basic stuff like that. It should not be done as a blast Instead, explain in your message that you have a new song, also stating your reason, intent, and need for feedback.


3. Send the music to DJs for radio play DJs who will play the music you do

This is a big part of the promotion process. You should find DJs that play your music. It makes no sense to send a reggae song, to a contemporary gospel station. Find the DJs that play your music. They are easy to find, they are on Facebook, they’re on Twitter. Ask them for their email address, let them know you have a new song you want to submit it to them, then send the song to them.


Most of the times you may get their email address for you to submit the song to them, and if they like the song, it will be added to their playlist, for airplay. Some DJs will compile mixtapes and may add your song to the mix.


For those DJs who are not on a radio station, they are Online. They might put out mixes weekly to their audience so you can submit your work to them as well.


4. Live Performances sing the song you’re promoting at each live performance

Live performances can be seen as a way to promoting your music.  Each time you go to a concert to sing, for example, the song you would promote at the time, should be apart of your performance set. This is something that is noticed to be done by a lot of artists. eg: in the Jamaican gospel scene, an artist like DJ Nicholas, when he was promoting his single ” Holy Ghost Gym,” for every performance around that time, this song was done.
This was a part of his promotion strategy for the song. After a while the song became popular.
This is one way to consider when promoting a new song.


Conclusion

Using these four simple methods, you have four ways to promote your music:
  1. Emails songs to friends
  2. Use social Media 
  3. Submit songs to DJs for airplay
  4. Live performances

What is the Correct Way to Send Promos To DJs

At the end of getting your song recorded, mixed, and mastered by your producer and engineer, you have the final product, and you need to promote the song.

One of the best ways is to get the music to DJs. You will first need to collect info for all DJs you have listed as targets, eg. email address, phone, etc.

The norm for persons is to put all the email addresses together, attach the song as an mp3 with the artwork, and then do a blast, with the title” New Music” by < Title Song>.

The Right Approach


When you send promos it is better to take a few things into consideration.

eg: DJs may not want you to attach the song as an mp3. It may clog their email inbox. Sometimes when the inbox is full, and you send an email, it may bounce. At times you don’t get a response from DJs, this may just be one reason.

Another consideration may be to know whether a DJ has received and read the email sent. How would you be able to know this? Probably, you may listen in on every show, where you have mailed the DJ, to hear whether your song is played.

Chances are, you may contact the persons individually to confirm this as well. Quite a timely process, and ineffective.

Email Marketing Software

There’s an easier way to know who has read your email or downloaded your music. One answer is Email Marketing Software. Your email view will look more organized.

The setup offers the option for a Logo display of your label, or of you as the artist. Basic info about your song, a press -release, or A Bio can be done.

You can attach links for the DJs to download or listen to your music before deciding on downloading it. The system will allow you to know who has played your music, and you will then be able to decide, who best to send your work, based on the responses.

One type of Email Marketing Software is Mailchimp. it allows you 2000 emails there about when you sign up for free.

When you sign up, emails sent are tracked, and you are able to tell who did or who didn’t open your email. Also, who downloaded the music.

This system proves far more effective, when you know who directly to send these emails to. So marketing and promoting new songs is easier for you.

If You use your regular email, You will put the name of one DJ in the ‘ To’ section then the other DJs at the ‘BCC’ section.

BCC is Blind Carbon Copy.

Each DJ will get the message without anyone else knowing who else has received it. The drawback is that you won’t know who opened the email, or who downloaded the music. Note too.

Sending an external link is helpful, as sometimes the DJs may want additional info within the package, such as the song instrumental, and the artwork.

eg. A DJ may want to mix the instrumental while transitioning the song, and so on.

Using External Services


The Standard is to send the package as a zip file, not attached to the email. External services may come into play. eg: Dropbox, Mediafire, mega.nz, box.com.
These services will allow you to track the number of persons that have downloaded the files. This is to help you effectively target the process.

Conclusion


The most effective of ways to send promotional emails is using an Email Marketing Service. Additionally, you should include as part of your package, A small press release, the inspiration behind the song, and other related info that are useful to share with the DJs.