From the Bob Lefsetz letter/blog (Just.....read.....it!!) Modern rules YOU WANT A HIT It anchors your career. There are hitmakers and everybody else. A hit just means something ubiquitous that everybody listens to, chart numbers are unnecessary. Hits can come in a flash via inspiration, but oftentimes they require a huge amount of effort and craft. Are you repeating the verses? Is the chorus singable, is there a bridge? Strive for excellence in your own chosen genre, reaching the brass ring is what its all about. DONT LISTEN TO YOUR PEERS They dont want you to be successful, that would mean they are losers. They want to keep you down in the hole theyre in. Follow your dream, which is individual to you. AMBITION Without it, youre toast. Todays society is all about being a member of the group. Winners in art are singular. They stand alone, they endure the bows and arrows as well as reap the adulation. If youre not dreaming big in todays world, youre not dreaming at all. PUT OLDSTER ADVICE IN PERSPECTIVE Wisdom comes with age and experience. But dont forget the pre and post Internet eras are as different as the pre and post telephone eras. Not everything remains the same. CREATE CONSTANTLY Theres no such thing as a cycle in todays world. Art is like life. Keep making, errors are tolerated as long as you follow them up with more work of quality. Today the key is to be remembered, because almost everything is forgotten. Dont overthink and overlabor your efforts. Raw and honest works today, and it forges a connection between you and your audience. DONT GET LOST MAKING A LIVING Dont sacrifice your art to get paid, whether it be a day job or going on the road to fulfill your financial desires. Art is about sacrifice. You live on a subsistence level until you break through or you give up. DONT SCORN HITMAKERS, LEARN FROM THEM Even if you dont want to cut a Katy Perry-type tune, your career would be enriched by an hour with Dr. Luke or Max Martin. They understand the game, they understand a hit. WORK WITH THOSE WHOVE HAD SUCCESS Cred in a producer is secondary to track record. Work with someone whos been to the mountaintop and continues to journey there. They can give you a perspective no one else can. COWRITE Do it to learn, not to write a hit song. Those Nashville cats are the best in the business. Their songs might be saccharine or predictable, but they know the system. Once again, its all about learning. DONT CATEGORIZE YOURSELF They rap in country songs. Avicii put country in EDM. Feel free to incorporate your fandom into your work. THE WINDOW OF OPPORTUNITY IS SMALL You can only be the critics darling for a brief period. People will only check you out once or twice, then theyre done. Strike when the iron is hot. CHANCES People will listen to two new substandard works and then abandon you. BODY OF WORK It exists on Spotify. If you connect with a track, people will go deeper. ALBUMS Forget them. Unless youre making a concept one, a statement. They dont fit with todays world. You drop one every other year when nothing in the news lasts longer than a week, in most cases barely a day? If you have a stiff album, itll take years to recover. Better to keep in the public eye by continuing to produce. You want to create a body of work, but it doesnt have to be in album form, after all, the term album initially denoted a cardboard container for 78s. YOURE ONLY YOUNG ONCE You get worn down with age, you know too much. Test the limits. Follow your exuberance. Live and create to the limit. SCREW THE SYSTEM Unless youre creating Top Forty hits, feel free to stand up to the powers that be. Too many businessmen, label people, agents and managers, are stuck in the old system. You can be dragged down by them, or stand up to them. This doesnt mean youve got license to be a jerk, but standing your artistic ground is an asset. But its got to feel right to you, dont be afraid to change or take input because you abhor criticism and believe everything you do is phenomenal, no ones got that great a track record.
Posted on: Thu, 18 Sep 2014 14:15:47 +0000
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