getting signed as a solo....

kinda generic thread....

but how does on get going on their solo music?

its easier to get signed in a band, but when its just you, all the instruments, a songbook and a mac to make and record the music. how do you get going?

im 15, have written 28 solo songs that are dave matthews and john mayer-styled, recorded 3 of them, i want to know how to make even the slightest bit of something with when out of high school...

or even in?

actually, the recent signing trends have been toward solo artists...get out and play. Oh, and make sure that your material is NOT styled after any one in particular...do we need another Dave Matthews? No...one is plenty. Find your own voice, write your own material for you. There are two types of musicians in the world...imitators and innovators. Which would you rather be? I'm not saying that you shouldn't have influences, but you should temper those influences through your own life experience, and bring your own sensibilities to YOUR music.

Try to contact a serious company that places music in games, films and television. Good placements means good exposure, both to the general public and the music industry.

You can gain lots of exposure through the internet, look for sites that review you style, sell through CD Baby etc. Usually labels sign after you have proven yourself.

thanks, ive just started making good-quality recordings of everything. im gonna have some up on a myspace and purevolume soon...

its not so much i style my music after them...no. i mean like when getting a basic song idea i can listen to them and get a basic thought of what i want. i try to write the lyrics and sing as uniquely as possible.

places that play music in games and movies? cool. ive played my song 'daddy's little girl' for everyone know, being th one i worked hardest on, theres actually another thread with it, but i after i play it for people, they start listing movies that they think it should be in. so thats some decent exposure, but doesnt easy to get in at all...

im thinking that first start to it is using tunecore for exposure there, then finding a managre to help get stuff sent out.... good idea? i dont know...

i listen to a guy named billy redfield who writes awesome solo music, he says he has a manager to send stuff to labels and everything...but hes STILL not signed, and his music is amazing and very unique...

You can use the internet for selling and exposure all you want, but if you're living anywhere other than the bigger music cities you will never get signed. Also, as a solo artist, if you want a major-label-fame record deal, you'd better look as good as you can (seen any ugly guys make it big yet?... No) and play at least mediocre(ly?) well. Also, if you're as young as you say, I doubt (sorry for the negativeity) that you've written 28 songs worth listening to more than once. Let's hear what you've gotten so far. The reason for the semi- rant is that I'm doing the same thing that you're trying to do and I had hope to be signed by the end of the year (and had hoped to be so earlier). Have fun!

i live in atlanta...i think im ok on the city part....

but theres rap labels left and right here, it always seems to me like its hard to get signed playing rock here, but hundreds of bands come down here to record and play a bunch of shows while in town, so i guess the scene is pretty decent.

no offense taken, alot of those songs actually really have lame lyrics, theres only about 10 that are even half-decent, those are the ones ive been reocrding to have on a demo.

Well, all this is generally true, but not necessarily so. I live in a small town in North Idaho and a couple of bands from here have been signed. And in fact, I found it much easier and more profitable to build a fan base in outlying areas that to try to make it in a city. A city is where you go after you have a strong fan base who will come there to see you. While I was playing small towns and festivals in Idaho, eastern Washington and Oregon and Montana for $750-1000 a night for bar gigs and $1000-1600 for festivals and concerts, my friends in Portland and Seattle were either losing money, or barely breaking even. And I sold a ton of CDs at these shows. That's a major factor in label interest.

As far as looks, you're right, as a general rule, but there are lots of exceptions, too. What do Dave Matthews, Bruce Hornsby, SRV, John Mayer, Dr. John, and Barry Manilow all have in common? None of them are going to win a beauty contest, and all of them are millionaires from playing music.

Now if there was only a market for old fat guitar players....

Now if there was only a market for old fat guitar players....

You and I would be famous!

The big fish/small pond method is tried and true, and far more likely to lead to some level of notoriety as opposed to being a small fish in a big pond or a medium fish in a gigantic pond...

as to ugly guys...look at Michael Buble...