You want to be the music producer?​

You want to be a Rap Star?​You want to be an R & B Star?​You want to be a Rock Star? ​Will you be the one?​

Of course, it is a million in one chance, but all you need is one chance. ​Did I hear, Right?​

You are the product.​

You've created, you've recorded and you’re satisfied with your music.



Now you must reach an audience of thousands, if not millions, that will pay you handsomely. You are responsible for the marketing and promotion of your music so that it can be discovered by the fans and the industry professionals.  They are your audience hearing your music and they want to pay you for that. 

​It is your audience, not anybody else that will make you a STAR.​

You must garner the things you need and then execute them. Whether they are acquired or by your own ingenuity, these are the tools used by everyone, if they are new to the business or they have years to show for it.​

Your music can go viral, the newest way to be a big sensation, but how many songs are viral?​

You can hope your music goes viral and suddenly everyone knows about you and it didn't cost you a dime. Good luck with that strategy.​

Hope is not a strategy.​

Having a good plan and executing it, is what works.​

Here is how it works;​1. Pay to acquire fans:​You should be acquiring fans every moment of every day, of every week, of every month.



Year after Year and so on.

 

You are doing it the old fashioned way, which is not so old fashioned, by performing to your fans.

By being right in their face. 

You get a show, you perform. 

At whatever point, you will get paid as such for your show.

It depends in where you are in your career.​

If you have some recorded music, your options increase because you can reach many of your potential fans online.​

It isn't free and you need to understand that.

LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and the new MySpace, people are talking and listening.

Well, time is money.

It only feels free.

When you add up the time you spend online and you have a messy house, you are doing it wrong. That doesn't mean you shouldn't be active on Social Media.



It’s great for managing an already acquired fan base. But it is costly.​

Forget Twitter followers. Forget YouTube views. Forget Facebook likes.



Don’t waste your time being caught up in the perception of traction.

Spend your time and money creating real traction with real fans.​

If fans love it, you get their contact information and presto, a relationship is established.

An online service that can expose your music to thousands of hits, likes and views and deliver the fans’ contact details to you.​

There are plenty of artists who earn a living with just 1000 true fans within a region.

Get your 1000 true fans (at least).



Learn how to monetize them.



If you aren't using the new tools out there to get this done, you’re not only working much harder than you have to, you're being outpaced and out-competed by artists and bands who understand the new tools available to them.​

2. Pay to get deals:​Exposure deals (that expose you to a mass audience) and commercial deals (that pay you money for your work or for a license to your music).​

Deals can be both exposure deals and commercial deals at the same time, like getting your song in an advertisement, signing to a label, or licensing your song for film and TV. But notice that exposure deals are simply catalysts to reaching more potential fans and remember your income always ties back to an audience hearing your music and you getting paid for that. That’s why exposure deals matter. If your song plays on network prime time or in a video game like Call of Duty it is worth more than you can imagine in saved time and money that you would otherwise have to spend to reach that audience.​

Most artists who get deals are leveraging the exposure to further their career goals while often also getting paid.​

But since you don’t know where all the deal opportunities are (and if you did it would take you months to network your way in), you should pay to expedite the process.

​

There is nothing wrong with paying for a service that saves you time or money or both. In fact, that’s the smart thing to do.​

Your aspirations to get a deal and the closed nature of the music business make you a target for getting scammed.​

Pay for help getting deals if the following criteria are met:​* The company or professional is reputable with verifiable references you can query.​* They can point to verifiable and very recent success stories.​* They are transparent. Don’t just take someone’s word for it that they have contacts.​* They don’t take a cut of a deal or any rights to your work that isn't at least contingent upon success they directly help you achieve.​

You’re a professional with a product to sell. You should be treated professionally.​

3. Pay for distribution:​You can’t get your music into iTunes, Spotify, Amazon and a hundred other consumer outlets on your own with any efficiency.

​

There are companies that do this for you. It’s not expensive. Pay them.​

4. Pay for an awesome online presence:​Unless you’re a good web designer / developer you should pay someone to do this for you.

You should have your own site where you control your image and messaging.

Update it frequently.

Scroll your tweets from your homepage.

Show fans ways they can engage with you.

Run contests for a live in-home performance.

Be creative with how you engage your audience from your own site.​

5. Pay for the use of tools to help you manage your fan base:​You need a mass email service.

You need to let your fans know where you’re going to be playing.

You need to sell them some t-shirts and other cool goodie bags prizes that enable them to feel connected and part of the exclusive club.​

6. Pay to get better:​In any profession you can learn more, you can hone their trade, you can be more effective.

​

Seek professionals in your field who have more experience, who have won a Grammy or two, who have worked with other top professionals and get real feedback, critiques and career coaching from them.

​

It’s not costly and there are companies that facilitate these kinds of contacts for you.​



In conclusion:​Instead of lamenting about all the things you must do to become successful, in addition, to making great music, you can relax your mind by doing everything the correct way.​You don't have to wait around and hope to be discovered.​Hope was never a good strategy in the old music business either.​Devise a good plan and spend some time executing it every day and don't hesitate to pay for services that advance your career and that save you time and money.​

And if the time comes you need a professional touch, we at Cypic Entertainment, LLC can and will be there when you need us.

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We at Cypic Entertainment, LLC and SHYNE MGMT, LLC offer management consultant role to our artist base.

​

We are part personal management, part business manager, and all the time on point.
 

Here are a few things you should know:
- It is not CYPIC/SHYNE job to pay the costs for your recording projects, your travel, or your promotional materials.

- While you can still find them, a manager that is willing to pay for the needs of an artist, but they are not obligated to be your sugar daddy.

- Some managers feel that dropping cash to help their artists become successful is a worthy investment. Because this is not the manager’s role, he or she will usually make an agreement with the artist that this investment be repaid once the artist starts making money.

- This is outside of 15 to 20 percent commission managers already receive from the artist’s earnings. This commission is usually but not limited to, performances, merchandise sales, and in some cases money advanced by record labels. 

- Managers should have extensive experience in the music business but if he doesn't his hustle and ambition for you and your career should be No. 1, for 365 Days of the year, and at the end of it all, he will have his own career as well as putting you first and making your career. CYPIC/SHYNE has twenty years in the business.

- Managers are not attorneys! Get an attorney to look over any contracts. I said; GET AN ATTORNEY as soon as you get a real contract.

- Managers are not publicists! Publicists handle your PR (public relations), expand your visibility and help develop a marketing strategy for you.

 
- Good managers will do some of this for you until you're signed or able to afford a professional publicist and attorney.

Managers want to minimize the noise that can surround an artist so they can concentrate as much as possible on their music. 

  
The noise is about the artist not about the process.