There
are the inevitable "that thing was done in twenty minutes" stories, but I suspect
the average is a few hours. But, even if it took 50 hours, look at the return
- a multitude of better paying gigs, sales of your recordings and merchandise,
tons of attention, respect, business opportunities and a lifetime of collecting
performance royalties. Maybe even an inheritance for your kids. Not bad for just
50 hours (or less!). To put this in perspective, 50 hours is roughly equivalent
to an active work week for a middle manager at a busy company in an urban environment.
What do you think they took home? Of
course, there are myriads of other activities we must devote our time to in this
business. But which of them can yield as many benefits? And I'll bet anybody reading
this has had at least one observation of someone that made them think: "What the
**** are they doing THAT for when they should be writing better songs!". Heed
your own advice! A
hit song can have so many watershed revenue streams that it approaches incredulity.
Not only are there the obvious benefits from sales and royalties collected for
radio, TV and concert performances, but placement in film or television productions,
commercials, games, theatre and ringtones (to name only a few) carry enduring
benefit to the artist, composers, publishers, record companies, managers, agents,
attorneys, accountants, performing right organizations, mechanical right organizations,
website administrators, retailers, radio personnel, (come up for air!) and more
- right down to the crew catering company at the concert venue and the diesel
sale to the tour bus operator. The ongoing uses and benefits are simply staggering.
However, as
in any other endeavour, consistency is one of the keys to longevity. People who
have a hit don't necessarily have careers, but those who have successful careers
inevitably have more than one hit. So,
there's my sure fire investment tip. Many happy returns!
Brian
Allen has a wealth of experience in the industry as a songwriter, guitar player,
producer, as well as enjoying 15 years heading up the A&R department at Attic
Records. He knows what it takes to be a winner in this industry, in mind, spirit
and in talent. He has over 10 million in career sales notched on his belt and
will be offering up his insight once a month, as a feature contributor to Songbridge,
with excerpts from his forthcoming book.
For more info on AMPLUS Productions,
contact Brian at brianallen@rogers.com
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