You need to be profitable to last
A musician sent me her album, and very proudly said, “This cost $80,000 to make and two years to record. Everything is top-notch. We used one of the finest studios in the world.”
She wanted me to be impressed, but once she said “$80,000” I lost hope in her ability to make a living making music.
I’d be much more impressed with someone who could make an album for $800, because that shows they are resourceful. They could record a hundred albums for the price of hers! If I was an investor, I’d invest in that kind of person.
Great music isn’t enough. Losing money can’t last. For a career to be sustainable, it has to be profitable.
Don’t impress people with how much you spend. Impress people with how little you spend.
Same goes for expensive tools. The audience can’t hear the difference between cheap and expensive equipment. So saying you need a certain tool is just another excuse to avoid the real work. The more talented somebody is, the less they need the props.
Your ability to be resourceful diminishes over time. You get older and feel you’ve earned the comforts. So especially early in your career, be as resourceful as possible. It shows you can survive.
i love a good shoe-string budget. Some of the best creativity comes out of having no many to get all the fancy equipment, and thus having to improvise
thanks man, this is well timed in my life.
I completely agree Derek.
These days, I don't think musicians need to spend huge amounts of money on studio time. Decent recording gear is relatively cheap and there is so much free advice out there on how to use it.
I'm sure you will know as well as anyone, what great results can be achieved with "home recording" - you've sold plenty of it!
To your point, this video was made with a budget of $40. Everyone volunteered their talents.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1ANBK93rV8
The album of 14 mp3s, which includes this song, was recorded in my home studio. I did, however, pay for Bill Wolf, who has some of the best ears in the business to do the final edit and mix.
Yes!
My take on this: it's all about what you prioritize, especially for new artists. I'd much rather listen to a great song rendered on inexpensive equipment, than to a so-so song recorded state-of-the-art. But so many times new artists especially focus their energy on the technical side of things (making an expensive recording) before they even have something solid and undeniable to record. A good song will shine through, regardless of how cheaply it may be recorded.
So I think part of being sustainable is concentrating on coming up with music that can speak for itself, without all the bells and whistles -- because the bells and whistles will come later (in the form of an increased audience, which will then provide the material support necessary to up your production values on the next recording).
Ha! I always remember Rodriguez's comment when he got the multi-million dollar budget for Desperado. "Do you know how many El Mariachis I could make for that?"
The video for our signature song was made for free (Friend of a friend):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qMon_1fPLs
The recording was done for £30 odd.
Almost all DonkeyBox band photography so far has been free. (photographers I found)
The web design has been free (I do that)
I have found some graphic design students who are going to do some basic design stuff for free
And guess what? Despite me giving out our debut demo out FREE at every gig, we can still sell them on cd baby and generate a wee bit of revenue, ta Derek!
The saddest words I ever heard: "I spent my kid's college money on this CD."
I so wished that it had been worth this person's investment.
This another reason I love being a web guy. There's so many cheap or free resources on the web to help you deal with most of life's hassles, be them personal, vocational or avocational.
I would not even attempt to convince my wife of the $80,000 outlay because I could never convince myself. I love the music I make as does she and many others.
An advantage to solo guitar is while the market is smaller for resale, so are my recording costs. Superb quality of recording achieved by Tony Geballe in my basement with a decent mic and his suftware and most important his great EARS!
Atrwork design was superb and meaningful. All involved with the process, myself, Joann, Tony,and Pablo Mandel of Circular Studios who did the artwork are still pleased with our efforts nearly a year later.
Sales are trickling in. With a budget of $80,000 I'dtake time to retreat and create, instead of pounding away at my day job and creating as time permits.
Hey Derek,
This was really good for me to hear this right now. It's so true and we should become more resourceful over time, but that's probably because we are creatures of habit that we become less so, so we need to continually rewire.
Thanks also to Nat. I agree with your points as well. Money makes the world go around! :) $80,000 really is a lot though.
i was told once by a producer that if we believed in ourselves and our music, then we'd spend $3000/song to have it "properly recorded". he said that's what it costs to get it done right.
in the end we used people with more credentials (and that were easier to work with!), and did it for a fraction of the price.
we believe in ourselves, and our music - but since when does that equal some sort of price tag? music isn't valued by money. and if it is, then that's not something i want to listen to.
Don't forget about that 1st Nirvana album which cost under $1000.
Free,
It's all about getting someone to give their time to you and you do nothing for them.
This is the most simple definition of the American dream.
If you can get a lot of people to do things for you and you do nothing for them, then your rich, again the American dream.Sitting on your ass while everyone works for you has become an embedded mindset, for the American way.Then your a billionaire. I want to be free, but I'm tired of working for free k.w.
I'll agree to a point, but peoples time and skills are worth something. Learning to do things yourself is one thing, but you can only con engineers, producers, photographers, artists, web designers, actors, musicians, etc. into working for you for free for so long before you just become a scumbag.
I always assume people won't do anything they don't want to do. Can't hurt to ask. If they don't want to, they won't. (Or they'll give an excuse like, “Hm. Not sure. Kinda busy. I don't know,” which is safe to assume as a no.) It's not conning anyone. Some people just enjoy it and do it for other reasons than money. — Derek
My first album cost $350 to record- studio, bassist & drummer, and lunch. I bought a ZOOM 1608CD home studio for $900 and recorded my 2nd & 3rd albums on it playing everything myself. Recorded my upcoming 4th album playing most of it myself with a few parts "flown in" via MP3 files from friends in other cities.
A lot of the best albums and films were done low budget and those works broke the artist into the mainstream. If your ideas are good you can pull it off with a shoestring budget. If the ideas are weak, all the money in the world won't help. I've played with cats that didn't have chops or an ear- their $3000 didn't help.
This isn't an either/or situation. Nat makes excellent points. While your observation that leading with the cost of the album turned you off is one I will remember, I personally don't like not paying other people a living wage. (Frankly, it's almost a character defect because I have trouble getting and accepting free help.) Good professionals in any field are usually worth the cost. I used to work in foreign magazines, and it was often suggested that the janitor could translate highly technical jargon for much cheaper than the experts I had found (who were inexpensive too!). It's easy to WASTE money when you cut corners like that.
The point is, I agree with you that at face value $80k was excessive and well above average for an indie CD. I need more information, however -- did she get to work with someone really amazing, or commission a suite of arrangements from a composer who lives in exile? Be resourceful, YES, but spend money wisely where you need it.
Actually, on closer reading I realize that in addition to the outlandish cost she did name some other non-sustainable things in her elevator pitch to you: finest studio in the world, 2 years to record... so I take it back, you're right.
I produced all bluesbox albums with NO COST.
Well maybe just the money for the beer.
The latest is at
www.myspace.com/thebluesbyrds
The interesting bit is that it has been made between Italy and America.
It sounds GREAT !
Cheers everybody and thanks for sharing your opinions
All of my tracks are self produced and I play everything on them, so my budget is zero. Having said that, I am currently trialling a Facebook ad to point people towards my downloadable tracks on CDBaby in the hope that it might stimulate sales, buth even there I have set a minimal budget.
Songs are here
http://www.myspace.com/bingobrown
Derek,
I like your general message about resourcefulness, but I'm concerned that your recent posts are showing signs of ageism. Don't let ill health and decreased ability become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
My first album was recorded in 6 hours as a Christmas gift to my mom. A DJ heard it & before I knew it the album was charting the jazz charts and was being featured (then) in the Gavin Report. Go figure. Maybe I should record more albums as presents.
Hey Derek,
Love your articles. I am always thinking of ways to attract more fans. I try very hard to be interactive with them and like you pointed out, it can take away from a lot of my creative time. I'll be recording my 5th CD in December in Australia. I figure with the exchange rate, It will cost me a total of about $10 ~ 11,000 US. I will do most of the vocal overdubs and even some of the editing on my own in my apartment. But at the end of the day, I still want a great band and a trustworthy producer to help me out. I thrive off of the energy built by a band sound and believe two or three heads are better than one in most cases.
The great news for me is that all 4 of my CD's have made me a profit. I will not be spending any money from my day job to do the next album. That being said, I sell 90% of my stuff when I perform live. The internet is just a bonus. I'd sure love to be able to tap into it better but I believe consumers aren't really intersted in buying the unknown and that's what I am. I've currently sold close to 4000 of my 4th CD. I'd love to dubble that next time around.
Finally, here's a question: Do you think it's a bad move to share with my fans the budget of my next CD? I've been playing with the idea. If people see how much it can cost, would they be more inclined to spend the $10? While there are a handful of people who can record on a 0 budget, most of us still need to invest a little to get quality results. Not $80,000 though!
Let's not forget that it all stems from a great song!
Thanks Derek.
Kelly, I am not Derek but I think it is a great idea and your truest fans will pay that money to see you flourish for sure.
(I like that interview clip with Ariel where Derek always says "go for it, I think it will sell really well!" - that is a good attitude to have for this stuff :-)
Interesting point, Derek. Before I get to what I have to say, permit me to do some quick math. $80,000 seems like a lot of money, but what it really means is that you have to sell 8,000 copies at $10 revenue each to break even. Now, that comes pretty close to the iTunes per-album price (which bears no additional packaging costs), so adjusting for iTunes' (and any additional distributor's) cut, you'll need to sell about 10,000 copies worldwide (and iTunes is worldwide distribution) to make back the money. Anyone who isn't able to sell this much worldwide really doesn't have much of a career (I'm permitted to say so, because I'm one of those people ;) ) and shouldn't be spending this much. Let this suffice for the numbers question.
What I really wanted to get at is your observations about talent and resourcefulness. I am deeply skeptical of this idea that the modern artist should embody all possible virtues. My proposition is rather that the artist should provide the talent. The resourcefulness should rightly come from the artist's business associates, whose job it is to make the most money possible from the artist's talent. I do realise, however, that this is a viable scenario only if the artist engages in some form of joint-venture with the business. It will have to work both ways, but sadly at the moment it seems to me that the businesses are turning most of their resourcefulness to finding ways of making the most money off artists.
The album I made for $6k sounds better than the album I made for $0.
The catch? Having already invested, I felt compelled to spend $15k on PR and radio... BAD move. there went the budget for my next three records...
Net result: the $0 album made a decent profit, I'll probably never recoup my $21k on the other one. The sweet spot is somewhere in the middle.
Have to say- it's an awesome feeling to be able to work with great musicians and pay them what they're worth.
Did Fleetwood Mac spend too much time/money on Rumours? Speaking as a musician/engineer, I think many artists are short-changing themselves and their careers by going the low- budget/no budget route; it's nearly impossible to learn to be either a musician or an engineer-enough to be competent, at least, in the number of years we have before the music industry decides we're irrelevant.(which is currently about twenty-six, give or take, and and gettin' shorter by the minute) There is a reason the Lord-Alge brothers get paid the big bux. Great recordings can be made for less money, if you have more time and more passion.(you can have it good, fast or cheap, pick two) Great rooms, microphones and ears cost money, and while it's possible with great care and attention to detail and a virtually unlimited time budget, to match the sound quality of some of history's great recordings, it's just dang unlikely.
Thank you for this.
It seems to me that growth should be sustainable too.
In other words, let growth be funded by how the enterprise is already doing, rather than through a surging expenditure of assets, or a big-loan-and-hope gamble.
The simplest example I can think of is a coffee shop periodical. Start with one page, use advertising revenues to go to two pages, save up your revenues to go to four pages, and so forth. Better than using your college fund to put out eight pages for a few issues and then going broke.
Of course the above is a metaphor for a wide number of careers, such as buying tools for music.
in this modern age, you know what's no longer in people's vocabulary? "Being thrifty." Out of the ten old Boy Scout laws, the ninth was a simple, "A Scout is thrifty."
Today? I know someone in credit card quick sand, while I have read that many people live pay cheque to pay cheque, with nothing saved. Not good if you want to feel like a bountiful brave artist.
"Your ability to be resourceful diminishes over time."
Not True
Becoming profitable is the only way to ensure that I can continue doing IT.