Skip to main content

Maverick Ad

Home

Main navigation

  • Home
  • Cover Stories
  • Features
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Cashbox Legacy Awards
  • Past Covers
  • Weekly Archive
Dropped Because of Laziness

Breadcrumb

  • Home
  • Dropped Because of Laziness
Peter Åstedt
Fri Aug 02, 2019
Peter Åstedt

Recently I attended a festival where I met a friend who is doing management in the same style as me. I have helped him in some cases with a specific artist so of course, I asked how it was going around that?

“I dropped that artist he explained. I was busting my ass off to get them opportunities and get things going. Still, it felt like they very just in for the ride, and when we got eight on the chart and they didn't even post something around it on social media I just dropped them.”

This is very common. In most cases when I start talking to managers I have known for a while I ask if they are still working with that specific artist.  In many cases, they just grew tired of all the work they did for them and then they are treated like shit.

It’s like artists think they are God’s gift to mankind and the manager should just be thankful to have the opportunity to work with them and their music. And they think the answer to the lack of success is just to change the team, it never anything with to do with the artist. It seems like the method that is used is that the artist job is just to find a Santa Claus figure that takes them to world stardom. As soon that figure is found their job is over now they can just focus on the music and its all about having a party.

Here in our office, we call it "sitting in the sofa method". The artist has no longer any go, they just rely on what you are doing and whatever you are doing they just complain. More or less sit on the sofa like a teenager playing mobile phone games and complain about everything.

But it's not your teenager so after a while you just grow tired and throw them out.

That is the reason I don't trust artists when they tell me that their latest company didn't do anything. In most of the cases with majors, they didn't but the reason for them not to do anything was that the artist was sitting on their asses and did nothing themselves. On the indie side, it can be that they did a lot of things but not the things that the artist thought was important.

And in today's industry, the companies can wait, they don't need to develop the artist, just wait until the right time is there and then take 50% of the share. An artist that just sits there not even updating the social media or the homepage or nothing, so then they get dropped.

A manager once said the artist gets 80% of the money I get 20% of the money. They should work 80 and I 20%. This is also the reason why we see many managers now stepping up their percentage. 50% is no longer unheard of. Not even that they put their names in the copyright to secure their money.

This is the risk these people take risks with every artist they sign. It could easily be a ‘sofa case’. We have seen the most productive bands just go straight to the sofa after they signed the papers. Also, a good reason for companies to wait.

So, my advice is to see any team that you get as an artist as an extra engine. Still, do what you are doing but get help from that extra engine. No not even Scooter Braun knows exactly how to make a career out of an artist, he has a large success rate but still, he probably makes some things up along the way to try things out. Stop thinking that there is a Santa Claus that knows everything, it all comes down to hard work.

Editor's Note:  Peter Åstedt has been working in the music industry for over 30 years. He has started record labels, distribution systems, and publishing companies. Peter also runs several major showcase festivals. He has worked with the Top Ten most streamed songs and had music on both the Olympics and SuperBowl.

htttp://www.musichelpblog.com

Features
Music
Month: Oct 2020
Dolly Parton Releases Time Life 19-DVD set – DOLLY: THE ULTIMATE… Oct 16
Maria Manna “I Like It In The Water” Tells Tale Of Love’s Bliss &… Oct 08
BTW - Aloe Blacc, Riley Michaels, James Aries, Alex Cuba, Leah… Oct 09
I Want To Have My Music In A Movie (Know the Rights) (Part Two of Four) Oct 09
Montreal’s Queer, Non-Binary, Indigenous Angel Baribeau’s… Oct 09
BTW Sikiru Adepoju, Catastrophe & Cure, Shaye Zadravec, Leahy… Oct 02
JUNO Award-Winning Tony Quarrington & Zoey Adams Have One… Oct 02
I Want to Have My Music in a Movie - The Placement That Went Wrong! Oct 02
Cashbox Radio Top 20 Pick Hit Chart for October 2020 Oct 02
BENT ROADS TAVERN Revisit Fan Faves with "The Legend of Bent Roads… Oct 01
Eric Andersen Woodstock Under The Stars Oct 01
Month: Sep 2020
BTW - Gord Downie, Rich Aucoin, Tamar Ilana, Elina Filice/Claudia… Sep 25
Social Media Gives Away Your Knowledge Sep 25
MINI POP KIDS Scoop Their Take on BLACKPINK & Selena Gomez’s “Ice… Sep 24
BTW This Week- Sultans of String, Tom Petty, Matt Berninger,… Sep 18
If You Had An Opportunity To Sit Down With An Industry Executive… Sep 18
Alessandro Montelli & Karizma Amplify Messages of Equality,… Sep 18
Crack Of Dawn is Back with New Single “Tiempo” ft. Melba Moore Sep 18
BTW This Week- Dua Lipa, Julia Stone, STORRY, Chuck Jackson &… Sep 11
The Headless Chicken Game! Sep 11

Pagination

  • First page « First
  • Previous page ‹ Previous
  • …
  • Page 38
  • Page 39
  • Page 40
  • Page 41
  • Current page 42
  • Page 43
  • Page 44
  • Page 45
  • Page 46
  • …
  • Next page Next ›
  • Last page Last »

CEO/PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF
SANDY GRAHAM

email:sandygrahamemg@gmail.com 

Canadian Journalists:

Contributing Journalist - Canada and Global
Don Graham
email: dongrahamwriter@gmail.com

Contributing Journalist - Canada and Global
Lisa Hartt
email: lisahartt87@hotmail.com

Contributing Journalist - Canada 
Michael Williams
email: greydread@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

International Journalists:

Contributing Journalist - Sweden
Malin Osth
email: malin@musicdays.se

Contributing Journalist - Sweden
Jonas Tancred
email: jonas@musicdays.se

Contributing Journalist - USA
Rob Durkee 
email: rockster2746@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Web Developer/Technical Support
Chris Wardman

email: info@chriswardman.com
website: chriswardman.com

Cashbox Cover Design and Graphic Artist
Jain McMillan

email: jainmcmillan@gmail.com

Contributing Photographer 
Tracey Savein - South Paw Productions
southpawproductions@rogers.com

 

 

 

Footer menu

  • Home
  • Features
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Cashbox Archive
  • Issue Archive
  • Past Covers