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Hannah Mac

admin — Sat, 09 Jul 2022 12:09:41 +0000

Hannah Mac

Hannah is a UK artist and singing has always been as natural as speaking for her.

Her music’s light vibe with R&B and pop components makes it the best addition to your summer vibes playlist.

There is something about the atmosphere that Hanna’s music has, that creates an instant “feel good” state of mind.

Hanna’s influences are predominantly blues, soul, and jazz. We can hear this in the use of electric guitars, rhythms, and voice techniques.

Sinatra, Tony Bennet, and The Rat Pak records were something she would hear on a regular basis since it was part of her dad’s music collection.

Most recent influences include Mahalia, Olivia Dean, Amy Winehouse, and Corinne Bailey Rae.

Covid lockdown is something that affected all of us, thankfully for some this time might have helped us focus on ourselves.

In Hanna’s case, this time was used to focus on her songwriting and being able to find her own sound.

This dedication to songwriting has made Hanna love this part of the process of making music.

Hanna’s latest release is “White Tees”, this song really managed to put together all of her influences along with a sound of her own.

She will also be dropping the official music videos for this single in the next weeks!

Hannah was most recently nominated for “best pop act” in the Birmingham Music Awards, and has been invited to the BBC WM radio to talk about “White Tees”.

It’s very exciting to see what this upcoming artist will release next.

Listen:

The post Hannah Mac first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

Independent Artist vs. Record Label

admin — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 11:50:34 +0000

Independent Artist vs. Record Label

There is this question every musician asks themselves. Independent artist vs. record label, which is best?

As we all know, technology has completely changed the way the music industry works. If an artist absolutely depended on a record label before, now anyone can publish music, carry their own marketing strategies and creative image, and more.

This, of course, can get harder and harder as your audience gets bigger and your schedule gets tighter. There are thousands of independent artists trying to figure out if it’s better to stay independent or if they should take a record deal.

If you’re one of them, we are going to talk about some pros and cons of these two options

Independent artists:

Pros

As an independent artist, you get to keep almost 100% of your royalties

When you are signed with a label, in most cases they are the ones who own your master since they helped finance the recording. This usually ends up taking a big chunk of earnings.

Since most likely you would be the owner of your composition and master, this means that any profits your music makes would go almost 100% towards you. Without counting the percentage that music distributors take, which is usually not a lot.

Full creative control.

Creative control means that you can choose how you want to present yourself and your music. A lot of times record labels control a lot of what an artist does, especially on social media. They can also alter or modify an artist’s image and some artists are not too comfortable with this.

A great thing about being an independent artist in these times is that if you need assistance with a specific side of the industry, like marketing or physical distribution you can just choose to hire online music services specialized in independent artists.

There are countless services online that can help with your specific area of interest. You can pretty much outsource anything including the management and creation of your website and/or social media.

Cons

Limited budget.

Everything including the recording of your music and mastering will be something you have to cover. The business side like social media and promotion is more about time and contacts, so make sure you have enough resources to cover these.

Limited business experience and time.

Keep in mind that being an independent artist means you’ll be in charge of not only your music but also your marketing, merchandise, copyright issues, and everything related to sustaining your music career.

It is definitely possible to manage this side of your career but it does require a fair amount of organization, research, and time.

Record Label

Pros

Industry resources

Record labels usually have a lot of connections within the industry, this can result in great publishing, and licensing deals. It can also get you to amazing venues and secure festivals.

Higher budget and industry knowledge.

Labels can be able to provide you with the necessary resources to succeed, such as marketing strategies, copyright issues handled, and most importantly the recording sessions and masterings of your music.

Since the label has specialized people in each area you don’t really have to worry about anything else than making music.

Cons

You give up a big part of your royalties

Since the record label is “investing” in you, they usually claim complete ownership of the master. The label also acts as the publisher most times which means in the end the artists usually get 8%-25% from the royalties.

Limited creative control

Labels will take care of all the marketing strategies, publicity, and deals but that comes at a cost. The label can have a certain amount of control over your image, but most importantly your music’s image and artwork.

Since Labels usually own the master rights they can negotiate deals without your approval.

All these things are definitely important to consider since the best option for you is going to depend on your resources, and what you personally believe would suit you better.

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The post Independent Artist vs. Record Label first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

HeyStax

admin — Fri, 01 Jul 2022 17:58:00 +0000

HeyStax

This artist from Atlanta comes from a long line of musicians and is bringing a combination of alternative/hip hop and indie. He has been perfecting not only the art of his music, but also making sure the final production and mastering of his music sounds amazing.

HeyStax latest album titled “A Beautiful Way To Let Go” was released on June 17th. In his music we can hear very natural transitions between sections, melodies, and vocals.

What I enjoyed the most is this constant state of the vocals in between hip hop and r&b that some tracks have, like “OFFENDED” or “LOVE ME MORE”.

The music in this album somehow takes you completely into another world, even though each track is unique we can definitely hear a unity within the whole album.

Stax created this album in a very particular time of his life where he really fell like he had to let some things go, just like the album says. Needing to let go of negative people, negative feelings and toxic traits is something we can all relate to.

He believes in music as an individual way of expression and this album does its job at engaging the listener and telling a story.

“A Beautiful Way To Let Go” explores the the different combinations of its genres and experiments with production techniques that keeps the listener immersed.

Stax’s abstract stories along with amazing music and vocal expression deliver a project that isa must to listen to. The goal with his music its ultimately to help its audience with self-acceptance and self-love.

Listen:

The post HeyStax first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

3 Great Music Marketing Campaigns Examples

admin — Wed, 29 Jun 2022 14:48:06 +0000

3 Great Music Marketing Campaign Examples

I want to talk about these 3 great music marketing campaigns examples done by mainstream artists. These are incredibly creative and budget friendly, but definitely require an investment regarding time.

Music marketing campaigns when releasing new material are definitely necessary for artists in order to build up hype and make fans excited.

I believe a great campaign can serve the purpose of not only building hype but also attracting new listeners to your music.

So without further ado, here is our list:

1. Avicci – “Stories”

The late Dj and amazing producer Avicci, released an incredibly engaging campaign, because it managed to completely caught the users attention and make them engage.

The campaign was done through Instagram and it was a game that users could play through the app. Avicci posted a picture of an illustration that showed a fantasy story, the caption said “play the interactive story”.

When you click on the image there is a link to another account where you begin the game. The account has 9 images that form one big picture telling a story. Every time you click on a specific image it will take you to the next account to see where the story develops.

Users in social media navigate the app consuming content in a matter of seconds. This campaign managed to grab users attention, and engage in a social media game without having to leave the app.

2. Arcade Fire – “Reflektor”

The indie rock group released a marketing campaign that at first, it didn’t include social media. Fans of the group started to speculate about a possible album release when they noticed mysterious graffiti images started to appear around the world.

Then in August, a banner appeared in New York with the word “Reflektor”, the date “9/9”, and the band’s name on it.

After this, on the 9th of September the band released “Reflektor” related content. A traditional music video, a 12” Vinyl EP, preorders of the album and an interactive music video where users could immerse themselves a little more into this project.

Arcade Fire’s website informed fans that the album was set to be released on October 29th.

This was a great campaign. It had things to peak people’s interest even if they didn’t know about the band before with all the cryptic images through the world. It also managed to grab fans attention to their website and gave enough material to keep them hyped enough until the actual release.

3. Dan Mangan

The Canadian musician decided to release an album full of old style tracks. For this marketing campaign Mangan released a video titled “Troubled mind”, the video was filmed in front of a green screen and the protagonist’s face is never seen.

After this social media campaigns were created in order to encourage fans to share pictures wearing emoji flames onto their heads. This had the purpose of expressing overcoming mental health issues.

This campaign is a great example of bringing users together through a common issue, mental health.

Is a very relatable topic and it gives a platform to mental health discussion while promoting Mangan’s music material.great

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Instagram or TikTok for artists?

admin — Tue, 28 Jun 2022 10:15:29 +0000

Instagram or TikTok for artists, what is best?

As an artist you probably know you have to be on social media in order to maximize exposure to potential fans and engagement with current fans. A common question we all have: is instagram or TikTok better for artists?

Maybe you’re new to social media and want to start with one platform or you can only commit to one for now because you don’t have enough time. Either way here is a useful comparison between two of the biggest social media platforms, Instagram and TikTok.

TikTok

Let’s name the most important attributes of this platform:

Its purpose is that users interact with each others content.
Content does not have to be polished or too serious.
Editing video tools are very broad.

TikTok serves a very specific purpose apart from engaging with your current audience.

This platform allows you to collaborate not only with fans but with whoever likes your content.

This is something that really changes the dynamic of a traditional social media platform, specially for artists.

Why specially for artists? Because you can add your own original audio to your content and if other users decide to make duets with you, the more they engage the more it will be heard.

The content in TikTok does not have to be like the one on Instagram. Content here is meant to be more organic and natural than what we usually post on Instagram. This can allow you to be more spontaneous and show your true self to your audience.

An important thing is that if you are going to use TikTok you definitely have to have at least a minimum level of comfort in front of a camera. Unless you are planning on posting tutorial videos, most of the content is going to be you talking and interacting to users through the camera.

Editing in TikTok has endless possibilities. From countless filters and backgrounds, to video cuts, text set to a specific duration, sound and VoiceOver control, and more. You don’t need to edit your videos in any other platform apart from TikTok itself in order to get great results.

Instagram

Has 4 different ways of publishing content: posts, reels, IGTV, and Stories
You can add links in your bio regardless of the number of followers you have (TikTok allows you to do this until you reach 1,000 followers)
IGTV allows you to post content up to 60 min long.

Instagram gives you so many options to post content, this is great because not all content you’ll post will be the same. If it’s something very in the moment or funny maybe is good to post it on a story. If it’s a big announcement or a more impactful type of material maybe a post would be a better option.

This allows you to be flexible in your content and categorize it in a way that makes sense, not only for you but also for your audience.

Adding a link to your bio is very helpful. Wether it is a link to your music or to your website, this will direct your fans or future fans to all your material in a very easy and clear way. TikTok does have the option to add a link to your bio but it only allows it until you have 1,000 followers.

IGTV is a great tool. Maybe you want to post a long interview or a concert that you had, sometimes 3 minutes are not enough. Having to post long videos is not an everyday occurrence but it might come in handy.

Things to consider:

If you have to choose between one for now, think about what your target audience is in order to choose the best option. According to statistics, TikTok’s largest demographic is 18 to 24 year olds. Instagram’s largest demographic is 25 to 34 year olds.

Take into consideration what type of material are you prepared to post weekly. Maybe you can’t commit to making videos for TikTok or maybe that’s exactly what you want to post for now.

Important studies to know, 1,000 people from different age groups were surveyed by ypulse and this is what we discover about how users discover new music:

We can see that in the 3 age groups, the majority of users answered that they discovered new music through social media.

When asked about the social media platform, the majority answered that they discover new music through Instagram.

We have to keep in mind this study was made in 2019 and new information has to be gathered, but is a good guidance to keep in mind for now.

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The post Instagram or TikTok for artists? first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

5 Mistakes New Artists Make

admin — Fri, 24 Jun 2022 13:04:14 +0000

5 Mistakes New Artists Make

Artists as we know, have to manage a lot of things apart from their music now a days.

With technology there is a lot of doors that have been opened for independent artists. it is important to know what are the basis that any artist should have, in order to thrive in these business.

Here are some of the most basic mistakes that artists make, and why is it so important to correct them.

Not having an easy-to-find link when you’re selling tickets for your concert.

This is pretty common. An artist publish a post on Instagram about a concert or a festival they’re performing at and they put the link in the caption.

As we all know, links in Instagram captions can’t be clicked on. This means the user has to copy and paste it from a pc or type it directly on their phone browser.

Now, one would expect to find a link through the artist’s link in bio but as it turns out.. its just their website. Now we have to browse through the website in hopes to find the tickets in one of the tabs. This is way to much work for your fans, and can potentially cost you ticket sales! Always have a button available in your link in bio for ticket sales and specify in the caption that’s where fans can find it.

I’d recommend using Linktree to add direct links to your link in bio or Later to add specific links to your posts.

2. Not using Instagram stories

These are a great way to keep engagement with your current fans, in a more real and personal setting. It can be an opportunity to share unpolished content in a more real and genuine way. A lot of users prefer to watch stories instead of scrolling through the Instagram feed, so if you don’t use stories at all you’re potentially missing a lot of reach.

We also have to remember that Instagram does not show all posts to users. So even if you have 5,000 followers and you publish a post, only a part of those followers will actually see it.

3. Not having a website

This is where you’re going to have all your information, not only for your fans but also for blogs or magazines that might want to write about you or even talent scouters. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy, now a days there are tons of user friendly platforms to make your website for free.

I personally used Wix to make my first website and it was very easy to use, free, and had a lot of template options.

You have to make sure to have all links to your music, a press release, social media you’re in, photos, and concert dates with ticket sales if you have any.

4. Not having a press release

A press release is a tool that will allow you to have all the necessary information about you and your music ready to go for any media purposes. It should have your information as an artist including music releases, any awards you’ve won, music influences, and of course photos.

This is going to be a guide for blogs or magazines that want to write about you so make sure you are thorough and clear. Also make sure to keep updating it with your current music releases or even your plans to release music.

5. Not having a live performance video

I can say from experience that a lot of festivals or platforms that organize small intimate concerts like SoFar sounds want to make sure the artists playing are comfortable performing. If there are absolutely no videos showing your performance they might not even consider you. Remember they get thousands of submissions they have to go through.

The video doesn’t have to be professional in any way, it just has to show how you perform for at least one full song. If it can be steady and clear that would be a plus.

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The post 5 Mistakes New Artists Make first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

Who pays music royalties?

admin — Fri, 17 Jun 2022 14:38:36 +0000

Who pays music royalties?

We are going to talk about who collects royalties to then be paid to you and what steps you have to follow for your to get paid the all royalties you deserve.

Who gets music royalties?

Remember there are always two types of royalties. One is the composition copyright and the other one is the sound recording.

The songwriter will get paid the composition royalties and the master owner will get paid the sound recording, if you owe both you’ll get paid both.this two type of royalties are handled by different organizations which will talked about later.

You’ll get royalties when your song is streamed, played on the radio, performed live, or covered by another artist.

Here are the 4 steps, we’re going to go through them individually:

Select a music distributor
Register with a collection society for performance royalties. (for composition royalties)
Register in sound exchange (for sound recording royalties)
Associate with a publisher

Step 1 is selecting a music distributor which is necessary even just to put your music on streaming platforms. Some of the most popular distributors are CD Baby, Distrokid and Ditto.

There are many more, some of them only charge a flat yearly fee, but some of them take commission but you get access to amazing analytics tools that will help you find your audience.

Some of this distributors have options for publishing administrator services so you might not have to deal with step 4.

For step 2 you’re going to need to register in a performance rights organization, this type of societies collect royalties on behalf of the songwriters and music publishers when their music is publicly broadcast or performed. (Ex: terrestrial radio, concert venues, restaurant, etc)

The two biggest organizations in the U.S. are BMI and ASCAP, if you’re from abroad there are tons of other organizations in non-U.S. local societies.

BMI is free to join unless you join as a publisher and ASCAP has a fee of $50 for songwriters, if you register as a publisher is a bit more.

Step 3 is where we register to get our royalties for the sound recording of our song, which are different form the composition royalties handled by the performance rights organizations.

In the U.S. is completely free to do this through SoundExchange. which is an organization established by the copyright royalty board.

Sound exchange gets royalties from non-interactive webmasters (like Pandora), satellite radio, and satellite/cable TV. They also offer international royalty collection!

In step 4 when you associate with a publishing administration this is so they collect and track performance, mechanical and even micro-sync royalties. A music publisher is also supposed to promote your compositions so that they’re used commercially.

Music publishers even though they don’t take any ownership of the song, they do get a big percentage of your royalties that varies between 10%-25% or more depending on the deal.

A lot of independent artists start register themselves as the publisher, this can be easily done by registering as a publisher in a performance rights organization.

ASCAP

BMI

Just remember you’ll have to take on the role of the publisher by promoting your music and making the most of your royalty cashflows.

Depending on your own situation you can determine if some of this steps are necessary or not. For example if you just started having your music in streaming services and radio or television features are still way in the future you might opt to register on SoundExchange later.

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The post Who pays music royalties? first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

Molly Maguires

admin — Wed, 15 Jun 2022 11:06:26 +0000

Molly Maguires

If you love indie music with traditional rock/folk influences you have to listen to Molly Maguires

They deliver songs that have varied styles but all in the same genre universe. This is why each work feels like it has a special type of variety and is exciting to listen what comes next.

For example with their single “That’s my story” we get a very grungy sound with the typical elements of 90’s rock & roll. If we listen to “Don’t Treat II” we get a very folky sound with very peaceful elements such as plucked guitar and smooth strings.

This New England band came together on 2019 and released their first album only in 2020. Molly Maguire’s have continued to deliver great music since then.

Their latest singles titled “Better” just came out on June 3rd. Is a very emotional song talks about accepting the fact that we can’t really change or make anyone better just because we love them

The band wants to use this latest single as a thematic transition that will sort of lead the way of what’s to follow.

“Better” was even featured in the UK magazine Americana UK where the songwriter Meghan Earle talks more in depth about how she wrote it and the process of making it come alive.

Find the the full article here

The Molly Maguires are formed by founders J Sorensen and Meghan Earle. Followed by instrumentalist Jason G. Taylor, guitarist Jesse Coppa, drummer Sean Scro, and bassist Nathan Johnson III.

Listen to their music

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The post Molly Maguires first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

Using music samples legally

admin — Mon, 13 Jun 2022 12:42:11 +0000

Using music samples legally

There is this part of a song that you really want to add to your work for multiple reasons, the song was made by another artist and you want to take a small portion of it for your own song. This is called music sampling.

A big question here is, is music sampling legal? The answer is yes, if done properly.

You are going to need 2 permissions to sample a song, one for the intellectual property and another for the sound recording. Keep in mind that you’ll most likely will have to pay a fee for each permission.

This will come down to negotiations with the owners of the composition/recording.

Sometimes the cost can be a flat free or just co-ownership of the new work, it will depend on the owners of the work.

There is only 2 ways for an artists to legally be able to sample without clearance:

If the sample you used its so altered that an average listener would not be able to hear any similarities between the original work and yours.
Under fair use, this means that its purpose is for a limited use such as educational purposes on a classroom, comment, criticize or parody the work that’s being sampled.

To fall under fair use:

Not take a substantial amount of a song
Transform the material in some way
Not cause significant financial harm to the owner.

Music is not an exact science as we know, so keep in mind that every judge might decide differently. Some might say that fair use doesn’t apply to the sound recording but it does to the intellectual property. The truth is, you can never really know what the ruling might be until it happens.

Now if you are using a sample and you’re sure you need to ask for permission, here is how to can do it:

Find the music publisher, to get clearance for the intellectual property.

The best way to find them is through performing rights organizations databases which are BMI and ASCAP (in the U.S.)
Once you find the publisher, contact them to ask for clearance.

2. Find the Master owner, for clearance on the sound recording. This is often a little harder to find but here are some things you can try:

The publisher usually keeps records of the master owner, ask them.
Find the record company that releases the music. This can be done by checking for the song in online stores.
If it becomes an impossible task for you to find this information you can choose to hire a clearance expert such us the Harry Fox Agency . It is usually possible to pay an hourly rate.

Just remember that this is a long process and it can take up to several months to get approved, so plan your release accordingly.

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The post Using music samples legally first appeared on Breaking Pop Blog.

Should I Register My Song?

admin — Sat, 11 Jun 2022 11:59:07 +0000

Should I Register My Song?

Should I register my song? Is a common question all music creators might ask themselves.

As a music creator, you’ve poured your heart and soul into your composition, and it’s only natural to want to protect it. Registering your song is one of the best ways to do that.

You may think that your composition is 100% yours, and there’s no need to register it in the U.S. copyright office, but there are some good reasons to consider doing so. Let’s explore why!

First, it’s important to know that almost every composition has two types of copyright. The first is intellectual property, which is the theoretical and structural aspect of the music. The second is the sound recording copyright, which according to the U.S. Copyright Office is “a sound recording must be fixed, meaning that the sounds must be captured in a medium from which they can be perceived, reproduced, or otherwise communicated“

If you’re unsure whether to register your song or not, here are some things to consider.

Intellectual Property:

If you don’t register your intellectual property, don’t worry too much. Copyright law automatically gives you a copyright in your original song as soon as you get it in a fixed format, such as a music sheet or recording.
If you do, registering your work can provide you with extra protection in case you ever need to sue for damages. For example, a registered work may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney’s fees in a successful litigation. If your song has been registered for five years or more, it will have “prima facie,” which means that it is legally sufficient to establish a fact or a case unless disproved.

While copyright law automatically gives you a copyright in your original song as soon as you get it in a fixed format, registering your work can provide you with extra protection in case you ever need to sue for damages. For example, if someone uses your song without your permission, registering your work will make it easier for you to file a lawsuit and seek compensation.

In addition to providing you with legal protection, registering your song can also help you establish ownership of your intellectual property. If you ever need to prove that you own a particular piece of music, having it registered will make that process much easier.

Sound Recordings:

If you don’t register your sound recording, it is still protected by law as soon as it is created in a phono record.
If you do, registering your sound recording can provide you with the same legal benefits as registering your intellectual property, and it can also help you keep track of each participant in the recording for credit and royalty purposes.

When it comes to sound recordings, registering your work can provide you with many of the same benefits as registering your intellectual property. For example, it can help you establish ownership of your sound recording and make it easier to collect royalties. It can also help you keep track of each participant in the recording for credit and royalty purposes.

Where can you register your song?

So, where can you register your song? The United States Copyright Office, Copyright.gov, is the most direct and official way to register your song. It’s a fairly straightforward process, but if you find it difficult to navigate, you can use other registration services like easysong.com. These services can help you register your work quickly and easily, allowing you to focus on what you do best: creating music.

In conclusion, while it may not be necessary to register your song, doing so can provide you with a range of benefits. From legal protection to easier royalty collection, registering your work is a great way to ensure that your music is fully protected and that you’re getting the recognition and compensation you deserve. So, if you haven’t already done so, consider registering your song today!It’s a common question among music creators.

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