The small things.

Really, so if the picture of an artist looks squeezed on Spotify you would stop listening to that song? Or if it has a bit of blue tint to it, would you stop then? This is the kind of small things some artist can go too far with. In reality, I don¨t think it matters for the listener anyway. It's just the artist ego in these cases. Also, the people that have to change it has to spend hours on something that really makes no difference.

The funny thing is these artists then leave their youtube channel totally unupdated and there is the picture from four releases ago. Their homepage doesn't even have a press section and neither any press pictures. Things that actually matter when you are sending out stuff to bloggers and other media, who also wouldn't care if there was a bit of blue tint in the Spotify picture.

When the artist has these urges it usually is because they have to much time and that is why so much other stuff is not done. One reason also is that they can't move on until everything they see is perfect. In the end they mainly just annoy people so they won't do many things for them at all.

Just leave these small things until you do a bigger update. Focus to just have a picture at all.

If you have a manager, you have a manager!

Things you really hate are when an artist contacts you. You answer the questions. Then they artist hands over to a ”manager”. It’s really annoying when this manager is just some dude that really knows as much as the artist does in the matter so when you answer (in some higher terms) you get an answer back that is so stupid you want to kick them in the face. In the first place, it just annoying that it hands over to someone else.

While you are having the painful task of explaining this to the “manager” the artists start sending new questions in many are questions to explain what the “manager” doesn’t understand. Suddenly you are answering the same questions to two different people.

Of course, now you look like a real asshole as an artist.

If you have a manager, well then it’s the manager who should ask the question, in fact, that manager should have started the conversation and you should not hand it over. Then it’s good if the manager is someone that knows something about the business. It’s okay to have friends as “managers” that deal with the backline at gigs and sell the merch, but when it comes to more complex things get a real manager, and stop doing the managers job.

Not such a great idea

One of the worst things I know is when you get pitches from companies that really don't have thought their plan through.

Usually they have identified a problem in the music industry that in reality is not a problem or even worse already solved but they haven't done their research.

My favorite hate one is a company that had invented an app where you can humm a tune that come up your head. The app records it and store it your phone.
I asked, can't you that with the voice recorder? Yes you can but with this one you can share it.

Okey if someone really want to hear my humming embryos of songs to be I can upload that to a soundcloud account.

So the solution is there if you really have that need. The question is how often do we have that need?

Also many of these is connector companies. In a way a unnecessary middle man. I don't know how many shit companies I meet that "connect" you with your fans. In reality you connect with the fans on the channels they use. It's just contra productive to use a new channel and prusade people to get there. It's hard enough to get them in the channels they already know.

The rule with a connector is that it can work with very few. I would say that you can do a good job with 10 clients. But in most cases their business idea is to have thousands of clients. You just and up as a ant in a anthill.

Here you have all that doing the bands to brands, placements and so on. In reality do you don't think a brand can't seek up an artist? Of course they can, and it usually works fine. What they don't want is millions of artists they don't want. And these companies can't select what they want and not want.

Then you have the companies that are thinking that the fans should be the accelerator to your career. Yes they are by buying or consuming your art. But do you really want them in production?
Many of these has solutions for the fans to be part in your career. These companies has not thought of all the artist that over the years has complained about how the recordlabels interfered with their careers. Think also that a recordlabel is a professional hub and has knowledge. Here you just have a bunch of opinions from random strangers. Yes these strangers will buy you products but you need to be good enough to surprise or just satisfie them everytime without having hundreds of fans in your process.

These ideas that never is really thought through is very common. And they almost always do it backwards. It's always you bringing your fans to their solution. It's very few of them that has the audience and invite you.

Why do you want advice?

One thing that really is annoying is people that seeks you up for advices and then do the things they should not do anyway.

So just an example (it’s an example of course not true). You seek me up asking what kind of shirt would be best on a show to get people listening. I give you the advice that wearing a blue shirt would make the audience not listening to your music and there are researches that back this up. A red shirt is good, but a yellow shirt is really the best option.

This person then just goes and play in a blue shirt anyway. Because they like blue shirts. That is fine, but why ask for the advice? If you already has decided what you should wear, just stick to that and don’t waste peoples time.

The worst ones is the ones that ask around until they find someone that will tell them that the blue is okay. Or even worse nag you with different theory’s that the blue shirt will work.
If you have that idea go for it, still don’t blame us later when that blue shirt never got you anywhere