Throughout this blog post i will be exploring in depth a record company.
I will study in depth an A&R and publishing within a record company.
An A&R is just a small part of a vast industry, they may be their opinion can have massive effects on millions of lives (depending on how well they perform their job) as they are the ones who determine who record companies sign.
An Artist manager is vital for the music industry as they voice the opinion of the artist and to the record company and others, They will be making decisions such as ; Which producers the artists work with, where and when they do album signings etc.
A&R
Salary/hours/working environment
The field of an A&R is split up from beginners and professionals so there is no fixed rate of salary, it all depends on your experience and track record you can earn from 17,550 to £113,750, this is the average pay for a A&R. It is said that a well known, highly rated A&R could demand a massive six figure salary with performance bonuses etc.
An A&R will work long hours as they have to build up a portfolio of successful artists and compete with others that will be looking for the hidden talent also, so they have to be up to date with everything all the time. But with the advance of the internet this has become alot easier as A&R's can follow an artist and keep up to date with all the things they are doing.
An A&R's will start off flicking through the internet looking for gigs and festivals that they can attend to scout new acts and get them to sign with their specific label. Then maybe once they pick up and start getting noticed as 'that person' to go to they will start receiving emails from artists desperate to get signed or get noticed. So basically there is no specific working environment for an A&R as they work all over and travel quite alot looking for talent in unknown places.
Duties
An A&R's main role will be to scout new unknown talent that can be successful in the music industry and make the record company a ton of money. They will also be in charge of that artist until they release an album and if they don't make the numbers, predicted the A&R will lose their job, so once an A&R recommends an artist it is them putting their job on the line so it is a very risky job and unstable
For artists that don't write or produce their own music an A&R will also make sure that the artist is working with the right producer and right song writers so that they produce the right sound that will sell well.
An A&R will also have to build up a hefty contact list as they will tend to depend on these people to suggest new talent rather than demos and emails so the bigger the contact list the more people they'll hear about and potentially more money.
An A&R will also select the single that will be used for promotion of the artist, so this will determine the fan base that the artists develops e.g. if an A&R was to suggest a slow r&b song to be released as a single instead of a fast paced song the artist will be known for slow songs and may need to continue to go down this production path to maintain their image. But nowadays its easy to release a song in a different genre even though the artist isn't known for that genre so this decision is not as hard to pick.
Skills/Education needed
There is no minimum educational merit needed but it tends to help e.g. if a A&R was to have some qualification that would help within the music industry such as journalism then they are more likely to get a job above someone that has no qualification.
There are many skills that can enhance the quality at which an A&R will do their job and how much they will be paid and so forth.
Communication - Communication is basically an essential skill needed for an A&R as they must be able to communicate with artists at a personal level and still remain professional to get them to declare work with a record company. Also they must be able to talk to producers, song writers and have numerous connections within the industry.
Up-to-date with technology - As the internet develops it is key that anyone applying for an A&R role knows their stuff as they will need to follow artists that way, as music sharing is now done online more than demos as it is cheaper and quicker to produce. They must also be able to adapt and learn as the internet has new trends every other month so they must be on top of the technology.
Passion - Most of the work an A&R does will probably be done at home rather than at an office so passion is a must. Because without passion you wont build up a good portfolio of artists as you wont put in the work to find those hidden gems that will shine. Also if you are passionate about what you are doing it will be evident to the record company and artist making them more likely to want to work with you.
Contract
There isn't necessarily a fixed contract as there is many variations to what can be offered e.g. if you are just starting out chances are you'll probably work for no payment just experience. But as you gain experience a fixed contract may be introduced as the record will want to keep hold of you. The better you do the more money you'll receive. You're payment will come after signing a new talent or you'll be paid in advance to scout several people. The first contract will be flexible if you want to get out of it as they wont make it a massive one but again that all depends on your track record. If you're having second thoughts you should sign a short-term contract with some options to extend it once it's over. The contract for an A&R doesn't guarantee anything as it is such a fast paced environment and everything is becoming digital so its harder to sell physical copies of records so not many A&R jobs are available.
Pros/Cons etc
- If you are passionate about what you are doing then you should have no problem with this job in fact you will love it as you’ll be doing you enjoy. As you’ll put time and effort into what you are doing e.g. You’ll work from home and search out new talent rather than leaving everything to do in the office.
- Another pro is that you’ll meet new people and build up a contact of people in the music industry and you may be able to influence the music trend and have a massive impact on what people listen to.
- Although there are many pros there are also many cons. One is that there is so much competition out there it may be hard to find what you’re looking for and that may result in you losing your job because record companies will want someone who is active all the time and up to date with everything
- Another con is that the contract may be flawed and you may not notice that and therefore be stuck in a long term contract in which you may not like the company or maybe you feel they are paying you too little.
- Also with the coming of the Internet typical A&R jobs are being harder to keep because audiences worldwide can now skip the middle man and become their own A&R. This is becoming a worrying factor in the music industry as more and more record companies can now get direct opinions from the audience without having to have an A&R present. They can now go onto youtube and check what is trending this has helped with the progression of music but has cost many people their jobs.
Publisher
Salary/hours/working environment
There is no fixed salary as it really depends on how successful the artist is and what you will be doing for them. For example some smaller bands/artists have one person that does multiple jobs as a way to make everything cheaper. But still the salary depends on success and the relationship between the artist and artist manager, normally the manager would want something between 10-25% of what the artist is making.
As like the salary there is also no fixed hours as you have to respond to the artists needs , this could mean getting a particular type of food for the artist and making sure it is to their taste, you will basically be the artist's personal runner. They could call you up at 5am to ask you to check something for their next gig etc. so the hours are a bit sketchy and it really depends on the clingyness of the artist
There is not just one working environment if anything it is all over as the Artist manager will have to follow the artist around and go to wherever the artist tells them to so it could be done from home, office or on the go.
Duties
An artist manager works to help the artist and to make sure that they get the best for frees and also decisions such as working with specific record producers with songs to release. They also negotiate frees, book venues help with publicity and making sure that the artist maintains their image
Artist managers also help organise media events such as radio interviews, TV interviews, album signings and so forth. they do this because the artist is too busy to do these things so the artist manager will act with the artist's likes and dislikes in mind
They will also need to keep the artist in check to make sure that they are doing what they should be doing and tell them when they have gone to far. If anything being an Artist manager is basically like being their friend and guiding them to more success, money and fame.
Skills/Education needed
there are no minimum education levels required for this job however skills are essential as this job is very stressful and demanding so the artist manager must be very patient so that they don't snap on the artist and lose their job
Communication - The artist manager will be speaking for the artist most of the time and for that reason they must be able to communicate well and get their point across without seeming rude.
People's person - They must be able to make an instant impact and stay in people's mind as this job is mainly about reputation and who you know e.g. Most Artist managers start off by managing their friends so its important to build up a contact list and stay on people's good side.
Passion - Most of the work an Artist Manager does will probably be done at home rather than at an office so passion is a must. Because without passion you wont build up a good portfolio of artists. Also if you are passionate about what you are doing it will be evident to the record company and artist making them more likely to want to work with you.
Contract
There is no fixed contract as the contract is decided between the artist and the artist manager because depending on how well the artist does they may want to give a small percentage or a hefty fee. If you are a well known Artist manager you may have the upper hand as you can talk about experience. you will most likely be paid for a period of time in a lump some i checked several sites and they all gave very different answers. One said that you will be paid for organizing actual events such as album signings or tours, another one stated that you'll be paid in advance for a period of time. Also some websites said that the artist manager doesn't actually sign with a record company they sign more of a agreement between the two so that the artist manager has to work with the artists the record company pick so i'm not sure but i think the artist manager is free to leave a contract whenever they feel. The contract for an artist manager will guarantee a job with an artist and more depending on how well you do your job and hold up your end of the deal.
Pros and cons
Bibliography Salary/hours/working environment
There is no fixed salary as it really depends on how successful the artist is and what you will be doing for them. For example some smaller bands/artists have one person that does multiple jobs as a way to make everything cheaper. But still the salary depends on success and the relationship between the artist and artist manager, normally the manager would want something between 10-25% of what the artist is making.
As like the salary there is also no fixed hours as you have to respond to the artists needs , this could mean getting a particular type of food for the artist and making sure it is to their taste, you will basically be the artist's personal runner. They could call you up at 5am to ask you to check something for their next gig etc. so the hours are a bit sketchy and it really depends on the clingyness of the artist
There is not just one working environment if anything it is all over as the Artist manager will have to follow the artist around and go to wherever the artist tells them to so it could be done from home, office or on the go.
Duties
An artist manager works to help the artist and to make sure that they get the best for frees and also decisions such as working with specific record producers with songs to release. They also negotiate frees, book venues help with publicity and making sure that the artist maintains their image
Artist managers also help organise media events such as radio interviews, TV interviews, album signings and so forth. they do this because the artist is too busy to do these things so the artist manager will act with the artist's likes and dislikes in mind
They will also need to keep the artist in check to make sure that they are doing what they should be doing and tell them when they have gone to far. If anything being an Artist manager is basically like being their friend and guiding them to more success, money and fame.
Skills/Education needed
there are no minimum education levels required for this job however skills are essential as this job is very stressful and demanding so the artist manager must be very patient so that they don't snap on the artist and lose their job
Communication - The artist manager will be speaking for the artist most of the time and for that reason they must be able to communicate well and get their point across without seeming rude.
People's person - They must be able to make an instant impact and stay in people's mind as this job is mainly about reputation and who you know e.g. Most Artist managers start off by managing their friends so its important to build up a contact list and stay on people's good side.
Passion - Most of the work an Artist Manager does will probably be done at home rather than at an office so passion is a must. Because without passion you wont build up a good portfolio of artists. Also if you are passionate about what you are doing it will be evident to the record company and artist making them more likely to want to work with you.
Contract
There is no fixed contract as the contract is decided between the artist and the artist manager because depending on how well the artist does they may want to give a small percentage or a hefty fee. If you are a well known Artist manager you may have the upper hand as you can talk about experience. you will most likely be paid for a period of time in a lump some i checked several sites and they all gave very different answers. One said that you will be paid for organizing actual events such as album signings or tours, another one stated that you'll be paid in advance for a period of time. Also some websites said that the artist manager doesn't actually sign with a record company they sign more of a agreement between the two so that the artist manager has to work with the artists the record company pick so i'm not sure but i think the artist manager is free to leave a contract whenever they feel. The contract for an artist manager will guarantee a job with an artist and more depending on how well you do your job and hold up your end of the deal.
Pros and cons
- The job is a very demanding one and can drain you especially if you have an artist you don't like very much or they are too demanding. if this is the case then you will have a dreadful time with them and may want to leave.
- Depending on how well your artist does it is a very rewarding job as you can get alot of money from them, aswell as the money you can also build strong relationships with people within the industry and build up a massive list of clients so jobs will always be available
- In this line of work it really depends on who you know and if you don't know anybody to kick start your career you will be stuck in a dead end job for a while and for someone ambitious that may be too much to handle.
- Another pro is that you will be able to go to gigs for your artist and if you like them it especially good and if you don't... well who doesn't like free gigs!
http://www.ehow.co.uk/info_7971476_average-salary-ar-rep.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artists_and_repertoire
