How musicians make the most of Spotify Wrapped: Marielle Kraft & moreWith less than a week left for artists to get their accounts ready for Spotify Wrapped 2023, this week’s Hypebot Flashback Friday resurfaces a post on how indie singer-songwriter Marielle. Continue reading
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Artist to Artist Tips: The Importance of Branding When Establishing Your ActHi! We’re Mom Rock, America’s #1 no-frills rock band. Here are five tips to build your b(r)and:

TIP #1: PEOPLE LISTEN WITH THEIR EYES FIRST

Never underestimate the power of a good outfit. When the band was starting out, we were playing a lot of basement shows with four or five different bands on the same bill. Most of the time, attendees weren’t specifically there for the music and just came for the party, and in a sea of skinny jeans and tee shirts, it was almost impossible to stand out.

One day, Curtis bought a purple and gold metallic sweats set off of a friend and wore that on stage, and everything clicked into place. We all found our own monochromatic jumpsuits and wore them every time we played, as well as did photoshoots in them in empty classrooms. Soon enough, the party people began to identify us from the outfits, and we gained a following around our city.

Like Taylor Swift, we had “eras” of our own; the jumpsuits gave way to all-silver numbers (sewn by Curtis’s mom!) and then we pivoted to a retro throwback baseball jersey look. Right now, we’re rocking some NASCAR fire suit-inspired coveralls with logos all over them. We believe our show clothes get us—and our fans—into the “Mom Rock” mindset.

TIP #2: THE BRAND IS BIGGER THAN YOURSELF

We’ve always been a fan of audience participation, so we wanted our fans to become a part of our brand, too. When we were in our “baseball era,” we wanted to give fans the opportunity to feel like they were a part of our “team,” so we sold the jerseys as merch with the opportunity to customize the name and number that appeared on the back. After performances at festivals, we would walk around and hand out baseball cards that doubled as business cards (wallet sized for easy storage!) It’s always so amazing to see showgoers wearing jerseys in the crowds and find some common ground with not only us, but also each other.

Nowadays, we have our NASCAR trading cards and NASCAR-dupe tee shirts, but we’ve been working on new ideas to flesh out the concept with even more opportunities to expand outward with efforts like brand collaborations and multimedia projects. If you have a solid foundation, building on top of it is easy!

TIP #3: BE AWARE OF TRENDS, BUT DON’T FOLLOW THEM

As music lovers, we always want to hear what other artists our fans are listening to. If we notice that our fans seem to like another band that we’ve never heard of, we’ll look into them and their brand, identifying our similarities and differences. If we see a band excelling in an area that we consider to be a weakness of ours, we’ll analyze them to see what they do and how their fans react to it. This is only helpful if you are self-aware enough to identify those weaknesses in the first place, so we try to “take inventory” every so often to gauge what we should be focused on.

That being said, we don’t like to be followers. With attention spans so short, micro-trends dominate the landscape, so if you try to chase a trend, you’ll likely end up missing the boat entirely. Hard-core trend-chasing also takes away the time, energy, and resources necessary to focus on any original concepts that may have been thought of and rolled out in the process.

TIP #4: COMMIT TO THE BIT

We’ve always gravitated toward big, high-concept ideas. Coming up with ideas is one thing; executing them the way we imagine them is a different story, requiring a lot of prior thought and preparation. We aim to align everything we do—stage wear, album art, merch, video content, and even social media posts—to our current aesthetic for a full package cohesive vibe.

We aren’t afraid to draw inspiration from some more unorthodox sources, so beyond music, we look to branding in film, television, literature, fashion, and sports. By diversifying our influence pool, we always have fresh ideas flowing.

Even if an idea seems too involved or difficult to pull off, go for it!

For example, for our debut album Now That’s What I Call Mom Rock, we took a very “meta” approach to its branding, playing with the irony of a musical artist being reduced down to a “brand.” From the parodied infomercial music video to the logomania on our stage outfits to the album art depicting ‘80s editorial-style print ads, we went all out, poking fun at consumerism while indulging in being the thing consumed.

TIP #5: BE YOURSELF, HAVE FUN

The corniest tip on this list, but by far the most important!

In the age of social media, brands are constantly faced with concerns of authenticity and fakeness. Fans can easily sniff out when someone or something is disingenuous, so sticking with ideas and concepts that are natural to you is always the best bet. The more that you genuinely enjoy an idea, the more invested you will become. The more invested you are, the more likely the execution will be better! This of course goes beyond building an image or a brand—sticking to your guns will benefit you immensely in the long run.

We started this band because we were some college kids who loved to play music and entertain people. We didn’t have all of the concepts from the get-go, but the more we got to know each other and the Mom Rock “identity” as a whole, the more naturally they came to us and the more we enjoyed building the brand. –Mom Rock

The Nashville-based trio, MOM ROCK — Curtis Heimburger [vocals, guitar], Tara Maggiulli [bass, vocals], and Wilson Reardon [drums] — craft bouncy rock & roll anthems charged up by airtight pop hooks and one-liners delivered with the swaggering aplomb of an Avenger. Following millions of streams, packed shows, and acclaim from the likes of Rolling Stone, the band might just rescue you(even for one night) with their 2023 eight-track debut LP — Now That’s What I Call Mom Rock.

Amazon’s music streaming division hit with round of layoffsOnline retail and technology giant Amazon has reportedly started making layoffs in its music unit
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Hipgnosis Song Management appoints Daniel Pounder as CFO, Jonathan Baker as General CounselHSM currently services two clients: the Blackstone-backed private fund, Hipgnosis Songs Capital, and the UK-listed Hipgnosis Songs Fund
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Aux, RealCount win Music Tectonics 2023 music tech startup competitionTwo promising music tech startups were named the winners of the 2023 Swimming with Narwhals Startup Pitch Competition at the recent Music Tectonics Conference. AI-powered music samples creator Aux is the. Continue reading
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$9.99 SiriusXM streaming service leans into human curation, exclusivesSiriusXM has announced the launch of a $9.99 per month streaming service that combines content from its satellite radio service, Pandora music service, and Stitcher podcast app alongside more than. Continue reading
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20 beautiful musician websites to get inspired byThe music website experts at Bandzoogle share twenty artists who take their virtual representation to the next level with visually mesmerizing landing pages and websites. by Joseph Longo from Bandzoogle. Continue reading
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Shakey Graves at the Ryman AuditoriumNashville was rocked by the triumphant return of Shakey Graves to the Ryman Auditorium. The Americana musician graced the stage on his latest tour, drawing in an enthusiastic crowd to one of the nation’s most iconic venues. 

Believe it or not, the man wasn’t born with the name “Shakey.” Alejandro Rose-Garcia adopted the stage name “Shakey Graves” in 2007 and hasn’t looked back since. The curious choice of name oddly suits his art. It’s a mish-mash of everything from folk to country, rock and roll to blues. The personification of Nashville. Yet, it’s somehow woven together to create a near seamless set leaving audiences in awe. 

Backed by a crew of musicians he’d been eager to tour with, Shakey Graves took to the stage to open the night with “Unlucky Sin.” The audience whooped and hollered as he made his way through the performance, throwing in a hefty serving of humor between songs. His personality shone through not only his musicianship, but also in his storytelling. In the middle of his set came the beloved “Tomorrow,” a song crowned by many in the crowd as a favorite.

He described some of his songs as “the soundtrack to a movie that doesn’t yet exist” and even did a selection of pieces as a one-man-band armed with everything he needed at his fingertips. And, perhaps… toetips? The show had a little something for everyone and checked all the boxes for a perfect Nashville night out. A raucous encore shook the house and had fans singing “Dearly Departed” all the way home. 

Don’t miss your chance! Find out where you can catch Shakey Graves on tour at https://www.shakeygraves.com/tour. 

SETLIST 

Unlucky Sin

Look Alive

Big in the World

Play Where it Lies

Playing Along

Hard Wired

Tomorrow

Limbo

Evergreen

Century City

Counting Sheep

Panzy Waltz

Blue Jay Way (cover)

If Not For You

Roll the Bones

Ready or Not

Family and Genus

Dearly Departed

SiriusXM launches $9.99-a-month Spotify challengerSiriusXM unveils new streaming app and 'Streaming All Access Plan' for $9.99 a month
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Universal Music strikes strategic partnership with India-based talent agency REPRESENTThe two companies plan to work together on artist development, fan engagement and other efforts
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CD Baby launches CDB Boost to help independent songwriters get paidCD Baby has launched CDB Boost to help independent songwriters with royalty collection and access to sync opportunities. CDB Boost includes mechanical royalty collection via the Mechanical Licensing Collective (MLC),. Continue reading
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Free Spotify Audiobooks are now live for US Premium subscribersUS Spotify Premium subscribers now also get 15 hours of free audiobook content per month, with bestselling titles making up 70% of the 200,000+ book catalog. Spotify’s total paid audiobook. Continue reading
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How to reach actual Spotify users with Foundee AdsFound.ee helps musicians reach more fans by setting up targeting ads for Spotify users. Here’s everything you need to know to get started… by Randi Zimmerman from the Symphonic Blog. Continue reading
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Berklee Celebrates "BMI Day"On Monday, November 6, BMI (Broadcast Music, Inc.) celebrated the 25th annual "BMI Day" at Berklee College of Music with award–winning composer and producer Trevor Gureckis and BMI’s Vice President, Creative, Film, TV, and Visual Media Tracy McKnight. At the event, McKnight and chair of Screen Scoring Sean McMahon co-presented this year’s BMI Film Scoring Scholarship to student composer Melquiades Álvarez Cobos, currently in his seventh semester at Berklee.The first BMI Film Scoring Scholarship was presented in 1998 by composer Michael Kamen. It is awarded each year to a student selected by the Screen Scoring Department based on the student’s musical ability, financial need, and potential for career success."The Screen Scoring Department’s relationship with BMI is one of the most important relationships we have, and BMI Day is always a highlight for our department on campus,” said McMahon, department chair. “We are so grateful for all that BMI has done for Berklee’s screen scoring students for almost 25 years, and appreciate Tracy’s presence on campus to present the annual BMI award to Melquiades Álvarez Cobos, a promising, up-and-coming composer.”“BMI takes great pride in its longstanding relationship with Berklee College of Music and fostering the next generation of composers,” said McKnight. “We recognize the importance of access to quality education and resources in developing their careers and the BMI Film Scoring Scholarship underscores our commitment to investing in the future of student composers and to celebrate their achievements, their growth, and their contributions to the world of visual media.”“I am so incredibly grateful to be the recipient of the BMI award this year and all the opportunities that come with it,” said Álvarez Cobos. “These past couple of years have been truly stormy and difficult to overcome on a personal level, so I wanted to thank my mentors and teachers who have believed in me regardless—your support and guidance have meant the world to me. With this award, I am very excited to pursue my dream of further developing my skills in film and media scoring through production, orchestration, and composition work in Los Angeles.”Photo (L-R) Berklee’s Ron Savage and Sean McMahon, composer Trevor Gureckis, scholarship recipient Melquiades Álvarez Cobos, BMI’s Tracy McKnight, Berklee’s David Bogen and Jeffrey Sawada gather for a photo during the annual ‘BMI Day’ at Berklee College of Music on November 6, in Boston, Massachusetts. Photo credit: Kelly Davidson.

ABOUT BMI:Celebrating over 80 years of service to songwriters, composers, music publishers and businesses, Broadcast Music, Inc.® (BMI®) is a global leader in music rights management, serving as an advocate for the value of music. BMI represents the public performance rights in over 22.4 million musical works created and owned by more than 1.4 million songwriters, composers, and music publishers. The Company negotiates music license agreements and distributes the fees it generates as royalties to its affiliated writers and publishers when their songs are performed in public. In 1939, BMI created a groundbreaking open-door policy becoming the only performing rights organization to welcome and represent the creators of blues, jazz, country, and American roots music. Today, the musical compositions in BMI’s repertoire, from chart toppers to perennial favorites, span all genres of music and are consistently among the most-performed hits of the year. For additional information and the latest BMI news, visit bmi.com, follow us on X and Instagram @BMI or stay connected through Broadcast Music, Inc.‘s Facebook page. Sign up for BMI’s The Weekly and receive our e-newsletter every week to stay up to date on all things music.

Reservoir Media’s revenues grew 15% YoY to $38.4m in calendar Q3Reservoir Media raises guidance after 15% surge in revenue
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