Management & Attorney's

Management and Attorneys

What do managers do?

A business manager supervises all your money. They make sure you get it, keep records of it, pay your expenses, invest it and do your taxes. If money means anything to you, it is very important to take your time finding a good business manager.

Be thorough in interviewing a manager and make sure you get one that has music business experience. They should also have more financial training than you. It is not always legally required for managers to be Certified Public Accountants or even state licensed. Don't be satisfied with short answers to your questions in place of detailed explanations. It is your money you should be fully informed in every aspect.

Prepare a list of questions to ask each candidate.

Some sample questions could be:

• What percentage will they take for services rendered?
• Do they want you to sign a contract? If yes, make sure you won't be legally bound to them for a long period of time without option to replace in case of a sloppy job.
• Will you sign all the checks?
• How often and what kind of financial reports will you get?
• How do they feel about periodical audits?
• How do they plan to invest your money? (ask for specifics, "we tailor to you"; is not good enough) If yes, do they receive kickbacks or "referral fees" for those investments?

A good way to find reputable managers is to ask around. Approach your favorite successful band after their show and talk to them about who they like. Word of mouth usually provides the best recommendation. If someone got burned they are definitely going to tell you about it. Although, double check someone that over hypes a particular person for any hidden agendas or personal gains.

When should we hire a manager?

Managers work for a percentage of your band's income. If you have no band income, you don't need a manager to do what you can do yourself. Develop a list of questions to ask when finding a manager. Determine how much money you earn, how much you can spend on a manager, what work needs to be done and how much time needs to be spent to get that work done.

If you are an indie band playing a couple nights a month for $50, divide your needs between band members. Use that $50 dollars on booking calls and promotional mailings.  There are some advantages to DIY - do it yourself at first. You get a firsthand look at how the music business works, you control all your finances, and your proven track record gets you a better chance of getting a manager as you get more successful.

You could use a manager if your band is booked solid, pulling in a decent draw, and receiving  money from each gig.

What are the common mistakes that artists make when looking for management?

There are many. These mistakes vary depending on how much the artist has accomplished so far. One example - the most common and disastrous mistake (that artists at every level make) is that they decide a manager's ability and worth is solely dependant upon the people they are connected to (other artists, business people). Able managers are of course connected to many other people, however, these connections and relations alone do not make said manager able.
Rather, what artists tend to overlook and not feel is important are some other factors such as: available time (all managers say they have this when they want a client, but only some actually do), willingness to be creative (which all managers will say they have, but few actually do), and a true understanding of that particular artist (again, they say they have it....). Now the artist's job is to find ways to determine if a manager truly has these things for them. Of course, you also want to temper these with experience and knowledge.
Artists (the newer they are, they more likely this happens) will always prefer a manager that has many gold, platinum or successful artists. The idea of this is fine, but they are blinded and distracted (like a child by a shiny object) by this to the extent that they ignore other factors that are of paramount importance as noted in the above paragraph. What happens then is that after this manager takes their 20% of the all the artists different advances and having paid them tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, there will always come a day when time, creativity, and understanding are needed to keep a project alive. This manager then is unwilling or unable to provide these things since maybe they were lured to the artist for wrong reasons (such as a promise of advance money) and more importantly their time and energy are unavailable since their bigger artists will demand, require, and be given those things. To these types of managers, the new artist's failure is of no BIG concern to them.

The answer lies not in finding an unpracticed inexperienced manager who won't do this to you, but the answer lies with the manager that does have an available balance of time, experience, drive, and knowledge. There are many of these out there. The artist must be open-minded, but still mindful of a manager's motives. In the end it doesn't matter how much success or lack of it an artist has when selecting a manager, but what of the above factors are truly going to be preset in their relationship does matter.

What are some common managerial mistakes?

Well, a number of them are noted in the answer to the above questions. In general mistakes can happen anywhere. Like forgetting to check the accuracy of royalty statements as ancillary incomes (such as film and TV uses) are often not accurately reflected. Or not paying close enough attention to how every dollar is spent on the road because you can think you are spending wisely, but without extreme attention to detail (without sacrificing road members' sanity) costs can and will get out of your control and past your budget. Or simply being organized enough to return every phone call (even the ones you think you don't have time for because you do not know the person calling - but if you're organized enough, there is always time) because you can never know where an opportunity will emerge.

But many mistakes a manager makes are rooted in the fact that they make decisions to accomplish short-term gains. Now, not all decisions that accomplish short-term gains are mistakes, however, what's best for an artist's career requires avoiding an event or possibility that may earn some quick return or money right away, but may sacrifice an artists long term development. This is a bit vague, but an example of this: an artist is having success at radio, sales are big, things look great. But, when a record company continues to overexpose an artist at radio and also in the media, they can upset and alienate their core audience (which are the people you want to keep most happy since they will provide for you for many years). So rather than slowing down promotion for an act once they have reached , say, 2 million in sales or overexposure with a hit song at radio, managers tend to allow labels to pump this up to 4 or 5 million if possible, and thereby make everybody sick of that artist, alienating their core audience of 1 to 2 million, and having a dismal follow up record. Everyone wonders why the follow up only did a tenth of the previous, but I have just briefly explained why this happens. (One hit Wonders)  Some managers will be unable to convince a label to slow down a bit and get to the next record sooner, but I think they fail by not trying.

Conversely, when a new artist is coming out, there is no story to speak of, and everyone is just trying to get on the map. The following sometimes happens: In the attempt to get started quickly, most of the available promotion dollars are spent trying to simply get a song on the radio. This is a problem if the song is not automatically a hit song, generating radio success somewhat on its own. Everyone thinks they have a hit, so they spend the money. This is a mistake. An alternate course of action is to save this money until an act can tour for 6 to 12 months first, before ever releasing a single, allowing a fan base to develop and also allowing that radio programmers, and media personnel are more likely to get involved since they have been hearing about the band (good things if the artist is good live) and maybe even had the chance to see the artist. Then there are much improved chances that radio and media will respond to a single, the promotion dollars are spent, and success is more likely. This is important because once a label spends the money they have allotted to promoting an artist and there is no successful return, that is when the project dies and the artist is most likely dropped.

When should we hire an attorney?

Before you sign any contracts or legal agreements, you may want to consult an attorney to discuss the terms of the documents. Music contracts are complex and they tend to favor the side of the deal that furnishes the contract. Ask an attorney to explain the terms of the contract to you and whether the deal offered is acceptable for your group. Your attorney can also try to negotiate any objectionable terms in the contract for you, which is far easier than trying to re-negotiate unfavorable terms after you have committed yourself. However, remember that your bargaining power is slim in the beginning, and your attorney cannot change that. What he or she can do is help you express what you want from the deal and keep you informed throughout the negotiation process.

 Talk to your friends in the music scene to find out about a good local attorney, or call the local  Bar Association for a list of attorneys who work in entertainment law. If you hear from another musician that you should not hire a particular attorney, find out why. Non-referrals can teach you about the problems to avoid in your relationship with your attorney.  Don't be afraid to shop attorneys and to ask about their experience in this area, before deciding to hire them.