There was a time, not too long ago, when anyone associated with the music industry knew – and fully understood – what Artist Development really was. Sadly, today, very few music industry execs, producers, engineers, and even artists themselves understand what Artist Development is, much less how important it is to your over all music industry career. You see, the music industry has switched from being in the business of creating artists and hits – while nurturing careers for the long run – into being a business of marketing nice, neat, little packages for all they are worth then throwing them out once all used up.

We have seen it in pop, rock, hip hop, and just about every other genre out there. I can remember when Kelly Clarkson was on top of the charts – with no less than 3 songs at a time in the top 10 billboard charts – but still had to cancel concerts all across America because of poor ticket sales – simply because the label she was signed with burned her music out. I can remember when an artist only needed to sell 50,000 units with his or her first album to prove to the major record labels that if developed properly they could become huge cash cows in the long run for the label….. I can even remember the time when I used to get paid directly from the record labels for my services as studio owner/mix engineer.

But today, it’s reported that Jessica Simpson got axed from her label for only selling little more than 3 million CDs in the first week of release and I haven’t received a check from a record label in over three years. I am still mixing some pretty big records that are being released by major record labels….. but it’s the artists themselves that are hiring me and renting out my studio, then turning over the masters to the record label they sign with. The major labels don’t want to pay for anything. In fact, they don’t want to talk to a new artist unless they already have a high quality – retail ready – CD in place, major buzz online, and at least half a years worth of club/venue booking under their belt as well as on the calendar into the future.

You see, in the past, an artist was signed primarily for his or her potential earning capability. Meaning, a record label would sign an artist based on the “IT” factor, music, look, personality, and over all ability to move the masses with music. The artist didn’t need to understand the music industry, they didn’t need to have a total polished show put together, and they damn sure didn’t need to understand the complexities of creating master recordings that were produced well enough to hit the streets the day after they left the recording studio.

All of this and much more is artist development. In the past, record labels had huge teams of producers, image consultants, choreographers, street teams, taste makers, retail promoters, radio promoters, and several hundreds of others who sole job was to develop raw talent into a marketable – major label – star with power, confidence, and polish. Today, those same labels have all those names on a computer and simply pass a name an number to an artist or his/her manager to do with what they please. Bad situation.

It is easy for an artist to get caught up into thinking they are a star, when in reality, they are barely a true artist. The emotions involved with producing your own album, working on the graphics, logos, designs, etc all have a way of sneaking into your mind and making you actually start to believe your own hype…. Very Bad Situation! In the past, an artist had to be an artist – you know, create music, talk to the press, make appearances, connect with fans, and write more killer songs. An artist did not have to worry about anything because they where guided by a huge artist development team that taught them how to be that super star the label needed to pay for the other 19 artists that failed this year.

Here is the deal; artist development is about learning what to say at all times, what to do in any situation, and how to have great interviews….. this we all already know and understand. The problem is that most new artists to the music industry think this is all there is to great artist development….. It’s not – it goes much, much deeper than simply memorizing a “back story” that can be repeated when needed. Artist development is about developing an artist’s natural “IT” factor.

What is the illusive “IT” factor?  Think back…. way back for some of you…. to Eddie Van Halen – one of the greatest guitar players ever. He got on stage and played a ten minute solo called Eruption. I don’t care what genre of music you listen to or how old you are…. you have heard it. You might know it by name – but you know it. Think about Jay Z and what he does on stage… think about how the audience hangs on every moment in time waiting to see what he is going to do next…. Think about the greats… the artists that last the test of time. The ones that have 20, 30, and now even 40 year careers. These artists have the “IT” factor… but more so, through artist development, they have learned to use their “IT” factor to command attention.

“IT” factor is attitude, charizma, and personality. PERIOD! Without artist development backing the “IT” factor, “IT” would be nothing. The “IT” factor of an artist is the ability to command attention at all times, no matter the situation, no matter the song, no matter the clothes…. “IT” factor is the ability to turn any situation into “YOUR” situation. But think about it, what if a geek got on stage with the same clothes, songs, musicians, and show as Jay Z or even Eddie Van Halen? Would the crowd hand on every note of the guitar or word spoken? No. The reason the audience hangs on every word of Jay Z is because they know every word with be delivered with heart, meaning, and purpose. The audience wants to know what is cool… RIGHT NOW, not last week, or last year…. and they know Jay Z is in the “Know” and will deliver every time.

But the only way Jay Z or any super star for that matter can deliver as promised night after night is because they have been developed to allow their “IT” factor to shine. In order to deliver night after night, you have to know what you are delivering. From your logo to your clothes, to what you say, to how you stand, to how you deal with good or bad situations, to who you are seen with, to how you conduct yourself on stage as well as off. If you don’t know what you will do in any situation – on stage as well as off – you will fail as a super star. This doesn’t mean your entire life has to be smoke and mirrors…. but it does mean you spend so much time in artist development that in any situation you find yourself you know what to do, what to say, or how to act.

The “IT” factor has to be transferred from an artist to his or her marketing material, team, stage show, and beyond. Everything you put out to potential fans has to have that “IT” factor tied to it. Everything you do, say, or think about your music career has to be planned and developed to work for you – not against you. This means you have to spend hours on top of hours drilling down and finding out who you are, what you stand for, what you want to share, and what you music keep secret. It means you have to look at your entire career and plan how each phase, step, or individual piece fits together to form the entire package of a super star. All this is accomplished through artist development…PERIOD!

Artist development is so much more than good interviewing skills. It’s about developing a career around an artist with great music……. completely! It’s about commanding attention in any form a potential fan may come into contact with while on the search for new music. It’s about using the natural abilities and talents of an artist at maximum capacity and minimizing any flaws…… but here is the biggest trick of all;

Most artists are too emotionally attached to themselves to truly understand or know how to change themselves or careers to be more inline with who they actually are. I am not talking about changing who you are….. what so ever! I am talking about the ability to see who you really are – for what you really are. Great artist development teams can usually sum up an artists career path in less than ten minutes time talking with an artist. Really! But an artist him or herself can spend an entire life time trying to find themselves…. In today’s music industry – no artist, group, musician, producer, or label has a lifetime to find themselves…. you need it now!

If you really want to learn about true artist development look into the Motown story – Berry Gordie – and see exactly what artist development it and how it works. This is one of the all time greatest music industry stories ever told…. and for those rockers out there that think it’s just about R & B or early urban genres….. get over your self! The Motown story is a story about a young label doing what ever it took to create hit records and hit artists to represent those records. No matter the genre of music you are in, you will learn more than a thing or two about artist development by learning the Motown story.

Hope this sheds a bit of light on the subject of Artist Development. If you want to learn more about artist development, find artist development resources, or start developing your music industry career to the fullest – check out www.JaiHutcherson.com.

Peace,
Jai
“Love the MUSIC in Yourself, Not Yourself in the MUSIC!”
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