Maureen

"Music is everything one listens to with the intention of listening to music." -Luciano Berio My exposure to music has been a defining part of my life. At first, it was my Dad's Barbra Streisand, Carpenters and Frank Sinatra LP's echoing through the halls at night. Later, louder music bled through the bedroom walls of my siblings (Led Zeppelin on one side, Joni Mitchell on the other). Then there was my prized AM/FM clock radio where I listened to Chicago's WLS (AM...

HOW DO I GET A MANAGER INTERESTED IN ME? If you have no record deal or solid interest (a negligible term in the flaky netherworld of A&R), and depending on how far you are in your career, you may not be able to attract a higher-level manager unless you really blow him or her away. Even so, there's a lot you can -- and should -- do to make your band appealing to a good manager, regardless of your label status. "I tend to not pick up really small artists that haven't accomplished...

Pt. 4 of "Great Managers and How to Find Them" "You want me to pay you what?!" Commission: Anywhere from 5% to 20%, with the norm being 15%. This is how the manager is able to afford to work for you and still pay the phone bill and eat out once in a while. In the early days, it can be tough: The client doesn't have income, which is why he or she wants a manager. The manager essentially works for free until he or she can create financial opportunity and exposure. At...

Great Managers and How To Find Them - A blog in 6 parts "A lot of work goes into the public hearing the music," states Danny Goldberg. "It's time-sensitive, and it requires finesse and intelligence to avoid disasters. Whether it's something going wrong in a club, the relationship with the media, the record company, the attorney, or the booking agents, I don't know if artists are always aware of how much work it is. It's the kind of profession where anything...

Part 2 in a series Is experience necessary in a good manager? Let's say you're thinking about asking someone who has a track record with other artists to manage you. The fact that this person has been in the music business gives you grounds for doing some research. Danny Goldberg, currently of Gold Mountain Entertainment, founded Gold Mountain Management and counted Nirvana, the Beastie Boys, Bonnie Raitt, and Rickie Lee Jones among his clients. "If someone's dishonest...