Andy Lykens

Innovating and operating through growth

music industry

Crushing It.

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Crush It.

When people hear this phrase most think of doing something incredibly well. Maybe they’re driving a golf ball 300 yards, picking up ladies at the bar, or are having a hair day so epic, so flawless, they can’t help but feel like the sassiest gal in town (I love feelin’ sassy!).

All of these situations are great and imply some sort of higher-being moment for the individual who’s in the zone. But maybe there’s another way to think about it…

I was playing Settlers of Catan last night (which, if you don’t know, is the greatest game of all time – kind of like Monopoly mixed with Risk but easier to learn) and at some point during the game I looked at the board and thought to myself:

“There is no way I am going to win this game. There aren’t enough resources and there are too many obstacles.”

Then I looked around the table and it dawned on me. Everyone else likely felt the same way; eyes glued to the board searching for options, hands running through their hair in frustration, and all looking at the exact same thing:

A crowded board with too many obstacles and not enough resources.

Once I had that realization my mindset shifted. Everyone has mostly the same problems and perhaps if I change my outlook I will find a way to at least be competitive. Since I was going to play the game anyway, why not try to at least make the most of it.

I decided to crush it, but not like you might think.

I wasn’t trying to re-invent the wheel and create some insane new strategy. Instead my aim was to crush my limiting mindset:

“not enough resources, too many obstacles.”

So I looked at the board, more closely analyzed the other players’ situations and continued to move ahead despite what seemed like an implausible scenario.

This happens in art, science, and business all the time. We all look at the same game and conclude it’s too difficult based on the resources available and the obstacles in the way.

Yet people always manage to succeed.

People even come in second and third and do pretty well despite not coming in first place.

So the next time you think someone’s really crushing it ask yourself: Have they re-invented the wheel? Are they playing out of their mind? Is her hair REALLY that silky and smooth?

Or have they simply crushed their limiting beliefs?

Here’s Why Your Label Isn’t Getting More Syncs

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Boss at Cubicle
The C-levels at a music publisher I used to work at would drop by my cube once every few days. All nice people, they did their best to be friendly when asking “working on anything big?”

They’d ask that question because I was the person who had developed a system and brought in deals (licenses worth anywhere from $15K-$400K per side). My answer was typically “yes, I’m always working on something big.”
[Read more…] about Here’s Why Your Label Isn’t Getting More Syncs

Why Every Brand Should Follow McDonald’s Golden Example In Music Publishing.

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McDLogo

I used to think music publishers were just big music companies that owned songs. Then I found out McDonald’s is a music publisher and things got interesting…

Everyone knows there’s money to be had with placing music in advertising, but many people may not know exactly why it’s such a boon.

Including the very brands that pay for the music in the first place.

It’s key to realize that the owners of a song get paid every single time a song airs on television or the radio. This is called a performance royalty.

What does this mean for brands?

You may be surprised to find out that many brands are already setup to collect these performance royalties. And not just small players – brands like McDonald’s, Nestlé and Unilever all collect performance royalties when songs air on TV.

But how do they do this?

It’s simple actually – a lot of advertising work is done as work-for-hire. Therefore the brand owns everything that’s created for their commercials, including the music.

A brand can simply sub-contract a “real” music publisher, or even small royalties shop, to setup a publishing entity, collect, track and manage the royalty income on their behalf.

Fees for setup are reasonable, especially compared to the amount of money the brand will earn back from performance royalties (out of which the music publisher will take an administrative cut).

The resulting income for any given spot depends on many variables.

The PRO’s certainly aren’t very open about their tracking formula – much of it is mystery sauce with a pinch of fairy-dust. Despite there being VERY reliable computer tracking services available this seems to be more of a thorn in the side of the PROs than a welcome new tool.

That means it’s tough to tell exactly how much money one spot brings in.

However, they could make enough in performance royalty income to pay themselves back for the expense of the music creation in the first place in many cases.

Is this bad business for the musicians that write the music?

In fact it’s often a better situation for the musicians. If brands don’t register their compositions that are works-for-hire it can be tough for Bill G. Songerton to collect his performance royalties.

But attach a big brand name to a small publisher, and you’ve got an entity that commands respect at the PRO’s (and not to mention one that registers works with all relevant data needed for tracking).

If a brand uses bespoke music for ads that air on TV or radio but isn’t setup to collect performance royalties, they’re missing out on creating a way to offset the cost of music, while also helping out the composers of the song at the same time.

This can all be managed by setting up a simple 3rd party music publisher that can run all of the administration for the brand and literally just cut a check once every quarter.

Let me know what you think about this in the comments – brands, does your agency have you setup to own your works-for-hire? Songwriters – what’s it like to collect performance royalties if your ad-work isn’t registered at a PRO?

Does Your Music Make You Want to Punch Yourself In The Face?

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Expecting success to come quickly is a flaw of mine that most often leads to dejection, giving up, not starting in the first place, or general malaise.

Once I decide to actually go after something – to really give it a shot – if I’m not an immediate success, I’m ready to throw in the towel.

It’s a downward spiral too. The worse I perceive my lack of success, the worse I feel, and the less I want to do that isn’t related to eating lots of sugar.

The myth

Most adults should know that there is no such thing as an overnight success. You probably have realized at this point that instead success is a long, slow climb.

Success in music is no different (other than the climb might be steeper)!

Redefine Success

I remember when I first started pitching songs. It seemed to take forever to land music in a spot with any real consistency.

But I kept at it. And kept looking for patterns.

And started improving.

One of the keys to doing this was to redefine success.

In other words, instead of beating myself up for not hitting a goal, I would adjust that goal. Instead of trying to get songs on a commercial, I would try to get ANY response from someone.

I’d celebrate any response from a brief hello, to a music search to a “get the hell outta here you crazy person!” (luckily I never got one of those).

Feeling good

Once you shift your focus something amazing happens. You start to feel good.

Feeling good helps to give you more energy, work a little more, and try to be better.

Then all of a sudden those little steps you’ve taken add up, and you get a BIG win.

At that point, it’s time to eat cupcakes and dance.

So next time…

When you start to beat yourself up for under-achieving, re-evaluate.

Have you made some small step that you haven’t properly acknowledged?

Your state of mind can sometimes be the only limiting factor in how big of a success you are.

I’d love to hear how you have achieved some small success in the comments!

Cancer And Rejection

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Lately I read an article about our attitudes about cancer on Wired. It had come across my newsfeed and since my dad has had run-ins with cancer the last couple of years, and because I always love the idea of evolving anything, it caught my attention and stuck.

Cancer

The point of the article is to understand that we need to simply expect cancer.

We eat things not so good for us, we stay up late, we do things our bodies weren’t necessarily ever meant to do. If we start expecting cancer it can help put us in the right mindset to make better choices. We can be more prepared when it rears its ugly head.

Just as we expect to get older, we must also expect to confront cancer.

Rejection

I was chatting with a friend recently about some opportunities. Progress has been slow, stagnant even.

Rejection Stamp

Then, just as I felt myself filling with doubt, I immediately started imagining a more positive picture (something I’ve taught myself over the years): It’s summer, people are out of town and on long vacations, things are bound to be at a bit of a stand-still.

Suddenly an idea struck: just like cancer, we need to expect rejection.

In the music business we deal with rejection daily. Going after a goal that doesn’t materialize can feel like complete and utter failure. Rejection takes over our mental state just like cancer can debilitate our physical state.

In fact, I remember a period of my career when coming into work meant dreading every second of the day. I could not get anyone to call me back, send me an email, listen to ANYTHING. I actively looked for anything to do that wasn’t work because I couldn’t take the rejection.

Thoughts went through my head – what did I say wrong? what can I do better? where do I turn next? I began to over-analyze and give up because I was not prepared to deal with the rejection.

Then I took control.

I learned to play a game with myself to help get me in the right mindset. My new goal? Get turned down as often as possible by clients I didn’t have a longstanding relationship with.

That means that if I talked to someone on the phone, it didn’t count. I could only reach my goal by leaving voicemails.

This was an insane turn of events because all of a sudden, I’m not expecting, or even HOPING that anyone answers their phone or responds to an email. It completely changed my mindset.

I’ve learned that rejection and failure are simply a part of the process. In fact, they are the BULK of the process.

Every time you pursue, push through a barrier, or start all over again it’s merely a continuation of the rejection process.

The good news

I know it sounds bad, but there IS good news.

Upward Spiral

It’s an upward spiral as long as we keep moving forward.

The next time you’re feeling like nothing is happening for you, that you’ve lost forward momentum, or you just feel like nothing will ever come your way remember – that feeling of rejection is to be expected.

Go try again.

If you need help refining your strategy for landing a music placement, why not subscribe to my newsletter for some new ideas?

What Is Music Publishing And How Do Music Publishers License Music?

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Way back when copyright was first getting started in the United States, there was only one way to make your music go viral – through a music publisher selling sheet music.

The daily operations of music publishing have evolved, but their end goal is still the same – tell the story of the songs and get them performed.

Today, they’re responsible for collecting and distributing performance royalties, issuing grand rights, and getting songs used by commercial artists who don’t write their own music.

But music publishers also play a huge part in the music licensing process.

What does a music publisher control?

Music publishers represent or own catalogs of songs.

A song can be represented in any number of ways from recordings and sheet music, to live performances.

When it comes to music sync licensing, it’s technically considered a performance and anyone wanting to use a particular song needs to get a license from the music publisher for use of that song (they also need to seek out the master recording owner, typically a record label, for permission to use the sound recording).

The traditional model

Traditional music publishers were fairly reactive when it came to licensing music in media.

Mostly they would have a number of people (or just one person depending on the size of the company) answering phones and negotiating rates when someone called to request the use of a song.

Once music licensing started to become big business, most music publishers changed their ways (though, not as many as you’d think)!

The current model

Now you’ll find most major music publishers have people who’s job is to maintain a network of clients. They regularly contact music supervisors about new releases, old favorites, or live events that showcase their music in some way. At some companies the music placement staff also have a hand in new catalog signings.

Like record labels, music publishers will also try setting up showcases at ad agencies or conferences where music supervisors may be in attendance. All in the hopes that they will leave enough impression on the right person involved in music placement.

Since publishers typically have a stable of artists and writers, it’s important to do your research before signing a music publishing deal. Be sure to ask the right questions about their music licensing processes, and make sure they’re constantly testing unique ways to get your music licensed.

Why is music sync licensing so important?

Getting your song on TV can result in both a financial windfall and greater sales of your songs.

Songs that are used once, also often get re-licensed as well. In other words, if someone uses your song for an ad campaign, they will license it for a certain amount of time. Once that time expires, the original licensee then needs to pay again (usually at an increased rate) in order to continue airing the commercial without violating copyright law.

In the end, music publishing is a vital part of the music economy and a fantastic way to get exposure, and properly compensated for the use of your songs. Just remember, if you’re considering signing a music publishing deal, remember to consider all the pros and cons and find the right situation for you.

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