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Laura Vane’s Shameless Self-Promotion

Feeling uncomfortable with marketing yourself means you’re on-track –says Petra Tool

I rarely use a real person’s name in titles of my work, but this one could only be named after my muse: “Miss Laura Vane”. (see full sized image below)

Offstage, she turned out to be way more down to earth than I expected. She was easy to approach – not only by me, but also by her fans.

I decided to pursue Laura on a subject we normally don’t associate with art: self-promotion.

Different Ways of Getting Noticed

One of the most unconventional ways Laura used to promoted herself was throwing around cards with her band’s name on it at the London Underground:

“Somebody actually did pick up the card and contacted me about doing a vocal session. It led me to the guy that I started writing with, 6 years ago.”

Laura was quick to add that she wouldn’t think of doing that now since she’s a bit older and wiser…and realizes that it was littering.

Over time, she’s become deeply immersed in social media, to make sure people who are interested, always know where to listen, buy the music or contact her:

“I’m at LinkedIn, Myspace, Youtube, Facebook, Soundcloud, have a mailing list, send out newsletters, and have a website.”

Laura and her bassist Ton have printed up business cards with info about their on-line forums.

They leave these everywhere they can.

“We’re constantly thinking of ways of getting the music we make, to the people.”

Shameless Self-Promotion

Will you feel uncomfortable or even feel some shame when you start to market yourself relentlessly?

At the beginning, you probably will. It’s actually a good sign; it means you are not playing it too safe.

You will get used to it, and from your experiences you will learn which strategies work for you.

You’re a Business

Laura stressed with me the futility of pouring so much energy into music without also telling people about that music.

Think of your singing as a small business – it’s part of your job to promote yourself, or your music will be unheard by so many people.

Read about networking, branding, sales marketing, search for inspiration at successful artists in all disciplines.

One of the most funny stories I heard was about a web designer who lived under a flight path of an airport, and painted his website address on his roof!

It makes your own crazy promotion ideas seem a lot more conventional, doesn’t it?

Petra Tool is a Dutch artist and artist’s coach. A gifted portrait artist, she explores the personalities of gifted performers, interviewing them about their talent, passions, the problems they face,
their insecurities and secrets of their success. You can find more information on her website.

Useful Links:

Laura Vane and the Vipertones
Music video
Laura Vane Live

More articles by Petra Tool:

The Road to Your Vocalist Dreams
Living With Critics
Moving Beyond Covers
Create Audience Magic

Painting: Miss Laura Vane – 70×100 cm – watercolour – Petra Tool

Paid to Create Playlists

I’ve got an unusual gig between my gigs –says Phil Morrissey

I wasn’t particularly craving French food, but the faint hum of jazz drifting out through the arched windows persuaded me…

Everything was going well, great food, great wine, great company and great music.

Then the track was over, the jazz stopped, and Nirvana was turned on.

Then Nirvana was turned up.

Don’t get me wrong. Nirvana’s cool – but not with that food.

Just think about it: the type of music, the time of day and the type of place all combine to make a powerful impact on our souls.

An Unusual Gig

I’m a singer-songwriter who’s just picked up an interesting gig: creating music playlists for high-end businesses.

Yes, this type of work really is out there – people even take a university degree to get it.

In my case, like you, I’ve been listening to music for eons and creating my own playlists.

A couple of chance conversations and opportunities came along and * presto * = job.

I want to tell you something about this type of work and then I’ll make a few suggestions for how you just might get through the same front door.

The Psychology of Song 101

Music choice in restaurants, bars and shops broadly falls under the field of music psychology where one will study, among other things, the effects of music on customer behaviour.

Our emotional response to music is, after all, an important consideration when targeting customers.

It may be as straightforward as playing fast paced music in a restaurant that wants a quick turnover but slower paced music in a restaurant hoping to lure customers to linger over their meals –

- and consequently spend more on their bar bill.

Being able to identify the right music and knowing when to (and when not) to play different genres and styles is a skill –and an important marketing tool that is often overlooked by managers and owners.

However, a growing number of corporations and independent managers are realizing the “power of the playlist”.

Getting the Playlist Gig

A formal qualification in ‘Music Psychology’ could help you to get a foot in the door of this business.

This area of study gives you a fundamental understanding of peoples’ emotional response to music and the neurological mechanisms and processes at work.

However, I am first and foremost a singer-songwriter and have to confess to not having formally studied this formally.

Like so many things, this work can be had through your dogged attempts at networking.

You might start on a volunteer basis, offering to make a sample playlist for anyone, even if it is local supermarkets, cafes, shops or pubs.

With a little confidence you might then spend some time in some shops that orient themselves to a careful presentation; listen to what they are doing and make your “pitch” to enhance their sales.

This is basically what happened to me.

Now, when I am not concentrating on my own music I create playlists for restaurants and shops across London and Oxford.

Some of these include vintage clothing stores where I will generally create playlists featuring lesser known artists in order to complement the experience of a customer buying a unique item of clothing.

Remember, you must also have a passion for all musical styles and above all have a vast collection at your disposal.

You Can’t Lose

Whether or not you create playlists to enhance your own enjoyment of music, for parties, or for business, you can’t lose.

It’s a great way to surround yourself with different styles and genres of music – and this feeds into our singing, song writing and performing.

So, play with your lists.

Phil Morrissey is a singer songwriter based in London. He plays acoustic gigs across the UK and is also the lead singer for the band ‘The Alchemists Group’. His BA Hons in Anthropology and Music has broadened his interest to musical styles and genres from across different cultures. He also creates music playlists for commercial use across the UK. Check out Phil’s music.

Image Unhappy Diner – public-domain.zorger.com

Money for Your Recording Project

You can fund your music through a new on-line tool.

Singer-Songwriter Rachel Bennett decided not to wait for someone else to front the money for her new album.

She’s raising the money herself through the new website wefund.

We spoke to Rachel about how this is working for her and might work for other vocalists.

So, Rachel, how does “wefund” work?
Well, you apply to wefund with your idea to raise funds (in my case, for an EP). They place your project on their site (you have to make a short film) and you state your aimed amount and the timescale in which you need to make it. Wefund is heavily > read more

Weird Vocal Work

Sometimes the most interesting gigs are the most unusual –says John Kjøller of Basix

When it comes to gigging it’s easiest to think of the most obvious kinds:

putting on concerts in established venues or recording sessions of one’s own music or backing on other artist’s albums.

But, over the years, we’ve had some unusual work that has pushed our careers forward:

* How Many Cafes? Years ago, when our setup was ALOT smaller, we challenged ourselves to see how many cafés we could perform in – in one day! We ended up singing in 17 cafés! We had a small, portable sound system, performed 2-3 songs in each cafe, and then moved on to the next one. The idea was to “be noticed” – and it worked! We were in several newspapers and received some local TV coverage.

*Feel Good at Work Gigs. In Norway we are doing this really cool corporate thing where we visit companies during work-hours. Everybody from the company will be gathered and we’ll do a 45 min “show” which includes audience participation. The point is simply to “feel good at work”. It’s basically an HR thing. This type of gig also generates an audience for our “real” concerts. And CD-sales :-). These gigs are SOOOO much fun! Unfortunately most Danish companies can’t/wont afford it. Norway is excellent went it comes to art! You may be able to take this idea and market yourself to coordinators at larger corporations in your area who are looking for morale boosting events.

*The YouTube Gig This is about generating more “fans” by spreading a video with appropriate content for a target group that don’t yet know us. We do this through Facebook, relevant newsgroups and related blogs. By ‘related’ I mean related to either what we do (vocal stuff) and/or related to the new target group. For example, We recently recorded a song to go with a computer game and then posted this to a bunch of computer game-blogs!

*Dubbing for Animated Movies. For me this happened because of a connection I had through acting that led me to the Danish dubbing studio for Disney. But normally what you do is:

a. Make a short recording with you talking/reading; do a few “voices” (funny, weird or different), changing the sound and feel of your speaking voice.

b. Record a verse/ chorus from a song, – don’t make it “perfect” – make it sound EXACTLY how you actually sing (if you correct the recording by pitching or cutting/pasting you will get into trouble when arriving at the studio – because they will expect you to actually be able to do what they
heard on the recording.)

c. Then write a few words about who you are, what you’ve done before, and why you think they should take you in.

Send this to the dubbing studios in your area. If they like what they hear, they will contact you and you’ll probably be called in for a live audition at the studio.

* The Train-Thing. We got on a train, years ago, going from Aarhus to Copenhagen (a 3 1/2 hour journey at the time) and sang a live gig in various train cars for the travellers (yes, we had permission to do this!) At longer station stops we would get out and sing at the station platform – and then back onto the train. We brought flyers, with contact-info and website-info. That was fun too!

Final Thought

There are more stories but I think you probably get the point now!

Think outside of the box when it comes to introducing people to your voice.

Try some new and strange ideas – and prepare to be noticed.

-John Kjøller of Basix

My Reactions to this Week’s Peer Review Vids

Anouki – Beyonce Cover

Very Nice job, Anouke! I want you to think about ‘breathing’. There is a tendency in contemporary music to ignore the natural phrasing that goes with our spoken language. Singers are breathing in the middle of sentences – in places that they wouldn’t dream of breathing if they were to speak the same sentence. Sometimes this enhances the artistry of our musical expression (sometimes it doesn’t), but I notice that you are taking it even a step further by breathing in the middle of word. ;-) I’m talking about ‘Mariiiii – (breath) – hiia’. Think about what the words mean and how the language ‘works’. And then think through how to best communicate this in your phrasing. How would I say this? Where would I breathe? How can I emphasize important words?

James Grant – Southern View (Original)

This is a tough performance for me to comment on… because I actually think it is working really well! I stay interested in your story all the way though! If I had to pick out one thing to comment on – in this already very professional performance – it would be that this IS a video rather than merely a recording; I am wondering about your visual expression which is close to not existing ;-) Your words are delivered in a way that makes so much sense, but I see a guy that seems completely indifferent to what he is saying. I’m not asking for an actor, just for more of a correspondence between what I hear and what I see. Perhaps get a mic that doesn’t need you to be so close? Maybe lose the harmonica? Get rid of all the stuff you are ‘hiding’ behind, and let me have the full experience: words, song – and YOU!

-John Kjøller of Basix

See VoiceCouncil’s Exclusive Interview with Basix

With a grand total of 4 international CARA awards, including “Best European Album” and “Best Holiday Album” the Danish vocal pop group Basix has proven themselves to be among the very best of a cappella groups worldwide. Follow the group on www.basix.dk or www.facebook.com/basix

Singing for the Movies

When the producers of an independent film were searching for a soundtrack, they looked no further than YouTube.

Now, singer-songwriter Sarah Bella has a contract.

In an exclusive interview for VoiceCouncil Magazine, Sarah shares > read more

Who’s Your Audience?

Answer this question and you improve your chances of making it in the music industry – says Donna McElroy.

Who’s your audience?

That was the first question asked when I sat down to talk to A&R people at Warner Bros. for my first record (Bigger World-’89).

I was, admittedly, clueless, and though tremendously talented, a much harder “sell” than the artist they next interviewed.

She came in with a > read more

Top 10 Promo Tips for Vocalists

There are hundreds of pieces of advice out there about you promoting your music – but the ones we’ve selected actually work for gigging vocalists.

That’s because they come from gigging vocalists – we’ve also enlisted the help of several managing directors from Chick Singer Night.

10. Use new and innovative web tools to push your music forward.

Try NARAS at Grammy.com, Reverbnation.com, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, and CDBaby.com. Reach out to others and more interest will come back to you. The thing to remember about online networking is to invest time each week following up with any inquiries you’ve generated.

9. Make a local impact through a near-by venue.

For instance, find a bar or club you like with built-in sound and host a well-organized open mic. Negotiate a pay rate for each night you organize- great for networking, money making, CD selling and establishing credibility. We even know of singers who > read more

Get More YouTube Views

If people believe what you’re saying, they will believe the song and attach to it.

A few weeks ago we let you know about Sarah Bella’s YouTube success –300,000 hits when YouTube featured her latest vid.

In fact, Sarah has been achieving success with her music for some time.

Is all of this attention just luck?

Sarah wants VoiceCouncil readers to know that talent, skill and “know-how” can work together to increase your own chances for promoting your voice.

What are your top tips for vocalists getting started on posting their music on YouTube?
Make it personal, but keep it > read more

News Release: Sarah’s YouTube Success

News Release: Peer Review submitter Sarah Bellah gets featured on YouTube.

Sarah Bellah was one of VoiceCouncil’s first Peer Review artists.

Now her song ‘Time Hasn’t Moved’ has been featured on YouTube—it now has almost 300,000 hits.

We’ve asked Sarah to tell us how this happened –and what advice she has for other vocalists.

Here’s a preview of her feature interview which is coming in a few weeks:

When you began your singing/songwriting, was YouTube a part of the plan?
I never thought YouTube would become a part of my everyday life, but now it is. After reading the countless emails from viewers expressing how my songs either helped them or inspired them, I was hooked.

How did you get started?
I was very hesitant about posting videos online, but I had written so many songs and was eager to share them. After some persuasion from close ones, I decided to give it a try. Only because I thought, ‘What are the odds that anyone will find me? I’ll just post a few songs and take them down after I get some honest feedback.’

Any advice for posting videos?
Make it personal, but keep it short. The YouTube audience wants to know you’re posting the video for them.

Any more advice?
You will have much more success if you make a video specifically for YouTube rather than posting a live performance of your act at a local bar. If you speak a bit in the beginning, so they know the song is for them, you’re more likely to get comments and subscribers.

Watch for VoiceCouncil’s full interview with Sarah Bellah in a few weeks.

Sarah is also our 100th Peer Review submitter – check out her song on our site.

You can submit your YouTube video to VoiceCouncil’s PeerReview – gaining valuable exposure and insight.

Singing with Cirque

Have you considered that vocal work can include Cirque du Soleil?

Nicola Dawn, currently on an Arena Tour of Saltimbanco, shares with vocalists what it is like to sing in this unique company…

Did you ever think you might end up singing with Cirque du Soleil?
I actually think it was inevitable for me to end up doing this. When I first started my career I always loved to be involved in new musicals so I had the opportunity to put my own stamp on the performance and make it live in ‘my way’. I was drawn to Cirque because > read more

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