In today’s music industry, where 95% of artists handle the management of their own careers, much of a manager’s job is simply to make sure everyone in the band is on task and helping out where they can. This means getting each band member to chip in and start calling clubs to book performances, putting up posters for upcoming shows, lugging gear, driving the van across the country in the middle of the night, and yes, even counting your piles and piles of money.
The whole process is described in a very useful book called “The Indie Band Bible”. In his book, Mark Makoway, former guitarist of Canadian mega-band Moist describes the days before Moist was signed to a management deal by Nettwerk’s Terry McBride, which helped launch them into super-stardom. Their previous manager, a friend who had less experience than the band members, was mainly there to keep everyone focused and save them from killing each other. In reality, the indie (independent) band shoulders most of the tasks themselves and takes on the roles of booking agent, publicist, agent, roadie, guitar tech and driver before all of these personnel can be put on salary. Says Nettwerk’s Terry McBride:
“The more educated you are about the music business, the more you'll be able to have valuable working relationships with the many professionals you'll be coming into contact with.”
-Terry McBride, CEO Nettwerk
Hands-on education is possibly the best way to learn your skills in any business, and the music business is no different. Until a band can afford to hire people to look after the aforementioned tasks, it is up to the manager (or band leader) to split up the jobs as he or she best sees fit. Like in any organization, delegation in a band is a very important part of the day-to-day duties. Call a simple band meeting and decide who is designing posters, who is making sure the gear is rented, and who will be booking the rehearsal space, etc. Pool your resources and draw from each member’s skills.
Each member of the band or team brings something different to the table. For example, the singer or principle songwriter is usually the best at communication in a band, simply because they make a personal connection with the listener through lyrics. For this reason, perhaps he or she could be put in charge of writing press releases or phoning clubs and local media to create a buzz. Perhaps the drummer is the most physically fit so carrying and setting up gear would best suit him or her and so on. It is up to the leader to identify the strengths of each member and assign the tasks accordingly.
A band is an interesting organization because the band members are not employees of their manager, but rather the manager is an employee of the band. In a standard management contract, most managers usually work on a commission or percentage-basis, where he or she will only get paid if the band turns a profit. “Eat what you kill” is a good philosophy for any independent artist. It’s also a cool song title. Use it as you see fit.
Sharing the workload not only relieves pressure, but it gets everyone involved in their own careers from a business perspective. As stated in “This Business of Artist Management”:
“The business of creating and sustaining a career in today’s entertainment business is just too complex and sophisticated for any one person or firm to adequately handle.”
- Xavier M. Frascoga, Jr & H. Lee Hetherington
It would be nice if every artist had a management team from day one, but that is simply not the case, at least not in the majority of bands that I have been a part of. Who knows, if the band is self-managed for long enough, there may not be a need for a manager at all! Before you know it, the 5 guys who were once crammed in Mom’s basement jamming out cover tunes are now business-savvy independent musicians calling their own shots. Hey, if it doesn’t work out, I know at least a few bands who are looking for a manager with a little bit of experience under their belt. An industry insider once told me that you can read all the Industry How-to books you want, but the only way to truly learn anything in this business is by doing it. Take a manager out for coffee or attend workshops and functions whenever you can. This is the hands-on approach, and I’m sure the majority of artists and managers will tell you that it really works.
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