Article in IQ Magazine:
Quote from IQ_mag twitter: Paperclip Agency’s @HildeSpille discusses how empowerment can help musicians who feel screwed by the music biz bit.ly/1TqEtLe
music business
Success by developing your strengths
At school I’ve learned that I have to put extra attention to the subjects I’m not that good at. In my case it was French, Latin and sports. All the good grades in history, religion and music were taken for granted. The focus was on getting better in the stuff that I wasn’t that good at. It took me quite some time to find out that there are alternatives to that approach. Waldorf schools, Montessori schools and other alternative schools […]
Who do you trust?
How more success you have in the music business, how more ‘friends’ you gather. Everyone wants to share in your success. Everyone wants to stand in the limelight with you. And they all start to make great promises. Who can you trust? “Lots of people want to ride with you in the limo, but what you want is someone who will take the bus with you when the limo breaks down.” (Oprah Winfrey) First of all, the music business is […]
How musicians can use purpose to become more flexible
As musicians and as person it’s important to know your purpose. Purpose is about your meaning, knowing what motivates you, why you want what you want. Purpose gives you a direction for your career, it helps you to stand out. On the other side the music business is an ever changing business. Look at the last 150 years and how technical developments have pushed creative developments in the music industry to come from operas with 400 visitors to arena shows […]
4 reasons why empowerment is important for musicians
Everything at Compass for Creatives is about the empowerment of musicians. The importance is so self-evident to me, that I often forget to explain myself to others. I hope that after reading the 4 reasons below it’s evident to you too. 1. Stay motivated even after demotivating comments Using your musical talents brings you lots of fun, as long as everything is going according to plan. You enjoy becoming better and better on your instrument, others enjoy it more and […]
Empowerment for musicians so they don’t get screwed
Musicians often feel screwed by their managers, agents, and labels. The publicity that Sinead O’Connor got last week is a good example. People in the music business are not all crooks, for sure. But everyone in the music business has his/her own financial interest in the career of the musician. Independent, non-legal advice for musicians is scarce. The solution Hilde Spille discovered, lies in the empowerment of musicians. On September 15 she starts with a new online workshop. She fills […]
5 golden rules how (not) to treat famous musicians
1. Praise them for everything they do. They are quite vulnerable. And if you want something different, present it as supplement or improvement to their great plan. You can also make the musicians believe that your idea was actually their idea. See it as exercise in seeing the best in everyone. 2. Don’t confront them with open criticism in front of others, ever. You can do it backstage, and even than it’s best to be as cautious as possible, so […]
The context of fame
Context is everything! If you need an example, look at the picture above. Looking at the cylinder it depends on the context, on the perspective if you see a square or a circle, Context is important in everyday life too. Some years ago a right-wing Dutch politician asked during a speech if the audience would prefer more or less foreigners, and they all shouted “less, less, less”. But if you ask the same question to employers who are desperate to […]
Search for silence to hear your own melody
Do you still know the sound of silence? I mean the sound when you don’t hear traffic, voices or music. It’s the sound you hear when you are not wearing a headphone, when there is no TV playing, away from traffic and people. Working in the music business, I have music around me all day. I wake up with classical music from the alarm clock. At breakfast I listen to the radio. In the bathroom I’m making too much noise […]
The secret of getting lucky
Some weeks ago I heard a very interesting lecture by John Cleese. Most people know him from his period in Monty Python and the reunion of Monty Python last summer, or from the comedy Fawlty Towers. I still start laughing out loud when I think of the scenes at the Ministry of Silly Walks! Many people don’t know, that he’s given many lectures to business people. He’s earned a fortune with that, to give as alimentary to his divorced wives, […]
Justin, dare to be challenged!
Last night I spoke with a friend who’s a production guy, often traveling with big productions crews. Sometimes he and his colleagues might mingle with the backing band, but never with the stars of the show. He was part of the huge production crew of the European tour of Justin Bieber. When he described Justin Bieber as a spoiled prick I wasn’t surprised, it confirmed what I already thought. The friend continued with telling me, that all the people with […]
Footsteps
Next week the first big event in European music business starts, Eurosonic in Groningen in the Netherlands. It’s a showcase event with seminars and workshops. During the last couple of years more and more showcase events pop up, all with similar outlines: festival at night, often at various locations, seminar/trade fair during daytime. You could have a full-time job all year though you wanted to visit them all, and still would have to miss some! All the events work with […]
Miley Cyrus – comparing apples and oranges?
The open letter of Sinead O’Connor to Miley Cyrus seems to be an issue in the music business right now. Sinead writes about Mileys new video clip Wrecking Ball. Below I have the link, in case you haven’t seen it yet. Sinead has great respect for Miley as an artist, and is telling her that she is exploited by all the men in the music business, who are prostituting her in order to make money for themselves. A great addition […]
4 stages of fame – dealing with success 5
Music business and fame What do Janis Joplin, Kurt Cobain and Amy Winehouse have in common? Yes, they all died at 27. They also probably committed suicide, and they all struggled with dealing with their success and fame. They all had a team of dedicated people around them: at their management, agency, record label and more. But the music business doesn’t really know how to help artists in dealing with their success and fame. And as artist it is not […]
Interview with Brian Hetherman 1
Brian Hetherman is Manager and President of Cerberus Management and Consulting. He is also the current Co-Chair of the IMMF (International Music Managers Forum, co-chairing with Volker May from Germany). You can find more info about him at http://www.cerberusartists.com As manager you want your artists to become successful, and your own success is often measured on the fame of your artists. What does success mean to you? How do you measure the success of your artists? That is absolutely true, […]