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FROM: ROCK CITY NEWS, LOS ANGELES, VOL 18, NO 25

Independent Promoter Checklist
Part 2

This issue we continue with what you should look for in an indie promoter. The following are the more subtle things you should look
for when hiring one...

CONTACTABILITY: This is probably going to be the one thing that you end up really liking or disliking about the way your indie
operates. Some indies are always there when you call, others are never there. The ones who are never there will invariable tell
you, ÓI spend all my time on the phone talking with the stations...IsnÕt that what you want me to do with your project?Ó

Good try. What these non-contactable indies are actually doing is spending ÓsomeÓ time on the phone with ÓsomeÓ stations, and
spending a lot more time dining at restaurants and seeing friends. And if you thought it was difficult reaching them before you
hire them, just wait until AFTER they get your money. I see this again and again and again. If you think about it, an indieÕs sole
job is to talk on the phone. Why then, if they are there by the phone, would they not pick up when you call? What if a station
calls?

And that is exactly it: They are NOT there when a station calls...because they REALLY DONÕT spend that much time talking to
stations on the phone. They only want you to think that they do. And worse, if they say they give clients (and potential clients)
a different phone number to call than the one they give the stations, then you can guarantee that you (the paying client) will never
get that person on the phone when you need them (or much less, to be able to spend any time learning from them.)

A true indie promoter is a non-stop call center, who gives TOP priority to incoming calls. They should have several people
available to answer calls; if everyone is still on the phone when the phone rings, someone should HANG UP and answer that incoming
call. Remember, incoming calls are top priority...it could be a station.

REPORTS: Reports are a requirement that well-organized promoters provide to you. There is no other way you are going to be able to
understand (within an hour) what is going on with your airplay each week...much less let someone else (stores, papers, clubs) know
what is going on, without a report.

OFFICE: If the promoter does not have an office (even a small one), then you will be competing with things like the promoterÕs
sleep, TV, neighbors, dinner, etc.

ASSISTANTS: If a promoter handles more than one genre of music at the same time, or if the promoter does college radio at all, then
assistants are mandatory. The phone calls have to be made, and no one person can call more than 150 stations a week AND do reports
AND do faxes AND do emails AND talk to you when you call.

COMPUTER LITERATE: I donÕt have to go into how important computers are becoming. But I should mention that as web radio becomes
used like regular radio, those promoters that are not up on computers are going to have a problem. Already, web radio is used in
the college CMJ charts, and some commercial charts.

COLLEGE RADIO: College should be considered for every campaign, even if you are doing high-level commercial radio. College radio
is relatively inexpensive, and will make some good looking reports to show retail, press and clubs.

FAXES: Serious promoters uses faxes; faxing is simply the fastest way to get a one-page synopsis of info to the stations...with
pictures if needed. They are not cheap, but a good promoter should still include these faxes.

EMAILS: While you may get excited about email, remember that since email is free, stations get them from every artist on the
planet. And all the emails look the same. So in order to build a project, you must use faxes and calls, because most artists canÕt
afford them (and that is why you will stand out.)

REFERENCES: Any promoter worth consideration will have a list of clients or past clients. What you are looking for is a promoter
with projects that are on your (independent) level. A list of ÓbigÓ clients, however, means the promoter is used to having massive
help from major label staff promoters, national tours, retail promotions, advertising, not to mention hundreds of newspaper,
magazine, and TV appearances. Since that promoter will not have these with your project, you will be very difficult for them to
work. You need a promoter who is set up to work with indie projects like yours.

More than likely, however, the Ómajor labelÓ promoter was actually not the promoter that worked the major projects (because,
promoters that DO work major projects just canÕt do anything with indie projects). They were probably just assistants in the
office, or were mail people, or more often than not, they were just outright lying. You will have to ask the artist directly to
find out.

Bryan Farrish is an independent radio airplay promoter. He can be reached at 818-905-8038 or airplay@radio-media.com

FROM: ROCK CITY NEWS, LOS ANGELES, VOL 18, NO 22

Creating a Story

When working with the mass media (radio, TV, papers, magazines), one thing to keep in mind is that they are just that...*mass*...and anything you can do to let radio know that you are building a mass story for your artist will help tremendously in your ability to get airplay. A special note here: This info is not intended for an individual artist (or one-person label) to go and try themselves; it is beyond what an indivual can do. Even if you had the time (40 to 120 hours per week), you would not enjoy the process.
Commercial radio wants to build a ÓstarÓ, and the first step of doing this is by building a story. A ÓstarÓ is an entity (be it a song or an artist) that is known all across the country at the same time. Radio wants to be part of the other media building this star. Commercial radio does not want to be the only media doing it, or much less, be the only radio station doing it. As a matter of fact, by definition, a single station (or two or three stations) cannot Óbuild a starÓ, no matter how much they play an artist or a song. It takes a group of stations, across the country, doing the same thing at the same time.
LetÕs start with radio itself. In a promoterÕs daily phone calls with the program directors and music directors, one of the most important things to inform a station about is what other stations have just added the artist. ÓAddÓ information is so important that it is often the *only* thing that is talked about, especially in the early stages of a campaign. Nothing in commercial radio happens without the add. It might start out like this: ÓWe have adds last week in Tacoma, Austin, Orlando, Fresno, Wichita Falls and Dearborn, and commitments from Miami, Seattle, Dallas and Chicago.Ó
Next up on the airplay menu are spins. Starting with the P1s and then the P2s and P3s, and starting with the highest (or most exciting) spins, the whole list is gone over with the station, describing (and thus somewhat proving) to the station that action is developing. This information is applied to each station is a way that is designed to make them want to jump on the bandwagon. As things develop, the promoter goes for quotes from the stations...like ÓMaryÕs record is getting great calls!Ó or ÓThe XYZ song is moving into power...itÕs strong females for us!Ó The quotes are then fed to every station that is talked to; it might take two weeks to get the message to everyone, even with full-time phone calls.
Finally, as the campaign progresses, the promoter might move into telling the stations which stations are doing what type of give-aways, which ones are doing visits, or which ones are doing any number of other things which help the ÓstoryÓ look like it is building.
Moving on from radio, other pieces of information are also fed to stations, thus helping the stations to decide if a particular artist is worthy of adding...
What performances is the artist making? What are the attendances? Is the artist being invited back? Did the artist get a letter of reference from the venue? And most important, did/will the artist perform in the stationÕs particular city? (And, is the venue an advertiser on the station?)
How about retail? If CDs are only available at the gigs, how many are moving at each gig? If the CD is distributed, who is the distributor(s)? Have there been any past sales of this artist? Most importantly, what stores is the CD on the shelf at (and what are the sales at those stores) in the city *where the station is located.* Are any of those stores advertising on the station? This process is repeated with each and every station.
Finally, the process is applied to press information (newspapers, magazines, TV, web). Stations are shown a building of interest, *especially* when the press are in the same city as the station, and when the press *mention* the station by name.
Bryan Farrish is an independent radio airplay promoter. He can be reached at 818-905-8038 or airplay@radio-media.com

FROM: ROCK CITY NEWS, LOS ANGELES, VOL 18, NO 21

Morning Shows The two broadcast media...radio and TV...both occur in real time, and thus are governed by the daily habits of people (as opposed to print or outdoor or web media, in which the same message is available 24/7.) So, TVÕs Óprime timeÓ is when most people are available to view it...which is usually in the evening, at about 8 pm. And this is where TV puts their most important programs.

RadioÕs Óprime timeÓ is in the morning, when three things occur at the same time: (1) People are getting ready for school or work, and are running around the house with the radio on, (2) People are driving to work with the radio on, and (3) Kids are riding to school with their walkmans on. The ÓprogramsÓ which radio uses in this morning period are called Ómorning showsÓ, and the radio-business term for this time period is ÓAM driveÓ or Ómorning driveÓ (as in Ódrive to workÓ). Morning drive tends to be more energetic than the rest of the day (so it can wake you up), and more newsworthy (so it can prepare you for the day.) Understanding this about morning drive can be a useful tool in marketing your music.

Two additional things to remember about morning drive is that it is usually the only part of the day that the station breaks away from the ÓnormalÓ format that they try to stick to, and, the DJs (or ÓtalentÓ as radio calls them) are usually their most experienced (and best paid) people. This in mind, here are some areas that can be directly used to market your music. If you are using a radio promoter, some or all of these things should be set up for you:

NEWS: News is a major component of morning shows, and on some music stations, itÕs the only news you will hear all day. In smaller towns, any concerts or shows which occur can sometimes be news in and of themselves. Obviously this applies to a major act, but if worked hard enough, smaller acts can get some coverage too. And by being ÓworkedÓ, I mean finding out something about the act/club/event/gig that is slightly out of the norm, and then making this fact known to every possible newsperson at the stations in the town you are performing in.

The news angle is twofold: First, the fact that a show is occuring is ÓnewsÓ, although many news directors will try to pass you to the community events person (which is not totally a bad thing.) Second, on the day after the event, if anything at all happened at the event that people should know about, then the news directors need to find out (before you leave town, since they may want to interview you.) Check with your promoter before trying the news angle, as some do not support it.

INTERVIEWS/ CALL-INS: The next great use of morning drive is the artist interview or call-in (a call-in is a mini-interview, where the artist calls the morning show briefly to detail a few points about a show that is coming up, or a show that just occurred.) You generally have to be spinning on a station before an interview or call-in can occur, but when you get to do them, they are usually done by phone, except for those great breaks you get and the station wants you live.

SKITS: In keeping with the spirit of morning shows, skits are a nifty way to help stations with their programming, while boosting your situation at the same time. Skits can be done over the phone, or they can be taped and sent in. They can be generic, or tailored to each station. Rarely, the station will want you to do it live. Regardless, you want to be brief and be funny; you want to make the DJs look brilliant, and you want to say your bandÕs name several times.

NOVELTY SONGS: Lastly, a novelty song or parody (even of one of your own songs) is a great morning show item. These things will have to be practiced or recorded before you head out on the tour, but they are easy because you only have to do one (unless of course you personalize it for each station.)
Bryan Farrish is an independent radio airplay promoter. He can be reached at 818-905-8038 or airplay@radio-media.com

FROM: ROCK CITY NEWS, LOS ANGELES, VOL 18, NO 20

Commercial Formats

Radio has a word for what music people call ÓgenreÓ...itÕs ÓformatÓ. A format is like a category of automobiles... trucks, cars, SUVÕs, station wagons, etc; each category is made up of different makes from different manufacurers, but no matter where in the country you go, everyone understands what you mean when you say ÓtruckÓ...you simply have to specify what make and model you are referring to.

Same with radio. A radio format is a collection of types of music that are similar, from different artists. Most of the broadcast day will stick to the format, and every station in the country that is of that particular format will play the same types of artists. The purpose of a format (on a commercial station) has to do with how a station sells advertising, but we wonÕt go into that now.

Below are the main new-music formats in the United States; most U.S. cities will have a station for each one. Canada is similar but smaller, and with many French stations too. The formats below are sorted (roughly) by the number of stations in each group. Note, however, that this does not correspond to the number of *listeners* there are. The number of listeners (or ÓratingsÓ) of a format or statioin will be covered at a later time. Also, these formats are broad groups; you most likely would only promote your music to a portion of a particular group. Ask your promoter.

The formats are...

COUNTRY: 2,300 stations. Country is the the real Ótop 40Ó of the U.S., because of its popularity. ÓYoung CountryÓ and ÓHot CountryÓ appeal to the younger listeners, using newer artists, younger DJs, and a more energetic approach.

The whole ÓnewÓ approach really took hold about the time Garth started gaining popularity. More tradional country stations (somtimes known as ÓHeritageÓ stations) are sort of the ÓoldiesÓ of country radio...but they also are specific in which new artists they play.

One special sub-category of Country is the ÓAmericanaÓ format. It is a cross between rock and country, and it has about 100 stations, most of which are small. Americana is an interesting new format, with some really eclectic artists and new labels.

RELIGIOUS: 1,900 stations. Includes Christian in several music styles, Gospel, and many stations with a large amount of teaching content. Although a big format, hundreds of stations in the Religious format offer less chance for new music because of the large amounts of talk, satellite programming, and older songs that they play.

There is no absolute number of religous stations which play new music; instead it is a variable, and a particular station can play anywhere from one hour to 24 hours of new music.

ADULT CONTEMPORARY: 1,500 stations. Also called ÓACÓ. Includes ÓmainstreamÓ AC, ÓmodernÓ AC, ÓhotÓ AC and ÓsoftÓ AC. AC is similar to Religious, in that hundreds of the stations have limited capacity for new music because of the talk, satellite or sports programming they carry.
Nevertheless, AC still remains as one of the melding pots for new artists on small labels. By this I mean that there are enough small AC stations (which play new music) for a new artist to stand a chance...if promoted correctly.

ROCK: 800 stations. Includes ÓmodernÓ rock, ÓalternativeÓ, and straight rock. Most people know of these stations. Problem is, they are tougher for independent artists to get played on. One thing saves the day, however...their specialty shows.

SPANISH: 600 stations. All variations included.
TOP 40: 400 stations. Includes Órhythmic crossoverÓ stations; i.e., Top 40 with a beat. A very difficult format for indie artists. But again, specialty shows (and mixshows) save the day.

URBAN: 300 stations. Includes Urban, R&B, Hip Hop, and Urban AC. Also very difficult for new artists, but thankfully it also offers mixshow support.

CLASSICAL: 150 stations.

JAZZ: 150 stations. Includes ÓstraightÓ Jazz (i.e., traditional), and ÓsmoothÓ Jazz. Straight Jazz is a viable format for an indie artist. Smooth, however, will be very difficult.

KIDS: 50 stations. These mostly are your Radio Disney stations, and they are all programmed from the home office.

In the next issue, we will talk about the prime programming period of radio: Morning shows.
Bryan Farrish is an independent radio airplay promoter. He can be reached at 818-905-8038 or airplay@radio-media.com
Bite On Hollywood - Fade To Black - For Immediate Release - L.A. Scoop - Welcome to the Jungle - Inside the Industry - Metal Ledge - In My World - Blues News - Igneous Rock - Industrial Strength - Supersonics - Special

Staff - Columns - Interviews - Reviews - Live Photos - Demo Line - Classifieds
Rock City News - L.A. Clubs - L.A. Bands - Great Links - RC Archives - Photography -
RC Graphics - Editorial - Advertising - L.A. Directory - Other Pages - E Mail - Home