Everett,

The questions you've asked are asked in every seminar, workshop, critique session I have ever attended or taught. "How can Nashville, New york, or LA know about the great music that is out there if they don't listen to the music that is out there?"
The best answer I ever heard was by Herky Williams of ASCAP who said "people are always wondering why we don't reach out more to other areas. The reason is everybody is trying to reach in?"

With the unbelivable amount of songs, writers, artists,trying to do the same thing every day every year, all the time, there is simply no physical way people inside the town can listen to all of it. Just can't happen. So the writers who want to be a part, have to do that. They have to be a part. Mt.Everest does not come to the climbers. They have to go there.

Songs are created everywhere. But there are only a few distribution points where they are manufactured,developed, and distributed. Those are New York, Nashville and LA in the states. Toronto in Canada, London in England, Sidney in Austrailia, etc. Most countries have a central distribution point where the legitamate sources of those industries, the banking, angencies, publishers, labels, Managers, plugggers, and the central writers etc are located. Just like any business.

In Detroit, as you mentioned, the cars are manufactured. (or used to be) But now other cars come from all over. Music is like that with the Internet, but you still have to get your music through the mainstream (radio) in order to really make money at it. And that takes going through the established avenues.

There are a number of people in Nashville who are doing quite well who do not live in Nashville. Hugh Prestwood (the Song Remembers When)lives in New York. Steven Seskin (Don't Laugh at Me) lives in the San Fransico area. Barry Gibb had Johnny Cash's house, until he burned it down. Peter Frampton, Carol King, Neil Diamond,all have presences in the town. And that is the key. making the time and effort to develop a presence. And that is what has to be done.

If you can imagine whatever you do for a living. You have taken years, developed your craft, built relationships, spent money learning what to do and locating yourself in an area where whatever you do is to a level you can make money. Then someone who has never done what you do but wants to step ahead of you in line, take your customers, and your livelyhood. How would you react to it?

That is the point those of us who are in music centers constantly try to make. Everybody writes songs, records them, tries to get them out. But there are those of us who have sacrificed our lives, financially, given up all security, family, etc. to go for the brass ring. Why are we expected to step aside for someone who hasn't done the same thing? just because it isn't convineint for them to do? That is no reason. just because they have "written a song, or done a demo or spent money?" There is no sense of entitlement. No one is handed anything. Everyone struggles, everyone writes songs, every one does demos. Everyone has the dream. Very few have the drive.

And the drive is the only thing that breeds success. People from inside a place like Nashville are always happy to show our town. We have writer's nights, open mics, seminars, shows, every day and night. It is the only place that someone will actually help you above their own interests, if they hear a song, writer or artist better than them. There is no other business on earth that will do that. In the co-writing process, when you write with an experienced writer or artist (those that have track record or are better or more politically connected) they are actually training you to take their job. There is no business that does that either.

But if a writer, artist, etc. don't care enough about their own art to make even the most basic committment to their art by taking time to learn the community the rules and etticate, why should that community take time to embrace them?

Most of it is just plain common sense. Wish you well always.

MAB

Last edited by Marc Barnette; 08/06/09 06:42 PM.