(Davey D and me in Oakland)
Last week while in Oakland with Danny Dee, we had a quick lunch with hip-hop journalistic and radio icon Davey D. Davey is also an instructor at San Francisco State.
During our conversation he brought up one of the best points, that while obvious, so many artists overlook and really take for granted. The story goes something (aka paraphrased) like this:
I had a student who asked me to listen to his music. He’s a local hip-hop artist. A week later before class he asked if I had listened to it. I said no.
He said “why not?”
I asked him “do you know what time my show is on?”
“What show?”
“My radio show?”
“You’re on the radio?”
Another week comes by and the student asks again, “did you listen to the track?”
Again I say no. I ask him if he has collected any email addresses from the 100+ students in this hip-hop history class. He says no, why would he do that. He insists and pushes me to listen to his song, so I ask if he has even been to my website. Again he says no.
“What website?”
The conversation goes on, but you get the point. Here was a student and aspiring artist, who has an instructor that was on a nationally syndicated “urban” radio show, has a website with close to 30 years of hip-hop history stored on it, and the student was so ignorant that he didn’t recognize the obvious.
He wasn’t doing any of the things it takes to make it in this industry. He wasn’t trying to build a fan base, he was trying to get “put on.”
There is no more getting “put on.” There is hard work, hustle, building a fan base, person by friggin person, selling units and tickets and getting help along the way from people that have a mutually beneficial (or financial) relationship.
Do your homework. Stop looking for that “one person” that is going to invest, sign you or hook you up with an uncle that knows someone. Get your damn hands dirty. And pay respect to the people that have come before you.
-Greg
Tags: davey d, hip-hop, Music Marketing
Leave A Reply (5 comments So Far)
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Justin Boland
636 days ago
You’re right about the hard work and all, but I’m just….in awe. I mean, not even googling the name of somebody you’re in regular contact with, and want to network with….it makes it seem like the guy doesn’t really want it. Almost as if his mom is pressuring him to be a rapper but he’s not really feeling it, you know?
Humility is endless, though: this week I reached out to a blogger I really respect, Khal @ RockTheDub, and asked about a track I’d submitted but he never used…except…he DID use it and I totally missed it. So I’ve done a faceplant or three JUST THIS WEEK. And I’ve got fuckin’ notebooks full of homework.
That said, always Google your professors, and not just for music biz purposes. You never know what kind of leverage you can get with 20 minutes of digging…
Roman
633 days ago
Great post man, Greg! So true. I see that all the time. In my mind it relates to “listening” vs. “talking”. I.e. take the time and “feel” other people, listen to them, be genuinely interested. In return, they will be interested in you. Very simple, yet so rare.
gregrollett
633 days ago
@Justin – yea, it’s pretty ignorant of the person. We are all busy and get sidetracked, but the relationships we have with people allow for a good kind of humility. I’m sure Khal was still cool at the end of the day.
@Roman – You got it man. Take the time to listen and do some Googling. There are some gems that other people have to offer if we take the time to get to hear them out.
Austin Myers
627 days ago
You’re right about the hard work and all, but I’m just….in awe. I mean, not even googling the name of somebody you’re in regular contact with, and want to network with….it makes it seem like the guy doesn’t really want it. Almost as if his mom is pressuring him to be a rapper but he’s not really feeling it, you know?
+1
donnam13
623 days ago
what some of us take for granted is perhaps not known by many – wanting and knowing how to achieve those goals are not the same – and younger people are taught that they can be anything, do anything if they only want it bad enough.. they are not taught specifically how to start the process to go get it. Someone could make a mint teaching would be bands/singers the basics