The “artist and repertoire” representative (a.k.a. “the A&R man”) in a major label is tasked with matching the artist’s music to the most appropriate songs and market. Or, as it happens much more frequently (and rather sadly) forcing the artist into an already established market (the specialty of TV shows like “Idol” or “X Factor”).
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A good A&R man knows what the audience wants and how to provide it, and he or she can be instrumental in guiding the artist’s career. The A&R man interfaces between the record company, the marketing department, the artists, their management and their producers and is ultimately responsible for the artist’s success. In many ways, if an artist fails, it’s the A&R man’s “fault”.
The ability “to A&R” your own musical product is critically important, and most independent artists are really not very good at it. Broadly, “A&R” as a verb means “prepare for the market”. It’s a whole separate area of expertise and it takes years of experience to be really good at it.
So what do you, as an indie, do?
You can now go a step beyond what the traditional A&R man could ever do!
You can research and query your target market in real time, and even in the course of developing your music! You can farm out your pre-production demos to “filters” such as bloggers/opinion-makers, music fans, friends and family – and heck, even to music newspapers and indeed record company A&R’s. Before you know it you’ll have a very good understanding of where your market truly lies and how your music is received.
And make no mistakes about it: if you A&R your music well (i.e. prepare it – and your act – for the market), that will be one of the most important factors in your eventual musical success.
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| Book 1 – Chapter 06 Is Music Still Selling? |
Course Overview | Book 1 – Chapter 08 Your Competition |
Book 1: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, Overview
