We’re just all over the place lately. This weekend, Audiolife CEO Brandon Hance attended the ASCAP “I Create Music Expo” at the Renaissance Hotel at the Hollywood & Highland Center. Attendees included musicians, songwriters, and publishers throughout the U.S who came to both share about their experience in the Music Industry as well as learn from industry thought leaders and experts. Check out some of the pictures from the event below: » Continue Reading

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Tags: ASCAP, Audiolife, brandon hance, music industry experts, sell music online

Inside the NAB Convention

Las Vegas was super hot, the hotels were packed and everyone seemed to be holding a pass for the National Association of Broadcasters Convention. Earlier this week, over 100,000 attendees filled the Las Vegas Convention Center to see “the next generation of audio, video and filmed content across multiple platforms.”  Representatives of leading media entertainment, communications and music industry professionals were scattered throughout the Convention Center showcasing new products.  Some of the more notable ones included: Sony, ProTools HD, AVID & Final Cut Pro.

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Tags: AR Rahman, audio equipment, Audiolife, AVID, Las Vegas, music industry event, NAB Convention, Pro Tools

Within the next few weeks, we will be offering our artists the option for fulfillment services.  In other words, if you have a bunch of boxes of merch, CDs, etc. taking up space in your van, room or garage, then you can ship it on over to us and we will store it for you for $10/month.  We’re even cheaper than this guy!  Of course, we’re not just storing it for you but will then ship any of your products when an order is placed through your store.  This way you can worry about your new album, upcoming show, girl/boyfriend, whatever, rather than your inventory.  Stay tuned to our blog for more information!

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Category: Audiolife | 1 Comment »

Tags: Audiolife, Audiolife.com, fulfillment, storing inventory, storing merch

Band Metrics, currently in private beta, is a tool that allows you to “understand your fans, gauge the popularity of your music and manage your band’s digital identity.” In other words, it’s like analytics for your music.  If your spending a lot of time on the Internet trying to promote your music, but have no clue whether or not it’s working, then this is one way of finding out.  Continue reading below for a full review of the service by Founder & President, Duncan Freeman:

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Category: Music, Reviews, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, Technology | No Comments »

Tags: band metrics, duncan freeman, how to sell music online, indie bands, promote music online, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking, unsigned bands

On April 10th, Audiolife invaded the Roxy on Sunset Blvd in Los Angeles for “On the Rox.”  SUBNETARMY.TV and We Got Skillz threw an album release party, featuring artists from around the world, for Regime Change’s new album “International Party.”  The entire set was broadcasted live on the Internet.

Check out this video below from the show:

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Tags: album release party, Audiolife, concert review, the Roxy, We Got Skillz

Attention: Arts/Entertainment Editor, Assignment Editor, Business/Financial Editor, Media Editor, News Editor

TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – April 13, 2009) – Canadian Musician magazine (CM) celebrates 30 years as Canada’s premiere magazine for musicians and music practitioners. 30 years ago in the spring of 1979, Canadian Musician magazine released its debut issue featuring rock legend Burton Cummings on the cover. Since then, Canada’s best and brightest musicians have graced the cover of CM making it Canada’s longest running music magazine. Today, the 30th Anniversary issue still celebrates The Artist, The Gear, and The Biz.

For the last 30 years CM has gone through many changes as the industry and technology has changed. CM now has an Internet presence with an online version of the magazine, and also a bi-weekly newsletter. Some things, however, don’t change. Like being able to pick up the print version from your favourite store shelf. CM has continued to lead the way in bringing Canadian musicians quality content, an exciting look at current trends and products, and a spotlight on the people helping to revolutionize the Canadian Music landscape.

CM has been around to support Canadian musician for 30 years and it is just getting warmed up. “The next 30 years will be even more exciting than the last”, says Jim Norris, Publisher of Canadian Musician magazine.

CM covers prominent Canadian artists, the latest gear, technique and the business of music. Published bi-monthly, Canadian Musician features regular columns on Guitar, Bass, Keyboards, Percussion, Brass, Woodwinds, Vocal, MIDI, Business, Songwriting, Live Sound, Recording and On-Line Music. Also included are classified ads, opportunities for musicians, new releases and new products.

For more information, visit www.canadianmusician.com.

For further information: www.canadianmusician.com
Online digital edition: www.canadianmusician.com/online
To arrange an interview contact Nik Duncan at 905-641-3471, nduncan@nor.com/

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Tags: Canadian music, Canadian Music Magazine, Music Industry, online magazine, press release

Los Angeles, CA (April 2009)–Audiolife, an Artist Services platform designed for indie artists to sell music online and on-demand to fans, has added venture investment and corporate board expert Dave Berkus to the company’s exclusive list of Advisory Board members.

Berkus, whose background in the music industry, coupled with his vast experience as an entrepreneur and private equity investor, will serve to guide Audiolife through key strategic decisions during the company’s anticipated rapid growth stage over the next six months.

“With the success of our public beta launch in January 2009 our company focus must shift to include growth management,” remarked Brandon Hance, Founder and CEO of Audiolife. “Mr. Berkus’ combined experience with music + technology + early-stage investment will give us a competitive edge as we develop key operational and financial strategies.”

Added Berkus: “I’ve served on over forty boards, made over seventy early-stage investments, and am aware of the ingredients necessary to build and grow a successful company.  Audiolife has the full capacity to shift the music industry for the better in the very near future because it is focused on the right target…the artist.”

In addition to providing strategic guidance for company growth, Berkus will use his professional career to advise Audiolife on matters of corporate compliance, Board of Directors oversight, and key financial and legal decisions.

About Audiolife

Audiolife is an Artist Services platform founded in 2005 by USC graduates Brandon Hance, Aaron Wiener, and Nishit Rathod.  Based in Los Angeles, California, the company is currently in public beta and continues their dedication to empowering artists through new technology solutions.

About Mr. Dave Berkus

Mr. Dave Berkus has formed, managed, and sold successful businesses in the entertainment and software arenas, and has obtained healthy returns from liquidity events in over a dozen investments in early-stage ventures.  He was recently named “Director of the Year” for his efforts with over forty companies in the past decade, is Chairman Emeritus of the Tech Coast Angels, and serves as a Trustee of his alma mater, Occidental College.

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Tags: Advisory Board, Audiolife, Dave Berkus, Music Industry, private equity investor, Tech Coast Angels, venture investment

Landing your first gig at a venue isn’t difficult. In fact, if you aren’t picky about where you perform and don’t expect to make too much, if anything at all, then it should essentially be a cinch. The following are a few different routes to getting on stage you can take depending on your level, expectations and goals:

Play At Your High School

Most high schools have some sort of talent show every year. If you’re currently enrolled in high school, then there is no reason that you shouldn’t sign up and perform (unless everyone happens to be mysteriously sick on that day every year). It’s entirely free and you’ll have the support of your entire class/school because, next to the rest of the performers, you guys will likely be one of the few that actually display some sort of talent (we hope).

Play At a Small Non-Venue

By non venue, I mean a bar or a community room in a church or “youth activities center” type location. These should be relatively easy to book and often don’t require that you sell a certain number of tickets. You will, however, have to promote the show by posting flyers, sending MySpace and Facebook messages, telling/begging your family/friends, etc. all on your own because, unlike actual venues, non-venues don’t usually attract large crowds on any given night.

Sign Up for a Battle of the Bands

This is probably the least likely for the simple fact that you don’t find Battle of the Bands competitions very often. But if you live in a small city/community then there might be some organization that puts on an annual BOTB. Try to do some research via your local newspaper. Often times they are held at high schools as well. It could be a fun thing to do but will require a lot of research on your part. If you have the time you could even try self-hosting (and then rigging the competition!—just kidding). I’d recommend keeping this on the back of your mind while you try securing an actual gig.

Play At an Actual Small Venue

Depending on where you live, there should be a plethora of small venues that are always looking for local/unsigned/indie bands to perform. If you don’t already have an electronic press kit, then now would be a good time to put one together and start emailing to venues. I’d recommend first calling the venue and finding out their booking process and how long it typically takes them to get back to an artist if they’ve been chosen to perform. Then, of course, follow their directions and be sure to follow up with a phone call or email to find out whether or not they’ve actually received your press kit. Just don’t call them every single day … you don’t want to be “black-listed. “

Ultimately, landing your first gig shouldn’t be a difficult task. The real work is creating enough good music to have a decent set list in addition to a local fan base that will actually show up to your gig and doesn’t consist of your immediate family and the homeless man who just happened to wander in. Don’t be discouraged if the first show doesn’t go well. Even some of the biggest acts had to start off that way! Once you start playing shows, you will generate buzz and start growing a fan base. The next step is going on a mini-tour…. so start saving up for that dingy van!

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Tags: Audiolife, Audiolife.com, sell music merch, sell music online, selling CDs online, selling music online

Yesterday, Six Revisions posted an entry on their blog with “30 Beautiful Music Websites for Design Inspiration” and yours truly was one of them! We’re so proud but couldn’t have done it without the help of our lovely designer Fabian Geyrhalter. Thanks Six Revisions! And congrats to the remaining 29 beautiful music websites.  There are some pretty amazing ones out there!

If you, for some crazy reason, haven’t seen our site, check out this screen shot in all its glory:

Screen shot of Audiolife.com

Category: Audiolife | 1 Comment »

Tags: Audiolife, beautiful music websites, design inspiration, Fabian Geyrhalter, music websites, Six Revisions, web design

According to Cynopsis Media, “Universal Music Group is partnering with YouTube to develop a new music themed channel positioned to be the largest music video site on the web. Vevo (what is it with these 4 letter names?) will be built around a branded embedded player that will offer access to UMG’s entire catalog, integrating professional content with additional artist generated content (live clips, interviews, etc.) and YouTube-curated UGC. (Authorized mash-ups could be a huge lure here.) Vevo will also serve as a syndication platform, distributing ad supported music videos broadly across the web.”

We also have a YouTube account (and just created a Vimeo account) and wanted to share this lovely video of Travis and Ricky arm wrestling:

Challenge of the Weak from Audiolife on Vimeo.

HAPPY FRIDAY!

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Tags: arm wrestling, Cynopsis Media, Universal Music Group, Vevo, YouTube