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28.11.14 Music Week 25


block for emerging acts and record labels still play a vital role in investing in and developing new talent”. But Kirby-Welch also offers a solution: “We


have always maintained a high level importance on direct to consumer as part of the artist services model,” he says, “as often it provides the most direct income stream to an artist for the sale of music or merch products. “With the emergence of PledgeMusic, and now


similar pre-order driven mechanics evolving within other D2C platforms, there is an opportunity for developing artists to monetise their fanbase in such a way that will help them to finance the release of a record.” Believe Group’s UK general manager and SVP


of rights management Lee Morrison, points to the power of digital as a reason for more emerging acts looking towards the artist services sector. From his perspective, the model can work for all acts. “With the industry’s changing models, you can


now break acts online which gives you the ability to put them on a bigger stage,” he says. “Take Bastille for example, an act that started out self-releasing through us with their four-track Laura Palmer EP, who have now gone on to huge success.” There is indeed a growing list of acts big and


small that have seen success using the artist services route to market but, as some of the executives above have suggested, the model typically requires a lot more work on the side of the artist and manager as they become more like business partners with a company in a release campaign rather than creative on a label roster. So what do acts and managers need to keep in mind if they want to see success with artist services and who in particular has really made the most of the model? “We’ve found that working with a clever


manager who understands the different relationship needed between artist and service provider compared with the traditional way of working is key to success,” says Caroline International’s Michael Roe. “People like Ian Grenfell, Bryce, Chris and Julie at Courtyard; James Grant, Ben Watt, Kwame Kwaten, Amy Morgan…. they’re successful in this field because they understand they need to take more responsibility. “Label services provides solutions for artists,


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but the artist is paying for that service. Therefore, to make that relationship work best, you need a proactive manager who will meet deadlines, be commercially sensible, make timely decisions, work within a team and so on.” Cooking Vinyl MD, Martin Goldschmidt, is


“Working with a clever manager who understands the different relationship needed compared with the traditional way of working is key to success” MICHAEL ROE, CAROLINE INTERNATIONAL


keen to identify that financial element as one of the key differences between the artist services model and traditional contracts. “The most important thing is to remember that all the costs are paid for by the artist,” he says. “We may cash flow them but, if they are managed well, the artist will make money. If


they run away, the artist won’t. The first royalty statement normally gives managers a heart attack. They see all the costs! But if the campaign has been run well then they recoup quickly.” Goldschmidt says that Cooking Vinyl, which


sits alongside Essential Music & Marketing as part of the Cooking Vinyl Group, “arguably started artist services” in 1993 with Billy Bragg. He highlights Peter Jenner as a manager who knew how to use the artist services route particularly well. “Peter Jenner was the master and introduced us to the deal with Billy Bragg,” he said. “Dan [O’Neill at Angle Management] was brilliant in our Groove Armada campaign, and forged a real partnership


‘THE ARTIST SERVICES MODEL IS FANTASTIC - BUT CONFLICT IS INEVITABLE’


There’s a general consensus between executives across artist services companies that any successful release campaign is reliant on a close working relationship between artist, manager and music company, but Matt Thomas says that, at some point, tension is only natural in such an environment. It’s for


those kinds of situations that he started his Artist Dispute Resolution service. “I think that the artist services [model] is a fantastic,


liberating model, which gives the power of choice and decision making back to the artist,” he tells Music


Week. “[But] with so many relationships between artists, management and third parties, it is almost inevitable that conflict will occur somewhere along the line.” With a background in the label system and artist


management himself, Thomas helps artists, musicians, bands, management and third parties to find mutually agreed solutions to conflicts. “It’s an alternative way of solving problems that would


traditionally have generated hostility, bad feeling and possibly legal action, leading to one-sided outcomes at best, or spiraling out of control with possibly more severe consequences. Because of my extensive experience in the industry I have a total understanding of the disputes that can occur, so can establish immediate empathy with all participants and proceed without it wasting any more of anybody’s time.”


PHONE A FAN: IMI MOBILE’S D2C SOLUTION FOR SELF-RELEASING ARTISTS While the artist services model is starting to throw up success stories with emerging artists, it’s still particularly effective when used by established acts, not least because they have a dedicated fanbase waiting for their next release before a single penny has been spent. Via it’s Chilli Music Portal, IMI Mobile allows fans to download tracks straight to their phones by texting a keyword over SMS. Senior music and content manager at IMI Mobile, Rob Turner, points out that “contrary to popular belief, not everyone is on iTunes – but everybody does have a phone and the purchases are mobile billed, which encourages incremental sales especially with younger fans.” For artists and managers looking for new and innovative ways to self-release to a waiting fanbase, Turner says that IMI Mobile offers a “highly scalable” system.


“The SMS mechanic is incredibly versatile, easy and often free to promote via social media. Additionally, we can help


smaller artists in a host of ways aside from simply providing incremental track sales. By engaging fanbases on mobile, we set up competitions, or message directly about new releases and gigs in a bespoke way.”


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