success despite taxi

Did you get a deal through TAXI? Lets hear about it!

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neuphoria
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success despite taxi

Post by neuphoria » Fri Sep 08, 2006 12:39 pm

i've had upwards of 10 tracks rejected by Taxi which have been licensed previously (some multiple times) through master/sync (not library) deals to major shows/networks. anyone else had pre/post success with songs rejected by taxi?(on that note, the forwards i've had have been less-than-stellar opportunities. one was for a 'negotiable master/synch fee' for a tv series where negotiable mean from zero to one dollar. another forward was to a library which had a smaller catalog, and smaller # of placements than i had--and even then, 2 songs submitted were rejected, one of which had been previously licensed 3 times...)

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Re: success despite taxi

Post by hummingbird » Fri Sep 08, 2006 7:33 pm

I too have had success outside of Taxi. But what does that mean? As a singer/actor, I've gone to countless auditions. So let's say, I audition at the Taxi theatre for several shows and never get a role, while the other theatres are calling me back and giving me roles. Does that mean that the people at the Taxi theatre are blind/deaf? Naw, it just means I didn't 'fit' whatever they had in mind for the role. Like Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, they want someone taller or shorter or older or younger or with black hair. Taxi screens submissions exactly as the clients ask them to - they have to, or they won't be getting listings. We can rail at the short-sighted-ness of the listers & screeners, or we can go about the business of pitching our songs any way we can using whatever vehicles we can. I guess I'm agreeing with you - it's a tough business. Who knows why one song gets picked up by someone and disgarded by another? It's like choosing between 3 equally great houses. Doesn't mean the other two are bad.Ack I'm just rambling here, so this might not make any sense at all, at all, or be relevant to your post.... Warning: Late night stream-of-consciousness from Ms H'bird
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Re: success despite taxi

Post by paolob » Fri Sep 08, 2006 11:42 pm

I must agree with neuph when says "...the forwards I've had have been less than stellar..."the only one deal (out of 46 forwards now) I was offered, is a 50/50 split, no advance, and not even from a big music library. As I already wrote in another post, I achieved the same kind of deal (even for more song) by myself through googling-and-mailing. I thought with Taxi I'd have to struggle to have some material considered, but then when it WAS considered....I hope, as all the Taxi-Members-Who-Made-It suggest, is often a matter of time and perseverance, beside quality.But I'm definitely with H'bird when says "...it just means I didn't 'fit' whatever they had in mind for the role...¨, i.e. the fact that some reject-by-taxi songs get a deal with somebody else, doesn't mean taxi was wrong rejecting them for THAT particular listing.My two euro-cent,Paolo

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Re: success despite taxi

Post by gitarrero » Sat Sep 09, 2006 12:12 am

Quote:I hope, as all the Taxi-Members-Who-Made-It suggest, is often a matter of time and perseverance, beside quality.I also think that it's often a matter of time anyway - I don't think anybody had an instant deal through the google&mail - methode... I have several deals through this method, but they all neede some... time;)lately I talked to an instrumental composer who has the majority of his deal through taxi (..and makes a living of it). His comment was "..see taxi as an investement in your future. If you build up any other business you don't expect to make profit from the first day on - here it's about the same. What you're doing now might make some money in 3 or 4 years."I think a common problem is that people think "taxi is the vehicle to success, I just have to send in my songs and I will instantly suceed" (..well, I can partwise understand that, because of the hype around taxi... homepage, success stories.. etc). What's often not seen is that these people who have success are working for YEARS on their stuff on a constant basis - we see his or her success story and think "wow, he just sent in his track and got a deal" - no, that's wrong. He/she needed a lot of time & effort which leaded to this sucess.I think in the end it depends on how badly you want it (..or if it's the right thing for you). If you have talent and working on a constant basis, you WILL suceed.
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Re: success despite taxi

Post by edteja » Sat Sep 09, 2006 2:20 am

Well said Gitarro.
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Re: success despite taxi

Post by neuphoria » Sat Sep 09, 2006 5:05 am

h'bird--read lots of your posts, you seem like a nice person (and you too matto, and you to dave, etc. : ).been doing this for some time (10 years, only recently decided to try taxi), and understand 'one-man's-noise-is-another-man's-song'. know it's a tough business, and don't feel bruised if a song isn't 'liked'--and don't feel gratified or more complete if it is 'loved'. my post was more of a statement of fact than complaint. decided to post because having tracks rejected that have been used by numerous productions, and earned significant revenue, (and b.t.w. been critically well-reviewed in major papers, etc.) does make me question the experience of the screeners. (and by that i mean how many actually have worked--for at least a few years--in a'n'r, and/or music supervision?) if the actual music supervisor doesn't find the track suitable, after it's been sent to them fine, end of discussion.taxi is certainly one avenue in negotiating the big city of this business--i'm just questioning the driver's 'Knowledge' a bit... and i now realize that the majority of taxi leads are for music libraries. (and that may be part of the problem, as my tracks are 'songs' not underscore. that's fine, just didn't know that before joining.) So heads up to anyone considering joining.

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Re: success despite taxi

Post by matto » Sat Sep 09, 2006 6:42 am

Quote:decided to post because having tracks rejected that have been used by numerous productions, and earned significant revenue, (and b.t.w. been critically well-reviewed in major papers, etc.) does make me question the experience of the screeners. (and by that i mean how many actually have worked--for at least a few years--in a'n'r, and/or music supervision?) if the actual music supervisor doesn't find the track suitable, after it's been sent to them fine, end of discussion.All of the Taxi screeners I've met have had MAJOR music business experience as A&R, publishers, in music supervision or as hit writers. Of course I haven't met every screener, but from what I've seen I have no doubt that Taxi is very selective in who they hire to screen songs.Also please keep in mind that it is the listing party who determines how picky the screeners should be in their forwards, it's not something a screener makes up arbitrarily.Quote:and i now realize that the majority of taxi leads are for music libraries.There seems to be an increase in library listings recently, but by my count it's maybe 30% of all listings in the current edition (not counting dispatch), if that. Also the bi-monthly listings are posted on Taxi's website for everyone to see, and you can even have them emailed to you, so I would advise anybody who's considering joining to watch them for several months to see what the mix is.In my experience over the last (almost ten) years, Taxi's listing have run the gamut from entry level opportunity to "major coup" (that would make a significant difference in just about anybody's career); befitting (IMHO) the wide range of experience of Taxi's membership. Of course it's usually easier to get forwarded for the smaller opps.Btw, congratulations on your success!matto

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Re: success despite taxi

Post by davewalton » Sat Sep 09, 2006 7:39 am

Quote:and i now realize that the majority of taxi leads are for music libraries. (and that may be part of the problem, as my tracks are 'songs' not underscore. that's fine, just didn't know that before joining.) So heads up to anyone considering joining. Actually "music library" listings seem in the minority just having a quick glance. The majority of listings seem to be for artists/bands or for music for artists/bands. Most music library listings aren't looking for underscore anyway. Example:Smooth, cool, very contemporary and radio-like" R&B/URBAN/POP SONGS [male or female vocals OK -- no instrumentals]] a la Christina Milian, Usher, Omarion, Beyonce, Chris Brown, Kelis, Ashanti, Van Hunt, etc. are needed by an East coast-based Music Library/Publisher that has placed dozens of TAXI songs through the years."Underscore" music would get tossed first thing in this listing, which is similar to most of the library listings. The listings appear to me to be catered more to you than to me. I'd be happy to have the majority of listings be what you describe but over the last three years that I've been a member it's just not been that way. Taxi is definitely focused on performing artists/bands, music for performing artists/bands and "radio-like" songs for music libraries and film/tv placement. Underscore listings are really few and far between.

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Re: success despite taxi

Post by andreh » Sat Sep 09, 2006 8:09 am

Ni Neuph-I think H'Bird's line of thinking is probably on the money; great music isn't necessarily the right music. On the other hand, people do make errors in judgement, and I'm sure Taxi's screeners are no exception despite their expertise.Even so, it seems to me that the occasional rejected song that maybe should have been forwarded is water under the bridge when you consider what you're still getting from Taxi, especially given the low cost of entry (in the big picture).I'd like to hear the songs you feel were inappropriately rejected; maybe we can all learn from them. Are you willing to post the original listings and the songs you submitted for them?Andre
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Re: success despite taxi

Post by Casey H » Sat Sep 09, 2006 9:17 am

Quote:Ni Neuph-...On the other hand, people do make errors in judgement, and I'm sure Taxi's screeners are no exception despite their expertise...AndreNot writing to defend or not defend TAXI here, but Andre hit it on the head... Every time someone makes it in this biz, there is a slew of A&R folks who rejected them before hand. So why be surprised if a song that already was accepted by one, is rejected by another? I am sure that if you could take a hit song and send it to a bunch of A&R folk who magically never heard it before, many or all would reject it. Casey

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