UPDATE on JESSICA & Thoughts on TAXI!

[slimcharm]

Hi Everyone!I got an email from a Taxi member requesting that I post an update on Jessica at the forums (thanks Dave) so I thought I would do that and also include some thoughts on TAXI. I will start with our thoughts on Taxi and then Update on Jessica.THOUGHTS ON TAXI...The big question we had when joining Taxi was ..is it real and we can say that yes it is real. Since she got her NEW photos and demo songs a few months ago, Jessica has received a lot of forwards! 7 out of 11 submissions. Of the ones not forwarded she got great comments but they may have said it wasnt quite right for the listing...like it wasnt edgy enough and given suggestions on how to make it edgier. She did not receive a forward on one listing because the reviewer said she was too Hilary Duff sounding and not Kelly Clarkson enough but on a prior submission - the same reviewer said the song was along the lines of a Kelly Clarkson song! So that type of thing can be frustrating. One issue we have with TAXI is sound alike listings (the listing content is just a little bit different from another listing) but it has a different submission number so you think its a different listing. I think it should be made clear if its a duplicate listing. Its really not fair to members to submit if they think its something different (because of the numbers) and its the same. From our experience if it sounds the same it probably is. Jessica was forwarded twice by different reviewers to the same company and the listing had different submission numbers.Also when she followed up with the company some of what was said in the listing was not quite accurate.My biggest suggestion to Taxi members is to follow up if you get a forward and haven't heard anything, after giving it a reasonable amount of time. I think some members may think..oh a forward - if they like it, they will contact me. But in truth they may need a nudge. Jessica contacted each of the places we could find (and some she couldnt find) and said to them...I got a TAXI forward to you, and wanted to follow up. One company told her they had a bunch of submissions from TAXI and they were too busy to look at them (a manager)! So by following up she bought herself to their attention...They did discuss management (and he did offer to manage Jessica) but ultimately it was decided he was too busy overall to help her with her career. I am not sure where TAXI gets the listings they do. Obviously in this case the company was too busy to add artists. Jessica learned about Broadjam and Sonicbids through TAXI..She is really happy with Broadjam (they host her website) and her site is a featured link there.She also joined Sonicbids on the free trial and her EPK jumped to the top 9 (though it has slipped out now) most viewed EPK's within 2 days of putting it on there. Which she was excited about as they have around 80.000 members.Her TAXI membership ends soon and we opted not to renew. But its been an interesting experience. You can contact Jessica at info@jessicamellott.com or through her website or myspace.UPDATE ON JESSICAJessica is doing really good. Right now she has a lot of different things swirling around.Some of the highlights include one of her songs was selected to be in an Indie movie, she is featured in the book "Hacking Myspace" because of all of the song plays she received on Myspace in a short span of time. She hooked up with a production company recently (non-exclusive) and is kicking her performance schedule into high gear.Her songs are featured on Ferrari club dvd's and a CD audio magazine. She has met some amazing people too! Susaye Greene of Motown's Supremes painted her portrait so that was exciting!Lots of other things have happened and there are some projects going on that she is working on but they are not firm yet so we will have to wait and see.She is in her senior year of high school and attending college part-time. She recently updated both her website www.jessicamellott.com and her myspace www.myspace.com/jessicamellott.She works really hard at her career and its great to see her hard work paying off.Best to everyone!Lee www.jessicamellott.comwww.myspace.com/jessicamellott

[Casey H]

Hi LeeI think the issue is comparing Jessica's career objectives against the majority of TAXI listings. Jessica, is looking to be a performing artist and get a label deal (and I think she will get one!!). How many listings that she was forwarded to were for actual record label deals (i.e. looking for "artists" as opposed to "songs")? Nothing against TAXI at all, it is just a question. Also, only you can decide if you want to pitch songs to film/TV while pursuing the bigger dream. Many artists do that and it works well as long as you don't sign something bad that makes it impossible to use a song later on your own CD.I did once call TAXI about those listings that are basically the same, repeated with different genres. (i.e. same listing number with a "CO", a "RK", "PR", an "MR" at the end). I was told that if you submit to one and they feel your song fits one of the others, they will forward it. Someone may want to call TAXI and confirm this again.Anyway, thanks for checking in. I know Jessica has a very bright future. Does she currently have management? (other than Mom)...Please drop me a PM... All the best Casey

[matto]

Hi Lee,good to hear from you and to hear what's new with Jessica! Glad to hear she's keeping busy and moving ahead. See below for a few comments to some of the points you're bringing up...Quote:One issue we have with TAXI is sound alike listings (the listing content is just a little bit different from another listing) but it has a different submission number so you think its a different listing. I think it should be made clear if its a duplicate listing. Its really not fair to members to submit if they think its something different (because of the numbers) and its the same. From our experience if it sounds the same it probably is. Jessica was forwarded twice by different reviewers to the same company and the listing had different submission numbers.Actually while this may seem like a waste of effort and money I found it can be a very good thing. Being forwarded twice to the same company allows you to make two impressions. This is even more effective if you're submitting different songs. I also think it's usually pretty easy to tell if several listings are placed by the same company. If they read exactly the same (other than the style/ ala artists part), chances are it's the same company. A quick call to Taxi can clarify that.Quote:My biggest suggestion to Taxi members is to follow up if you get a forward and haven't heard anything, after giving it a reasonable amount of time. I think some members may think..oh a forward - if they like it, they will contact me. But in truth they may need a nudge. Jessica contacted each of the places we could find (and some she couldnt find) and said to them...I got a TAXI forward to you, and wanted to follow up. There are many different opinions on this topic, even by pros...however everybody I've ever talked to agrees that nobody EVER got a major deal because of following up . Also it's important to realize that there is a fine line between following up and making a nuisance of yourself. You definitely wanna avoid the latter...Quote:One company told her they had a bunch of submissions from TAXI and they were too busy to look at them (a manager)! So by following up she bought herself to their attention...They did discuss management (and he did offer to manage Jessica) but ultimately it was decided he was too busy overall to help her with her career. I am not sure where TAXI gets the listings they do. Obviously in this case the company was too busy to add artists. Actually it's quite common for companies to be "too busy" to listen to submissions. It tends to take a long time for them to get around to it. ALL companies, no matter how busy, are ALWAYS looking for that once in a lifetime artist, the one that makes them drop everything they are doing. Obviuosly Jessica wasn't that artist to this particular company. No big deal.Another thing you'll learn is that, particularly during follow-up calls, "too busy" often really means "not interested". It's sort of "music industry code".Anyway I'm really happy that Jessica is out there pursuing her dream, working hard, and that things are starting to happen for her.Best of luck to both of you!matto