What am I doing wrong?

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nycoach
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What am I doing wrong?

Post by nycoach » Thu Oct 25, 2007 6:34 am

Let me start by saying that I've been a touring musician for the past 12 years, and I know that NOTHING moves fast in this business, but I'm starting to wonder what is going on with all of my fowards. Lately, I have been getting ALOT of forwards, and besides getting a song into an indie film a few months back, NOTHING has panned out. Not even one music library deal. I've noticed that deals seem to be flying among members lately, and it's getting so frusterating to keep getting forwards with no contact after that. In 3 months, I'll be coming up on my year anniversary with Taxi, and at this rate, I'm just not sure what to do.Thanks, I just needed to vent.

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by ddusty » Thu Oct 25, 2007 6:43 am

Hey Coach,Keep up with the patience! We had many many forwards before the first library deal, and that was into our 3rd year. Unfortunately you are right to say that nothing moves fast (at least not when it benefits us!)If you are getting a lot of forwards, keep plugging away, it's a numbers game. Just a matter of time.Good Luck!

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by nycoach » Thu Oct 25, 2007 7:03 am

Thanks Ddusty...I'm always plugging away, but for some reason it's really bothering me lately. But thank you...

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by paults » Thu Oct 25, 2007 7:17 am

I'll say the only thing you may be doing wrong is losing your patience Since you are used to the instant gratification (and pay) of performance, that's easy enough to understand. I like live gigs,too! Getting something in a movie within six months of subscribing to Taxi is pretty fast results, I think. Forwards to libraries can take a long time before you hear anything. I was contacted by a video production company almost a year after their Taxi listing. So, patience (and continued good work) is the key.

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by nycoach » Thu Oct 25, 2007 7:20 am

Thank you for the response...So it really can take THAT long to hear form some of these companies? Crazy....

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by crs7string » Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:03 am

I think when you buy into the idea that this is a numbers game, you focus in on what you can control and not on what you can't. The only controllable factor in submitting music to TAXI is the quality and quantity of what you submit. The law of averages over time will work in your favor. I think about this whole process as a funnel. We have control of what we put in the funnel's wide end and little control of what comes out the other end. I do know that if I put enough in the funnel, it will eventually over flow.The other part of this approach is that by increasing quantity and doing more work, the quality improves and you get faster at producing work that again increases quantity.The biggest factor in all of this that we all have control of is PATIENCE.Almost everyone of Matto's posts reflects that he has internalized all of this stuff and advises all of us that it take a minimum of five years to get any meaningful results. I deliberately signed up for three years when I joined TAXI to eliminate the "should I renew"? question after the first year. I'm about seven months into year two with tracks in four libraries and open doors to all of them. This does work but I think you have to be a little "too stupid to quit" Chuck
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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by bombaycharlie1 » Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:09 am

Hey Coach...I know this can be frustrating. I've been playing live in NYC and around the world for the past 20 years...and am trying to write now because basically I'm tired of carting my gear all over the place!I was a member in the beginning of TAXI almost 10 years ago. I got forwards, and even signed a deal or two with some libraries then...did not made a dime through them, and I gave up and quit. I rejoined the beginning of this year with a new determination to make a serious go of it. I just signed a deal last week...and I'm forgetting about it. I gave myself a pat on the back, and now will get back to the computer and write more and more.Use these forums to post your material and ask for help. There are a lot of knowledgeable people here, and all are willing to help out. This is the best way to grow.Keep plugging and writingCharlie

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by nycoach » Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:28 am

I really want to thank you all for taking the time to write! Let me say that I will never quit music. I've actually been very lucky in my career to be able to do music full time. I think my question was more on the Taxi front. I guess I was just getting worried that I keep getting all of these forwards without anything happening. Maybe it's Mercury Retrograde, but I seem to be in a funk and I'm questioning how I'm going about things. Taxi is just next on the checklist of questions....

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by davewalton » Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:31 am

Quote:Let me start by saying that I've been a touring musician for the past 12 years, and I know that NOTHING moves fast in this business, but I'm starting to wonder what is going on with all of my fowards. Lately, I have been getting ALOT of forwards, and besides getting a song into an indie film a few months back, NOTHING has panned out. Not even one music library deal. I've noticed that deals seem to be flying among members lately, and it's getting so frusterating to keep getting forwards with no contact after that. In 3 months, I'll be coming up on my year anniversary with Taxi, and at this rate, I'm just not sure what to do.Thanks, I just needed to vent.Hey Coach...There's not much to say other than it's not anything you're doing wrong. The randomness of when deals come along is something that could be good study material for "Non-linear Problems In Random Theory" post grad students at MIT. I have a feeling they'd wind up saying "Beats the hell out of us how this works". Regarding Taxi specifically, I look for one REALLY good deal maybe every five years. If I get some library or Indie movie placements of course I'm happy too but it's these "cream of the crop" deals that I don't have access to outside of Taxi that keeps me coming back. That's not the only reason but I think we're just talking specifically about deals here for the moment.One thing too... in the upcoming Rally there's always lots of sessions and information about marketing yourself, etc. You're a professional and have been around the block a few times, certainly in your area there's good opportunities to make contacts and add to your Taxi submissions. I've found that when I have several avenues, then it doesn't matter where the deals are coming from. I will say that of all the things I do, Taxi would be one of the last ones I gave up.Actually, I did give up Taxi for a little while at one point. Then I got an email for a music library deal (from a listing that ran a year before that). So I decided maybe I should re-up for Taxi after all. Then a certain little listing ran, I submitted and got the Oprah deal. I can freak myself out thinking how I might have missed out on one of my biggest opportunities so far had I walked away from Taxi forever. On the other hand, there's places where I submit music and have never received a deal but I'll for sure never get a deal if I stop submitting. Regarding submitting through places like Taxi, I had to become a little more selective when submitting. I've said many times, that makes me a long-term successful Taxi member as opposed to a short-term burned out and frustrated Taxi member.You need to come to Los Angeles and hang around with the rest of us at the Rally, get energized and chill out at the same time. Bring Kelly Clarkson. Dave

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Re: What am I doing wrong?

Post by mazz » Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:46 am

Coach,It took me two years in TAXI before I got a deal. I didn't submit a whole lot in the first couple of years but I did get some forwards. Speaking of forward, that's how you have to move, just write and submit, rinse and repeat Think of it this way: every piece that was forwarded is now a solicited submission in the inbox of the company that you were forwarded to. I'd be willing to be that if they were looking for something and they weren't satisfied with what they had in their catalog that they might just do a search in the solicited pile and yours might pop up. This could happen months or even years after the forward, it's just the way the business works on the client end.Another thought: if you get forwarded multiple times to the same company, you have a chance of standing out as someone that can write what they need. They may eventually pick up the phone just because your name keeps popping up on their radar screen. I've heard it can take 5 to 15 exposures to someone's name or brand name before it registers as a memory in a customer/client's mind.Of course, I'm saying all this to give myself a little pep talk as well!!!!!!!!Hang in there bro!Mazz
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