Month: March 2021

https://youcanmakealivinginthemusicindustry.podbean.com/

This week I am talking with hit songwriter, composer and producer Alex Geringas from the company Rare Behavior. His songs have been recorded by Snoop Dogg, Jessie J and Cher to name a few and his music is used in multiple movies including Pitch Perfect 3 and The Lego Ninjago Movie and the tv shows Beat Shazam and Trollstopia. We are talking about what it’s like to produce major artists who are recording your songs, the differences in scoring music for film vs. tv and the reality of professionals having to prove themselves with every new project even when you have a list of successes in the business.

Sponsors: Edenbrooke Productions – We offer consulting services and are offering listeners a 1-hour introductory special. To request more info on consulting services, email Marty at contact@johnmartinkeith.com.

In this episode we talk about:

*Composing for tv shows and movies.
*Working with artists in the studio as a producer.
*Scoring film is completely different from a tv show.
*The hardest genre to score is the one that is not yours.
*The difference between scoring music for live action vs. animated shows.
*Learning what the producers and directors want.
*Building relationships.
*The best way to network.
*Keep yourself updated and learning.
*You have to invest in yourself.
*How music is created for tv shows.
*How to get your foot in the door working for a composer.
*Professionals have to prove themselves with every project.
*Focus on one goal.
*www.rarebehavior.com

BIO:

Multi-award-winning Songwriter / Composer Alex Geringas has garnered international acclaim for both his songs and scores.  His music has earned him awards and recognition on several continents including a Grammy award, BMI Awards,Emmy and Annie nominations for his Scores and two Echo awards (the German equivalent to a Grammy). In 2019 Alex was nominated to be a Judge at the Annie Awards.
Before Geringas relocated from Hamburg,Germany to Los Angeles in 2011 he had eighteen #1 Hits worldwide, as Songwriter including eleven # 1 hits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, six #1 hits in Japan, two #1 in South Korea.His songs were performed by music icons including Snoop Dogg, Jessie J, Timbaland, Cher, Kelly Clarkson, Ben Schwartz, Dove Cameron and many more.
Also Alex scored some of the most successful films in Germany in the last years “I’m Off Then” for Universal Germany and the highly acclaimed Family Trilogy “Hanni & Nanni 1-3” for Warner Bros. Germany.
Alex has currently 12 Theme Songs on TV with Disney, Dreamworks, Henson and Nickelodeon. For example FAST AND FURIOUS : SPY RACERS, WORD PARTY, RAINBOW RANGERS and VOLTRON, LEGENDARY DEFENDER and the upcoming Shows TROLLSTOPIA and THE CHICKEN SQUAD. Additionally, he contributed songs for the PBS Show SPLASH AND BUBBLES, SUPERMONSTERS and many more. In the Game Show Category, Geringas has written themes for BEAT SHAZAM (FOX) , SING YOUR FACE OFF (ABC) and most recently he did all the Music for CHRISSY’S COURT on Quibi.
Alex Geringas Music for the big screen includes end title songs for ICE AGE 5, THE NUT JOB 2, WOODY WOODPECKER (theme and all songs) and for THE LEGO NINJAGO MOVIE where he also contributed additional music. Other original song contributions include the TV series’ THE MUPPETS (ABC), TRAINING DAY (CBS) and CSI (CBS). 
Alex also contributed additional music for PITCH PERFECT 3 and UNCLE DREW. He also contributed Original Songs for the Robert De Niro and Uma Thurman film THE WAR WITH GRANDPA (D : Timothy Hill) and wrote Additional Music for the Melissa McCarthy film HAPPYTIME MURDERS. Besides that he just worked with Hans Zimmer and with Director Timothy Hill on the upcoming THE SPONGE BOB MOVIE : SPONGE ON THE RUN for Paramount Pictures.
After completing the score for TROLLS THE BEAT GOES ON for DWA/Netflix in 2020, Alex is currently scoring the new Trolls TV Show TROLLSTOPIA and the Disney Jr. Show CHUGGINGTON (Season 6).  He has teamed up with Mike Himelstein as the Episodic Songwriter of the upcoming Disney Jr. Show THE CHICKEN SQUAD.  He also is scoring and writing all songs for an upcoming Netflix Animation TV Show.  Additionally, Alex is scoring two unannounced projects, a Netflix Animated Feature and a Nickelodeon Animated Feature.

https://youcanmakealivinginthemusicindustry.podbean.com/

This week I am talking with Daryl Berg who is the music supervisor for Crown Media which owns The Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies and Mysteries.  He has also worked with Fremantle Media as head of music and worked on various game shows. We are talking about the kind of music Hallmark is looking for and the kind of music composers need to create if they want to get into game show music. Plus, the importance of knowing who your audience is when creating music for tv.

Show Notes: 
 
Sponsors: Edenbrooke Productions – We offer consulting services and are offering listeners a 1-hour introductory special. To request more info on consulting services, email Marty at contact@johnmartinkeith.com.

In this episode we talk about:

*Doing music supervision for Crown Media: The Hallmark Channel, etc.
*Music for game shows should be short, sharp and shocked.
*Game show music composers should make friends with production company people.
*The kind of music needed for Hallmark movies and shows.
*Budgets decide if the music used is major label or indie artist.
*Being on a music supervisors list is a privilege.
*Don’t call me, email me.
*You have to understand what your audience is.
*Find an agent who works with Crown Media to rep your music.
*Be polite.
*Follow up once a month, not once a week.

BIO:

Daryl Berg currently is the Vice President, Music Strategies and Licensing for Crown Media; parent company of Hallmark Channel and Hallmark Movies and Mysteries where he overseas all music strategy and supervision.  Prior to that he re-launched Sound Canyon in Fall of 2015 after serving as Vice President, Head of Music for FremantleMedia North America, where he handled music supervision and licensing, oversaw and grew their publishing assets, and worked with both television and digital departments on the developmental sides. Prior to that he served as Vice President of Music for Shine America from 2011 to 2013, where he was responsible for Shine America’s music strategy, expanding the company’s music portfolio, helping to develop music-based productions and building licensing properties across scripted, unscripted and digital productions.Prior to joining Shine America, Berg served as Director of Music for FUEL TV, where he spearheaded the overall music strategy for the network. His responsibilities at FUEL ranged from music supervision to licensing and booking bands to overseeing the network’s music marketing campaigns.Before FUEL TV, Berg was Director, Business Development for EMI Music, developing business opportunities for the company and creating new media licensing proposals, including digital music subscriptions, internet radio, online video and set-top box content deals. Previously, Berg co-created Crusty Old Timer, Inc., a music supervision and placement company based in Los Angeles. He also formerly served as founder/Vice President, Strategic Planning for The Orchard, an independent music and video distribution company.  He’s a graduate of University at Albany and Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and lives in Los Angeles with his wife Nina and their daughter Lennox.

https://youcanmakealivinginthemusicindustry.podbean.com/

This week I’m talking with Glory Reinstein who is the owner of the sync licensing agency Song and Film which I am honored to work with.  We are talking about the day to day aspects of running a sync licensing agency, what to know when starting your own sync agency and the importance of the music needing to enhance, not distract from the story.

Sponsors: Edenbrooke Productions – We offer consulting services and are offering listeners a 1-hour introductory special. To request more info on consulting services, email Marty at contact@johnmartinkeith.com.

In this episode we talk about:

*Being the owner of Song and Film sync licensing Agency.


*You need great production.
*I look for great Americana music and great hip hop artists.
*Music Supervisors want songs to breathe, not too wordy.  
*Supes want stems as well as instrumental.
*I work non-exclusively.
*Licensing fee percentages.
*Different genres of Christmas music that are requested.
*The amount of briefs sent.
*The song has to fit like a glove in a scene. 
*The process of songs getting placed.


*Building trust with supervisors.
*Day to day aspects of running a sync licensing agency.
*Starting your own sync licensing agency.
*The e-book “Thinking in Sync” by Amanda Kreig Thomas on Amazon.
*Knowing what Music Supervisors really want.
*www.songandfilm.com
*“How To Make It In The New Music Business” by Ari Herstand on Amazon.
*“Making Music Make Money” by Eric Beall
*“All You Need To Know About The Music Business” by Donald S. Passman on Amazon.
*Sync music needs to enhance, not distract from the story.

BIO

Glory Reinstein received her B.S. in Music Education at the University of Vermont and her M.S. at Central Connecticut State University. She taught music at the high school level in three different high schools over the course of 38 years. While teaching, she was a guest conductor for a few high school music festivals and served as President for one term for the Vermont Chapter of the American Choral Director’s Association as well as President for one term for the Vermont chapter of the Music Educators Association. Ms. Reinstein garnered four awards during her teaching career including Vermont Music Educator of the Year. 
As a result of her son pursuing a singer/songwriter career, Glory got interested and involved in not only helping him with promotion and publicity, but also other local artists. After taking online courses at Berklee College of Music (Boston), she started her own business, Malletts Bay Music, and ran it while still teaching. In 2015, when she retired from teaching, she began working with the founder of Song And Film and eventually took over the business. Since then she has signed many new artists and has licensed several songs on their behalf. 

https://youcanmakealivinginthemusicindustry.podbean.com/

This week I’m talking with my good friend Christian Sancho. Christian is a professional touring bass player who is currently working with country artist Ashley McBryde. We are discussing the dos and dont’s when auditioning to be in a band for a major label artist plus, the differences in playing small venues vs. large arenas and late night talk shows.

Sponsors: Edenbrooke Productions – We offer consulting services and are offering listeners a 1-hour introductory special. To request more info on consulting services, email Marty at contact@johnmartinkeith.com. 

In this episode we talk about:

*The difference in playing for academic purposes vs. playing with people.
*What the audition process is like for a major touring band.
*Making sure to learn songs note for note when auditioning for a tour and being prepared.
*the touring band usually knows who they want to audition to be in the band.
*looking the part.
*Touring with country artist Ashley McBryde.
*Playing late night talk shows. 
*Self editing.
*The differences in opening for an artist and headlining your own show.
*Tricks for playing in dark venues.
*In ears vs. wedge monitors
*Do your homework.
*Where you spend your time networking is hopefully where you end up working.
*Have a clear picture of what you want to do.
*Be open to learning.
*Pay scale for playing on different tours.
*being the star of an Eric Church music video – 
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_CksCHnooM
*https://www.ashleymcbryde.com

BIO:

Christian Sancho is a professional touring bass player. Originally from Milwaukee WI, Christian has worked with country acts such as Hailey Whitters, Maddie and Tae and Ashley McBryde. He grew up playing in church and came to Nashville to study at Belmont University. He has toured ever since with cover bands as well as working with various churches until 2017 when he started touring with country artist Ashley McBryde full time. 

https://youcanmakealivinginthemusicindustry.podbean.com/

This week I am talking with digital strategist Michael Sloane who works musicians, management, labels, and entertainment brands, building successful and profitable relationships. His company Streaming Promotions helps grow audiences for artists on Streaming playlists. We are talking about how to connect with streaming services and get your music in front of the people who can get you in front of an expanding audience. And we talk about coming up with a strategy to reach your audience and demographic.

Sponsors: Edenbrooke Productions – We offer consulting services and are offering listeners a 1-hour introductory special. To request more info on consulting services, email Marty at contact@johnmartinkeith.com. 

In this episode we talk about:

*Streaming Promotions which helps grow audiences for artists on Streaming playlists.
*Make sure your artist profile is up to date on Spotify.
*connecting with over 3000 curators to get your songs on playlists.
*Matching music to appropriate playlists.
*Networking and building relationships with people in the industry.
*Find out who works behind the scenes and make connections.
*Be solution driven.
*Project management for Zac Brown Band and Taylor Swift in the digital market.
*Social media marketing.
*The importance of being a great hang.
*What the audience wants.
*What demographic are you trying to reach?
*What is your strategy to reach your audience?
*How are you telling your story?
*www.streamingpromotions.com 
contact  –  slone@streamingpromotions.com

BIO:

Michael Sloane is an executive leader and digital strategist with a proven ability to develop and increase revenues while building a loyal consumer base in the ever-changing digital space. 
 As a digital strategist he has worked with Musicians, Management, Labels, and Entertainment brands, building successful and profitable relationships.
 After pursuing a finance degree from the University of Kentucky, and an MBA in Music Business and Negotiation from Belmont University, he cut his teeth in entertainment with echomusic (later acquired by Ticketmaster) and later Live Nation Artists.  In these roles he saw the digital revolution unfold for artist such as The Rolling Stones, Kanye West, John Mayer, Zac Brown Band, Keith Urban, Mariah Carey, and Brooks & Dunn, among many others.
 He later focused on digital strategy and ecommerce optimization with Taylor Swift (13 Management) followed by a jump to a record label, as Director of Digital Marketing for Big Machine Label Group (Taylor Swift, Florida Georgia Line, Tim McGraw, etc.)  He is currently the owner and CEO of Streaming Promotions, focused on growing audience for artists on Spotify.  While also acting as VP of Operations for Wonderful Union specializing in fan club and VIP ticketing.   Over the last 8 years he has acted as an adjunct professor at Belmont University teaching digital strategy and marketing.
 Through the management of software development, client management, ecommerce optimization and digital strategy, Sloane has been able to build and grow the digital footprint of some of the largest entertainment brands in the world.