Women are revolutionizing the music industry as we speak. LOUD WOMEN gathered some valuable insights and nuggets of inspiration from the seven panelists of the “Womxn in Music Business” event.
The event was held back in early March and curated by the female-led Creatives Movement.
Compiled by Minni Moody.
On being an entrepreneur in the music business
“I’ve learned balancing my workflow the hard way. I was working and studying and launching my business and doing music reviews, I was so burned out. Learning to say no to things is so important, I don’t want to turn down artists and opportunities, so it is hard. But always make sure you have a day for yourself.”
Katie Guthrie, founder Underground Sounds Edinburgh and Wee Records Edinburgh
“I knew there would be limits what I could do myself and what my artists required. I knew I had to bring other people in. So I’m working with other small businesses, but they had to be in it with all the right reasons as my business is my baby and I only let people I really trust touch it.”
Ella Gregg – founder 321 Artists
“My favorite thing about my job is to be able to do and try whatever I want. I love driving my own bus and feeling like I have so much agency.”
Andie Aronow – founder Women That Rock
What do you look for an artist?
Kara Michael-Brown – founder Petra Partnerships
“We look for that creativity and originality. If you have that little quirk in you, people will remember that. And brands will want to work with you.”
“You need to be willing to engage with your fans. You won’t do well without.”
Ella Rose – founder Petra Partnerships
“Finding someone motivated and driven is what attracts me to collaborations, you cannot wait someone else to do all the work for you.”
Katie Guthrie
On mentorship in music
“Having a mentor is so important. But it has to be authentic to you. I will say to any entrepeneurs out there, get your support with mental health as well. Same goes with artists. When we do group mentoring, the biggest feedback we get is that “I’ve realised it is not that hard, but you need to have the knowledge. It flips your perception by having a roadmap.”
Kimmy Dickson – founder HyperTribe
How to avoid bad management
“If anybody asks you to change your brand, it is a massive red flag. This is my perspective as a gay artist, I remember when my manager asked me to dull that down. If someone’s trying to dim your sparkle, run.”
Lou Rogers – Classy Lassy PR
“Hold off until people come to you. You will find that authentic connection. Build your team, write your hit list. Don’t be forced into anything. Always check your contracts, know the difference between net and gross. Have a lawyer to check it, no matter how much it costs you.”
Kimmy Dickson – HyperTribe
The best way to network with people in the industry right now?
Ella Rose – Petra Partnerships
“I just find people online. I email them and say that I’m a big fan of your work and set up a Zoom call. Everyone is getting more used to setting up chats. Quick Zoom is fine. I chat and see if we can work together in the future. The whole pandemic has lowered my threshold of connecting with people.”
On music brands & ecological sustainability
“I might sound like a Pinterest inspirational quote, but it is the small changes we do that make the biggest differences. It (sustainably) is actually much easier than we think. Let’s choose eco hosting for the website, for example.”
Kara Michael-Brown – Petra Partnerships
On artist management
“As an artist manager you feel like an adoptive parent sometimes. You can talk about ticket splits and they are complaining about their boyfriend. My relationship with my artists is totally person to person.”
Lou Rogers – Classy Lassy PR
“When you manage an emerging artist, there’s not a lot of money there, you are making a long term investment. Management is not a nine to five job, they call you 3am.”
Ella Gregg – 321 Artists
“My tip for anyone looking to get management as an artist is always to check the commission, if its over 20 percent or under 20 percent, you need to ask why.”
Kimmy Dickson – HyperTribe
Music industry during pandemic
“When the pandemic hit, my whole life just shut down. For the first few months I was in resistance, just wanting things to go back to “normal.” But I needed to adapt to a new normal and try new directions. Creating virtual livestream events have been a new beast to learn, and it took doing half a dozen of them to nail it. Our most successful livestream event was hosted through Streamyard, but before that we tried Zoom, Facebook, Insta live, OBS, etc.
I will say, being forced to be more selective about events has forced me to take a step back, and has allowed me to focus on initiatives that are less event-dependent. I do think there will be relevance for virtual events quite some time still. One very cool thing about virtual events is that you can feature artists from anywhere, not just locally.
Andie Aronow – Women That Rock
Virtual shows aren’t going to replace live shows. People miss dancing and singing and sweating together. But I do think that it’s likely that festivals and live events will have more digital integrations in the future.
