I've got a daughter that many, many people, who have witnessed her sitting at a piano and singing her music, say is a contemporary songwriting genius. She is not the performer she thinks she is (even though she's won every talent contest she's ever entered), but is certainly a wonderful writer and melodic visionary...in the Carol King, Sarah McLaughlin, and Gavin McGraw modes...she's not locked in to any venue. For the past five years I've been badgering her to spend her free time cleaning up all her compositions to be ready to have them recorded for publishing, but it falls on deaf ears as she continues to write new stuff...and not to mention she's a rising senior at an Ivy League college getting ready for Law School!!! I've had numerous friends tell me they'd personally finance her publishing as they so believe in her writing, but the hard part is actually finding the right path to getting her work into proper hands once we get her off the dime. I'm now searching and landed on this site. Any words of wisdom? Her music is so very good.

Hi Jack,

The only advise I can give is let your daughter do what she wants to do. While she may be extremely talented and everyone around her may be begging her to do something with it, it sounds like her mind is focused on a different path. In order for any artist, even the most talented ones, to be successful in the business requires a lot of dedication and effort not only to the craft but also to handling the business of her career.

Now don't get me wrong, if in fact you spent money on an Ivy League college and are prepared to spend money on a top law school and your daughter would rather do music, then I applaud you for your support of your daughter after having spent so much money on schooling that, if she succeeds in music, she will probably use very little of. I know many parents who would not be so supportive.

If your daughter wants to make a run at the music business then my suggestion would be to get her into a good studio with a good producer so that you have material, get her out on the road playing shows so that she can develop a fan base, hire a good PR firm, a song plugger to work a single to radio, a good entertainment attorney and a good manager. With those people in place, you should be able to get her music into the right hands and recieve some good advice on the steps she needs to take to ensure a stable career. Also, please remember one very importaint thing....it's not about getting her material into the "right hands", it's about getting it into the right hands at the right time. If you were to hand her material to the head of A&R for Sony Records today and he absolutly loves it, your daughter will get a deal offer that is 100% in Sony's favor because she has nothing happening from a business prospective. But if you were to hand her material to the same person when your daughter has played venues up and down the east coast, has 3,000 units of her CD sold, has a song getting major market radio play (even regionally), has had press coverage and interviews etc. you will be in a much better negotiating position.

Always remember that this is a business and the companies that operate in it do not take risks, ever. Your daughters music is a product and the deals you will be offered are directly related to the strength of that products ability to generate money in the marketplace. Yes, if your daughter is really that talented she will get a deal no matter what she has going on but just remember that the more money a label has to spend in order to generate money from her music, the more her deal will favor the label when it comes to the profits.

I hope that helps a little. Best of luck!!

RJ

Thank you for your insight and great advice, R.J. Having a background in licensing that spans almost 30 years, I know exactly what you're saying regarding leverage. Key, however, is first getting her to clean up her material to actually get it published. This is a huge first hurdle for her as she wades through the rest of the summer working for UPenn's president and studying for the L-SAT in September. The other thing is that I don't think she's the performer she thinks she is. I know it would be great for her to get some initial attention by doing a few gigs here and there, but that ain't gonna happen. I suppose we'll just have to be patient while getting her stuff published and go from there. Her cousin, an attorney in St. Louis and also an aspiring stage performer herself, is working on her from that side as well. Thanks again. Cheers. jrw

I am a pop producer and recording engineer. If you think she has what it takes, send me an email with an example shaneoconnorrecording@gmail.com