On Being Successful in the Gospel Music Industry
Being a success in the music industry is a very hard and
challenging business. Many articles have been written about artists that have
been superstars only for their careers to end in ruin. In the gospel music industry, it is a well-known
fact that it is even harder to become successful. Many articles have been written about gospel
artists struggle to make ends meet. Today, I will be discussing an article
written by Attorney James L. Walker entitled “12 Top Reasons Gospel Artists Go Broke”. In this article, Walker listed
the following reasons:
· "They trust Jesus and anyone who uses “The Name
of Jesus “to convince them not to read their contracts
·
They hire their choir members or deacons to be
their managers
·
They pray daily but won’t read daily
·
They like shoes more than new money
·
They overprice themselves out of the marketplace
and don’t understand market conditions
·
They like high profile big cars vs. large low
profile bank account
·
They listen to their pastor’s advice before
their attorney, accountant or manager
·
They think Jesus called them just to sing and they
don’t worry about the business side of it.
·
They won’t read their contracts
·
They don’t understand Point, Publishing or
Statutory Rates
·
They don’t read any contracts
·
They don’t realize that Jesus wept because a
generation of singers would not get paid unless they read their contracts like
they read the bible and pray"
(Walker, 2011)
When you look at the above reasons, a few things really
stick out.
·
If you are going to be in any business, you must
get proper legal representation. If you
sign a contract and don’t know what it is saying, you will be on the losing
end.
·
Another issue is whom do you get to manage you? You must have an expert in the music
business, not the deacon or the choir leader.
They don’t have the expertise or connections in the music industry to
successfully manage you.
·
The third issue that really stands out is that
you can’t put your cart before the horses.
Buying big fancy cars, clothing, and accessories before your career is
really established will be a big downfall for any artist.
·
Lastly, the issue of trust comes to play. Will you listen to your pastor or will you
listen to your lawyer, accountant or legitimate manager? Remember, your pastor doesn’t know the music
business. To avoid going broke, I would suggest pray and let God and your
pastor lead you to getting lawyers, accountant and managers that come highly
recommended from people in the industry that you can trust. Interview them, speak to others they have
managed, look them up and do background checks because this is your
livelihood.
·
Walker even suggests reading books like, “ All You Need to Know About the Music Business” by Donald Passman or Kashif’s book,
“Everything You Better Know About the Record Industry”. Walker also has written a book entitled, The
Business of Urban Music. Read these books like you read the bible in order to
protect yourself.
It is important not to blindly trust anyone because they say
they love Jesus. You still have to read
your contract and know the business your in, and hire professional help to
manage your career like any other artist does.
