It’s often said that Cameroonians have a bad reading culture and so it’s necessary that you be patient and read through this paper vividly. After careful analysis and observation of the Cameroonian music scene, its developmental patterns, loopholes and the enormous challenges faced, this document is aimed at proposing some educative tips which are fundamental to the growth of the music industry.
Some of these tips are not very new to some actors of the aforementioned industry but I believe if they were employed and executed or even attempted, our music industry would have been telling a different story by now.
1.
Music is a business and like any other
business venture should be done in accordance with at least some basic business
principles and knowledge.
Everyone would agree with me
that it‘s a common story how record labels spring up with sweet agendas and
what seems to be the “ideal method of doing it” yet they disappear in thin air
within a very short time frame. Everyone embarking on this music business
journey should be aware that’s it’s more complicated than running a supermarket
or call box because it deals more with the needs of the human mind which are
more complex as contrasted to the other conventional methods of business which
often deals with peoples material wants. So it’s important that artists,
managers or other para-musical stakes should amass knowledge and skills in
business management. This can be done through extensive reading and skills
development through experience that often only come with time.
2.
There is a difference between doing a nice
song and an entertaining commercial piece.
Although these two are both
important, go hand in hand and reinforce each other, it’s a problem when we
concentrate only on the “musically fine song” part of it. Successful African
Music is now termed commercial music and a musically good song is just one of
the many components that make up a commercial piece. Different people have
different ways of going about the commercial issue, some using pidgin English
others common slangs and their dialects. But the bitter pill which is difficult
to swallow is that most of our musicians don’t have a commercial strategy for
their brand. Like dust particles they drift with the wind, when its pidgin they
follow same as camfranglais, naija style and some even go as far as to
photocopy more prominent and successful artists with so much precision. In
music it’s important to draw inspiration from others but it becomes a bad
business choice when it becomes a situation of duplicating talent. It would be
wonderful if we can blend good music with entertainment coz that’s exactly what
we are lacking.
3.
The song alone is not sufficient enough to
elevate the artist to his maximum potential.
Assuming songs have been well
produced and recorded, to give the songs their commercial potential the artist
needs some tools such as the services of a manager, fashion designer or coach,
a powerful charisma demonstrated via his communication skills and self
confidence amongst many other elements which are job descriptions of other
music industry stakeholders. His image should be a commodity that should be
able to be marketed and so branding it is of great importance in music
business. Some people have even proposed that talent is not up 50% of what it
takes to put an artist on the fame map and that is why some musicians have
maintained legendary positions but and not necessarily amongst the wealthiest
in that category.
4.
Doing music with no funds is like carrying a
wallet with no money.
Music just like other
businesses needs heavy financial investments. It is a field which is very
competitive and the spending trend only gets higher, meaning cost trends are
increasing as the industry grows bigger. To be able to shoot a video, record
and master a song to a suitable standard is quite costly as well. Other parts
of the process that require good sums of money are promotion, distribution,
hiring professional services, photo shoot sessions, adverts, the list is long.
It’s obvious that an artist with a good sum of money and just an average song
is more likely to reach the masses than that with a wonderful song but no
money. To be able to raise money or find sponsors a strong networking
should be built. Networking is often the manager’s role as managers are those
who look for the necessary connections; they should be people who know a good
number of influential people and opportunities in the business.
5.
The power of emotional intelligence is key to
working with others.
Studies carried out have
revealed that emotional intelligence is more related to success than the innate
forms of intelligence such as IQ and skillful talent. Emotional intelligence is
the ability to pull people’s attention and efforts to accomplish a given task
through gaining their trust and affection. It involves self confidence,
assertiveness, humility, self control, understanding emotions and how to
manipulate them. Positive behavioral traits are very needy in any working
environment, people who are cooperative and are good listeners often learn
more. An assertive person knows when someone crosses his boundaries and he
knows how to politely deal with such situations, he is able to maintain his
dignity and ego while maintaining the cooperative spirit to work with others.
These 5 points above are the minimum anyone
in the showbiz industry should know. After reading a lot of people would have
be concentrating on identifying the weaknesses of the article, it’s helpful
that everyone contributes in his or her own way in building this industry. It
is said that he who knows he does not know enough knows the most. Imagine an
artistic brand with the understanding and Implementation of just the few points
highlighted above. The take home message is that at this stage of our industry
it should be about the passion and not just the money. Patience, it’s just a
matter of time and we will all get there.
#ThinkersMight
Ebasone P. Vanes
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