Ways Artists Destroy Their Careers: Hire Your Mother As Your Manager

This is a bit facetious and might make some people angry.  I'm not picking on mothers!  However my opinion is based on my experience and observation.  Unless they are proven music industry professionals -- hopefully managers -- do not hire your mother, father, uncle, cousin, brother, next door neighbor, boyfriend, etc. to manage your career.  Rather than destroying a career this is often a way to stop a career dead in its tracks on the way to the launch pad.  Even if the relative or friend is a proven personal manager, still give it some serious thought.  More than one artist has ended up suing their father or other relative over the way their relative handled their career.  Tragically then the breakup is not only a business one but a personal one.

Assume you work for a record label and it is your job to decide whether or not a budding artist is going to be signed.  Assume further that you have three extraordinarily talented young artists to choose from.  Depending on the size of your label you will be committing anywhere from $500,00 to $1,000,000 or more to “break” the artist.  Choose wrong too many times and your job might be in jeopardy - indeed everybody’s job at the label given the state of the music industry today.

Given those facts, do you care who the artist’s professional team is?  Of course you do.  These people can help or hinder the road to success for the artist, you and the label.  Artist number 1 has no manager at all.  Artist number 2 is managed by a successful industry manager.  And artist number 3 is managed by her mother who is the successful owner of a local bakery.  All things equal, which artist will you sign?  Number 2 of course. Second choice (first in the case of some record people) will be artist number 1 since the label will have the opportunity to make manager suggestions to the artist.

Relatives - particularly close relatives like mothers and fathers - are not always able to exercise cool objectivity and professionalism when needed.  They love their children and want to protect them for sure.  A noble cause but not necessarily best when it comes to making business decisions.  Music industry gatekeepers know this.  They have learned it the hard way.  There was a time when I presented unsigned artists to labels in hopes of procuring a recording agreement for my client.  Even though I had strong relationships at the labels I learned that some would not even let me in the door if I had mentioned that mom or dad would be involved in career management.  One powerful producer told me that he did not want to even listen or see a picture of an artist managed by a relative for fear he might like the artist and sign them.  I believe that reinforces the point I am trying make.

There have been artists managed by one parent or another who have become quite successful.  To the best of my knowledge there aren’t that many.  Some have overcome the “parent” hex and turned out to be competent music industry managers (Joseph Jackson).  But even then some of those have had very public parent-child arguments and eventual break-ups - both professionally and personally (Leann and Wilbur Rimes). So as a rule if you have aspirations of becoming a successful recording artist, and have reached the age of majority and have a choice, think twice before committing the guidance of your career to a inexperienced parent or other relative, no matter how good your and their intentions might be.

Entertainment Law Practice - Don't Ignore the Small Clients

Once upon a time in Tennessee I got my first client that was paying me six figures in legal fees every year.  My firm consisted of me, an associate and an assistant.  I didn’t have a strong desire to get much larger – I like the solo and small firm life.  I proceeded to aggressively represent my number one client and along the way learned a few lessons.  One such lesson is undoubtedly common sense to many of you but apparently not to me.  Or perhaps I just forgot to slow down and think.

The first lesson I learned was to approach my practice with this in mind:  Everything Changes.  Isn’t that a law of nature itself?  But there are things that I can do to increase the chances of change being in a positive direction rather than negative.

I had some wonderful years with that big client and a respectful number of others.  However, what I did not foresee was that the client, a music business legend, would begin downsizing.  And as he divested himself of companies and stress causing activities, I too began to downsize — but not on purpose!  Eventually the annual fees paid to me by that client leveled off at about twenty percent of what they had been at the highest.

I remember setting in my office one day and thinking that I didn’t have much to do.  And there was a lot less money left at the end of the month.  My associate was handling the bulk of the work and my main job had become reviewing and revising his work.  I was discussing the situation with an advisor.  I have never forgotten what told me.  He said that I had been focusing totally on the needs of the large client and had ignored the smaller clients.  Then when the large client fees dwindled I did not have a good stable of other clients keeping the business healthy.  He spoke as though I was not the first to stumble into this trap.  This all immediately made sense to me.  I did not need convincing.

I took action. I no longer needed an associate.  I let him go.  I also no longer needed a full-time assistant, a luxury for most solos.  I let her go and hired a part-time assistant.  I began to pay attention to all clients big or small.

Today my business is healthier than it has ever been.  If I don’t believe I can give a prospect the needed attention and service then I do not accept them as a client. I have large and small clients.  My assistant is still part-time.  I engage independent contractor attorneys to assist with the work load on an as-needed basis.

Again – the lesson:  I remember when things are going well that everything changes.  However, the change can be for the better if I pay attention to all aspects of my business.  And take care of all my clients – large or small.

Learn the Business - Not Just the Law

I know there are a lot of lawyers, solo and big law attorneys alike, who would like to add entertainment law to their existing practice areas.  I know this because they call and email me.  The first thing I now tell them is “Entertainment attorneys should learn about the business of entertainment.“

A few years ago a member of an entertainment law listserv to which I subscribed asked me to mentor him.  At the time he was a new solo, having spent a number of years in-house at technology firms.  He had aspirations of becoming an entertainment attorney.  While willing to help when I could I did not feel that I had the time to formally train someone in entertainment law.  Refusing to accept “no” for an answer the new solo finally offered to pay me my attorney hourly rate for some mentoring sessions.  I decided to give it a try.  Doing some consulting/coaching might fit in nicely with my goal of publishing “how-to” entertainment law books and articles.

I enjoyed my sessions with this attorney and we have become friends.  And I hope the consulting was of some benefit to him.  However, it quickly became apparent that the attorney lacked more than entertainment law knowledge.  He lacked a basic understanding of how the entertainment industry works.  I found that I spent at least as much teaching the basics of the business, such as what a music publisher does, how the money flows in record deals, the difference in a personal manager and a business manager, etc., as I did teaching entertainment law.

If you want to be an entertainment attorney then I recommend that you learn something about how the entertainment industry works.  There are a lot of good books on the subject and even entire degree programs at universities around the country.  When I was a law student and young lawyer the book to read for over-all industry knowledge of the music business was This Business of Music.  At the time the book was authored by Krasilovsky and Shemel.  The latest edition is Krasilovsky, Shemel, Gross and Feinstein, all of whom are (or at one time were) entertainment and intellectual property attorneys.

A more recent and very popular overview of the music industry book is All You Need To Know About The Music Business by Donald S. Passman, also an entertainment attorney.  Based on my personal experience, the Passman book is probably an easier read for someone hoping to get a broad overview of the music industry.  I am sure there are likely equally good resources for types of entertainment other than music (film, TV, etc.).  You just need to search them out.

However you learn about the workings of the entertainment industry, it will greatly benefit your ability to understand entertainment agreements and deals if you first learn something about the business you are serving.