How I Got My First Taste of being an Artist Manager

Some people think that being an artist manager is a piece of cake. Their friend gets famous and they just ride their coat tails into fame and fortune. However, they get into the situation where they don’t want easy money to go away so instead of helping mold their friend’s career they become Yes people.

Growing up I’ve always had friends who wanted to either be in a famous band or become the next big actor. I would become friends with them because they were my way to get my ideas to the right people. As they would work on their craft I would always try to only give positive notes. I didn’t want my express lane to NYC or Hollywood to close due to negative feedback.

However, as the years passed I started to realize that I wasn’t going to get far by only feeding them positive feedback on stuff I thought was terrible. So I started to slowly truly express my thoughts and feedback to them.

It’s funny how people react when you tell them that the direction they are taking will only lead to them going no where. Examples of this are when I told my friend’s band that their new songs about pot would never make it past any A&R executive. This is coming after they won a major battle of the bands competition and performed at one of the huge yearly festivals on the East Coast. What happened two years later? They broke up because the band hit a wall and couldn’t find that spark to carry them to the next level. Many people in my town were surprised about it, but I knew it was coming because of the direction they took.

Most recently I had a friend who released her first single and music video. This is a girl who I have respected as an artist since I first met her. When I finally sat down to watch her music video I couldn’t even make it half way through. It was one of the worst things anyone could have recorded and released to start their career. I told her what I thought of it and that next time she faces decisions like this I am always available to help her.

As much as it stinks to have to be the one who puts a damper on someone dream, most of the time it’s for the better. Just like with Creedence Clearwater Revival people will jump at the second someone offers them a chance at their dream without knowing what they are getting themselves into. Having that outside party to help you out can never be a bad thing especially when it comes to your dreams.