Written by Jason Isbell
Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit's eponymous album will be released on February 17, 2009 on Lightning Rod Records . Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit is Isbell's second solo release and his first release with his band The 400 Unit. Prior to his solo career Jason was a member of Drive-By Truckers from 2001 to 2007.
When giving anyone advice about the music business, or anything in general, I find it necessary to have a sense of what the person or group of people is trying to achieve. The trick to manipulating the entertainment industry is knowing your specific goals and being willing to work very hard, cut dead weight, and take some chances in order to get there.
For most musicians, at least most that I know, expectations change as time goes on. When I was thirteen, for example, I spent a great deal of my time daydreaming about fame and wealth. In my mind, I had already chosen jobs for all my friends, though there weren't that many, and I had planned out every initial conversation with all my heroes. While these dreams haven't left me altogether, my priorities now line up far more evenly with my reality. Today, my wildest dreams of rock stardom can be boiled down to this: I really don't want to get a regular fucking job. I think that's an achievable goal that, in the long run, can make me very happy, indeed.
It's clear that this isn't enough for everyone. If you want to be a star, which I don't advise, you should probably stay with a more traditional method of using the business. Audition for anything that comes your way, network until your iPhone is full of numbers and your soul is locked away in your inner monologue (the soul just gets in the way of celebrity), and listen with feverish intensity to that wisest of fanny-packed and man-sandled sage, the A&R person. Allow that person's creative input to guide your creative output, and he or she will be your guide to credibility and artistic worth, at least in the eyes of the average. If you write songs, don't scare anybody. Keep it short and don't try to impress. Dress accordingly. Find a manager that demands at least twenty percent. Anything less, and you'll find yourself up saddle creek without a paddle. You'll probably want to devote every realized thought and every waking hour to understanding and pronouncing the word 'yes'. Make it your mantra. You'll get time for yourself later, when you're loaded and can afford to hide.
This is clearly not the path for folks like us. I write songs to teach myself how to feel about something, and when I see a crowd of people in front of me, singing along to those songs, I can't help but think I'm not alone in this world. This interaction is a plant that must be grown and cultivated. Find people you trust to water it when you're away. At this point in my career, the best tip I can give anyone is this: Work with your friends. Oh, and don't have stupid, greedy, negligent friends. Seems easy enough, I guess.
Internet, internet, internet. Any discussion of the music business would not be complete without the inclusion the of the mighty mighty media, the new Goliath killer that allows all of us shoe-gazing Davids access to the most powerful slingshot in history. With a click or two, we can propel our music to all corners of the world, or receive music form the least popular new band in Belgium. Become familiar with it. Unknown bands now have the ability to spend their spare time spreading the word without anyone else's help or authorization. I could sit in front of my computer and connect with hundreds or thousands of people in a day's time. If only a small percentage of these folks ever become fans of my band, that is a big step in the right direction. MySpace, Facebook, iTunes, YouTube... It's as if these sites have been custom built for emerging bands and artists, and they're easy to use. Don't complain about their power, and don't underestimate it.
Tour, tour, tour. My final piece of advice for those interested in making a living in music is to get your ass on the road. You don't have to wait on labels or radio or anything else. The Ford Econoline van is the greatest automobile ever made. Get one, load it up, and call in every favor you can. Trust friends to tell you where to play and put in a good word with the booker. If you're any good and you work hard, you should be able to find someone to take over your booking. Once you get an agent, you can usually find a manager. Once you have an agent and a manager, you can usually find a label. Don't be afraid to fire any of these people at any time, and remember that they work for you, not the other way around. In many cases, you could do their job, but they can't do yours.
If you work very hard and still have no success, there's a chance that you might be making bad music. If that's the case, I can't help you. However, if you put all of your energy into achieving well-thought-out goals, like that of not having to work a regular job and making the best music you can make, something might accidentally catch fire and you might find yourself with a hit. Stranger things have happened. More than likely, though, you'll build a relatively small but loyal group of fans that will follow you to your grave. That can enable you to make music for a living for the rest of your life, and that's way better than being famous. I hope.
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