Stevie Nicks Gleerified!

The Queen of Rock 'n Roll Stevie Nicks is back with 'In Your Dreams'. Her first solo studio album in a decade released May 4, 2011 that caused tremors among Stevie Nicks' fans around the globe. Music reviewers claim that the album is one of her best. Why, she wrote most of the songs herself. Plus, it is a collaboration of the brightest musicians in the industry. And we know that whenever Stevie Nicks writes her own song, they turn to be gold records. Remember? She's the one who authored "Dreams"? The single which catapulted Fleetwood Mac in to world fame?

But months before the release, Stevie made a visit on the Glee set in support of Glee's "Rumours" episode which covered songs from the Fleetwood Mac, her life-long band. The whole episode was a tribute to Fleetwood Mac. It was written by Ryan Murphy and directed by Tim Hunter. The episode premiered on Fox on May, 2011. (U.S). Also, the episode features the return of Kristin Chenoweth on her recurring role as April Rhodes. The episode became the 13th most viewed TV series in the United States that week and 3rd at United Kingdom.

Storyline

Sue Sylvester (yes, your favorite antagonist) started the fire. The cheerleading coach restored the school paper "Muckraker" in order to destroy the Glee club from within by triggering conflicts among members. The Muckraker spreads rumors that almost tear the group apart. Santana berated Brittany after reading a libelous write-up about her gender issues caused by the latter's internet talk show (Fondue for Two). Another Muckraker item that pairs Sam and Quinn almost caused a fistfight between Sam and Finn. Suspicious, Finn dragged Rachel in to a stakeout with him outside a grungy motel. To their surprised, they instead saw Kurt leaving the motel instead of Quinn which makes the whole situation much more complicated and intriguing.

April Rhodes visits Will Schuester and asked him to help her out with her new all-white version of the Whiz. Wil declined due to club tensions. April then likens their current situation to that of Fleetwood Mac. Will realized the similarity and decides to make the week focused on "Rumours", the best-selling Fleetwood Mac album.

To introduce the new assignment for the week, April and Will sang Dreams to the kids. This lead to a Fleetwood Mac classics parade. Artie finally confronted Brittany about her true relationship with Santana which lead to their sad breakup. Poor Artie sang "Never Going Back Again" after Brittany left him. Santana, filled up with her feeling towards her best friend, finally let it all out with "Songbird". Angry Quinn, on the other hand, gave Finn an ultimatum: not one song with Rachel again or she's out of his life (and glee club as well). The two performed "I Don't Want To Know". Rachel wouldn't back down. She belted "Go On Your Own Way" and let Finn play the drums for her (genius, right?). Rumours then finally came to rest when everyone finds out that Sam and his family now lives in a cheap motel because their house was mortgaged and his parents were jobless for months. Kurt was bringing him some clothes and Quinn looks out for his younger siblings almost every night. After Sam's revelation, the Glee club went to visit Sam along with his pawned guitar (they bought it back). Finn brought him his old garments. It was heartbreaking. For the reconciliation finale, Sam brought his siblings at school and together, they sing "Don't Stop".

Critical Reviews

The episode mostly got favorable reviews. Critics believed that it is better than the preceding episode. CNN France reporter Lisa Respers was amenable that she needed a roll of tissue at the end of the episode. Sam's younger brother and sister were so adorable on the stage singing "Don't Stop" that they made her cry. Obviously, this episode cleverly made use of some of the greatest classics available and integrated it to real drama. Not just for the sake of selling iTunes singles. Eric Futterman believes that the musical number were visually stunning and some of the best in the season. He pointed out that "Songbird" is the most heartbreaking.

Stevie's McKinley stop

The Glee stars were starstrucked when the legend rocker visited the set. The Fleetwood Mac vocalist delivered a memorable speech in front of the cast. Stevie Nicks said, 'If I hadn't been a musician, I would have been a teacher. And I would've hoped to send this message to kids - that although there are very important things like math and science and learning, you know, kind of the things that get you through life, there's also you need to find joy...And whether that's through music or dance or things like that, you need to have outlets in your life.' This part is where Diana Agron cried. The whole cast was moved by her.

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Dave Mason Is Feelin' Alright in a Recent Interview

Dave Mason headlines Hippiefest 2011 at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater on Saturday August 27th. Dave will be sharing the stage with an impressive lineup of classic rock hitmakers.

Joining Dave Mason will be Mark Farner the inspirational leader for Grand Funk Railroad ("We're An American Band," "I'm Your Captain," "Some Kind of Wonderful" and "The Loco-Motion"), Rick Derringer("Rock and Roll, Hoochie Koo," "Hang On Sloopy"), Felix Cavaliere("Good Lovin'," "Groovin'" and "People Got To Be Free") and Gary Wright ("Dream Weaver," "Love Is Alive" and "Really Wanna Know You").

Songwriter/Guitarist/Vocalist Dave Mason cofounded the band Traffic after Steve Winwood left the Spencer Davis Group. In 1967 Mason left the band after the release of the Mr. Fantasy album. Mason rejoined the band for awhile in 1968 and recorded "Feelin' Alright,"a song that became Mason's trademark."Feelin' Alright" was covered by Joe Cocker in 1969. Mason went on to join Delaney & Bonnie & Friends in 1969 and released his debut solo album Alone Together producing the hit single- "Only you know and I know" The album reached gold in the U.S. hitting # 22 on the record charts.

Mason shared his extraordinary musical talents with a list of legends- including George Harrison, (Mason appeared on Harrison's critically- acclaimed album All Things Must Pass) Eric Clapton's Derek & the Dominos,The Rolling Stones, Leon Russell, Cass Elliot, Fleetwood Mac and his good friend Jimi Hendrix. Mason played his 12- string acoustic guitar on "All Along the Watchtower" and sang on "Crosstown Traffic."

Dave Mason hit superstardom throughout the 70's with a handful of highly successful albums reaching platinum and gold status - It's Like You Never Left, Split Coconut, Certified Live,Let it Flow and Mariposo de Oro. Top 40 hits "We Just Disagree" and "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow" were spawned from that triumphant period.

In 1978 Mason performed in front of more than 300,000 people at California Jam II.

Mason and Traffic bandmate Jim Capaldi reunited for a tour that produced the 1999 album Live: The 40,000 Headmen Tour. Traffic was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 2004.

Here's my recent interview with renowned songwriter/musician/humanitarian Dave Mason.

Dave, I want to thank you for spending some time with me today, where do you call home nowadays?

"No problem thank you, I live near Santa Barbara in California."

I understand that this is your first Hippiefest tour. I talked with Mark Farner the other day and he let me know that he and Rick Derringer were actually really good friends. Are you buddies with anyone that you share the bill with?

"Not really, I've played shows with all these guys but back in the Traffic days it would be Gary. When Gary(Gary Wright) had a band called Spooky Tooth."

When I do a Dave Mason search on the web, I see a lot of involvement in charity work. What sort of charity events are you involved with?

"I have a charity that I helped start and I'm very involved with it that we do for veterans. And that is we help people transition out of the service to start their own business. It's called Work Vessels for Veterans."

You also participate in various benefit concerts and celebrity golf classics including partnering with Michael Bolton. Do you play golf Dave?

"No I don't play golf. Michael Bolton's charity is for abused women and I've done that with his charity for about the last five or six years. And for 14 years he was doing it in Stanford Connecticut and then last year I kind of talked him into trying it somewhere else so we moved it to the Ojai Valley Inn Golf Course and this year we're combining his charity with the Work Vessels charity and the event out there and on the 23rd of September then I have The Feelin' Alright Second Annual Golf Tournament in Virginia at Fort Belvoir and that is with a group called (CAMMO) which does a lot of work with vets and music and there's a number of them that have been signed to recording contracts and it's pretty interesting you know, last year we had a band that the drummer had titanium legs and those guys were really good. And they're getting a lot of results with post traumatic stress through the music. So it's interesting work and a great group of people."

Music has gotten a lot of our servicemen through tough times over the years especially during wartime.

"I did a Toys for Tots show in Atlanta back in 1977 and I was getting ready to walk up on stage and this Marine came up to me and said "You know man, me and my buddy were stuck in a foxhole for three days and we would have gone absolutely nuts if it weren't for a Jimi Hendrix tape and a Dave Mason tape."

You're doing great work for our vets Dave. Sometimes our veterans are not treated with the respect that they deserve are they?

"The way that our vets are treated when they come back is shameful, they're kind of swept aside a little bit, I mean you know you've got the Veterans Administration and all that stuff but there's a lot that still could be done, anyways that's why we pick up the void. There's a number of us, a number of organizations out there that try to fill those holes, fill that gap."

Bless you man for all you do.

I want to talk some about your music; your first band was actually called The Jaguars back in the early 60's and was reminiscent musically to The Shadows and Ventures?

"Yes, that was my first band The Jaguars. I worked a little instrumental version called Opus To Spring when I was about 16 and a local record store put a record out on it. We only did the one recording with that band and then that's all we did with that. There was another band called The Hellions with Jim Capaldi we had a record out on Pye records that was produced by Kim Fowley, the guy that did 'They're Coming to Take Me Away Ha Ha Ho Ho He He.'" And we did a Jackie Deshannon song called "Daydreaming of You."

And I heard you guys played the famous Star-Club in Hamburg, Germany where The Beatles played?

"No we never got to Hamburg we played some little town outside of Hamburg and played Saturday nights, we use to play for about eight hours on Saturday nights, fifteen minute songs, fifteen off, fifteen on, fifteen off."

So you knew Jim Capaldi (Drummer and a founding member of Traffic) because of The Hellions?

"Jim and I knew each other for a long time. Jim (Capaldi) grew up 12 miles from me. Yea, Robert Plant also grew up around 12 miles away and John Bonham."

You met Steve Winwood when he was in The Spencer Davis Group?

"Yea he was in The Spencer Group and The Hellions use to play up in Birmingham which is 25 miles from Worcester and through that we met Steve and Chris Wood and basically we just hung out for a year or so just run into each other and then at one point Steve had decided he was going to leave The Spencer Davis Group. And during that time during that break I'd sung on a couple of their recordings, 'Somebody Help Me' and most of Traffic was on 'Gimme Some Lovin' and it's pretty much all of us singing in the background of 'I'm A Man.'

I kind of played Roadie for a couple of months with them and then we formed Traffic."

Then you guys rented a cottage in Berkshire?

"A famous jockey had a racing stable down there so we kind of commandeered this cottage sitting in the middle of nowhere. It's where they trained and canter the horses. There was no gas, no electricity and no running water in the place. We lived there like that for about six months."

Man that was primitive living. If you didn't have electricity how did you plug into the amplifiers and rehearse your music?

"We had a generator."

Those were the good old days huh? (All laughing)

"Yea whatever we were kids, I was 18 years old and you think there's not anything you can't do."

So how did Traffic get their big break?

"Well Steve already had three, four, top ten records so he had kind of an entree in that way and then I started writing and Jim and Steve started writing and my writing I pretty much did on my own and then the problems started to happen when the stuff that I was writing was the stuff picked for singles. And their biggest hit at the time was the first song I'd ever written and was kind of a fantasy tune called 'Hole in My Shoe' and that got to number two in England and was really their biggest single hit. After the first album I left and the reason I left was because I couldn't really deal with the fame so quickly it was just a little overwhelming for me. So I actually left and did a couple of things worked with starting to produce an album for a group called Family, 'Music in a Dollhouse' and then I got to know Hendrix and spent a little time recording with him and some of it was on Electric Ladyland.

Then I did a little stint with what was known as a satirical group called The Scaffold, it was Paul McCartney's brother (Professionally known as Mike McGear) and I did a number of shows with them and so just roamed around playing with different people and then at one point I just took a little bag and a guitar and worked this little island called Hydra (Greece) and I really didn't have any money at the time but it was a great time and that's where I wrote 'Feelin Alright.'"

Then I met up again with them in New York and they were working on the second album, and then he had five songs and I had five songs so it was like okay let' s get back together again. And I thought it was a really good second album it was a good transition from Fantasy (Mr. Fantasy debut album) it had a lot of kind of Fantasy stuff on it but giving a lot more cohesive I thought musically. And after that album pretty much again my songs were being picked for the singles and that's just what caused the riff with Winwood. And I pretty much just spent days where he'd never talk to me."

Wow that's a real shame. Unfortunately I hear a lot of stories like that in bands.

"Yea, even marriages break up."

Bands are like a family with lots of emotion and drama.

"The kind of difference is that sometimes it makes things really good though you know. When you've got kind of an edge going in there you can create some really good stuff rather than following one thing all the time but at any rate whatever that's the way it was so at that point I just decided there wasn't much point to staying in England or Traffic so I just upped and moved to America."

It's amazing even though you hailed from England your accent is all but gone man.

"The way they talk where I grew up, I mean I can't even understand some of the people."

I always found it fascinating when the early Beatles talked in their Cockney accents, but then when they sang on a record it was gone.

"It's because they were copying all those American singers that's why. America is the home of all contemporary music. Jazz, Blues and Rock & Roll it comes from here."

You know it's amazing how many musicians that I talked with from the 60's that had never met Jimi Hendrix. I always figured that at one point or another there would have been a moment spent with him. What was Jimi Hendrix Like?

"He was just a pretty quiet guy as a matter of fact. Most of the time that I spent with him I never saw him basically without a guitar in his hands."

And you worked on the 'All Things Must Pass' Album with George Harrison?

"Well I knew George for quite awhile he gave me my first Sitar. And McCartney I use to go down to the Sgt. Peppers sessions and hang out or stay in the studio while they were recording and spend a good time with George. Nice Man. But playing on All Things Must Pass, I couldn't recall what tracks that I played on to be perfectly honest with you."

So what's on your plate these days Dave?

"Well I tour a lot and obviously the charity for the Vets. Trying to grow the charity is very important for me. And basically just keep on rolling down the road and singing."

Do you have a CD being released soon or involvement in new collaborations?

"At this point, there's no point in me putting anymore CD's out because there's just no outlet for it, there's no promotion for it, there's no radio anymore ever, there's no way for anyone to know that you've got something new out."

Well you've got me Dave. (Laughter)

"I mean national radio, it's somebody goes in and puts a cart in and pulls it out after thirty days and then puts another one in and there's nobody home."

I know exactly what you mean Dave. I was a radio deejay in the late 70's early 80's. My dream was to become like one of those deejays from back in the 60's. Radio is not about the music anymore it's basically all about advertisers. And who wants to listen to radio to hear back to back to back commercials.

"Yea, there's just nothing there and no way to get anything promoted. There's no way for anyone to really hear something or know if they're even going to like it. So basically anything new that I have is just going to go on my website and you can go there and download it. And until something comes along where you can promote properly it's economically not feasible to do another CD."

My column is only about Classic Rock Music and Classic Rock Artists. And my articles are viewed globally on the internet with the sole intention of keeping that dream alive and the fire burning.

"I appreciate that."

My favorite Dave Mason tune unfortunately was a song that you didn't write. And it was your biggest hit "We Just Disagree" written by Jim Krueger. I own that awesome performance of the song that you did on Burt Sugarman's The Midnight Special.

Dave I just want to tell you man that you're a legendary artist, great songwriter and studio musician and just a classy guy and thank you so much for spending time with me today I really appreciate it.

"You're quite welcome."

Keep on doing what you're doing and I'll see you at Hippiefest in Clearwater.

"I will Ray thank you."

Dave Mason will be headlining Hippiefest 2011 on Saturday August 27th at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater. So let your freak flag fly!

Special thanks goes out to Jeff Albright of The Albright Entertainment Group.

Work Vessels for Veterans at http://wvfv.net/."

CAMMO http://cammomusic.org/main/

At an age when most kids are just getting rid of the training wheels on their bicycle, Ray Shasho entered into a crazy world of secret lingo and bullying sales tactics at the Chin Lung Art Gallery, his father's retail store on the corner of Thirteenth and F Street in Washington, DC. Check the Gs is the true story of how this bizarre family business changed his world forever. Raised by a Cuban Catholic mother and Syrian Jewish father, Shasho made his first sale at the age of six and never looked back. Life in the family business (and in the Shasho family) was never boring. From FBI interrogations to angry mobs, each new day at the Chin Lung Art Gallery brought with it new adventures. Check the Gs tells a story for everyone who is proud of their family and heritage but not afraid to laugh at its many eccentricities, and for anyone who has ever worked in retail and experienced its humorous situations and misadventures.

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Consider These Factors Before Buying a MIDI Keyboard

If you're an avid musician, whether professional or an amateur, having a MIDI keyboard is the way to go. With it you are able to create music that in the old days would require a good number of musicians, time and money in order to achieve the same results.

Nowadays most, if not all, digital or electronic keyboards are MIDI capable. You will know it because it should say so on their body and they should have the MIDI interface input and outputs in the back or side. That being the case you need to consider these before choosing your unit.

Budget: Before making any purchases ask yourself how much you're willing to spend. As with anything else the price will vary depending on the type, features and keys of the one you're planning to get. Obviously the more features and keys you get the higher the price.

Space: Another consideration before buying anything. If you're simply working from home then you may want to consider the size of MIDI keyboard you're getting - if you have a small space then smaller is better. Conversely, if you enough available space then get a bigger one of course dependent upon whether you can afford it or not.

Use: If you're a musician that's always on the road then perhaps lugging a 60-pound behemoth may not be the best thing for you. You may want to consider a smaller unit that's much more compact and portable - just what you need when you're running from one gig to another. If you're a stay at home kind of musician then bigger may be ok (if you have the budget and the space for it).

Keys: The number of keys determines the size of the MIDI keyboard. It comes in 88, 76, 61, 49, 37 and 25. You can even get them smaller than a 25. Piano enthusiast and hardcore composers would tell you that you should get the 88. While it may be a good idea the number of keys you get will depend on your budget, space and the intended use. As mentioned above you won't buy an 88 if you can't even fit it in your home studio. That will be like parking a tank in a space for a motorcycle - it ain't gonna happen.

Type: Do you want a controller type or a piano type. Controller types are typically smaller because they don't have speakers. That means in order to hear any sound you would need to have it attached to something else, like a computer with a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) program. If you want to hear something as you play then get a piano type as it comes with internal sound system but this makes them bigger. (See budget, space and use constraints)

There are other things to consider before you get your MIDI keyboard - key feel, controllers, knobs, and brand - but these 5 are the basics before you purchase anything.

Check out useful tips in buying Midi Keyboards. Know what other users say in the Midi Keyboard Reviews section.

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How to Build an Efficient Home Recording Studio

Choosing the right place in your home to build a recording studio:

If you are married and have children, forget it! (I'm just kidding babe). No, really, if you can afford it get a wood or metal shed and put it in your backyard! Finding the right spot should not be that hard to do; you already have one in mind. It might be as simple as an unused closet (if there is such an animal), or a spare bedroom. It should be quiet and away from the outside air conditioning unit. The electrical wiring needs to be properly grounded to prevent that 60 Hz hum. Your chosen area should be large enough that after installing sound dampening materials it is still large enough to comfortably accommodate all the equipment, musicians, engineer, and instruments you plan on recording.

An important factor to consider before building your studio is finances. Finances will determine the options available to you, not the quality of your product. Take into account equipment you don't currently own, but will need. Cables, USB sound cards, microphones, external hard drives, or extra RAM are a few items often overlooked.

Things you won't need, but thought you couldn't live without are a mixing board, external hardware such as equalizers, compressors, gates, limiters, and effects, MIDI synths, and giant speakers. Everything in the modern recording environment can be done using software; with the exception of inputs. That's the reason for the external sound card.

The most simple set up for recording is a laptop using its built-in mic and DAW (digital audio workstation) software. If this is your situation, great. You can record anywhere in the world for as long as your battery will last.

Some Materials You Will Need:

The most easy and cost-effective way to get good recordings is to make your room dead. You should be recording everything dry to begin with anyway and placing effects and processing on your tracks afterwards. Making a room dead means that the room has no sound of its own. There is no ambient sound being reflected off the walls, ceiling, or floors. To do this go to Wal-Mart and get the king-size egg crate foam pads for beds and hang them on the walls and ceiling. It does not have to be perfect. In fact, the less perfect and the more bumps, the better.

Required Equipment:

If you are going to be recording electric instruments you will need an external USB sound card with a pre-amp. This will give you low latency with the ability to listen back in real-time. It's a good idea to have plenty of good quality cables and connectors. If you're a do-it-yourself kind of a person cables are simple to make. Get some 1/4" to 1/8" (3.5 mm) headphone connections also. They are cheap and come in handy.

If you are just recording vocals and composing the rest of the instruments in the virtual environment, then you don't really need anything else. If your built-in mic just does not do it for you, then I would suggest buying a quality USB condenser mic.

Software Suggestions:

Selecting a DAW is a very personal decision. You will be spending a great deal of time in front of it, so you need to be satisfied with its performance and the companies support. Most have a demo version, or a trial version available for download. Send out emails to find out how quickly they respond and the depth of the response. Personally I use Sonar X1 Producer from Cakewalk. They are the pioneers of digital audio workstations and I have used them for close to 17 years. But I suggest going to Amazon and searching for DAWs. Read all the customer reviews with filters on. Keep a list of those which impress you, then go to their websites and download demos or trials and put them to a test. There's a big selection of them. I would also recommend doing the same when seeking out plugins.

Rockoetry Inc. is my pseudonym when I'm recording music. You can find out more about me at: http://www.rockoetry.info/

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Features To Check Out in Buying a Midi Keyboard

How To Choose A Midi Keyboard

If you're into making music using your computer then you know how important it is to have a good MIDI keyboard at your disposal. There are a number of products to choose from and depending on your wallet you can get them new or used with varying quality and results.

Keyboard Size

Perhaps the biggest concern you may have, other than the technical aspects is that of size - or rather the number of keys your keyboard will have. Typically they come in 88, 76, 61, 49, 37, and 25.

Many would argue for getting the big one even if it is somewhat pricey while still others like the portability and compactness of the 25. Most would say that for multipurpose action the 49 Midi keyboard is worth it.

It really depends on what you're going to use it for and the space available. If you usually do live performances on stage then space is not an issue and an 88 may be the best, even if it is quite bulky. On the other hand if you work at home where space can be a premium then a smaller one might be in order.

How Heavy?

We're not necessarily talking about the weight of the unit itself but rather of its keys. Depending on your preference you can get keys that are touch sensitive, un-weighted, semi-weighted, or full weighted.

1) Touch sensitive keys will play depending on how hard you play. The harder you press the louder the sound that comes out.

2) Un-weighted keys offer little or no resistance. You won't feel any springiness unlike say the keys on a real piano. If you're the type who plays fast or a beginner who doesn't really have an idea about playing then this may be the best option for your Midi keyboard.

3) The semi-weighted keys are a compromise between the un-weighted and the full-weighted versions. It offers some resistance or "feel" to the user while keeping it light at the same time. Most will find this a better fit for them.

4) For those who are used to playing the piano then the weighted keys are the ones for you. These will offer the resistance and springiness one would find and associate with regular pianos. Those that choose this prefer the feedback playing gives them versus the above selections.

Again the choice will depend on your action and what you're used to. If you played the piano before then you may feel more comfortable with the weighted keys. On the other hand if you like playing faster or don't like the resistance then an un-weighted key is for you. But for the majority the semi-weighed keys will do as it's the best compromise between the two extremes.

When it comes to the price the bigger they are (i.e. the more keys they have) the higher the price. At the same time the more weighted the keys the higher the price. Of course that's not to say that price should be your limiting factor when choosing your Midi keyboard. What's important is the use you will be getting out of it and if you "feel" it - that is worth the price you will pay and then some.

Check out useful tips in buying Midi Keyboards. Know what other users say in the Midi Keyboard Reviews section.

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Can You Really Make a Living Out of Music?

If you have a financial stake in the event then promoting it will be high on your list of priorities. You will need people to buy tickets so getting it wrong can be disastrous. To make sure you advertise in the right places you need to consider who your audience are.

Some obvious traditional routes include press advertising. Depending on the type of event you need to be very careful about where you choose to advertise. There are specialist music magazines and newspapers such as the NME that are great if you are trying to capture a national audience. If you are just promoting a local gig then the local paper makes sense. Press advertising can be expensive though so consider if your target audience will respond to this kind of advertising.

Posters and flyers are another great traditional way of promoting events. They are reasonable inexpensive to print but you will need to put the time in distributing them. You could hire a promotions company to do this if you are working on a larger scale. Remember you cannot just put posters up anywhere. It is illegal to fly poster so be careful where you put them. You may decide to mail them out to music shops/recording studios/rehearsal rooms to target music fans or you may decide to target a larger audience.

Another option in 2011 is the internet. There are thousands of music websites and forums where you can post free ads. Some sites charge for advertising but if they receive a high amount of traffic then this might be very worthwhile. Social networking sites also plays a big part in promoting music these days so don't overlook them.

Radio advertising is also much more affordable than you might think. Local radio stations will allow you to promote your event with 30 second ads that they will create for you. If you are working on a larger scale and need to sell several hundred tickets or more this might be a good option.

Whatever you decide to do to promote your event consider your budget! A good mix of all the above should work but it can swallow all your money. You may be limited to a few of the above but don't have too many worries your promotion can still be successful. There is a lot to consider when promoting an event but get it right and you'll be on track for a successful event.

For Manchester wedding bands visit Music Live UK.

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Getting Your Name in Lights

Calling all under the radar musicians, are you struggling to get your name in lights, do you feel like giving up? Don't fear and have a read of this and see if it can lift your spirits.

I am not a musician myself, in fact I can't play an instrument and I'm only just a bearable singer. I have however got a fair few friends that have and are still trying to break into the music industry. These friends of mine have been struggling back and forth to get a glimmer of hope. It seems that even if you have 1000 followers on Facebook and have uploaded 50 videos on YouTube you can still go unnoticed. It is saddening as it makes it easier for musicians to give up resulting in talent being thrown away like an old pair of shoes.

This short extract from Kyan Kuatois a singer song writer from Cambridge gives a personal insight into what it really takes to make it in the music industry.

Truly making it the music industry takes three key factors, talent, hard work and exposure.
Talent is what set's you apart, and gives you a reason to want to work hard and perfect your craft. Hard work is what improves your talent and makes you deserving of exposure. Exposure is what gives you the platform to get yourself to a big enough audience that you can start to make a living from what you do.

A lot of artists/bands today skip steps, or lack some of these fundamental foundations. Many have exposure before they've worked hard and learned their craft, which gives them no staying power. Others work hard, and have exposure, but regarding talent, have nothing new, special, or original to offer..

However, if one does have talent, and the predisposition to work hard, the hardest step is definitely getting exposure. With so many different avenues, Myspace, YouTube, Twitter, Major Labels/Indie Labels, Live gigs/Ustreams...It's important to know yourself as an artist and approach these in the appropriate way for yourself.

It's important to build a fanbase of core fans, those that take you seriously, those that truly admire what you do, the guys who will buy your record, buy your merchandise...If you have that, then you are at a good starting point. Great music speaks for itself.

Any manager, PR company, website, record company that truly understands the above, and can offer their artists exactly that; is worth exploring.

My current role at Yellowbelly Online Ltd as an internet marketer has led me to work on a music website called FameFactor. FameFactor supports and promotes up and coming unsigned and undiscovered musicians. It is good to see that there is a place for musicians to go and share their music; it is a good chance to build your fan base, giving you a more diverse audience to the followers you may have acquired on Facebook. Having the support from other artists is also helpful; to receive constructive criticism or maybe just to chat with other musicians, see if anyone has the leads that you need. I really believe that if you think you have got what it takes and have the determination then get yourself out there, you will never know unless you try.

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