The New Rules of the Game
Dec 1, 2007 12:00 PM, By Jason Scott Alexander
NEWLY MINTED CASH
Over the past two to three years, producers' fees have been slashed roughly in half, with a ceiling of $80,000 to $100,000 per track. Those in the trenches footnote this figure, however, stating that it's extremely rare for even the top producers in the game today to score deals of this caliber. So, what about newcomers?
“If you can get $5,000, that's decent,” Camacho says. “You kinda have to pay your dues. Even if your beat is amazing, if you don't have a track record, a discography or any hits, then you're not going to get anything substantial. It also depends on who you're affiliated with.”
With album sales down, producers are looking for alternative means of subsidizing their reduced pay scale. The lucrative fees associated with ringtone and video licenses, for example, have prompted producers to beat each other out in fierce battles vying for a single spot. Radio and video still plays a huge part in the development of the urban artist. But even a hot single garnering heavy rotation won't necessarily translate into high sales figures. My interviewees agree that rappers and other urban artists need to think creatively to survive and thrive. In the world of rock music, for instance, it's said that touring and merchandise sales are what will keep new bands alive in a future of declining record sales.
“I worked with John Legend when he first got signed to Sony BMG Urban Music,” McKenzie recalls. “Our tour marketing department had him on the road opening for artists with a keyboard and nothing more. Same with hip-hop acts that we worked over there. I know for a fact they loved doing paid dates — mainly because the label doesn't take that money. The emphasis is moving quickly back to tour performance — the way it was at the beginning of the music industry. Long gone are the days of overinflated recording budgets and advances for the urban artist. The real money is in touring, digital sales, merchandising and, without question, cross-marketing and strategic branding music placement,” McKenzie says.
HIP-HOP'S NEXT BUSINESS MODEL
Given the criticism it has received lately, it's hard to imagine where the urban music industry might be in five years. Rather, it's easier is to distill what's gone wrong and try to fix it. Camacho pulls no punches when it comes to blaming long-standing label executives for not having their ears tuned to what the streets are doing. The labels' formulaic approach to art, she says, is stifling producers and artists who are fresh and new but who aren't allowed to bring that creativeness out to the public.
“You know, if you think about 10 years ago, that's not how hip-hop started,” Camacho says. “We weren't going into the studio and saying we're gonna create a single. No! We went into the studio, we created an album, and then singles were picked. I think that, in doing the reverse, everything's gotten screwed up. I mean, what happened to making great albums? New executives who really are about making music are going to make the difference.”
Ryan West, one of Camacho's clients and longtime production assistant to Just Blaze, adds that the majority of commercial urban music today lacks any sense of the songwriting craft upon which it was founded.
“If your song consists of an eight-bar beat, two verses that say nothing more than how rich you are and how many cars you have and a hook that has two words, one of them being profane and profoundly ignorant, you don't get to call yourself a songwriter,” West says. “That's just my opinion, but I think that's one reason why record sales are in the toilet. Creativity is subjective, but if the only message in your song is an anatomical reference or self-congratulatory rant, just hang it up. If we can't bring songwriting back, I'd settle for NWA in my living room.”
West also sees the need for an organization of resources for those wanting to break into a life of music in the do-it-yourself production era. A freelance recording and mix engineer by trade, he mixes a lot of indie records for clients who never imagined they could get someone who works with Jay-Z and Mariah Carey to mix a less-than-household name.
“That's bullshit! They are also under the false impression that my fees are way too high,” West says. “I think that if there were some centralized point of contact with a structured way of weeding out the phonies, loonies and hacks, people would be thrilled to realize that the same guy who just mixed or produced their favorite new record might be enticed to do the same for them. For far too long, the real music-making professionals have seemed out of reach. Now that everyone has Pro Tools or Logic or another DAW, the gap between professional record making and the home studio has narrowed significantly. A new producers' and engineers' guild, anyone?”
For extended interviews with the experts and audio interview clips, go to remixmag.com.
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