Clarification
I am aware that typically only hardcore Soul Mates and family (I know you love us and what we do) read my blogs. Tonight I have one for the ages. After speaking with Doug and Bryan by phone, I can simply tell you that I am fed up. The band is. Apparently, we are too polished and professional for our own good. This is the truth about Rush Hour Soul.
We have never been signed to a record label. We've never even been approached by one. If you own any of our CDs you might have noticed something called Mighty Ohio Music. That is the name of my (d/b/a) publishing company. That is our own imprint. No backing or money behind it. No clout. No distribution other than the grace of CDBaby.
We have never gotten a legit review. Not one single notice about a live show, the EP, our music video. Nada. Zip. No ink. No love, no hate. No recognition.
We have never had a manager. One sniffed close enough to know we are stars, but couldn't hack it. No representation of any sort has ever been a part of the RHS business model. The one lawyer we thought we knew has ignored us completely. So much for family friends.
Worst thing is, these people can't even tell us "no." Is that asking too much? They won't communicate at all. We've sent out lots of presskits, CDs and now, DVDs with all of our videos. To no avail. Very frustrating. We know the music is great, we know the live show is a popular entertainment here in Los Angeles and abroad. We want to be signed to a record deal. We want to be managed and represented. We want to be a global phenomenon. But frankly, we would rather be told to retire, than to be ignored wholesale. And that's what's going on.
Even after our music video, after all the shows, after our tour of England... this is still a Do-It-Yourself operation. Booking. Us. Management. Us. Website. Us. Promotion. Us. Publicity. Us. Finance. Us. If it says "Rush Hour Soul," we are doing it our own damn selves. Don't be fooled by how pretty we look on the web or on stage. We are in the wilderness.
The amount of time, energy, resources and money we've put into RHS this past year would make your head spin. It does mine. And we don't even get to rehearse. Doug lives so far away that we only rehearse the night before a show. You've seen how slamming the show is. The logistics for the band are a killer. We certainly don't get paid when we play around L.A. But we do it for the love of performing for our most ardent fans and because we love the music. Nobody else will play our songs, so we need to do it. Or do we?
Have we done as much as we can, but it wasn't enough? Somebody please tell me. While we are young. This is what I mean by "we look too pro." Casual onlookers think we are already signed and on the cusp of releasing an album, etc. What a wonderful perception, but it's 100% inaccurate. When we book a show, it's because I've hustled. When we get studio time, it's because Bryan hustled. When we get a new cover song together, it's because Doug hustled.
I've learned a lot in the past decade about being in a band. Playing. Writing. Performing. Booking. Publishing. Recording. Releasing songs. Image. Touring. Maybe I know too much? Make it look like we don't know what we're doing. Amateurs. Then we'd get signed. Play crap music and wear crap clothing. Cover of a magazine.
We got one gift this year (recording in Wales), but it was the product of a whole bunch of other very hard work and sacrifice. I feel thankful for it, but it was still a tooth-pull of Herculean proportion. It became a classic struggle to get the song edited and finished from 5000 miles away after months of dealing with someone else's nervous breakdown. And the band plays on. Because we are professionals.
Some are going to say this rant ain't cool or doesn't reflect a professional attitude. "F" it. The band agrees on all of this. We are tired of flakes. We are tired of people getting jazzed about helping us, then 24 hours later forgetting what they said. We are tired of being ignored.
So what next for Rush Hour Soul? I thought the trip to the UK would be our denouement. That was February. Here it's November and the fruits of our labor have given way to the same old bullshit. We go blindly on: booking one show a month, sending out CDs and DVDs, spending money on gear and flyers, hoping the right person is going to sign us at a moment's notice.
There's nothing I enjoy more than performing our songs for you. I can't imagine anything as gratifying. But perhaps I made a major miscalculation somewhere along the way. The choice is clear: keep on pushing or call it a career.
Stay tuned to find out what we've chosen.
Love, Power, Peace
We have never been signed to a record label. We've never even been approached by one. If you own any of our CDs you might have noticed something called Mighty Ohio Music. That is the name of my (d/b/a) publishing company. That is our own imprint. No backing or money behind it. No clout. No distribution other than the grace of CDBaby.
We have never gotten a legit review. Not one single notice about a live show, the EP, our music video. Nada. Zip. No ink. No love, no hate. No recognition.
We have never had a manager. One sniffed close enough to know we are stars, but couldn't hack it. No representation of any sort has ever been a part of the RHS business model. The one lawyer we thought we knew has ignored us completely. So much for family friends.
Worst thing is, these people can't even tell us "no." Is that asking too much? They won't communicate at all. We've sent out lots of presskits, CDs and now, DVDs with all of our videos. To no avail. Very frustrating. We know the music is great, we know the live show is a popular entertainment here in Los Angeles and abroad. We want to be signed to a record deal. We want to be managed and represented. We want to be a global phenomenon. But frankly, we would rather be told to retire, than to be ignored wholesale. And that's what's going on.
Even after our music video, after all the shows, after our tour of England... this is still a Do-It-Yourself operation. Booking. Us. Management. Us. Website. Us. Promotion. Us. Publicity. Us. Finance. Us. If it says "Rush Hour Soul," we are doing it our own damn selves. Don't be fooled by how pretty we look on the web or on stage. We are in the wilderness.
The amount of time, energy, resources and money we've put into RHS this past year would make your head spin. It does mine. And we don't even get to rehearse. Doug lives so far away that we only rehearse the night before a show. You've seen how slamming the show is. The logistics for the band are a killer. We certainly don't get paid when we play around L.A. But we do it for the love of performing for our most ardent fans and because we love the music. Nobody else will play our songs, so we need to do it. Or do we?
Have we done as much as we can, but it wasn't enough? Somebody please tell me. While we are young. This is what I mean by "we look too pro." Casual onlookers think we are already signed and on the cusp of releasing an album, etc. What a wonderful perception, but it's 100% inaccurate. When we book a show, it's because I've hustled. When we get studio time, it's because Bryan hustled. When we get a new cover song together, it's because Doug hustled.
I've learned a lot in the past decade about being in a band. Playing. Writing. Performing. Booking. Publishing. Recording. Releasing songs. Image. Touring. Maybe I know too much? Make it look like we don't know what we're doing. Amateurs. Then we'd get signed. Play crap music and wear crap clothing. Cover of a magazine.
We got one gift this year (recording in Wales), but it was the product of a whole bunch of other very hard work and sacrifice. I feel thankful for it, but it was still a tooth-pull of Herculean proportion. It became a classic struggle to get the song edited and finished from 5000 miles away after months of dealing with someone else's nervous breakdown. And the band plays on. Because we are professionals.
Some are going to say this rant ain't cool or doesn't reflect a professional attitude. "F" it. The band agrees on all of this. We are tired of flakes. We are tired of people getting jazzed about helping us, then 24 hours later forgetting what they said. We are tired of being ignored.
So what next for Rush Hour Soul? I thought the trip to the UK would be our denouement. That was February. Here it's November and the fruits of our labor have given way to the same old bullshit. We go blindly on: booking one show a month, sending out CDs and DVDs, spending money on gear and flyers, hoping the right person is going to sign us at a moment's notice.
There's nothing I enjoy more than performing our songs for you. I can't imagine anything as gratifying. But perhaps I made a major miscalculation somewhere along the way. The choice is clear: keep on pushing or call it a career.
Stay tuned to find out what we've chosen.
Love, Power, Peace
posted by Norman K at 11:54 PM
2 Comments:
Well, here's my take dawgs:
(1) I know how bad it sucks not to get call backs. I've flown cross-country on my own dime for interviews and not getting so much as an e-mail saying "no" or thx. Truth is, people in auhtority positions are too chicken shit to be blunt.
(2) You guys comprise an AMAZING band. You've done everything you could. But, you (like others in the Entertainment field) are in the most competitve industry there is. Gone are the days when u could audition for producers, directors, etc. Now, you have the luck of the draw of being noticed my talent agents. That requires pure luck (or as I say "luck is the opportunity you've been preparing for").
(3) If music is what your trio REALLY dreams of then your choice is dramatically clear..."NEVER GIVE UP...EVER!!!!!" The only thing we will regret in life are the risks we don't take. KEEP PUSHING!! Have faith!!
(4) Other than that, I know that there are theaters (for example) around LA that agents go to to see actors perform. Maybe there are similar venues for musicians.
Well that's my 2 (ok 25) cents in. Forge ahead, NEVER quit.
-Dave
I endorse this blog.
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