katieohalloranMay-31-2010 11:21am
Interview with Studio Fast Track Winner Jamie Drake
Last December marked the first round of LP33.tv’s Studio Fast Track, a competition that gives emerging artists a shot at personalized marketing support from the site, a financed record with the help of Pledge Music, and an Epiphone prize pack… Oh, winners also receive access to a common denominator in the successes of Madonna, Depeche Mode, and Augustana: mentorship from legendary A&R exec Michael Rosenblatt.
Following a successful first run, the contest is now back for a second installment; visit the Studio Fast Track page for full details.
I caught up with Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Jamie Drake, the contest’s first winner, to reminisce about her Fast Track experience. Having spent the last few months receiving business and creative guidance from the pros, she offered some insights we all can learn from. Here, we discuss the marketing support she received, the online tools she has discovered and found to be the most effective (pay special attention to Music Glue), and what she gleaned from working with Michael Rosenblatt.
Artists House: Give us a brief rundown of where things stood with your career prior to winning this contest.
Jamie: Before I won the Studio Fast Track contest, I had been playing small shows around LA while finishing my first album. I was a little scattered as far goals I needed to set, unorganized as to how to get to where I wanted to go, and was seeking some sort of a boost to push me to the next level of things.
Artists House: A team of people from both LP33 and Pledge Music assisted you with marketing. What were some of the most effective strategies they had you implement to take things to the next level? What did they suggest that perhaps you had never considered before?
Jamie: The interesting thing is that by going through this process, I discovered I am actually a natural marketer. I have my own style of saying things and inviting people into my world; but I wouldn’t have known it without the help from winning Studio Fast Track. The blogs that Michael and I wrote on the LP33 page were a fantastic way to have something viral that’s out there for the world to see and track my progress. We were also featured in shorts together that LP33 made for their site where we would say silly things and act like dorks in front of the camera - which was fun. Benji at Pledge Music had a ton of marketing wisdom to share with me while helping me put together my Pledge campaign and was always there anytime I had a question about how to do updates or track something. When we were setting up prices for incentives on my Pledge profile, I whined about not wanting to make the CDs ‘too expensive.’ He said something along the lines of “people will pay what you think your music is worth,” and I was just like, “Well, alright then” and shut my mouth. He also gave me tons of tips on what sites to use to promote my music from. Meeting him and Colette was like putting three fire starters in a room - we all had ideas flowing and wanted to see how to make something new. Colette and I started up a series called ‘Adventures in Rock’ that has been featured on her blog, www.rockisagirlsbestfriend.com, and we still have many more stories to write.
Artists House: You’ve mentioned that the experience forced you to beef up your online presence. Tell us a bit about what that entailed and which tools are proving to be the most useful.
Jamie: Music Glue is incredible. It’s an online site where you sign up your artist page, upload whatever tracks you’d like to provide for free, and then send out tweets, emails or have a widget set up on your website or myspace where people can click on the ‘free download’ button to get your track(s). All they have to give you in return is their email address. It’s a great way to expand your fan base and hope that they like your music and are cool enough to actually attend a show you tell them about via email. In the past several months I’ve been using Twitter more and more as well and learning that there is a certain time of day and even week to say what you want to say in order for it to be heard.
Artists House: From a creative perspective, how did Michael’s mentorship affect the material you started out with and the way you’ll approach writing and recording in the future?
Jamie: Michael knows the difference between a good song and a great song. Having the guy who discovered The B52s and Madonna in my corner, mentoring me in my songwriting and coming to my shows to watch and listen to my progress has been a complete honor and joy. I’ve been writing for over a decade and I am at a point when I know if something is good or bad. I’ve sent Michael dozens of old and new demos to listen to to see if there is/was any magic inside those good songs. Pushing a song through the Michael Rosenblatt filter might come as a shock to some artists, but like him, I don’t have time for “good” songs. I only want the great ones. And although I may not always agree with him, I appreciate his honesty and I’m lucky enough to have been told by him at least three times: “That is a GREAT song,” and I believe him. From now on, I will be sending songs through the Michael Rosenblatt filter. Always. Even if I don’t listen to his opinion, I want to know what he thinks.
Artists House: What was you biggest takeaway from the experience?
Jamie: The biggest takeaway from this experience is knowing that I’m on the right track. I’m not crazy or wasting my time. It’s been proven that people actually love my music and will buy it. Now all I have to do is mark out the next step.
Special thanks to Jamie for the interview. Be sure to check out her music and stay connected with her in the following places:
MySpace: www.myspace.com/jamiedrakemusic
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jamiethedrake
