IN THE MEAN TIME... Who's To Blame? {"SWAGGER LIKE US" POST ON ITS WAY...}

The other day on the XXL Scratch Blog, there was post entitled "The Biggest Problem In Rap Music Right Now Are The Rappers Themselves". I enjoyed what it had said... Read it... Comment on my page though...

"I mix with a lot of different crowds and have a wide variety of friends- executives, producers, journalists, web designers, publicists, engineers, etc- and the one thing I gather from almost all people is this: They HATE rappers. They HATE doing just about anything with rappers, period. They hate talking to them, hate working with them in the studio, hate interviewing them, hate promoting their records, hate publicizing them as clients, hate just about everything having to do with the artists themselves."

From being worse party-toting rhetoric-spitters than McCain, to feeling some sort of weird sense of pop culture entitlement, to pushing a cookie-cutter creative agenda, rappers got it all wrong. And I can't say I disagree. I've had the (mis)fortune to work with some rappers before on projects, and can seldom say I've walked away from the deal feeling like things worked out the way I wanted to see it happen. For a number of reasons. I'll expand on them below:

A) Creative:
From a creative standpoint, most rappers are corny and stagnant. At this point, hip hop is nearly 40 years old, it's going through a mid-life crisis (and isn't really aging well). By the time most rappers get to any sort of measurable success these days, they've been visually force-fed the culture for decades, and have layers of pre-conceived notions of what exactly a rapper is, and what exactly a rapper's image should be. Part of this can be blamed on the slow creative bleeding that has occurred over the history of the genre. What was once a subculture built upon individuality and creativity has become a market force used to sell anything from crappy yuppy clothing to shampoo that seemingly only white teenage girls would ever use. Creativity, individuality, and expression are no longer the benchmarks of an emcee. When rappers are afraid to do something different and unique, the entire art form suffers (for evidence of this clash and it's results, see the Kanye Vs. 50 battle of last year).

B) Budget:
Believe it or not, your favorite rapper is probably broke. Well, not quite, but unless he's signed to a major, or has some serious label money behind him, he probably doesn't have much of a promotion and design budget. That means it's hard to find good creative willing to do the job unless they're fans or are just doing it out of love and portfolio work. Either way, it doesn't end up going as well as it could have gone had you, (your label, your spouse, your dad, or whoever is paying for it) ponied up the cash to have your whole thing done right. And not just the album cover. I'm talking promo, packaging, music videos, bios, press kits, admats, every aspect of your presentation. Most dudes don't think that far ahead, or are too busy maintaining other areas of their image. Put down the Moet, and pick up the invoice.

C) Professionalism:
Big Surprise Alert: Rappers can be unprofessional. Sounds like some obvious shit, and for the most part it is, but I'm constantly shocked at how difficult it can be to do work for rappers. I'm not even talking about doing the actual work either, I mean it's impossible to get things you need on time, get feedback, just go through the process in an efficient manner. Timelines are either hilariously short due to horrible planning, or seem to drag on forever (I have one client right now that's been dragging on for 5 months and I haven't even made anything for him yet). Assets are either crap (low-res, done with a shitty photographer, have horrible lighting, or make you look like a hobbit), come two weeks late, or don't show up at all. It can sometimes take weeks to get a call back for revisions, and forget about getting any sort of direction other than whatever CD covers they have in their trunk that they like. Granted, it is the designer's job to try and smooth all this out, create a process, make sure the assets are in place, make things run smoothly, but most of the time it just isn't worth it (see point B).

Why are you going to subject yourself to working with an unforgiving, unorganized person on a project that will be hell to go through for little money resulting in cookie-cutter work. At least Corporate America has their money right.



Sorry for putting the wack rapper pic on blast... Whoever it is... You just look... well wack... or should we say, to be politically correct, Stereotypical... ya dig? If anyone agrees, leave a comment and subscribe...

Also, Mek's mixtape is coming soon, Dza's mixtape is coming soon, and guess what? ADAY IS COMING WITH SOME HEAT SOON AS WELL... we can't wait... Leave comments on that... even if you are the listed above... O yeah, I'm still famous nowdays... more on that coming soon... I see y'all reading, thanks... keep it coming...











-Ghost Da Hustla

INDUSTRY 101: HOW TO GET SIGNED OR MAKE IT FAR IN THE INDUSTRY!

OK, so it's about that time where I actually place some knowledge on here for my visitors... Lately, this blog has been all about me... Now while I think that's interesting, I still want to teach something to someone... Help the next man out... That's what I'm here for... And now that I'm FAMOUS, why can't I? And what is the main thing you expect to learn from an A&R? How to get signed ofcourse... Holla at ya boy...

Now first off, It takes talent, marketability and a little bit of luck to get signed. But even then, you are not guaranteed fame, money and success. Now here are a few things I have learned will help you get a deal or become noticed at anything in this industry. Now there is no guaranteed way to get a record deal or whatever, although if you’re genuinely really good at what you do, you seriously get on your grind, there’s a good chance you’ll get some kind of deal eventually. And also REMEMBER, when it comes to getting signed and becoming successful, timing is everything. Unfortunately being in the right place at the right time happens mostly by chance but you can at least maximise your chances by doing everything you can. So with that being said, Here are a few tips to help take you to the top...



1. Make good music that is well written and can be marketed. Try to be the best at whatever you do, however you do it.

2. Know and accept that you can ONLY depend on YOURSELF the most. This doesn't mean don't have a team and be a loaner, because I love love teams, and two heads are better than one, but you can only truly DEPEND on yourself the most.

3. Practice regularly. You need to be well rehearsed at whatever it is that you wanna do, from business to rapping to beats. Practice is the road to perfect... and better yet, Perfect practice makes perfect.

4. Save your money. Everything costs money... And it alwasy helps to have your own for anything... People really respect that, sometimes even before raw talent.

5. Get known and respected in your area locally first. It's about more than just playing a gig, You have to develop a following. Develop a local following and then branch out into more regional shows.

6. Start looking around for an experienced manager/ business partner to help you get started. An experienced manager will probably not be your best friend, your dad, your guitar teacher but someone who understands the ins and outs of the industry, or atleast has a true hustler's heart. This should be someone you can really trust and lean on when times get hard.

7. Learn how to make your own money. If you can do this it lets labels know that you can make them money.

8. No matter how good you are at what you do, Not everyone is going to like what you do or respect what you do. And sometimes, just because they respect what you do, it doesn't mean that they like what you do. And vice-versa.

9. Don't sign contracts without careful consideration and legal advice. Get up on your Judge Milian, that shit really happens in music too.

10. Develop your talents around people that you trust to give you honest, credible feedback. Just because someone is honest to you about what you do, that doesn't mean that they are credible and know what really works.

11. Record an impressive demonstration of your talents and, if you have to, pay to have a professional package for your presentation.

12. Image is everything especially if you want to be noticed by the majors. You want as many things to work in your favor and this includes having an interesting and inticing look. Arrange a wardrobe that looks marketable.

13. Avoid drugs. Word travels and artists with drug problems usually cost more money than artists without issues. Labels want a good return on their investment these days, not headaches. (Sometimes though, weed doesn't count, but you would be surprised at how many artists don't do drugs.)

14. Playing shows isn't a guarantee but exposure is never a bad thing. You could possibly be signed without ever playing a show but chances are slim. Additionally, having some popularity will help you negotiate a better deal with a label when you are signed.

15. And don't forget... Timing is everything. Unfortunately being in the right place at the right time happens mostly by chance but you can at least maximise your chances by doing everything you can. So with that being said, Here are a few tips to help take you to the top...


And there you go, another list from your's truly... Now if you solely do music you may also want to do the following to help your chances in getting discovered as soon as possible.

- You should have professional photos taken, as well as video if possible. The sooner the better. Make sure they are easily accesible if anyone comes looking for you. Now days, a good video goes a long way.

- Make a press pack which consists of a photo, your demo (printed) a biography of you and some interesting facts, press clippings, and any other impressive media around you.

- Find the address of any record label your music would feel home with and send them a press pack. Also email addresses and phone numbers will help you get attention on your material being sent in, just don't bug them, but make sure you're persistant, these are very busy people. (Make sure they accept unsolicited demos).


- Most A&Rs have seen hundreds of acts and are consequently fairly critical. They have a mental checklist when they see you play live; Do you have strong songs? Can you sing/play/perform well? Are you contemporary/do you fit into a current scene or niche? Do you have that X factor, or IT (sex appeal, star quality, massive charisma etc...)? And above all... Will your music sell, alot? If the answer to at least 4 out of 5 of these questions is yes, then you’re in with a chance, especially if it’s the latter three!

Now the common misconception is that all matters are solved once you get signed to a major label or record company... Hahaha... This is far from being true and is proven in so many recent cases. We aren't even going to get into all of that... That's another post, another day...

Have any questions or more tips? Holla at me, leave me a comment... a few comments...












-Ghost Da Hustla a.k.a. "Mr. Toofamousandshelikesit.com" (Website still being developed...)