BA(Hons) Music Entrepreneurship

ARTIST DISCOVERY

ARTIST DISCOVERY

Recommended Standard Entry Requires: UK Level 3 qualification or above

You now have the opportunity to experience some of the core material featured in our BA(Hons) degree courses. This will give you the chance to experience what it’s like to study online through our virtual learning environment, Canvas.

Individual Modules are exactly the same content as our BA(Hons) degree courses and are each worth 20 credits. If you wish to progress onto the full degree then these could transfer.

You will be able to experience studying with DIME ONLINE in cost effective bite-size chunks. Expert instruction focusing on specialist areas.

• Each module worth 20 Credits at Level 4

• Credits can be transferred onto the full BA(Hons) degree course

• Join DIME ONLINE’s learning community

• Modules are exactly the same as the BA(Hons) degree

• Detailed material for professional development

• Experience Canvas – our online virtual learning environment

• Expert one-to-one instructor feedback

The aim of this module is to enable you to:

• Develop the ability to utilise targeted research activity to locate new musical talent at a grass roots level

• Assess the commercial potential of an act in a considered and informed way, and express this clearly to a third party

20 CREDITS

Start Date: 29th January 2018 Duration: 15 weeks Cost: £700

Indicatively, this module will consist of:

• 28 hours of lectures (14 x 2.0 hours)

• Small groups/individual tutorials (10 hours)

• Forums/online peer chat/master-classes

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Module Description

In this area of the course you will develop higher-level A&R skills. You will be given guidance on finding acts, assessing their potential and making a conceptual link between the musical product, the branding associated with an act and a paying audience.

Developing the instinct to assess a potential market size, longevity and aspects of brand loyalty in commercially viable acts is the central theme of this module.

You will examine the negotiation of early-stage deals and strategies to formulate a grass roots approach to building awareness and a ‘buzz’ around an act.

OverviewThe Artist Discovery module is relevant to artist managers not only to discover artists to manage, but to understand how the industry, and related sectors, seek new artists and music to progress their careers and businesses. Of course, artist discovery also applies to consumers; knowing how they discover and consume new music is essential to business survival and record companies are investing more in market research than ever before.

Traditionally, artist signings were made on a hunch, these days it is more calculated and based on an array of data, deal appraisals, opinions, trend monitoring and consumer research – it is a calculated hunch.

A&R scouts and managers need to know where the hottest new artists are and where, geographically, they come from. Traditionally, A&R reps discovered new music via attending live music shows, constantly meeting publishers, managers, songwriters, producers and attending international conventions, as well as receiving unsolicited demos. These days, the process has become more sophisticated largely due to the Internet and digital technology. There are many online websites and services that showcase and recommend new music to the industry, media and the consumer and this module covers the main areas: from the varying industry sectors, television, press, news sites, social media, blog-sites, colleges, conferences, apps, gigs, retail and streaming services. The module will show insights into the ways artists can build their fan base and media presence in order to be discovered. Artist managers are becoming more sophisticated in their approach and focussing on key indicators before they agree to sign an artist. To that end, the module will explore leadership skills and styles, networking and relationship building techniques to successfully navigate and build a successful career as a manager.

On completion of this Module you should be able to:

Assessment Criteria. To achieve the learning outcome you must demonstrate the ability to:

Utilise specialist knowledge of the music scene at a grass roots level to identify emerging musical talent. (Artist Management LO 4)

Research and identify emerging talent at a grass roots level.

Assess the commercial potential of an artist in an informed way, linking the product to a particular market or audience. (Artist Management LO5)

Appraise a musical project and present an argument supporting your view on their commercial potential (or otherwise).

Present findings, explain and justify your position in a manner intelligible to both expert and non-expert audiences. (Artist Management LO8)

Demonstrate the ability to gather and assimilate information concerning the commercial viability of individual musical acts.

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Skills Development

Knowledge and Understanding • Knowledge of key elements that can be attributed to historically successful commercial music acts and also common characteristics of unsuccessful acts.

• An understanding of the variables and areas of ambiguity within the commercial arts.

Intellectual Skills • Develop cognitive and analytical skills needed to assess the variables and come to an informed view on the commercial potential or otherwise of a music project.

• The ability to present a coherent argument supporting these views.

Practical Skills • Undertake a project and present data and findings intelligible to expert and non-expert audiences.

Transferable Skills • Research.• Critical thinking.

• Project management.

Assessment Strategy

Summative assessment A&R Report (podcast) 8-10 minutes Using a basic research based approach, identify and report on a minimum of 6 self-selected acts, providing background information in the form of short biographies.

Appraise your musical projects and present a persuasive argument supporting your view on their commercial and artistic potential (or otherwise) of each act in turn. Describe your views on the potential audience (if one exists) for these various musical projects.

From your self-selected acts, identify the two you feel have the greatest commercial and/or artistic potential. Explain your reasoning and justify your position with informed critical appraisal.

You should use a basic research-based approach that features clear referencing and supports all assertions, arguments and conclusions.

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Scheme of Work

Artist Discovery

Week Description

1 Introduction To The ModuleThis lecture will outline the purpose of the module and the lecture content to be covered, as well as the assessments.

Artist DiscoveryWe will explore what artist discovery means in today’s music market and who the major players are: the successful labels and artists who are dominating the charts and the media.

The Artist Discovery module is relevant to artist managers wanting to discover artists to manage. It is also important to know where the industry goes to discover new artists and music. Of course, artist discovery also applies to consumers; knowing how they discover and consume new music. It is also, of course, relevant to A&R scouts and managers who need to know where the hottest new artists are and where they come from.

2 History of A&RThis lecture researches the realm of the A&R manager and the processes of A&R today. Historically this was the realm of music publishers and then, with the invention of the phonograph record, the record companies. Today, A&R can be seen as talent development and include: artist managers; production companies - and therefore music producers; booking agents; promoters; music lawyers and music supervisors. This session will gain perspectives on A&R in a historical context and review the landscape today.

A&R is a fast changing and competitive role in the industry. A&R managers come and go and these departments have the highest turnover of staff at a label. It is important to have great taste, creativity, leadership skills, political awareness, communication and charisma and a hard working ethic. By the end of this lecture some of these areas would have been explored in more detail so the artist manager can begin to form a personal strategy of how they can enter the music industry, find a unique value and sustain a successful career.

3 Guide to A&RHaving understood the music market and the history of A&R this lecture will explore a simple guide to understanding A&R in today’s market place. It will demonstrate how it has changed, and continues to change and adapt as consumer behaviour changes; as well as how digital technology has aided the artist discovery process, market intelligence and access to market research.

In this lecture we will cover the most important areas for an artist manager or aspiring A&R person and demonstrate the importance of various factors that need to be considered when signing an in the competitive marketplace.

Independent study taskChoose an unsigned artist of your choice and see how well they perform against the 8S’s discussed in this lecture. How many boxes do they tick and which ones are important to the type of artist chosen. Write a brief summary of findings for each of the 8 elements.

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4 The Media GatekeepersThis lecture focuses on music ‘gatekeepers and their importance and influence on consumers and other entertainment media.

Gatekeepers are people and specific media that are trusted by the public to inform them of what’s ‘hot’ and what’s ‘not’. There are too many ways to discover new music and now music discovery is becoming a crowded and competitive market.

This lecture will explore the various specialist shows that help people explore and discover more of the music they love as well as show how these shows feed into the playlist meetings, where the station decides which artists to add to, and remove from, the various playlists.

We will concentrate on the following areas:The relevant gatekeepers in the UK music industry that represent traditional media• Print media and Public Relations• Newspapers• Music magazines• Lifestyle magazines• Features and cover stories• Radio broadcast (BBC and Commercial stations) and the playlists• How to get on the radio playlists

Independent study taskResearch the various radio stations and their specialist shows that focus on one of the following listed genres:

Rock and alternative Urban, Hip Hop and R&B Pop, DanceFolk, country music

Write a bullet point list of the Station, the DJ/presenter, the time-slots and the particular music played relevant to chosen genre. This will be valuable data that can help with networking, plugging and pitching songs to these gatekeepers.

5 The Artist LiveStill an important part of music discovery, nothing can replace the live experience and the artist to fan relationship through live performance. The lecture will explore the role of live music in artist discovery and the various professions in the live music sector that seek to discover artists in order to sustain their profession and the live sector as a business.

The lecture will cover:• The various live outlets available• The various professions in the industry: booking agent, promoter, venue owner and tour manager• The trend of nostalgia acts• Live on the Internet: The A&R discovery tool

6 Artist Discovery OnlineThis lecture will look at some of the main online channels for the industry and the consumer to help discover new artists. Music discovery is taking place via press, radio, television, gigs, YouTube, streaming sites, iTunes store, internet radio, blogs, apps, recommendation services and from friends.

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6 (cont... ) Many artists have found international success and acclaim from online platforms that have helped build their fanbase to a scale in order to get signed by a record company, or to be able to pave their own career.

Online music discovery is essential for new artists to find fans and be discovered by the industry. Working closely in partnership with traditional media will be the key to success and to widen to net for people to find the artist. Whether its through streaming services, e-tailers, pirate sites, blogs or apps, consumers are everywhere and the music industry needs to ensure that the artist is getting in front of an audience - be it live or online.

Content covered include:• The role of A&R in the digital age• Social Media music discovery• Streaming and e-tail recommendation services• New music aggregation• Specialist Websites and Blogs• Internet Radio• Live music apps• Artist online services• Music piracy and peer-to-peer file sharing sites

7 Other Industry AreasArtist discovery and development in the music industry is not just the role of A&R representatives. The music business has become a competitive playground for those seeking to enjoy in the success of hit songs and superstar artists. If you want to be at the forefront of discovering the ‘next big thing’ then it’s sensible to look at these other professions. Online media, retailers, e-tailers, publishers, lawyers, TV production companies, agencies, brands and many more all want to be associated with music, credibility and youth market. They therefore need people to know and love music and the great new emerging artists.

This lecture will give an insight into other industry sectors and professions involved in artist development and artist discovery. Artist discovery is now a broad area not just the domain of record companies and publishers. Major brands to be associated with new music as well: music stirs emotions, feelings and creates great brand experiences. This gives huge benefits to companies that align themselves with music brands. It is therefore important to understand the value of A&R/talent development across various sectorsAnd ensure these other professions are included in any networking strategy.

8 Formative Assessment

9 Television & Music VideosHere we shall discuss the area of music television and promotional artist videos and their important commercial role in international artist discovery. We shall explore the history of music television and its power to help record companies and artists sell music on an international scale through creative visuals and various specialised music television programmes. Key to this was the launch and power of Top Of The Pops and MTV; their adaption and demise, and the recent un-floundering influence of music realty shows such as X-Factor and American Idol, which continue to attract millions of viewers and remain the biggest music television platform globally.

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9 (cont...) Music videos and music television can give an artist international reach, build brand identity, increased awareness, an increased fan base and a word of mouth/viral campaign. With digital channels we shall look at how the commercial value of music videos has changed, and the incredible power of YouTube in promoting artists worldwide and their role in the digital marketing strategy. The lecture will be supported by case studies of exceptional videos and video campaigns.

10 Music Business: The Game.How To Win Deals And Influence PeopleThis lecture will discuss networking in the industry and how build key relationships in which to help create opportunities for the artist and the career of the manager. Basic psychology will be explored in relation to sales techniques, forming professional relationships and influencing decisions in order to progress the career of both artist and manager.

The music industry is hard to break into but small once you’ve done so. It is a relationship business and so building key contacts and relationships are essential in order to succeed. However, it is also more than this: Knowing how people are motivated, and knowing their business and pressures are also essential. Having a few psychology sales techniques could well give you the lead over others, and help with negotiating deals, winning deals, and getting what you need. We will look at proven methods of influence using positive and persuasive language in order to seal the deal.

Case Studies will be explored from highly successful business people to demonstrate techniques discussed during the lecture.

11 LeadershipLeadership and management are intertwined and the approach of a leader will depend upon personal experience, traits, style and subjectivity. There are many guides to leadership advising on how to gain the best out of people and inspire and motivate your teams. To be an adept manager will require excellent leadership skills in order to get the best performance out of both the creative and the commercial aspects of the music business.

The manager deals with every level of person and profession on a daily basis in order to achieve the strategic goals. It is, therefore, important to consider what leadership styles work for the individual manager in preparing their journey as a leader in the music business.

This lecture will explore leadership, management and the creative entrepreneur. We shall continue some of the themes from lecture 10 in greater detail, but from a management perspective, such as: persuasion, decision-making, personal branding and perception. We shall research current leadership definitions and advice from the latest experts as well as how leadership ideas have developed in the music business.

12 Revision Week

13 Summative Assessment

14 Education & innovationPerformance, songwriting and artist development courses at colleges and universities are now serious hunting grounds for new talent by the music and media industries. The

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Terms & Conditions applyIf you wish to apply for the full degree course and use your credits after completing any of the individual modules, then you will still need to meet the full application criteria. Further details here www.dime-online.org/do-i-qualify

14 (cont...) access to equipment, instruments and tutors ensures artists have the best available opportunities for development. Important to education and industry is innovation and its increasing importance to corporations - especially tech and telecoms companies. In terms of the music industry, it has been said that it is to busy protecting copyrights and business models rather than innovating; maybe it has lost some of its innovative spirit both in terms of the business and music creation.

This Lecture will discuss the importance of creativity and innovation in the arts, in education and in business. From case studies we shall observe how companies like Apple, Google and Pixar approach innovation. We shall also discuss failure and mistakes and how some entrepreneurs regard these two as the foundations of innovation.

We shall explore creativity in business from some key thought leaders such as Sir Ken Livingston to find out what it is and how important it is in the business world.

15 Music Conferences & ConventionsMusic conferences are growing each year and it seems that every territory has some music conference that showcases its domestic talent to the international industry.

These events can be invaluable for networking, discovering new artists and learning from the industry’ best. Full of panels, workshops, gigs, parties and networking events, these conferences, although expensive to attend (ticket price, travel, accommodation and sustenance), are well worth attending to meet new people that can help you build your career and brand.

This lecture will list the main music conferences and provide links to video content from the featured panels put on by the music business conventions.

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