Happy Mardi Gras from your friends at M&B Entertainment Services!
Spread the “Words”
I was recently approached by a friend who privately owns and operates his own record label. He currently has ten bands on board and has overseen three cross-country tours in the winter alone. The reason he contacted me on this particular occasion was because he was seeking advice on market capitalization in the collage age group. One of the things I was interested to discuss with him was the possibility and likely hood of engaging some of his bands in a cross-country college campus tour. Naturally, this made me think of the DJ atmosphere and oversaturation of popular radio music.
I would have no problem playing some of my friend’s stuff at a party or an event, but I would have to be sure the music would appeal to a large enough audience (or case-specific audiences). What exactly is the correlation between what people want to hear played and the current popularity of a song, and what is the correlation when new songs are introduced that do not have an established aesthetic value? Do people prefer to hear new music peppered in with today’s hits and party classics, or are the demands of a DJ strictly to play hits? This is far from a rhetorical question; an aspiring DJ who can answer this question correctly can quickly make a name for him/herself. By my observation, the norm is to only play well known, or mainstream, music. This is something I feel should be looked into when establishing a competitive advantage and niche. If your target audience is one that comes to expect a new song here and there, you will be able to lock up that market like no other DJ can.
That’s why I argue that getting to know your audience on a personal level is important before you play a show. If they want to hear House, play House, and throw in some Big Gigantic. If they want to hear Hip Hop or R&B, throw in some A1 by Bobby Brackens and Dev. Be creative, be intuitive, and you may just empower yourself to take the local DJ scene by storm.
-Jack McMahon
Artist Spotlight: Adele
For my first blog entry i would like to write a little bit about one of the music industries rising stars. In today’s industry there are so many artists on the rise, it’s hard to keep track of them all. There is always one sure fire way to see who is on the top of the rise. Just log onto www.billboard.com click on the top 100 chart, and if you scroll through the list you will see multiple tracks from this artist, including the #1 hit in America right now. That star today is Adele. Adele got her start in a different kind of way, she was offered a recording contract from XL recording after a one of her friends uploaded some of her singing demos to MySpace in 2006. They instantly loved her voice and she eventually signed with the company, and continues to write under their label today. Adele was born May 5, 1988 (23 years old.) Her debut album, 19 was released in 2008 to much commercial and critical success in the UK. 19 was certified four times platinum in the UK. Her career in the US was really jump started by a Saturday Night Live appearance in late 2008. At the 2009 Grammy Awards, Adele received the awards for Best New Artist along with Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. In the US the album remained at the top of the charts longer than any other album since 1993. The success of 21 earned Adele countless mentions in the Guinness Book of World Records. She is the first artist to sell more than 3 million copies of an album in a year in the UK. With her two albums and the first two singles from 21, “Rolling in the Deep” and “Someone Like You”, Adele became the first living artist to achieve the feat of two top five hits in both the UK Official Singles Chart and the Official Albums Chart simultaneously since the Beatles in 1964. She is an extraordinary artist, and we expect to more and more of her songs at the top of the charts for years to come!
-Asa Johnson
Weddings and the Economy
Everyone knows that weddings are a very special time for any couple and their families. They want to celebrate their union in the most romantic, beautiful, and memorable way possible. But, what happens when the funds run short? Weddings are extremely expensive! In fact, the average cost of a wedding in 2011 was $26,542! When you can’t afford the wedding of your dreams, what is the first thing to cut? The decorations? No. The cost of the gown? Not likely. The DJ? Why not? Most everyone now has an I-Pod or an equivalent. Why not just set up two speakers, possibly renting them, build a list of songs, and let them play? Everyone will dance of course. Wrong! One thing that most people forget when toying with the idea of cutting a DJ out of the budget is the atmosphere that they bring to the party. The light shows, for example, usually cannot be run by someone who has not been trained. If you want to encourage dancing, hiring a DJ with a light show is the way to go. Sure, it’s more expensive, but it’s YOUR day and you want everyone to enjoy it. Also, what happens if your I-Pod depends to blow up? Or more likely just quit playing? It would make more sense to hire a DJ who will bring a backup system in the event of a malfunction (no matter how unlikely). All in all, contrary to popular belief, a DJ should be at the bottom of your “chopping block” list.
-Matt O’Connell
We will be DJ’ing Holy Family Middle School’s dance on Feb. 4th! We are so excited!
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Polar Bear Club Release New Music Video
Polar Bear Club have released a new music video for “Killin It’,” which appears on Clash Battle Guilt Pride. Check out the video below by clicking “Read More.”
Mayday Parade To Shoot New Music Video
Mayday Parade will be shooting a new music video this weekend for “Stay,” which will also be the band’s new single. Check out a tweet from Mayday below by clicking “Read More.”
TS & The Past Haunts Announces Tour
TS & The Past Haunts will be heading out on tour in February to promote their debut record, Gone & Goner. Check out the routing below by clicking “Read More.”
BOYS LIKE GIRLS PLAYING BAMBOOZLE
Boys Like Girls will be playing the 2012 Bamboozle Festival on Sunday, May 20th. You can check out the full lineup here.
