Throughout this past year, I've seen so many changes being made within myself. As I continued to strive and push myself to complete my Masters in Entertainment Business, I learned the importance of an education especially while trying to start a career within the entertainment industry.
There are many great music artists and professionals who were fortunate enough to earn a college education. For instance, singer/songwriter/producer Ryan Leslie earned his Bachelors degree from Harvard University. Of course not all of us feel the need to attend an Ivy League college just to have a successful career in the music industry but he is someone that has something that he could always fall back on.
As well, soul singer Lalah Hathaway attended Berklee College of Music. Other musicians who attended this college include Quincy Jones, Brandford Marsalis, John Mayer and Melissa Etheridge. All of these musicians have been able to have successful musical careers but if things were not to happen for them that way, they have the option of relying on their education. Although there are many successful music artists who did not attend college, like Jay Z, things are not always guaranteed to go as we plan.
During the times that many of our parents and grandparents grew up, they were taught the importance of earning a high school diploma. As times passed, there was emphasis placed on the importance of attending college and earning a degree. Currently, there are many people out in the world that are not able to have a successful professional career due to their lack of education. Just as athletes are encouraged to get a higher education so that they can have something to fall back on, musicians should received the same type of encouragement. This is a way for them to secure their futures and be prepared for the real world that exists outside of stardom.
Something that is found to be common within young actors and musicians is that they always had to set aside time in order to complete their schoolwork. Their parents went to extenuated lengths to bring around teachers and/or tutors to help their children while they were working. The same care should be carried throughout their adulthood lives. Being just a high school graduate doesn't really get people anywhere in today's world. Being able to expand your knowledge and understanding is what helps others to build long and prosperous careers in the ever-changing world of entertainment.
--- Jackee Walker
------------------
Sources:
Berklee College of Music - Alumni Grammy Winners
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Sunday, December 8, 2013
Budget-Friendly Marketing Methods
So you have a great idea for a new business BUT you don’t
have a lot of money in order to market it… What do you do?
I’ve found 3 simple ideas for marketing your new business
venture when you’re low on funds.
1.
We always hear about importance of an elevator
pitch. Many people don’t even know what an elevator pitch truly so to help you
out, an elevator pitch is designed as a communication tool that will help you
to articulate your message (ElevatorPitchEssentials.com). When you’re looking
for a new job, we’re constantly advised that we should create an elevator pitch
about ourselves in order to get people interested in our qualifications. The
same tool can be used when you’re trying to find investors for your new
business. In order to create one, all you need is a something to record it on.
This is the opportunity to be creative so you can do a simple video or even
narrate a presentation. Just make sure that you include important details to
make investors want to contact you.
2.
Find a team of like-minded individuals to work
with. This will allow you to gain some first-hand experience of the “Do’s and
Don’ts” for your new business. In the end, this can definitely help to save you
from making simple mistakes because you can hear what others have already
learned. Also, you can take some of the heavy work burden from yourself by
sharing the workload. Try bouncing ideas off of each other and come up with a
simple plan to work together. Make sure that everyone is heard thoroughly and
respected.
3.
Lastly, take advantage of networking
opportunities. You can meet other entrepreneurs at various events all over the
country. Don’t feel the need to restrict yourself to your particular industry
because you never know who may be able to help you in the future. Many events
are usually free of charge and take place in the evenings or on the weekends.
So if you’re working a regular full-time job, you are still able to attend
them. As easy way to take advantage is to look for events when you’re traveling
to other cities. This will allow you to see what is taking place around the
country and find valuable resources elsewhere.
Always remember to get legal advice from certified
professionals. There are many other cost-effective solutions out there for you
to take full advantage of when starting your new business so make sure that you
do what works best for you and your business.
---- Jackee Walker
Sunday, October 20, 2013
The Importance of a DJ
As a recording artist, many times major record deals are not given out on a daily basis. By understanding how the music industry works, many artists lean more towards building an independent following. By going the Indie route, the artist is able to take more of a hands-on approach to their music career. When working from this view, many artists learn how importance it is to build a relationship with the local DJs. These are the people that can give them the attention that they want to their music.
By artists connecting with local DJs that play at various events, such as nightclubs, they are able to test out their music with various crowds. They can physically see the listeners’ response to when the music is played. They also can test out their explicit versions of their music before deciding to edit radio versions.
As an indie artist, you must learn how to cut costs as much as possible so that you are not throwing money down the drain. Taking advantage of every networking opportunity can save money in the long run as well as teach you inside secrets to a more prosperous career. This will show the major record labels that you have done all of the proper groundwork to invest in your career even if they are not willing to.
--- Jackee Walker
-------------------------------------------------------
Sources:
Facebook. (n.d.) DJ Drama [Web]. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/djdrama
King, R. (2012, March 22). How Indie Labels Changed the World. Retrieved from http://www.theguardian.com/music/2012/mar/22/indie-record-labels-changed-world
Power 95.3. (n.d). [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.power953.com
Power 95.3. (n.d). Artist Spotlight [Web]. Retrieved from http://www.power953.com/s/artistspotlight/
twild71. (2009). DJ Drama Class Discussion "The Role of the DJ" [Web]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BeHWGkjxUqk
Sunday, October 6, 2013
Rolling the Dice... Landing on Entertainment Industry
As you look at the history of some of the most successful names within the entertainment industry, you may come to find out that many of them did not even study the industry while they were in college or even attend college. There aren't many colleges through the United States that even offer a program that will help you to earn a career within this industry. Many people have rose to their level of success by being in the right place at the right time.
 |
| Jay Z |
 |
| Richard Branson |
Another person to think about is Richard Branson. He is the founder of Virgin Music. Branson didn't even complete his high school education; he dropped out at the age of 16 years old while suffering from dyslexia. He exemplified his talents at a young age by creating a national magazine. As a teen, he ventured out to develop his first business, a discount record shop in 1972. As times went on and he remained successful, Branson acquired more businesses that we successful as well (The Biography Channel UK).
This goes to show you that although having an education is extremely important, being successful in the entertainment industry isn't only guaranteed to those with a degree. Jay Z completed high school but was not able to attend college. He utilized the resources he had in order to make a career for himself. Richard Branson dropped out of high school but found a way to start a successful business. When it comes to success in the entertainment industry, your level of success is only guaranteed by the amount of effort you put into it.
---- Jackee Walker
_______________________
Sources:
http://www.biography.com/people/jay-z-507696
http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographies/richard-branson.html
Sunday, September 22, 2013
Age of Accountability
Parents are usually held accountable for the behavior of
their children in public and some private places. Some people feel that children
should be held accountable for their own actions when they reach a certain age
but there are numerous private debates about what that particular age should
be. In the United States, the legal age of consent varies by state. Many of us
know that the legal age which to purchase lottery tickets and tobacco products
is 18 years old and the legal age for consuming alcohol is 21 years old.
As times change, I see many parents allowing their children
to make their own decisions at an even younger age. I do believe that the
abundance of technological advances does play a role in the dynamic. My
five-year-old nephew can take the iPad (that he shares with his parents) and
find music videos via YouTube. When I was his age, I wasn’t able to type
anything, although we did not have iPads back then. Most of my entertainment at
that age was from television shows on PBS and videocassette movies that my
parents purchased for me. As well, he is
able to take anyone’s cell phone and call anyone that he is allowed to. At his
age, he’s able to make more decisions on his own than we were able to do so at
the same age.
----- Jackee Walker
Individuality
What Makes You Different?
According to a Google search, individuality
can be defined as “the quality or character of a particular person or thing
that distinguishes them from others of the same kind… separate existence.”
As we
all continue to reproduce and raise children, one thing that many suffer from
is being recognized as an individual. I have a twin sister and, although we are
not identical, it seemed as though it was extremely difficult for some people
to tell us apart. Growing up, my parents would dress us alike (as many twins
are dressed) but we didn’t see it that way. We wanted to be seen as different people
at a very young age.
Babies are naturally born selfish so we grew up not wanting
to look alike as well. To give a little difference, my parents would put us in
the same outfit but would have us to wear different colors. This seemed to help
us somewhat. My mother told me that when we started school, she requested that
we not be placed in the same class so that we could learn to not depend on each
other. As we got older, I think that this really did help us out a lot. We were
able to form our own friendships outside of each other. This allowed us to form
our own personalities independent of each other so people could really get to know
us. We didn’t begin to have classes together until we were in high school, but
even then, it would be only one class out of the entire day. By this time, our
friends were able to tell us apart.
Once we finished high school, we went to two different
colleges and people we amazed to know that we were twins when they seen us
together. I think that we figured out who wanted to be as we grew into adults. Shockingly,
we are a lot alike but we are still very different from each other. We tend to
forget that we are twins because we feel as though we are just sisters who look
alike. Few times people get us confused but they soon realize it when they don’t
get the response that they were expecting. Now that we feel that we are so much
different from each other, we find it fun to dress alike just to shock strangers
when they look at us together.
I think it if wasn’t for our parents forcing us to separate
from each other at such a young age, we wouldn’t have been able to become
individuals and learn more about ourselves on our own.
---- Jackee Walker
Sources: Google.com
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Expert Advice for Industry Liabilities
Gordon Firemark is the producer of various podcasts entitled
Entertainment Law Update available on iTunes for free. During each of his
podcasts, he discusses various legal cases with other attorneys. While
discussing different forms of copyright, he talked about the case of Faulkner
Literary Rights v. Sony Pictures Classic. In this particular case, there was a
debate over the phrase “The Past is Never Dead… It’s Not Even Past.” Faulkner
is suing Sony for using it in a movie. Federal Judge agreed that it’s not
Copyright Infringement; referring to it as a small portion from the book
(9-word quote).
Looking at the use of video games, EA Sports was in court (9th
Circuit Court of Appeals) because they were being used for using collegiate
athlete’s likeness. This isn’t protected under the Fist Amendment. According to
the research, student athletes cannot be compensated for use of their likeness.
EA Sport’s defense is that he students’ names are not being used on the jerseys
in the video games. The court’s ruling found that elements of the athlete’s
likeness were found in the game but it did not go far enough to be considered
infringement.
In 2011, musical group No Doubt sued ActiVision over the
video game Band Hero’s unauthorized use of their image. The court’s ruling
decided that creative elements of their likeness in the game were used for
commercial exploitation of the band’s image and that it wasn’t fair use.
Photographer David Harney took a picture of a father and his
daughter. It turns out that the father had kidnapped his own child from a
different country and brought her to the US. Later on there were actors
portrayed of the father-daughter in a movie so Harney sued Sony Pictures for
copyright infringement. The jury awarded the photographer monies; after appeal,
courts ruled that there was no way that the jury could determine that there was
any copyright infringement because the photographer has nothing to do with the
creative elements of the photo (photos were notably different in composition
and color making them different). Attorneys are questioning what copyright
protected elements does the photographers hold in the photo as well as what was
the purpose for the photo being included in the movie. The court is not giving
credit to the photographer even though he actually stopped the father in the
street to take the photo of them.
Subway is trying to sue another restaurant that is claiming
that their sandwiches are 12 inch. Others are claiming that subway’s sandwiches
are only 11 inches long. Looking from a trademark standpoint, there are no
registrations occurring because other restaurants have been blocking them. The “foot
long” claims are descriptive but not actually the size of the food. The question
of puffery comes up when people are starting to ask, “Does the consumer have a
reasonable expectation of the sandwich really being 12 inches long?”
Copyright for Students and Teachers: What right does the
school have to the work of students to display throughout the school when they
want? Students should be able to own their works that they create while in
school. Copyrights are being conveyed to the school board and districts. School
districts want to be given recognition for the works. Students are being asked
to sign over rights of research when grants are being provided to allow them to
do the works.
Questions of misrepresentation come up in the case of
William Eggleston. An art collector purchased 8 photographic works from
Eggleston claiming that they were a part of a limited edition collection (16x20
in size individually numbered). Eggleston reprinted more of the images in
different sizes, mediums and production dates and sold them. This caused the
originals to decrease in value. Lower courts dismissed all claims of
infringement; stating that they are all different from each other.
Firemark, G. (n.d.). Episode 38 - When a Foot is Only 11
Inches, and a Batmobile is a Character. Entertainment Law Update Podcast
.
Firemark, G. (n.d.). Episode 40 - Areo, ReDigi, Veoh &
IMDB. Entertainment Law Update Podcast .
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