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As a recording Artiste, having a structured team is an essential part of your success story. A structured team takes the headache and worries away for you to maintain a level headed creative flow and also to ensure that your career stays moving outside the walls of your creative sphere.
Four major kinds of representatives are essential to represent any recording artists, performers, and songwriters in the music industry. It doesn’t matter if you are Upcoming, Indie or Major Artiste, You need personal managers, agents, Creative director, and attorneys.
I am briefly going to discuss this major representatives below and some other time talk about handling them, compensating their efforts and ensuring that they get motivated to give you the desired efforts you require.
Personal Managers:
Personal Managers advise and counsel the artist on virtually all aspects of the artist’s career. The duties of a personal manager may include:
• Dealing with the artist’s publicity, public relations and advertising
• assisting in the selection of the artist’s material
• devising plans for the artist’s long term career development
• choosing the artist’s booking agent, road manager, lawyer, accountant et al and overseeing the artist’s relations with each of them
• counselling the artist on what types of employment to accept
• In some instances, acting as a liaison between the artist and the artist’s record company
Personal managers are usually paid a commission of 15% to 25% of the artist’s gross receipts from all of the artist’s activities in the entertainment industry (recording contacts, publishing contracts, endorsements, television and movie work, etc).
This commission, which may increase depending upon the artist’s success, is in addition to reimbursement of the personal manager’s travel and out-of-pocket expenses incurred in representing the artist. I will further elaborate or possible deals an Artiste can enter with Managers depending all wide range of factors and variables.
In Nigeria Today, Personal Managers double as Business and Personal Managers that is asides the roles mentioned above, He or she is responsible for creating revenue streams for the Artiste and Ensuring that those revenue sources stay viable.
Agents:
An employment or booking agent’s job is to find work for the artist in the music industry. As compensation for their services, an agent typically receives between 5% and 15% of the artist’s gross earnings from any bookings, engagements, or employment secured by the agent. The agent’s commission percentage may vary depending on a number of factors; the type of work, the length of time and/or the popularity of the artist.
Personnel or Brands who serves as booking agents in Nigeria today are handful and I think that can also be another area of possible employment and empowerment for anyone willing to go into the Nigerian Music Industry. I personally have met lots of Managers in need of booking agents and due to shortage in such services, such managers have become booking agents themselves
Creative Director:
You probably saw this and laughed!
You probably wondering “Hey! I am a creative person myself, why do I need a creative director?”
60% of your fan base in this century will relate with your brand and music based on your creative appearance and profiling in your graphic and image appearance. Your Artwork, Your Image appearance, your video direction and all visual appearance must have a consistent story and appeal to your specific fan base.
Having a specific creative director might be on a high side in terms of your budget but there is always a way around it. On other publications, I will discuss possible ways of engaging a creative director and what you should look out for in hiring one
Lawyers:
In addition to reviewing, negotiating and drafting contracts and advising clients about the law, entertainment attorneys also often perform many of the same duties as personal managers, business managers, and agents.
Entertainment lawyers in Nigeria are usually in the field of the music business. They are in line with the best alternative for Artistes and also updated with the latest emerging revenue streams. They can be expensive but you definitely don’t want to be ignorant of our responsibilities and rights in every and any agreement you put your signatures.
Your Lawyer should be your best friend as he/she is responsible for making sure all other representatives work as described in their agreement and to the best of your interest.
