Tag Archives: Music

Artists’ Business Strategy: Give Them Something To Talk About

Sometimes the hardest part about struggling to reach your dream are the people around you.  Dreama’s article, 5 Annoying Conversations Non-musicians will have with you talks about humorous questions insensitive people ask musicians who have not yet realized their dream.  … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Innovation:There is More to Emulating Than Playing Air-Guitar

When I started playing guitar  in the early 1960s, nobody played “air guitar.” Those who didn’t want to play, didn’t, and those who wanted to play guitar copied Jimmy Hendricks, Chuck Berry, and many others in the entertainment industry. Anita Campbell’s article Finding Innovation … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Music Royalties: Never Leave Money on the Table

I remember about six years ago when a relatively unknown organization, Soundexchange, contacted us (CPA entertainment business managers) about signing up one of our music artist clients.  They said that our client was not collecting all  music royalties through ASCAP, UMG, EMI, etc. Instead, there were an increasing amount … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Personal Finances | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Business Creativity and Illusion

As an Entertainment CPA, I find my clients are not short of creativity.  Every year, clients retain us to create a business (and sometimes a strategic) plan for an entertainment industry venture.  Usually they google Entertainment CPA, or Business Manager CPA, or Strategic … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Artists’ Futures are Truly in Their Hands

I was twenty-one in 1978 when I got my first part-time CPA accounting job while studying at UCLA.  The adding machine I used had a crank…really. Over the last year or so, I have written about apps that help business people … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Personal Finances | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

With FaceBook Music, You Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Payola

My father sang rockabilly in the 1950s under contract with Capitol Records. (Click here for a Bobby Norris sample.) When I was young, he told me stories of “payola.”  Payola is the (illegal) practice of record companies (and I guess artists) paying discjockies to  play their … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Strategic Planning for the Artist: A Los Angeles CPA Business Manager’s Attempt to Integrate Business Concepts

Tomorrow, as a Los Angeles CPA business manager,  I will be merging two of my skills with a client.  My entertainment business management skills, and my strategic planning skills.  This client is a singer/songwriter who produced  a music demo and video. … Continue reading

Posted in Personal Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Jeff Bridges: Be an Actor or a Singer, His Skills Are Transferable. And In Business, So are Yours

Many articles surfaced earlier this year about Jeff Bridge’s crossing over to country music.  Some were not flattering.  For example,  theweek.com quoted comments that branded Jeff as “country-lite,” and “a troubadour tourist.” But the critics missed the biggest point about Jeff Bridges.  Back … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

What is the Difference Between a Business Plan and a Strategic Plan?

Business plans are very familiar to me.  I receive calls from time to time to design one for individuals who have potential investors.  In doing so, I try to incorporate some form of a strategic plan in the product because new entrepreneurs rarely think on that … Continue reading

Posted in Business Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Strategy: The Placement of Music in Film/TV(or the New is the Old)

Back in the day…music from TV crossed onto the charts.  Remember Hawaii 5-0, Mannix, Peter Gunn, Mission Impossible, and Magnum PI?  I don’t know if there was a strategy to cross over, but you don’t see this type of proliferation … Continue reading

Posted in Personal Finances, Strategic Planning | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments