Do I Need to Trademark My Label Name

If your record label is a registered business, then your label name is your "trade name". Trade names are not officially protected under copyright law, so technically speaking, someone could start a record label using the same name. That might sound a little scary, but most record labels will not meet the requirements for qualifying for a trademark. A trademark is a branding of a service or product that you can prove to be unique from what other companies are offering. There is very little room to do that as a record label.

Just because you probably won't be able to trademark your record label name doesn't mean that there aren't things you can do to keep your label branding strong. Get an internet domain name that matches (as closely as possible) your label name. Have a label logo and a distinct set of catalogue numbers. If you are an indie label, always promote your label along with your new releases. Make building your label identity a priority in case someone else does come along and think up the same name. The more established you are, the less likely someone is to run with the idea of ripping off your name. It may sound counter-intuitive - after all, your established label name may open some doors - but the jig would be up almost instantly. Anyone serious about establishing their own business will realize that they are much better off building their own label brand.

Music Business Etiquette. Oh Yeah, That Matters!

Think music industry etiquette doesn't matter? Think again. There may be some things about the music business that make it less uptight than other industries, but word of mouth is a large part of what makes the business tick - and when an industry runs on word of mouth, how you treat the people you encounter counts. Now, I'm not saying that you need to bring a host(ess) gift to your next business meeting, but there are a few things you can do to avoid becoming THAT guy / girl. Here are a few music industry etiquette tips to help you stay on the right side of your fellow music biz types.

1. BCC Is Your Friend

When you send an email to a group of people, use the BCC (blind carbon copy) field. If you don't, everyone who is copied on your email list can grab the email addresses of everyone else - and not everyone is going to be cool with that. Using BCC says, hey, I appreciate having this line of contact for you, and I respect your right to decide who does and doesn't have this address. This is true of both industry email lists and fan email lists.

Of course, accidents happen. If you accidentally CC rather than BCC your email list, apologize. It still might not make you the most popular kid for a little while, but at least you have acknowledged that you understand that you have compromised the privacy of the people on your list.

2. Use Follow-Up Sense

You're waiting for some feedback on your song/business prop/etc. And you're waiting. And you're waiting. And it's just not coming.

Frustrating? Oh, absolutely. But there is a line between following up territory and restraining order territory. Don't cross it. Unless the entire world will collapse if you don't get an answer on something by 6 PM, if you're calling or emailing multiple times per day, you're probably going overboard. Likewise, don't track down home numbers, etc, and try to catch people out that way. If you make multiple follow-ups, a simple, "I know you're busy, but..." and a "please let me know if you need more info" make gentle reminders that you're waiting for news. Stay polite, annoying as it may be.

3. State Your Business

The first time you make contact with someone, give yourself a proper introduction. Don't assume they know who you are, and don't do things like (one of my personal faves) send an email that simply says something like, "let's work!"

Of course, don't start at birth, either -. "Hi, I'm so and so from such and such" plus a few details and maybe a website link work fine. Then, explain why you're reaching out, be it booking a show, soliciting advice or just because you like what they're doing and wanted to open a line of communicaton. If you're hoping to meet up or have a phone call to discuss something, say so and suggest a few times. Be clear and concise - you're more likely to get a response if people can actually understand what you're after.

4. Keep Your Appointments (And Buy The Coffee)

If you make an appointment with someone, keep it or reschedule it. Bonus points for being on time or calling if you are going to be late. It is just good manners, period. Plus, not showing up for a meeting makes you look irresponsible, unreliable and scatty.

Likewise, if you request a meeting with someone to ask for advice or pitch something to them, consider springing for their coffee/drink/meal if at all possible. It is a gracious thank-you for their time. Of course, money can get pretty tight in the music industry, but if you can do it - go for it.

5. Put It In The Vault

The music industry is a very small place. You may have the goods on a lot of music business deals gone wrong, not to mention the personal goods on what so and so did on tour or why so and so got booted from the band. Tempting as it may be to blab - zip it. This is doubly true of your own deals gone wrong. You may feel incredibly slighted by your band break-up or management collapse, but take the high road when pressed for details.

Two good reasons to button your lips? Well, one: gossip is a two way street - you probably have a few stories of your own you'd appreciate someone keeping close. Two: being a big mouth says, "if our working relationship doesn't work out, I will violate your trust, too." Doesn't exactly instill confidence.

6. Take Your Lumps

Not everyone is going to like everything you do. Whether their displeasure is expressed by declining to work with you or in review form for all to see, don't even think of sending an outraged email or getting them on the phone to confront them. Yes, maybe they DON'T get what you're doing, maybe they're the only ones to have ever complained - just let it ride. You can't bully someone into liking your music. There is no accounting for who likes what, and you can't predict it or change it. If there are "fair enough" points in a bad review, take them. Otherwise, your time is much better spent focusing on the people who are into what you're doing and making peace with the fact that there is no such thing as unanimous in the music biz.

7. Respect the Free Stuff

Free stuff, like guest list spots or promos, don't just fall from the sky. They may be free to you, but someone is paying for them. Getting to go to shows for free or getting free music are great perks of working in music, but try not to send your favorite band into bankruptcy by treating your 25 closest friends to a free night out at their show. Be reasonable when requesting guest list spots and other free things.

8. Thank You

Did someone take the time to respond to your request for advice, give you a recommendation or introduction or help you in some other way? For goodness sake, thank them.

Assembling the Basic Beat, Step by Step

1. You can assemble the elements in any order you want, but I tend to work the kick drum track first, then the claps, hats, and snares into a good solid 8 bar pattern. 

2. Then I will put on the bass. Just pick one that has some girth. Later on you will have to find one that fits perfectly with the song.

3. Before going any further, it makes sense to try different grooves and find one you can commit to for the entire beat. Listen for a "lock". That's when you hear something that is so cool you know it can drive the song. There are lots of tricks here. Get to know how your sequencer can use a quantized swing template. Check out my notes on Groove considerations near the end.

4. Then you can add supporting orchestration. Remember, think of a metaphor for your ensemble.

5. Next, copy the 8 bar grooved pattern with its bassline and other elements to make it a 16 bar pattern. You might drop out one of the orchestrated elements for the first 8 bars so it only plays during the second 8 bars.

6. Then, copy the first 8 bar drum pattern to the third 8 bars an start developing a chorus. You might replace drums with others. Replace or alter the bass. Keep the kick but change the snare and claps, adding perhaps a different effect. Now add new supporting orchestration to the chorus.

Flippin March Madness Vol. 2

March 2012-- I'm back at it again this year tearing up these samples likes it going out of style!  Last year was such a good run figured I would do it again! Now just to get some collabos on last years tracks-- then we'll see if I set this beat tape as free download or just sell the beats later? Who knows? Here's what's done so far:

R.O.C.A. Man (of The Ghost Smokers) Collabo- "Donkey Kong"

R.O.C.A. Man (a.k.a. Solwell) and I met through a mutual friend (Ed) and spent many hours of smoking blunts, listening to beats (my older ones), and playing Tekken. We always talked about doing a collabo, but he eventually moved back to Columbus, OH. After a few years we finally re-connected on Facebook we linked up and decided to do the long awaited collabo. This is the second of the collabos we were working on. Hopefully you guys enjoy!

R.O.C.A. Man - Donkey Kong (prod by TEKNODROME) by TEKNODROME / @UGLYBEATS

Chino XL shouted out to me on Twitter!!!

/////gratitude!!!

Yes I am a fan of CHINO XL!!! This is a big deal to me-- I always love when respected artists acknowledge my presence in the hip hop world.

Producers: Are you actively pitching your beats to Artists?

I just read an article about a songwriter detailing a few of the different ways he’s pitching his songs to artists in his hometown. A couple of things that stood out.

1. He had no problem spending money to get his music heard. He mentioned pitching to listings he gets through a paid tip sheet and how that works and also the fact that he’s hired a professional song pitcher to get him access he couldn’t get by himself.  Most times you hear about how you should never pay to get your music heard or pitched. I won’t tell you that there aren’t scams out there. I’ve been got and know people who have been got just like me.

My point. Spend money wisely on PROVEN opportunities. If the site or service sounds too good to be true, it probably is. ALSO, a site shouldn’t have to be over the top with 50 celebs all over the site to pull you in if they’re offering real value. Look for testimonials and verifiable credits.

2. This guy was not sitting at home writing songs and waiting for the checks to hit the box (like most part time musicians). He was actively out playing his music and had albums for sale in iTunes, Amazon, etc. Also, he had an active blog that was connecting him with other people in his songwriting community. Basically, this guy was keeping it moving. He was writing new songs and getting them out there with or without a label.

Now I don’t know if this guy has ever had a major credit of not. But he is handling his business in an inspirational way.

There are a lot of producers that make beats – and let them sit on their hard drive. Never taking their business seriously. If you are in the BUSINESS of making beats, shouldn’t you be actively pitching those beats to artists any way you can?

It’s one word people: Grind.

Scarface ( #NewSchool Instrumental) FREE DOWNLOAD

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SCARFACE.mp3

So I had recreated the synth parts to the original soundtrack slapped on a beat threw in some samples at the beginning and made a track out of this. Free Download for people to use for promo use. 

Be Sure To Follow My New Twitter @UGLYBEATS

I started a brand new twitter from the ground up until Twitter fixes this situation with these thieves.

My Twitter has been hacked and stolen!

As I rounded up on 15,000 followers I made the mistake of using a follower site I had never seen and used it twice cause it malfunctioned- and I wanted to be sure. Well sure enough I try to check my account from my phone and it keeps rejecting me. So I try online- nothing. I open my @ThRob_UGLY account and do a search for #followaninja a has tag I created-- and found my account with a new name! When I searched the crew that my account was now promoting I started putting them on blast so I responded with this:

They retaliated with this: 

Now I'm no elite hacker but I know my way around the internet, I can figure out things-- like who owns sites that their tweeting that I used just a few days before that 'didnt work' such as:

And to add insult to injury my girlfriend reported him to Federal Government for Phishing across statelines (FEDERAL OFFENSE) and his site to BBB-- which I continually keep issuing as he tries to ignore it! Heres more proof he did it:

then steals @TEKNODROME this i.p. is in ATL -- I checked!

So you mean to say this account was made the same day as mine? haha

As you can see thats my reply with a different name!!!

How to get out of a "Beat Block"

Writers block is a problem that shows up in a different form for music producers. It’s rare for us to not be able start a project. Most likely you hit the problem of not being able to get in the groove producing anything that you consider a “banger.” In these times, consider these 3 tips to get it moving again.

1. Work on an assignment. I call this technique going to fridge instead of waiting for someone to cook. Sometimes I work free form, just letting the music flow. Other times I work on assignment. A client will ask for a specific style, genre, or sound. In those cases I have a brainstorm in mind and a basic framework for what the end product should be. For me that’s sometimes tougher but exciting. I find that once I get going on this type of assignment, my creative juices take over and I eventually end up with a banger.

The trick you can use is to create the assignment for yourself. Who says you have to have an outside client to challenge yourself. You can give yourself an assignment within a genre, style, and sound and get to work. The key is to get the assignment planned out before you step into the studio to work on it.

Get the idea as fleshed out as much possible in your mind. Detail what the end work will sound like and the feeling it will bring when you hear it. If you go that far with it, you push your mind to call up those creative juices to create that feeling. Now when you hit the studio, you have the energy and path to run down.

2. You don’t always have to start from scratch. Another trick I’ve used is almost like remixing my own work or creating variations of a previous work. Start by calling up an old project in the studio, giving yourself access to a ready made pallet of sounds, tempo, song structure, etc, then scrap everything you recorded except for a few elements. If you work using a midi sequencer (or FL user), this is as simple as creating a copy of the project under a new name and deleting everything except for a simple element like the snare pattern.

At this point, you’re already a third of the way down the road to creating something new. You’ve got a "template" and a tempo and a snare pattern to build from. By the time your done, you might have ditched the original snare and found the session has pulled you in a new direction. And that’s what you wanted in the first place. Something new.

3. Call on The Masters. Some days, for me at least, the above two methods don’t get me going the way I want and the energy level still needs a boost. This is when I like call on The Masters. Depending on the genre I’m working in, I’ll play a few of the masterworks that convey the type of emotion or energy I’m after and also some tracks that are completely different.

For example, if I’m working on an R&B ballad and nothing hits the mark, I might throw on some of the classic Janet Jackson joints produced Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and something instrumental like a passionate cello piece by Yo Yo Ma where the emotion is there without lyrics at all. Or some Billy Joel or Debussy, or Missy Elliot, or The Roots, or… you get the idea. Whatever you play, make sure it’s material you consider to be excellent, that sets the bar in your mind for what you want in the end from yourself. Throwing in some varied styles points your brain in new directions away from the roadblock you’d been facing and gets you shooting for the stars.

So there you go! 3 ways to get out of your "beat block" ultimately flowing toward your next musical masterpiece. Have fun with it see what your get.

Suggestions to break into the Music Industry For Music Producers

If you are a music producer that specializes in Rap Beats, Hip Hop Beats and R&B Beats and would like to make money from your catalog then I suggest taking bold steps to creating the right relationships to get you closer to your goal. With the marketing machine of radio, television and internet many music producers outside of the industry think the people running record labels are the same people they see in videos and hear on the radio. I hate to burst your bubble but this is not the truth. The Bentley’s, Jewelry, Models and Mansions are mostly rented for the video shoots. It’s like watching a 4 minute commercial to get you to buy something.

Most record labels are huge corporations that are publicly traded on the NY Stock Exchange just like Ford, GM and Nike and the artists signed to those labels are just products on a shelf. Record labels have huge marketing teams, accounting offices, legal teams (in-house & contracted) and support staff. So decisions to release new projects are based on profit and loss projections not how fire your beat and raps are.

Many music producers still believe in the old fashion way of sending a CD full of hip hop / rap beats to record labels hoping they select beat(s) for upcoming projects. This is like standing in line to get picked for the next episode of American Idol.  Let me be the first to tell you, this is an absolute waste of time. I live in Los Angeles for a few years and have friends in VP of A&R positions and they’ve told me first hand that this is a waste of time.

So if you receive a letter back from a record label thanking you for your submission but declines to use your beats this is just a part of their job. Don’t take it personal.

Problems associated with submitting beats to record labels:

1. Record labels establish their roster of new releases in advance based on past albums sells of existing artist and hot new artist they are looking cash in on.
2. A&R’s give producers who are in the loop and have a relationship with the label what’s known as a one-sheet. This one-sheet details the exact type of music the label is looking for their artists and the timeline of when the project is expected to be completed.
3. Many A&R’s have boxes and boxes of CD’s in their office that they never get a chance to listen to them…nor do they have the desire.
4. Many A&R’s have a Blackberry roster of producers they like to use and can call at a moments notice. Many of these producers are friends and people they see on a regular basis at industry events.
5. Record labels are losing tons of money from illegal downloads and bootleg cd’s and use in-house producers for projects.
6. Many times your CD is lost in the mail room.

Like every problem there is always a solution and despite what many people think, the record industry is not some huge maze to navigate. It’s actually a very small community.

9 Ways to Break Into the Music Industry as a Music Producer

1. Move to New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta or Houston.
2. Sign up with eSessions and create profile.
3. Post your business cards at all of the popular rehearsal spots where artists and bands rehearse. (This only works if you can actually play an instrument or write songs)
4. Hang out at all of the popular clubs, bars and restaurants where industry events are held.
5. Contact management companies that represent other major producers.
6. Contact law firms that represent other major music producers and artists.
7. Look for intern jobs at major record label, studios, management companies and law firms.
8. If you are really good at mixing and mastering then I suggest applying for a job or get freelance work with one of the major studios in the cities I named above.
9. Attend every seminar and event related to the industry.

LEGION OF TUNEZ / TEKNODROME UGLY BEATS - DR MINDBENDER FREE DOWNLOAD

The Video sounds different cause at the time I made it, it was just a sample snippet that's why the quality is different not to mention the time length. I didnt know I was gonna make it a free download, then just decided its commercial sounding enough for cats to use for promo use.

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TEKNODROME_/_@UGLYBEATS_-_Dr_Mindbender.mp3

RUN DMC - Peter Piper ( #TEKNODROME / @UGLYBEATS REMIX)

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Peter Piper ( TEKNODROME MIX ).mp3

This is a remix I've had laying around my archive that I would occaisionally mess with. Its my way of payin homage to a trio that REALLY inspired me to love hip hop. They knew no boundaries-- which enticed me! Anyways here ya go free download. I know I been slacking on em-- but I got a few comin ya way!

Anutha Sunset On Crenshaw ( #WestCoast ) FREE DOWNLOAD

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TEKNODROME @UGLYBEATS - Anotha Sunset On Crenshaw.mp3

Well here's a free download

Indaba Music's Saigon - Bring Me Down Remix "TEKNODROME REMIX"

Saigon - Bring Me Down (TEKNODROME Remix) by TEKNODROME

I saw Phur Cat and Silent Stepchild (my homies from back in Steubenville.) talking about a remix on Indaba a site I forgot about since the contest I entered the year before! (see: Gone Hollywood) So I decided to enter it cause the prize would have REALLY helped! So I restructured an older track I had made called "Alien Abduction." I had to match the tempo with the vocals and move some of the instrumentation. I changed alot of the one shots as well and made it have a grittier feel like the vocals were. I had hoped and promoted the crap out of it on twitter and facebook and made it to 85th place! Out of 396! WOOOO!!! Oh well it was fun-- and i made it a FREE DOWNLOAD!

Flippin March Madness #25 "The Man With No Name"

Every morning I release a fresh flip created the night before or that very morning. I've posted the tracks I've done up to now, and every day it will updated.

Flippin March Madness #20 Eva 01

Every morning I release a fresh flip created the night before or that very morning. I've posted the tracks I've done up to now, and every day it will updated.

Flippin March Madness #19 "L.A. Lady"

Every morning I release a fresh flip created the night before or that very morning. I've posted the tracks I've done up to now, and every day it will updated.

Flippin March Madness #15 If Ya Want Me

Every morning I release a fresh flip created the night before or that very morning. I've posted the tracks I've done up to now, and every day it will updated.