Karen Thompson Walker: What fear can teach us

Karen Thompson Walker a speaker at a TED.com convention spoke on "What fear can teach us." Why do we fear? When thinking of "fear" as a child it was a fear of the unknown or even the unexpected, that fear follows as we get order in our adulthood in some cases. "We know how our fear feels, but we don't spend enough time thinking what are fears mean," Walker states, simply when thinking of why I have the fears I have I never think about where they come from or what my fears mean and listening to Walker make that statement made me rethink of fears I have now and fears I had as a child. Karen Walker made the point of rethinking the way we see fear, thinking of fear as a story or an act of vivid imagination.  For some we fear that our fears are reality, or will become the reality we least expect "fear of the unknown."  "What can the rest of us learn about fear from visionaries and young children" says Walker

In relation to the entertainment industry, I feared when it came to making decisions. Example I manage an artist at the current moment, and he is my first artist I am managing. Before managing him I knew him and his music, I envisioned what I could do for him and how I could help him be successful, but when it came to making decisions I feared because I was afraid of making the wrong decision and it would hurt him instead of helping him. Overcoming fear takes strength; literally it is you saying to yourself "I can do this, and I am putting all my fears aside and going for it," self-motivation you can say. I believe our words are our biggest fears as well as words from others, the stories we hear that stop us from going after what we want because someone else didn't succeed some feel as if they aren't going to succeed as well. 

As she continues her speech of "What fear can teach us," I begin to become inspired, inspired not on how to face my fear but on questioning why and what my fears mean. Walker’s words gave insight and shed a light on fear that wasn't there. That most people do not take the time to realize, that most adults tend to ignore as they enter their adulthood. We as humans are not able to explain everything that happens around us or to us, we are not always able to find the answers of why we feel or fear but listening to Walker gave me a sense of understanding. For me not having an exact answer is fine if I can understand why. "And maybe if we all tried to read our fears, we too we too would less often be swayed..." This ending quote should leave a question or thought of "What fear can teach us"." 

Jealously or Greed - Fox Network fights for rights

In the beginning of this year, to be exact January 7, 2015, Fox debuted an American drama series titled "Empire" created by Lee Daniels alongside with Danny Strong. The show focuses on a entertainment company that is ran by a family who individually try to inquire control. With all the drama in screen, of course there had to be some drama in the media world as well. Within the first  6 months of the show being debuted "Empire" was hit with 2 claims, and at least 6 lawsuits. A little crazy don't you think?  

“Fox Sues to Keep 'Empire' as Title of Hit Series” an article by Eriq Gardner released in The hollywood Reporter on March 24, 2015, after Fox received multiply demands in order to keep the name of the showing. Which is crazy because the demands from Empire Distribution after sending a second letter to Fox Network were: Broadcaster can either settle the matter for $5 million plus use Empire Distribution artist as “regular guest starts” on the show or pay $8 million or lastly stop using the word “Empire” altogether. These demands seem pretty irrational for the simple fact that the show relates nothing to Empire Distribution. Fox networks main and only concern is protecting its intellectual property rights. Question is how is having the name “Empire” effecting your business or image of what Empire Distribution stands for?

When social media fans got information in their hands it seemed as if everyone had lots to say. In reading some of the tweets on twitter, many fans believe that the simple fact that because the show is a proven success and will continue to succeed Empire Distribution feels that they need to be apart of the success. Others feel as if there is more to the story then what they media is telling readers. Some are saying that Empire has no ties to any relating life story and that people are just suing out of jealously and the greed for money. Whatever the case might be if Fox Network has to cancel season two or change the name their will be a lot of angry fans protesting for the cause.

Of course not all of the information is presented to us but from what I am reading I can honestly agree with a lot of the fans. Empire Distribution has no real reasoning as to why they feel the need that Fox Network has to compile with their demands. It is just a name it is not that serious, an all honestly some could even take their demands as "ransom" or a "threat". I would understand if Fox was portraying the storyline behind Empire Distribution, then it would only be write that they receive a percentage of the making but that is not what it looks to be happening.

According to Fox Network lawyer Marvin Putnam, of O’Melveny & Myers,  in court he goes about to trying to prove that Empire Distribution only agenda is making profit off this hit series success, which is very sad. In a statement Putnam made he makes it clear that, “Fox has no intention of allowing anyone to leverage “Empire” success for their own unwarranted financial gain,” As months go by we can see that season two of Fox Networks series “Empire” returns September 23, 2015 and the name has yet to change. 

Artists and Contracts

Everyone has dreams as a kid and those dreams begin to develop as we grow. In some cases those dreams change base on life experiences, or even for the simple thought that we grow out of those dreams. My dream as a kid was to  become a lawyer, it was always in the back of my head I just never knew what kind of lawyer I wanted to become. At the beginning of my second year of my Bachelors program I begin looking at my options as realized I wanted to be an Entertainment lawyer. In particular to work with contracts, and negotiations.

The purpose of a contract is a written agreement where both parties are in one understanding. According to Mark Litwak he states that “Since one cannot protect an idea under copyright law, a writer who pitches a story idea to another is vulnerable to theft. Fortunately, there is another way to protect ideas. An idea can be the subject of a contract. A writer can protect himself by getting the recipient of an idea to agree to pay for it.” 

The biggest mistake many young artist make is signing bad contracts without having a lawyer present to help them understand what they are signing. The reasoning of this is because: 

1. Rushed - rushing to sign a contract is the worst you can do, this being because there are small prints that you will pass by that can make a difference on how long you are stuck in a contract. 
2. No Lawyer - Lawyers are trained to know what each and every line and head line in a contract is suppose to mean. Their job is to read and break down the contract paragraph by paragraph, so that way you are comfortable and know what you're getting yourself into.

No contract is ever permanent but it is very important that you educate yourself. Having someone there who is in your best interest is the another important factor. With lawyer fees there are many ways you can pay them:

1. Hourly - every hour of service you require, you are charged and billed 
2. Flat Fee - A flat fee is a dollar amount that the attorney and the client agree on before the attorney begins work.
3. Contingent Fees - A contingent fee represents a certain percentage of the recovery in the client's case. 
4. Retainers - A retainer is either a continuing flat fee or an advance on the fee owed for the attorney's services.

Yes lawyers cost a lot of money but at the end of the day would you rather be stuck in a contract for 5 years with a company who is only taking from you and you are not receiving your worth or would you rather know what you are signing and get all that you’ve worked hard for? 

My Industry Interest

The industry has so many different divisions that when first coming you might not know what area you really see yourself investing your time and talent. Maybe you're someone like me who finds all the areas very interesting that you feel like you want to do a little bit of everything, and there is no problem with that all in my eyes. Today I will be writing about three areas that interest me, and why they interest me. These three areas of interest are: Artist and Repertoire (A&R), Artist Management,  and lastly Social Media Marketing for Recording Artist.

Artist and Repertoire (A&R)

Talent is everywhere, in all 50 states as well as the hundreds countries we have around the world. The job description od an A&R representative is to go out and find these people with all types of unique talent and present them to any and all major record label companies. Over the years A&R has changed. This article I found published on the billboard biz shows how  has changed.  I want to learn how I can change the game as an A&R rep for any label. Now in day’s A&R  artist utilize social media to find talent instead of going out and searching. According to MusicClout the ugly truth is that the face of A&R has changed so much.  In my belief not all talent is seen on screen so it would be nice to actually have a team who travels rather than just set behind a desk watching videos all day.

Artist Management

People have many different ideas what a managers role to his or hers artist is.  Upon doing some research I found two artist mangers James Barton and Brian Message who share their perspective on Artist Management entitled “The Essential Role of Artist Management in a Post-Label World.” As a manager you need to explore all options and find what best plan or strategy best fits for your artist to promote and get them exposed in both familiar and unfamiliar grounds. Management work can be stressful job so you have to be up for the job. It is no 9-5-work artist management is a 24/7 job. Studio302 talks about all aspects and areas a good manager should fill in for an artist and if you cannot fit those levels of standards, you’ll soon know that is not the job for you. I am not starting to manage an artist for the longest I felt like I could but I didn’t have the proper resources and after doing plenty of research and reading I am able to start to help someone and give them the career of their dream and help them become successful.

Social Media Marketing for Recording Artist

Social media is one of the fastest growing forms of networking if it is used properly. Artists have learned how to gain tremendous sizable following and visibility through networks like instagram, facebook and twitter. I recently found a course on social media course on Lynda. It goes in-depth, explaining the importance of social media for marketing, and how to create a strong, positive presence online. One key aspect of using social media is branding and finding a direction that best fits you. Through research I came across another website called, ignitesocialmedia.com. This website is a great website that provides smart tools to incorporate with social media for musicians, and artists. It is important that you know how to market yourself and your brand. That is the only way that anyone will ever know whom you are and what you want to present to others of what you do. I am hoping to learn how to market my brand in a positive way and a way that brands me differently from others where I stand out. As well as branding and marketing my artist in a way he stands out and attracts people in a way that is irresistible to not want to know more about him.