Keys Singers
Posted on Wednesday, August 12th, 2009 at 3:47 pm
Studio Session Singers – Jingle Reels That Sell!
Those wishing to break into the music industry and specifically into jingle and session singing, are many in number. Why is it that some with little gift and ability make it, and not only make it but develop an impressive clientele for show, and still others with incredible singing style and motivation never even getting the slightest inkling of approval from music insiders? Those are great questions, and while I will attempt to provide you with insight as to how to not only get noticed, but to break into commercial session singing, I will admit that there are not always answers to some of these million dollar questions. I would be lying if I told you otherwise. As a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency and as a professional singer singing on numerous commercials and backup vocals for many artists, there are times when you scratch your head and say, “I don’t have the slightest clue.” But let’s take a look at some key ideas and concepts to get you to your goal of breaking into session singing.
You’ve developed your voice and have been told umpteen times through the years that you should be singing commercials. You’ve always smiled, said thank you and have dismissed the idea because certainly you could never break into singing commercials – Or can you? Now the idea is haunting you to the point of if you could just figure out the whole singing deal, what it takes and how much money you would have to spend and if reasonable, you might just give it a try. There are many singers in this stage. I must admit that I talk to multiple individuals each week who want to be a session singer or singing commercials and the only thing that is truly holding them back is the vision. It’s not so much money, but the drive and ambition to say, “I’m going to do this thing.” Your first hurdle to jump is the idea that you can and should be singing commercials.
Your next item on your to do list is your jingle reel. We just mentioned that most individuals do not grab hold of their dream to sing commercials because of a lack of drive and ambition. But do you know what really camouflages the drive and ambition – money. I know people with limited money and income who are willing to spend $7 – $10 on appetizers a couple of times a week and who knows how much on alcohol, but yet they don’t have the money to invest in their singing career. At ReelMusician.com we have always tried to not only further singers and their careers, but the ability to offer affordable jingle singing demos. Our demos start at (3) jingles $290, (5) $380 and (7) jingles $495. Now you do the math – Divide the number of jingles that are written specifically for that singer and that’s pretty darn affordable. We don’t get rich writing jingles for singers trying to break into the market. Think of all of the money that is wasted week in and week out, yet individuals choose to stay in their mundane and unchallenging jobs because, “they don’t have the money.” You heard me right – Individuals choose to stay right where they are and so we can’t, nor should we invest time in those individuals.
But there are individuals with the dream and are willing to invest a reasonable amount of time, money and energy. Those singers we love to try to help, even if they don’t purchase a thing from us. We really like to see people succeed. So what should your demo consist of? You will want to include as many jingles on your reel that you can afford. Obviously, the more jingles you have, the more styles and versatility that you can demonstrate hopefully opening up more session and singing doors. From the date of this writing, I don’t know of many other companies, and I can’t even honestly jot down one that writes jingles specifically for session and jingle singers. Now we do at ReelMusician.com and I’m sure there are others out there. I’m not talking about jingle companies who write commercials for other companies, but music houses that write specifically for the singer and their demos. You should plan on investing $500 – $1,000 to get a quality demo done, and I’m sure you can spend a whole lot more than that. But I know that’s reasonable, because we’re in that range of pricing at ReelMusician.com.
Once you have your incredible jingle reel in hand, not the, “We recorded this at my friend’s house” demo, but the jingle reel that says “Wow! Your jingle reel that you are sending out has got to grab the attention of the jingle houses. Unfortunately, there are many individuals out there who try to take the “My friend’s recording studio,” approach and fail to miss the what is needed musically on their reel. Listening to the radio and TV and emulating those commercials will most likely not get it. Jingles that go on a singer’s jingle reel, when they are first starting out, are sometimes completely different – Why? Because you have got to grab the attention of the jingle producers and industrial music houses. This is sometimes in juxtaposition as to current jingles airing on radio and TV.
Once you have your incredible jingle reel in hand you will be getting together with other jingle singers in your area that you are not in direct competition with vocally and jotting down names and number of producers and writers in your area. You will also submit your reel to jingle houses in your area along with industrial music houses and recording facilities in general. Make sure that you have a system in place for tracking your calls and contact numbers. Your demo cover should be readable, with colors that attention grabbing and with your name contact info and year and season of reel.
Many singers get into the business just as I have described, by following up with other session singers in their area and are very successful. The most important aspect to your singing dream is obviously your reel. Make sure it shines and commands the “Wow” factor. Feel free to contact us with contact info below.
About the Author
Mr Gauger is a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency and founder of http://www.ReelMusician.com. You may contact the author at tgauger@reelmusician.com. Free e-books “The Jingle Singer’s Guide,” and “Secrets To Great Song Demos,” may be downloaded at http://www.ReelMusician.com.
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