JULY 2008 Volume 2 Issue 1
YES... THE DJ IS DEAD! DJs Corner
By K. Cannick
So I’m sure you’ve all heard the comment Jermaine Dupri made about the DJ being dead and the heated response he got from Greg Street. Well, at the risk of being politically incorrect “The DJ is in fact Dead.” Now before any DJs start blogging about me… We’re gonna throw politics out the window because this isn’t about taking sides. Forget whatever issues Greg and JD may have with each other and let’s look at the facts. DJs have always been the gate keepers of hip hop. They determine what’s hot and what’s not. Whether it’s on mixtapes or in the club, they separate the wack from the crack and keep the people moving. If it wasn’t for DJs
Artists Corner
no one would be discussing the state of hip hop because there wouldn’t be a state of hip hop. With that being said, DJs have whored themselves out just as much as everyone else in the industry. Now if you’re a DJ and you’re offended by this statement, consider the following. If a woman has sex with you because of the way you make her feel it’s called making love, but if she does that exact same thing because you gave her $50 it’s just called being a whore. Now by that same logic if a DJ is spinning a record because he’s getting paid to do so and not because of how he actually feels about that record… what else can you call it?
ARTIST MANAGEMENT
What role does a Manager play? It has been my experience that many aspiring artists seek and even secure management without being able to answer that question. More often than not, artists form their belief of what a Manager does or should do based on the many misconceptions out there. Before we discuss what a Manager is, let’s explore what they are not. Managers are not booking agents. This is perhaps the biggest misconception amongst developing artists. Many artists think that Managers books shows for them. That is the job of a booking agent or promoter. While Managers work with those individuals, they can only schedule shows if there
It’s a lot of people that call themselves DJs even though they are not on their job. Let’s keep it real. Anybody can put in a CD and press play. So what separates the DJ from somebody that just plays music? Here is a brief list of what I feel defines a DJ.
1. DJs do more than press play. Whether its scratching, blending, chopping, screwing, or whatever a DJ adds to the records they spin in a way that connects them with their audience. Too many people call themselves DJ’s and have never touched a set of turntables. Now with all the new technology and programs like Serato, I can’t Continued on page 5
By J. Johnson
is a demand from people that are willing to pay to hear you perform.
most artists will never reach that point, we can clearly see who’s really at risk for losing money.
Managers are not thieves- or at least I hope yours isn’t! We’ve all heard of stories of superstar artists getting swindled by their Managers. However, what artists fail to realize is that they have to be actually making money before a Manager can even try to rip you off. Sadly, most aspiring artists will never generate enough revenue from their music to even interest a Manager in ripping them off. In reality, Managers front the cost for almost everything in hopes that the artist(s) will reach the point to whereas the Manager can recoup the money he or she has invested. Given the facts that
Now that we’ve gotten that cleared up, let’s discussed what a Manager is. Having a Manager is comparable to working with a coach. After all, an artist and Manager should work as a team and no important decision should be made without consulting the other. A Manager should know the overall goals for his or her artist and help them reach it. Similar to how every step a runner takes gets them closer to the finish line, every performance, collaboration, and endorsement an artist does should get them closer to Continued on Pag 5
Ft. Knox & Big Tah of Stong Arm Management. (Willie Joe & Mojo Swagger)