Where Do You Fit In? Define Your Role.

Where Do You Fit In? Define Your Role!
Mixing your craft with your passion always produces the best work. But intertwining the two is easier said than done. Listed below are some positions in the music industry and their trade. It’s time to define your role!

Artist Manager - An artist manager is in charge of the business side of being in a band. Often, band members are great at the creative side of things, but aren't so great at promoting themselves, booking their own gigs, or negotiating deals. In a very general sense, the task of a manager is take care of the day to day running of the band's career, so the band can focus on the creative side of things

Music Promoter - The main job of a music promoter is to publicize a concert. Promoters are the people in charge of "putting on" the show. They work with agents, or in some cases, directly with the bands, and with clubs and concert venues to arrange for a show to take place. Promoters then are in charge of making sure the word gets out about that show. They also take care of arranging the incidentals, like hotels and backline for the band. In a nutshell, it is the promoter's job to make sure things go off without a hitch.

Music Agents - Music agents, talent agents, or simply agents, are the people who make the live music happen. Agents work closely with promoters and record labels to make sure they bands on their books are getting the proper exposure. Music agents also take care of the negotiations with promoters and venues when it comes to the pay for performances and to arrangements for things like backline and accommodation.

Record Producers - The record producer works with the band, sessions musicians and the studio engineer to "produce" the sound the recordings. Often the producer's job is to provide an extra set of ears, to produce a certain sound or to provide experience. They may be involved with arranging parts of the track or even writing it.

Music Journalists - Naturally, music journalists write about music and the music business, but there are a few different specializations that exist under that heading. Other journalists tend to do more in depth pieces about musicians - they do interviews and cover the people behind the music. Some music journalists focus on writing about the music business itself - and still other writers do a mixed bag of work, combining music reviews, artist interviews and whatever else comes up that warrants press attention.

Cover Art Designer - A cover art designer is really simply a graphic designer who happens to focus on music related projects. Often, designers who work on cover art and liner notes also dabble in designing posters, t-shirts and other merch for the artists with whom they work, although not all do. The extent of a designer's input into the finished album artwork and liner notes can vary greatly from job to job, depending on what the musicians and/or label wants.

What's your take... leave your comments below.