[3rd POV]
"Branding, as I said, is one of the single most important things you can have as a musician, and artist. As it - being your brand - is what represents you, what represents your music, and what you stand for as a person" Billie began, as many of the students listened silently.
"Now, can anyone tell me why branding is such a vital thing for a musician?" Billie asked, as she looked over the class. Wondering if any of them knew. She had already explained what branding is and what it represents, but not why it was important. At least, on a financial level.
Seeing that none of them were raising their hands, she was about to answer her own question, before Tori slowly raised her hand.
"Is it because branding is what gets you record deals and stuff like that?" Tori asked. Billie smiled at her answer.
"That is right! Well, mostly"
"See, branding is essentially your public image. It is what you want the public to see when they look at you, it's the "Vibe" you give off. But it's not just the regular old public that sees it, but also other artists, record labels, advertisement agencies, and more" Billie explained, before continuing.
"Without proper branding - or with bad branding - these different companies, labels, agencies, and artists, will never want to work with you. Because while many do not admit it, who you associate with, does in fact, harm or improve your branding" Billie said.
"Meaning that many of these different groups, cannot afford to work with someone with bad branding or no branding at all. Which is why it is so incredibly difficult in this day and age, to grow in the space"
"Because most artists do not want to work with an unknown. They want to work with someone established, famous, and well known. Because it is safer, and more likely to go well. Rather than potentially crash and burn with someone who nobody knows about" Billie explained, which caused Beck to raise his hand.
"Yes?"
"Wouldn't the artist already have at least something to show their skill? Like a song they posted online or something?"
"Oh they would, of course. But the thing about that is, is that it's not enough in the eyes of many artists and labels. Especially labels. They want a consistent track record proving that you are capable, and that you can bring something to the table. Be it for a song, joining the label, or whatever else" Billie replied to the teen, who nodded slowly in understanding.
"The way you "Brand" yourself, is different from person to person. Personally, I do all my branding and everything else myself. But that is because I am very lucky to be fortunate enough to have my own label that I own. Others, like most of you in this room, will not have that ability" Billie said.
"You have your own label?" Andre asked, looking at the teen in surprise.
"Mmhmm, I don't really talk about it much publically, but it is easily findable if you just do a quick google search about "Ocean Eyes Studio" which of course, is named after my first song" Billie said, before continuing "After class though"
The kids put away the phones they were about to pull out.
"Is your label looking for any new musicians?" Jade asked, which got a small chuckle from Billie.
"Of course. Most labels are constantly looking for new talent, and that includes mine. If you are talented enough, and I think you're a fit, then you'll most likely get an offer from my team" Billie replied giving her a nod.
She had already recruited several artists that would be big in the future, and she had plenty more that she was planning on recruiting. She was interested already in recruiting Tori, but that was for the future as she needed to graduate first.
And she had to make sure that Tori was actually willing to go that far first, as some people grow out of it. She didn't expect for Tori to, and could tell she had some serious passion for it, but she wanted to make sure.
"What exactly does "talented enough" mean. Like, what amount of talent is enough for labels?" A student asked, as Billie looked at them, slightly surprised. It was a really good question.
"Well, like the branding and...well, a lot of other things, it almost entirely depends on the label themselves. Some only recruit those that have the highest ends of talent, the absolute best of the best. But others recruit those that show even the littlest bit of promise, and it is the latter that ends up having the biggest singers on the planet in their label" Billie answered the teen, who nodded before she continued.
"How you go about your branding is up to each of you. But, when you do decided to actually start to use your persona that you create for your music side of things, you need to remember which companies you want to work with, which actors or artists, and which labels. And make sure that the things you do will be of "the right branding" as what they like" Billie said.
"How do you know what type of branding a company or label likes?"
"You can tell from their other artists, as that alone will show you what you're going to need to do to get their attention. They don't even try to hide it either, as otherwise it'd be hard for new and aspiring artists to find out if they were a fit or not" Billie explained, as the teen that asked the valid question had nodded.
"Now, onto the next aspect, as branding is something you'll need to research on your own time, and learn through trial and error"
"The next important aspect of being a musician, is connections"
"It might sound boring, or cliche, but it is true. As without connections to other artists, companies, or whatever else, you can't succeed as an artist. You have to have connections in order to properly navigate the industry, otherwise you'd be essentially blind in the space, and that would not go well" Billie said.
"It of course loops back to branding, and the two are basically one in the same. Without one the other would not go well or work properly. It's pretty simple, as connections will actually come to you on it's own, as long as your branding is good enough"
"Hence why they are in essence, one in the same" Billie said, before moving onto the next point.
"Creativity"
"It, by far, is the single most important aspect you can have as an artist. It doesn't matter if you play the piano, the guitar, if you sing, if you write, if you paint, or whatever. What matters is that creativity is what "Runs" the industry. And it is what makes you, you" Billie said, a small smile on her face as she looked over the students.
"I will be blunt with all of you. If you are not creative, if you do not strive to be unique and make something special, then you will more than likely not succeed. In the rare case of you succeeding, you have to have some truly good cliche music. Otherwise? You won't last long in the space"
"Showing your creativity through your work is the single most important aspect of being an artist, and is quite literally what most of them are built around. Creativity is what made the likes of Michael Jackson be known as the King of Pop"
"Creativity is the reason why Gaga and the others are successful. And I am also the same, in that without creativity, I would never be able to make the music I had, and I would not be nearly as popular as I am" Billie finished, as the students all nodded in understanding.
Billie glanced around the room, seeing how much everyone was enjoying it, and smiled, one thought on her mind as she continued.
'Maybe I should make this a regular thing? Because this is fun!'
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That's the end of the chapter!
Sorry about the late upload, insomnia is an absolute bitch to deal with, and as such, my sleeping is all fucked up, which is a regular thing at this case.
Have a good day
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