Taylor Made Music

As a writer and former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency, as well as a veteran jingle singer, my ears are always piqued when I hear an extraordinarily good spot. My interest is augmented further when I hear an incredible lead vocal and backup singer on that same commercial as well. I’ve always been fascinated with jingle singing and commercial singing in general, when I look at both the incredible talent and the money being made in the industry as a whole. As I talk to people wanting to engage the jingle industry and make a career of it as a jingle singer, there are a number of areas that I point out as crucial and, with the few minutes remaining in this article, I will share.

I am well aware that many of you reading this article would love to be singing on the next McDonalds commercial. I am also aware that most won’t get the chance, not so much because of their singing abilities or inabilities, but because they don’t know how to go about breaking into the market. There are a number of reasons that jingle singers get paid the big bucks and there’s a reason that jingle singers tend to be around for awhile with long term longevity in the industry. Let’s me share with you and uncover some of the mysteries surrounding the jingle singing market and how you might obtain session work.

First let’s take a look at your singing abilities and then we’ll transform that into an image of what your jingle singing demo ought to look and sound like and then we’ll look at the pr and marketing side to your jingle singing campaign. What are the qualities of your voice? Do you have a smooth voice?, or is it husky or gritty sounding? Are you a blender or are you a lead vocalist? There’s no right or wrong answer here, just the basics to start conceptualizing what your demo is going to sound like. It’s important to know right up front, that most of you simply can’t put together your own jingle singing demo. You won’t know the ins and outs to what piques the ears of the jingle houses, nor know what styles and lastly what order to execute your demo in. The “My friend has a computer, keyboard and mic,” approach won’t get it. As I’ve stated in a number of writings to date, that your jingle demo has to sound like you’ve already arrived and have been singing commercials for years. Your demo has to come off like you are a veteran and seasoned singer. Don’t hesitate to contact ReelMusician.com for further info on jingle singing demos and get an informed and honest look at a real jingle singing demo campaign.

As you begin to look at and focus your energies on your jingle demo, you will want to begin looking at jingle concepts that are going to emphasize your areas of expertise and minimize your weaknesses. If you have a gritty voice, then by all means, focus your energies on jingles that enhance your edgy vocal. You will most likely include a lot of lead vocal jingles and a few group sings. These group sings will most likely be up in your face type sings with lots of energy. If you are a blender then you will most likely look at including group sings, showcasing your blending qualities and some targeted lead spots that sound like you command the stage. You have to be careful and pick your spots so that you truly sound like you command that spot and not just a forced or pushed jingle to include on your reel. Again, that’s why you should visit ReelMusician for ideas and let the pros that know this market, create a jingle reel designed specifically for you and your particular vocal qualities.

Once you have established and recorded your jingle reel, you will want to begin the pr and marketing phase. You must know in advance, that jingle houses tend to stay with the same singers for a number of reasons, but none that you can’t overcome, but ought to know up front. Jingle houses, like most individuals, go with what they know and are comfortable with. They know, that “so and so” sounds like this and so they use “so and so.” Keep in mind that commercial turn around time is usually pretty fast. Sometimes a commercial comes in from the advertising agency and the turn around is 24 hours. As a writer at a jingle house, you don’t have much time to experiment on new singers or take a chance on a new singer unless, their jingle demo sounds so good and sounds like they’ve been at it for years, that they venture out on an incredible sounding unique talent - That’s how you break into the market. Let’s look at some precursor ideas to what we just described.

Once you have your new jingle singer demo in hand and are comfortable with the quality, make sure to have included on the front cover your name with picture, contact number and the year and season - ie. John Doe 555-5555 Spring 2006. This is how the front cover of a jingle demo is produced. Now on the inside sleeve include again your name, contact number, year and season along with the names of the jingles in order. You will want to start calling on the jingle houses and submitting your new reel, but before you do, make sure that every element is correct. As you contact the jingle houses, make sure that you have your speaking delivery down and answers to possible questions if any. Also make sure and get an email address to correspond with and to submit further demos by way of emailing mp3’s. You will want to start in your local market, but eventually you will want to broaden your horizons and venture out in to the major markets that surround you like Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, New York, Los Angeles and other major markets.

Don’t be afraid to produce sequel demos to cross the paths of the jingle producers another time to keep your name rolling across their desk. And lastly keep good records of your conversations taking in any criticism and being polite, yet confident with a go get it attitude. Don’t be afraid to tell the producer, “I want to sing one of your spots and I want to be included on the next workable session.” Don’t be too pushy, but let them be aware of your commitment, drive and passion.

[tags]jingles, commercials, tv ads, jingle singers, studio singer, singing session work, gigs, artists,[/tags]

Most people these days would associate singing with the popular music they see and hear on the radio and tv. This can make you feel like its beyond you, like it’s some form of high skill that you need to be born with. A natural talent if you like. In fact singing is much more a part of our everyday lives than you might realize, and it can be a tonic for an improved state of mind and recipe for stress reduction and better health.

The best example of this is, think about the songs that when you hear them on the
radio make you remember something wonderful in your past. The song that
reminds you of your first kiss or when you proposed to your partner, or perhaps just
some good times with friends at school or work. You can be sitting all alone feeling
sorry for yourself about the way life has treated you and a song comes on the radio
that reminds you of a great time in your life.

I’m sure you have songs that do this to you. Songs that you sing along to in the car
at the top of your voice, ignoring the strange looks from other drivers at the lights.
It can be a form of instant atitude adjustment and will often completely erase the
effects of a bad day.
This effect is multiplied ten fold if you can sing along with a favorite song. For the
moments when you sing along you get to journey through a personal fantasy, a kind
of mental movie of events that you recall related to that song. When you sing along
to a CD in the car you get to momentarily exit this reality and visit another which is
tailor made by you.

There is even a flip side to it. I still find it hard to listen to a particular Lead
Zeppelen song which I associate with breaking up with my first wife. However, when
I do hear it I feel like singing along because it makes me remember how much
better things are now than when I was with her. Funny how that works.

If you are the sort of person who has a lot of emotional ups and downs in your life
then you could try this little trick for a kind of instant pick me up. Make a CD up of
about 10 of your favorite songs and keep it with you at all times. Make sure these
songs are related to great times in your life. When you are annoyed or upset, or just
need a bit of a boost put the CD on and play one song at random.
Do not play more than one song and resist the urge to play the same song each
time. Playing the same song will reprogram you to associate it with your current
situation and it will loose it’s effect. Then sing your head off! Make sure you are
alone and sing from the heart. Don’t spare the horses - just go for it. Make sure you
take a good deep breath to start and concentrate on the sound of your own voice,
not the voice of the singer in the song. This will help you pitch correctly and make
you feel like you are a real singer on a stage.

Many people simply ignore music in their environment. They regard it as
background noise like traffic or the murmur of people talking in a cafe. The truth is
music is like a custom built emotional trigger. We all react to it in different ways.
How many times have you found a piece of music totally distracting when you are
trying to concentrate on something? This is because music is created specifically to
evoke a response, it is looking to push your buttons, to make you participate. The
next time you see some motor racing on the tv check out the sort of music they put
behind it. It won’t be Beethoven or Mozart, it will be high speed aggressive guitar
music. How does it make you feel? This music is chosen to evoke an adrenelin
response, to get you excited and feel like you are part of the action. Conversely, you
are unlikely to hear thrashing guitars used behind a documentary about gorillas in
Kenya, you will hear thoughtful music that is designed to create empathy and
wonderment.

All this means that you should take more notice of the music around you and try to
participate whenever you can. Above all, try to listen to music that allows you to
sing and express your emotions, let it all hang out and don’t give a damn about
what other people think.
The next step is to get better control of your singing voice. Try getting some
kakaoke tracks and sing to those regularly. From there you might consider some
actual singing lessons. The
benefits are huge in terms of improving your sense of wellbeing and confidence.
Finally, pay a visit to The Explore Your Voice Show Podcast. It’s a half hour
downloadable mp3 audio show on the net where we talk about all aspects of
singing, performing, and getting your voice into shape.

Michael Oliphant is a musician, producer, songwriter co-inventor of
Explore Your Voice Singing Lessons and co-hosts a
regular free show on singing and performing called
The Explore
Your Voice Show Podcast

[tags]singing,music,podcast,singing lessons[/tags]

As a professional jingle singer, I have had the opportunity to work with some of the best singing talent in the business and I can tell you that there is a range of work and talent out there. Even as a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency, it became common everyday work looking for that special someone who would be the next star. Finding individuals with the unique quality, look and drive was, and still is, a relentless pursuit. As founder of ReelMusician.com, we are always amazed at the lack of both professionalism and preparedness that singers try to engage their singing careers on. I am a firm believer that talent does rise to the top, but the packaging and marketing behind the talent are key - And that still holds true for session singers as well. What does it take to break into commercial singing and obtain jingle work? How can you accelerate your singing dreams and catapult your talents into a real money making career. These are great questions - Let’s spend a few minutes and look at some opportunities and answers to these questions.

As a singer, you are undoubtedly inundated every time you sing at your church, in a wedding, the school choir, etc with compliments and the “You should try singing commercials.” While the thought has crossed your mind, you really wonder if you have what it takes. Quite honestly many who think they have the ability are fooled by either the lack of “real” competition surrounding them or are good enough to have some individuals close to them support them by being benevolent with confidence and compliments. Your first task will be to identify your real gifts and passions with your singing career a distance away from friends and relatives, figuratively speaking, and figure out if you really have the talent. Breaking into commercial singing can be accomplished, but there are a few areas that need attention and deliberating before you venture out. Your first assignment is to be honest with yourself and start asking the question, “Am I a commercial singer?” “Could I really deliver the singing goods in the studio?” Starting right here will eliminate a few who are reading and are honest, but there will be a number of you who will take the challenge and answer the question with an overwhelming yes. This leads us to our next question.

Are you willing to take the time, energy and financial resources to obtain the best possible singer reel or jingle demo reel? I’m not talking about the “home studio” singer reel, I’m talking about a top-notch, knock your socks off singer reel, sure to grab the attention of producers and other industry professionals. At ReelMusician,com we are amazed at the scope and in reality the dishonest frame of mind of singers out there trying to further their careers with a demo reel that would be considered by most as embarrassing at best. Now there are many extremely gifted singers who have proven themselves even with fair to poor demos, but with all of the competition out there, you can’t afford to be trying to play the game in the major leagues with a substandard demo. Your best bet is to have an incredible jingle singing demo - For any questions at all about this, you may contact ReelMusician.com for an evaluation and ideas.

Your next item in your game plan in becoming a commercial singer is to develop what I consider one of the most critical pieces of the game - Your ability to develop, cultivate and befriend other jingle singers, producers, writers, and a host of music industry professionals to start submitting your demo to. Thankfully, as a general rule, many singers, like a lot of musicians, have a natural innate ability with people skills and are good at developing those friendships and relationships. You will start looking at album covers, talking with other singers in your area, and locating the major music recording venues in your geographic surrounding and getting your reel out. I would start with other session singers who you are not going to be in direct competition with and ask them for advice and where you would go with your reel and maybe ask if you could meet over a cup of coffee. This will give you more than enough contacts and strategies to start dropping off your reel. I would keep a very detailed log of who, when, what was talked about along with contact numbers and any other misc info that will be helpful in your singing career track.

You will want to develop a CD cover that is not obnoxious but is eye catching and remember able. On the front of your CD will be your name, telephone and email along with the year and season the demo was released. You will include all contact info on anything going out. The inside sleeve will include what we just mentioned along with the order of jingles and with overall length. The actual CD should include your name year and season, telephone number and length of reel. Don’t get so artsy fartsy with fonts that nobody can read it. Better to have simple fonts like Arial or Times New Roman than something that is frustrating to get through. You will want to submit your demo via snail mail. I am aware that email is more affordable, but you don’t have permission to send your material via email and seeing your reel actually cross their desk and coupled with the ability to be put into their car to be listened to on the way home is significantly more effective.

In closing, your success in breaking into studio and commercial singing will lean heavily on the actual talent, your incredible demo reel and your ability to connect and more importantly follow up with individuals. Most singers don’t have a problem finding the key players in the music arena, but don’t have the discipline and follow up that is needed like in any sales to develop relationships, follow through and get the deal done. Don’t hesitate to contact us should you have any questions. We always like to hear about your singing success and we’ll try to help in any way possible to further your career!

[tags]sing, singer, sing jingles, sing commercials, reelmusician.com, vocal, vocal technique, gigs, sing[/tags]

The running joke that everyone secretly wishes to be a rock
star may not be off track. So many people long for the ability
to sing, to sing more, to sing better.

And many of them feel that they can’t do it.

Whether you are actually working on a professional singing
career or just want to have a better time in the shower, there
are very specific things you CAN do in order to develop your
sound, style and overall vocal production.

The first thing to remember is this:
Madonna, Pavarotti, Bob Dylan, Wynonna Judd, Bernadette
Peters, Jay-Z, Eric Clapton, Alicia Keyes, and Prince all can
write SINGER on their passport. There are so many singers,
so many sounds, and so many voices. Why can’t you be one
of them, too?

Well, you can. You just need the passport to your voice.

First and foremost, you need to listen to music. To singers.
To anyone and anything you can lay your hands on. CDs,
concerts, television specials, movies, old recordings, the
latest radio releases, whatever band, show or musical event
is happening in your town. You may do this already. But now
you get to do it with an eye (and an ear) towards your own
musicality.

Start listening not just for your pleasure, but also for your
abilities. When you notice someone doing something you
like, try it yourself! Did someone just wail on the National
Anthem? Go into your room and see how it feels to do the
same thing. You may be terrible! But at least you have tried
on some new notes for size. That’s awesome! Think of it as
a shopping spree. You have a free pass to every mall in the
country, and you get to decide what fits and what you are
taking home with you. And whatever feels too tight or just
doesn’t look as good as it did on the hangerleave it in the
dressing room without a second thought. You may surprise
yourself and discover something you never knew you could
do before! But most importantly, you are trying on everything.

Make sure you also experiment with music you think you
hate. We tend to get into listening ruts and need to shake
things up a little.

The great thing about expanding your musical horizons is
that you will begin to notice more details. You will become
able to break down the mechanics in a much more
enlightened way. Including discovering aspects of singing
that are universal whether you are Billie Holiday or Billy Joel.
Then you can notice the fascinating ways they apply these
abilities in such vastly different songs.

What’s playing in your hometown? And have you checked
out music from your local library lately? Make sure to hit a
section you normally would never look. This way you can
hear new music but not have to invest in it if it ends up not
being your cup of tea.

So, once you have narrowed down the huge possibilities of
musical genres into the “I love this stuff ” or to the “never
again will this pass my lips”, now it’s time to figure out what
you are good at.

Why?

Because you need to decide something else as well

What do you sing for pleasure? And what do you sing for
profit?

You may love to sing standards, but your gritty sound is
more suited to the blues. That’s cool. Sing standards for
fun. Learn the blues for the public. This kind of
self-awareness will save you from heartache later. You see
it all the time on the initial “American Idol” preliminaries.
People who have not listened with a discerning ear to their
own voice. So instead of letting themselves shine, they
simply sing what they like and are not brilliant at it. At all.

Again, you may have no desire to be a professional. But just
imagine going to the next family gathering and shocking
everyone with your beautiful rendition of “Happy Birthday”
instead of the ‘too high for you, cracking on the final notes’
version everyone has come to expect. Just by knowing what
sounds you make best, will have an amazing effect on you
and the reception to your singing.

Michelle Cohen, is a professional actress and singer and a
highly sought after producer/director/coach (she produced
the Off-Broadway musical hit Schoolhouse Rock Live!)Her
book Of Course You Can Sing! is devoted to helping undo
years of unsupportive thoughts focusing on the fact that, no
matter what anyone has ever told you, you can sing.
Of course you can order at http://www.michellecohenonline.com

[tags]rock star, singing, singing lessons, American Idol, self-improvement, creativity, karaoke[/tags]

As a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency and professional jingle singer and founder of ReelMusician.com, I have written numerous articles on entering the jingle singing and session singing world. Most of my articles have zeroed in on the ground floor stages of creating an incredible jingle demo reel far exceeding your competition. In this article I would like to expand on the secondary phase of jumpstarting your singing career by emphasizing your approach and marketing to producers, jingle houses and ancillary production staff after you have a fully mastered jingle demo that you are sure will make your potential listeners say Wow! With that in mind, let’s look at some key areas where you can capitalize and start promoting your singing career in an effective way!

To start with, there is no way that I can hit every question with our limited time together, and neither can I gauge your abilities, ambition and go get it nature. With that in mind, I will start as if everyone reading this article has an incredible sounding jingle demo reel, not the I can do it at my friend’s house demo reel, but a demo reel that screams “I gotta hear that again,” along with incredible drive and ambition. Any questions you might have with your jingle reel go to ReelMusician.com. So where do you go with your jingle demo and how do you approach these individuals? - Great questions, let’s start with where you will go.

You will pitch your jingle demo reel starting in your immediate local market. Some of you will have to broaden your local area as you may live out in the country or more remotely, but you get the idea. You will be sending out your reel, with your name, telephone number and year on the front sleeve along with again your name, contact numbers, email address, order of jingles in sequence and year on the inside sleeve. An extremely short bio along with a picture is not a bad idea. You will send out this package to everyone you might think can help you - This includes other jingle singers that you’re not directly in competition with, jingle houses, industrial music houses, and key studios.

Once you have made your initial mailing, you will follow up with a phone call or email, phone call of course being the better option, and asking for their feedback. You will want to come across as confident, friendly, professional, with a great attitude and willingness to be extremely flexible. Now keep in mind that 10 different jingle houses will undoubtedly give you ten different responses much like everyone is an “expert” and has “recommendations” with your resume. Look for common denominators in your conversations and make sure that you are a great record keeper.

Keep track of who, when, the date, any follow up material needed and any and all misc information in your conversations that you need to keep a record of. Don’t be lazy here. This is a business and you need to treat it as such. Computers make one’s life infinitely easier with keeping track of information like this, but you can do it manually. As a side note, emailing is significantly easier and less costly, but it is not quite as effective as actually mailing out your jingle reel. Once you make a connection with a jingle house, they may request it or you might inquire if it’s ok to submit via email and mp3.

You will begin to expand your jingle singing campaign to secondary and major markets like Chicago, LA, New York, Atlanta, Dallas, etc. You will want to get familiar with the different jingle houses by either researching jingle houses online or visiting ReelMusician.com clicking on jingle singing and then on music production links. You will again contact these various production facilities sending out your jingle reel and again following up with these potential clients.

As I’ve stated in previous articles, you might want to consider having a second jingle reel or additional session singing tape to cross over the desks of those producers on the verge of using your singing talents. Sometimes all it takes is a little reminder and you get the next call. Singing commercials can be extremely lucrative and your ability to push a little bit on the front end could really pay off well. Even if your passion is to become a major record label artist, there’s no crime in pursuing a money making venture on the front end to help facilitate living expenses, and who knows, you could very easily sing commercials and make a considerable living the rest of your life. That wouldn’t be all bad now would it.

Let’s spend a few minutes looking at different conversations as you send out your reel. Producer number one likes your reel, but is asking what experience you have. Your answer will sound something like - “As you can tell by my reel, I am a seasoned singer and can deliver the singing goods and I’ll be consistent with everything you throw my way.” Notice I didn’t say, “We’ll I haven’t sung on any commercials yet” - Emphasize the reality that you will deliver on every singing project thrown your way. If you have a real smooth voice and the question is whether or not you can get more of an edge on your voice you can respond, “One of my greatest singing strengths is my ability to blend and with the right tracks and backing, I can deliver an upbeat jingle.” Now don’t over do it and by all means be honest. Don’t tell them that you will sound like a heavy rock and roller when in fact you won’t even come close. Just be honest and at the same time put your best foot forward. You will have a number of questions that come up, but be prepared to always give an honest answer, but putting your best foot forward at the same time. Perhaps in another article I will expand on what we’re talking about here. As always, good luck and we look forward to hearing about all of your singing successes!

[tags]sing, singers, sing jingles, commercial singing, session work, siession singers, gigs, artists, band[/tags]

As a singer, one of the biggest allies in your singing career will be your ability to perform well and do it with consistency in the studio. As a professional singer myself singing on FOX TV, UPN Station ID’s, O’Charley’s and many others, as well as a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency, I can tell you that one of the biggest downfalls to most singers is their inability to be consistent with a broad range of singing styles while singing in the studio. It’s one thing to sit behind the piano with friends, and an entirely different thing to sing behind the mic in the studio where every nuance and tonal inflection is heard.

So how do studio singers who’ve been doing this professionally for years, get to that point of consistency, and how do they get the paying gigs and get called on in the first place? Those are great questions, and I will take the remaining time in this article to capitalize on concepts that most singers would likely embrace as the truth and realistic in answering them.

To begin with, singing in the studio and singing live in front of a crowd are two totally separate singing techniques and usually unequaled levels of singing expertise. It’s one thing to sing in front of a crowd where audibility of your vocals is not the main concern, but the overall groove and image is. Understanding the words on stage may or may not be a concern, but to the studio and session singer, it’s everything. You see there are marked differences in the ways that each of these singers takes their singing ability to the stage. You will find that many if not most singers don’t do both well. The singer who is great on stage in front of a large audience is usually not that convincing or lyrics that easily understood in the studio. That’s why jingle singers are paid such good money. It’s not easy to sing a commercial full throttle and not sound “ricky ticky” doing it with words that are easily understood. And as a side note, if you are interested in singing commercials, you might consider visiting ReelMusician.com for more information and download a free e-book on jingle singing.

So how do session singers get that consistency in the studio? Well, years of experience are one answer, but the other part of the answer is in how they practice. How serious are you in your dream of becoming a studio singer? In your desires to becoming a studio singer, you must commit to consistency, be easy to work with, and available. You might already have availability and easy to work with in the bag, but you’re still having problems with the consistency part. Let’s look at a few ideas that might help.

Finding a good vocal coach, that truly understands studio and jingle singing, is hard to find. Most, have preconceived notions and teaching ideas and attribute everything to a breathing technique of some kind. I’ll tell you the truth. I’ve met fantastic singers who breathe in a number of different styles, yet they are consistent as the day is long. Now I’m not suggesting that there aren’t better or proper breathing techniques out there, I am suggesting that many if not most vocal teachers, teach from a textbook style and not from a “I’m going to figure out your strengths and abilities and zero in on a workable and credible game plan that outlines a singing technique career pathway for longevity,” style. There’s a big difference. The teacher who teaches out of a textbook and the teacher who is already been out there with success under their belt, no matter what business or job, has my attention and certainly should have yours. Find a credible and reputable singing coach.

You will want to practice your singing in the shower, the car and even in a closet or close up to a wall where you can hear what you’re singing. Ultimately, being able to record your voice, even onto a cheap cassette or into the computer to hear your progress or areas that you immediately recognize needing improvement, is the best way to go. This alone, if you take time out on a regular basis, will improve your singing far beyond what most vocal coaches can or claim they can do. Because of your vested interest and now your ability to hear and figure out what needs to be changed and corrected, will be the igniting factor in your singing career and goals of consistency. Certainly don’t ignore or reject the notion of finding a qualified vocal coach, but understand that America was founded on entreprenualism and not the textbook way of doing things and this includes your singing career as well. A good vocal coach will recognize and ultimately push you in the right direction as well by hearing and giving you exercises to correct singing deficiencies.

Get connected with session singers, and perhaps even try to take vocal coaching lessons from one of them. You will have to flexible as their session work will not always be easy to predict, but well worth any inconvenience. This will increase your odds of obtaining session work, and now you will be working with an individual, like we just mentioned, who is actively in the business and so pure textbook teaching will most likely not be in their philosophy and thinking.

Lastly, and I apologize and wish we had more time in this article, maintain a good attitude and an easy to deal with personality. Singers and producers like individuals who are not only fun, but they’re easy to deal with and who always come to the session with an uplifting spirit. You may visit ReelMusician.com for more articles and advice on this and other topics.

Mr Gauger is a former talent booking agent with the William Morris Agency and jingle singer singing on FOX TV, UPN Station ID’s, O’Charley’s and many others. In addition, Mr Gauger is a TV and radio writer and can be contacted at http://www.reelmusician.com or tgauger@reelmusician.com or 615-300-5030.

[tags]studio singers, vocals, vocal technique, sing, singers, singing, singing technique, gigs, a&r[/tags]