The NZ Music Managers Forum and the NZ Music Commission are proud to announce the return of The Official 2013 Music Month Summit on May 25^th.

The theme for this year’s summit is “Your Music As A Business”.  The Summit is a FREE day of seminars featuring musicians, music industry specialists and traditional business practitioners who discuss and explain the behind the scenes intricacies of the New Zealand music industry and how you should look at treating your music as a business.

The Official NZ Music Month Summit:
Q Theatre, 305 Queen Street, Auckland
Saturday May 25^th
10am to 5pm

SEMINAR ONE – Your band as a brand
Presented by Te Puni Kokiri
10.00am – 11.00am
How and where bands promote and distribute their music has evolved from the traditional, resulting in a need for a change in their approach to marketing.  We ask why branding has become so important and challenge the thinking… if it’s all about the music, is branding a band selling out?
In this seminar you will hear from experts who will give their thoughts on why considered marketing and appropriate branding is so important to the success of the music reaching it’s audience.
Speakers: Mikee Tucker – LOOP (Fly My Pretties, Tommy Ill, AHoriBuzz), Ninakaye Taane-Tinorau – Tikidub Productions (Tiki Taane), Phil Bell – Mai FM, Pete Dick – Beck’s.

SEMINAR TWO – Radio & the online world
Presented by NZ On Air
11.30am – 12.30pm
With the changing music landscape and how people listen to music, we discuss how radio is still an important part of a band’s branding strategy and marketing process.  Does the public still listen to radio for the music?
Is it radio or online platforms that have contributed to the rise in single sales?  This seminar looks at what the impact of online platforms has had on bands’ approach to marketing.
Speakers: Chris Caddick – RIANZ, Scott Maclachlan – Universal Music, David Brice – The Radio Network, Brendan Smyth – NZ On Air.
SEMINAR THREE – International Trade Fairs
Presented by The NZ Music Commission

1.30pm – 2.30pm
International Trade Fairs – How important are they to your international business?
A panel of music industry professionals who have attended a variety of international trade fairs, discuss the pros’ and con’s of bands or managers attending: WOMEX, AWME, MIDEM, SXSW, Canadian Music Week, CMJ, Big Sound, The Great Escape, Reeperbaan, Muse Expo.
Speakers: Matt Coleman – Let The People Speak Management (Jupiter Project, Artisan Guns, Midnight Youth, Avalanche City, Tom Lark, Titanium, Sound The Ocean, Massad), Janette Searle – The Playground (Sola Rosa, Kara Gordon, Anna Coddington, Ash Graham), Ben Howe – Arch Hill, Flying Nun & Laneway, Alan Holt – NZ Music Commission.

SEMINAR FOUR – Be your own record company
Presented by PPNZ Music Licensing
3.00pm – 4.00pm
Traditionally releasing an album was left up to the major labels and intrepid independents. However there are many bands that have successfully self-released albums to extremely high chart debuts and critical acclaim.
In this seminar our panel will talk about putting together an album release strategy, giving you insight into the tools needed to self release your album and how to do it successfully.
Speakers: Ben Howe – Arch Hill, Flying Nun & Laneway, Janine Russell – Noise PR (Beastwars, Iva Lamkum, Clap Clap Riot, Tama Waipara), Kimi Coleman – Let The People Speak Management (Jupiter Project, Artisan Guns, Midnight Youth, Avalanche City, Tom Lark, Titanium, Sound The Ocean, Massad), Tana Tupai – Self-Managed Artist (Tomorrow People).

The Official New Zealand Music Month Summit presented by the NZ Music Managers Forum and The New Zealand Music Commission and proudly supported by PPNZ Music Licensing, NZ On Air, IMNZ and Te Puni Kokiri.
www.mmf.co.nz 

New Zealand’s first crowdfunding platform, PledgeMe, recently celebrated achieving raising an impressive $1million for projects largely within the creative sector. TVNZ’s One News was keen to give them a shout-out:
“In just over a year, PledgeMe, a crowd funding website has raised more than million dollars for projects ranging from artificial hand to a fridge. PledgeMe is NZ’s largest crowd funding source where the public can fund community, cultural, scientific and sustainability projects through their website.

Crowd funding is based on the idea that small donations pledged by lots of people add up to the amount required to fund a project. Well-known figures like MasterChef contestant Chris Turner and Angela Bloomfield who plays Rachel McKenna on Shortland Street have used PledgeMe to fund their own projects. Donations are rewarded and in the case of Turner he baked macaroons for people who pledged him money for his trip to the Cordon Bleu cookery school in Paris. For $20 he sent people a dozen treats, and for $100 named an item of food after you. This tactic made more than his goal of $5100.

Other projects funded over the past 15 months include a bionic hand made for a mate in Lower Hutt, a rocket launch by the New Zealand Rocketry Association in the Coromandel, a new fridge for an animal sanctuary in the Hawke’s Bay and a theatre production by Whangarei Youth Theatre. The website is founded by Wellington based 27-year-old Anna Guenther who studied masters in entrepreneurship at Otago University who now works full-time on the site to harness the crowd funding model.
(Photo: Anna crowdsurfing)

“People are only limited by the power of their imaginations and their ability to convince a crowd their idea is worth backing,” Guenther told onenews.co.nz. The million dollar milestone was celebrated in Wellington last month with performances in three locations on Tory Street at Poquito, Hawthorn Lounge and Puppies. The next goal for the organisation is to raise $100million for the creative sector by the end of 2015.”

Statistics

253 projects funded
48% success rate 
$1,014914 pledged 
$67 average pledge amount 
$20 most often pledged amount 
14,959 pledges
Thanks to www.tvnz.co.nz

International and Industry Action

The MMF New Zealand and PPNZ Music Licensing are proud to announce the winners of the 2013 Music Managers Awards. Andy Murnane and Frequency Media Group won the ‘Manager of the Year’ award for their work with artists Home Brew and Aaradhna.  Andy also took out prize for ‘Outside the Box Award’ recognizing the Home Brew Speakeasy 48 hour album release party, which garnered unprecedented media attention for the band and resulted in a #1 debut on the New Zealand top 40 album chart.  Teresa Patterson of CRS Management won three awards on the night;  ‘Online Achievement’ for the re-launch of the Six60 website which came 2^nd in the Umbraco internationaldesign awards; ‘International Achievement’ for her work growing Six60 in the American and European markets, and finally ‘Best Independent Tour’ recognising the extra work required to put together Six60’s sell out nationwide tours including several dates in Australia.  Nominated for the first time this year,Janette Searle took home the ‘Upcoming Manager’ award for her work with Sola Rosa while Ria Hall received the award for ‘Self Managed Artist Of The Year’ for her outstanding effort balancing the fine line between being creative and business minded in her musical career.  This year the venue awards were split into to categories: over and under 750 capacities. These awards were voted exclusively by members of the MMF – ‘Best Large Venue’ went to the Powerstation and ‘Best Small Venue’ went to Leigh Sawmill for the second year running.  APRA was this year voted by MMF members as the ‘Music Managers Award Industry Champion’ for their work with licensing fees for the public performance of musical works.  APRA have been recognized for helping make music a sustainable career choice therefore supporting the industry as a whole.  And finally the MMF like to formally recognise a member who utilises the many resources available to them as an MMF member and who shows great promise in what can be a challenging yet rewarding career.  The winner of the ‘Mentoring Success Story’ this year was presented to Rachel Dawick for her ‘Boundry Riders Project’, which turns stories of pioneering women from the 1800s into songs.

Parachute Music have released their first Loyal session of NZ Music Month, featuring Massad and his cover of ‘Be Mine Tonight’. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovgsugOgjyg Brooke Duff and Loui the Zu’s sessions will be out over the next two weeks.

An innovative new digital tool is being used to promote Kiwi music during New Zealand Music Month this year. Indie Music Manager is an online and iPhone game which puts the fate of real Kiwi musicians in your hands. In a first for New Zealand music, players can experience the highs and lows of the music industry in a video game while promoting local music. Players manage Kiwi acts Tiki Taane, I Am Giant, Street Chant or Princess Chelsea, choosing where to tour, which producer to work with and how to best hype their artists. Scandals must be managed and egos soothed, all the while listening to your artist’s streaming music. The game is available on the Apple AppStore or online at www.indiemusicmanager.com.  Read more…

The finalists for the RIANZ Best Country Music Album 2013 have been announced today and none is a stranger to music accolades. Duo Delaney Davidson & Marlon Williams, songstress Donna Dean and string band The Eastern have all tasted success at one stage or another during their careers. Delaney Davidson and Marlon Williams are finalists for Sad but True – The Secret History of Country Music Songwriting Vol. 1. Donna Dean joins the final three for Tyre Tracks and Broken Hearts while The Eastern makes the list for Hope and Wire. Also announced are the finalists for the APRA Best Country Song Award for 2013 with two of the finalists up for both best album and best song. Jess Shanks of Best Country Album finalist trio The Eastern, is a finalist for her ballad Wait out the Winter. Delaney and Marlon have also achieved the coveted accolade of a double finals berth with their hit Bloodletter. Rob Joass joins the final three for Baggage.
http://www.muzic.net.nz/news/3376/country-album-song-finalists-announced.html

On the live front

The Rhythm Group have announced the return of Rhythm and Vines, and its South Island counterpart Rhythm and Alps, to the festival calendar in 2013. The line-up will be announced in August and is sure to get music fans excited. Rhythm and Vines takes place on December 29, 30, 31. Rhythm and Alps is the only two-day music festival in the South Island and will be back with an even bigger and better line-up this year. This year the festival is being moved to December 30 to 31 to ensure those attending the festival are able to see in the New Year in the same style as Rhythm and Vines. “Last year was such a success and we figured South Islander’s deserved a party as big as the North Island!” says Festival Director Alex Turnbull. “Due to popular demand we are moving the festival to these new dates.”

Shitripper have a whole sh**load of gigs lined up over May and June, including touring Australia and New Zealand with thrash legends Municipal Waste. Their tour starts on May 31 in Gisborne and winds up on June 29 in Wellington, visiting Napier, Auckland, Melbourne and Sydney along the way.
https://www.facebook.com/Shitripperhardcore

New release fanfare

Delete Delete is the combined pop power of Lani Purkis (Elemeno P/Foamy Ed) and Kurt Shanks (Stellar*/solo)  They are described as ‘Tounge on battery sizzling synths, crashing guitars and a lyrical thrust delivered with a jaw out, leg splitting mouth watering swagger.’  Delete Delete’s first 2 singles Sedated and What Do You Take Me For- with their videos – were both released on Friday 10th May and to celebrate New Zealand Music Month they will both be free to download until the end of May.  Download here: http://deletedelete.bandcamp.com/album/sedated-what-do-you-take-me-for
Here also are the links for both videos;
Sedated: http://youtu.be/eOLLpv3OEpA
What Do You Take Me For: http://youtu.be/OliM90ycwAg

New Zealand singer songwriter Jan Hellriegel celebrates the release of a collection of previously unheard singles from 1990-2003 entitled Lost Songs, an integral part of the DNA of NZ music of this period. She entered uncharted waters in 1991 when she became the country’s first female singer-songwriter to sign with a major label. With her finely-honed lyrics and rich vocals, Hellriegel’s debut album, It’s My Sin, was launched to critical acclaim in 1992, and included the hit, ‘The Way I Feel’. A second album came in 1995 and the following year she was awarded Single of the Year at the Music and Entertainer Awards for ‘Manic’. Hellriegel also toured with a number of top performers, including The Cure and Jeff Buckley. Hellriegel says, “A year or so ago I was cleaning out some cupboards and came across a taped up box I had carried around with me for so long I couldn’t even remember why. On opening this box (which had done time outside in the garage with the bugs and spiders and was looking a little ragged) I found a whole bunch of DAT and cassette recordings of old live sessions, demos and studio work from 1990 – 2003. Why hadn’t they ever been released? Just because me really…. I went through a lot of angst before and after my second album, Tremble. My fear was that I would be written off as rock chick and not appreciated as a songwriter. So post It’s My Sin, I vetoed a lot of really good rock songs. (In hindsight, stoopid. Now I find myself quite enamoured with the rock sound and really quite like the idea of being able to rock like the best of them.)”. She’s chosen 18 songs from the vaults, and each is accompanied by its own story.
www.janhellriegel.com

Sassy may be a new name to the scene, but you may already know her. She hails from a musical family, and her early classical violin, piano and singing training put her in good stead for the career ahead of her as a music tutor, composer, recording and performing artist. 81 The Underlove is her debut album blending soulful songs with Hip‐Hop and Reggae undertones. The studio band featured Sola Rosa’s Ben White on guitar; ex‐Sons of Zion Marika Hodgson on bass; Batucada Sound Machine’s Michal Martyniuk ; House of Shem Horn player Chris Nielson and ex‐King Kapisi Drummer Josh Sorenson. The album also features guest vocalists and MCs Bella Shanti, Neli Atiga, Richie Setford and Hone be good. Catch Sassy and her band live at Leigh Sawmill this Saturday 18th May.

There are several nice new videos out this week:
HEAD LIKE A HOLE — ‘Monsta X’ http://www.sounzgood.co.nz/2013/05/new-music-video-head-like-a-hole-monsta-x/
The Phoenix Foundation – ‘Flock of Hearts’,   directed by Sarah Jane Parton, with thanks to NZ On Air: http://www.sounzgood.co.nz/2013/05/new-music-video-the-phoenix-foundation-flock-of-hearts/
David Kilgour & the Heavy Eights- ‘Christopher Columbus. http://www.sounzgood.co.nz/2013/05/new-music-video-david-kilgour-the-heavy-eights-christopher-columbus/

After riding the wave of international success, an award-winning sophomore album and a strong tradition of unbeatable live performances, Three Houses Down are back with the release of theirMoon & Back EP on 31 May. The six song EP is a teaser of what’s to come later in the year with the uplifting title track already being well received at radio.  Since starting out in 2004, Three Houses Downhave been cultivating their own special fusion of roots, reggae and rock. They have played to huge crowds in Hawaii and the US over the pastthree years, and listened to thousands of American fans singing their lyrics during opening performances for Ali Campbell of UB40 fame, but they remain as down to earth as the grass beneath our feet, thanks to a rock-solid family foundation.  In celebration of the release of the EP, Three Houses Down are gearing up for shows in Wellington, Auckland and Opononi. Tickets are available from eventfinda.co.nz now. Gig-goers will receive a copy of the Moon & Back EP with every ticket purchased.
http://www.eventfinder.co.nz/artist/three-houses-down

Around the World

The ‘Orphan Work’ Scam: Can the Global Repertoire Database Solve It?
Monday, May 13, 2013
by  Helienne Lindvall of Digital Music News

The Global Repertoire Database – the project that will catalogue all the world’s music – today announced that it is setting up its global headquarters in London, while basing its operations in Berlin.  It’s one step closer to the eventual launch of a one-stop-shop for licensing – though, of course, music services will still need to negotiate separately with rights holders.

The GRD will also help musicians prevent their work from being used legally, but without permission, under the recently-passed UK “Instagram Act“.  The GRD won’t be able to protect musicians against the part of the British Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act that allows agencies to license musical works without the owner’s permission – known as “extended collective licensing” – but at least it will give companies less of an excuse to claim a work is “orphaned” when it’s not.  (Read more about the implications of the act in Andrew Orlowski’s excellent article on the subject.)

A work is considered an orphan when a “diligent” search fails to reveal who the owner is – and the Instagram Act allows the work to be used commercially without permission if this is the case.  The main crux with this is, of course, what constitutes a diligent search. Photographers, in particular, will pretty much be screwed by this Act as it’s next to impossible to conduct a truly thorough search for the owner of an image.  The identifying information can easily be, and often is, stripped from the image.

But musicians can also fall victim to this “orphanisation”, considering the vast amount of musical works that are created every day, all over the world. British performance right society PPL alone receives data on an average of 6,000 recordings a week – that’s a whopping 312,000 recordings a year.

Read the rest of the story here:http://www.digitalmusicnews.com/permalink/2013/20130513orphan