It is not enough for the modern musician to only have one gig. Even top selling artists take advantage of many different revenue streams. This is sound business. In fact, I don’t know anyone better at diversifying revenue streams than drummer Andy Ziker. If you’re in a place where you are trying to make a leap from day job to working musician, I know this interview will help you!
Andy, thanks for chatting with me. Let’s jump right in. You are a professional musician that has mastered the art of diverse revenue streams. What are all of the avenues you use to make a living doing music?
It’s my pleasure, Rob, though I think Neil Peart would have been a more interesting interview subject!I do have many revenue streams (all falling under the music umbrella) that seem to all add up to a “normal” living.
1. I teach private lessons at Linton-Milano Music in Downtown Mesa, AZ and have been doing so for 24 years. I have also recently begun teaching at my home studio, although the open days/times are limited.
2. I am a free-lance musician. In other words, if someone calls me and the pay is reasonable, I will show up in whatever attire is required (quite often tuxedo or sport coat and tie, but one time I dressed like Fred Flintstone) and play an extreme variety of music from polkas to jazz to Latin to disco to rock. I was trained by one of the best, Norm Susser, who owns a local agency and fronts his own “casual” band called Avalon. I have been playing with Norm since the late 80s. I also learned a lot from every casual musician with whom I’ve played over the many years. Geeze, I’m an old fart!
3. I play in a rock band called Jed’s a Millionaire. Gigs with Jed’s range from charity to well-paying, but I always seem to have a great time however!
4. I’m the house drummer at a jazz jam session at the Pita Jungle in Chandler, AZ. Steady gigs are one of the keys to making a living as a musician.5. From time to time, I write articles for drum magazines. I’ve been published in Drummer Cafe, OnlineDrummer.com, Modern Drummer, and next month, Drum! Magazine. The pay for these is not very high, but the chance to share knowledge to a huge group of readers is priceless.
6. I’ve written a number of drum instruction books, 4 of which were put out by major music book publishers: Drumscapes (self-published), Drum Aerobics, Daily Drum Warm-Ups, and Drumcraft (Hal Leonard), and Drumset for Preschoolers (Try Publishing). Drumcraft has been in the works for 5 years and is really a labor of love. It will be released sometime in late 2012. I’m working on a jazz drum book for another of the big publishing companies right now, but I can’t give specifics about that yet.
7. I released my first book of fiction (though it has a music theme) called Nobody Sounds Like You: Devan Plays the Drums. This is an illustrated children’s book meant for the 8-12 year-old crowd. It’s about a young boy who accidentally discovers the joys of drumming and, in turn, finds his life’s passion. The book is available on amazon.com and Linton Milano Music.
8. I invented a music stand designed for drummers and percussionist called simply the Drummer Stand. I sold the idea to Manhasset and hae a royalty arrangement worked out.
9. I am a studio musician. Producers, engineers, songwriters, bands, etc., hire me to come into the recording studio to lay down drum tracks. I absolutely love doing this and wish I could do it more!
10. I give drum clinics and workshops. Although these have been few and far between, I plan on doing a lot more of these in the future.
Wow! that’s a lot of streams, Andy. well done! Let’s start with the most elusive stream. How would you advise a musician on getting their first book deal?
Great question, Rob! I would recommend that musicians first consider the following:
Did you do the research to determine whether or not the content of your book is different than the other ones already out there? If it’s not, you might want to come up with a different idea. If it is, move to the next point.
Is the book idea marketable? Any book with a lot of sales potential will have a better chance to get published.
Have you tested out the content to make sure that it is effective?
Do you have the perseverance, patience and work ethic required to deal with rejection, re-writes, deadlines, collaboration, etc.?Next, you will need to write a proposal and, at least, a portion or sample of the book. (Try to make the book material look as good as possible. Go the extra mile to learn to use a music notation software such as Finale.)
The proposal should include: a description of the book, target audience, possible competition, marketability, number of pages (most music instruction books are between 48 and 120 pages), and whether or not the book includes CDs, a DVD/video content. Many publishers only required a chapter or two of the book, while others want as much as half of the book completed.Your next step is to contact publishers (contact info can be found on their respective websites) and send in your submission. It can sometimes take up to a year before you hear back…
If you get a bunch of rejection letters, don’t feel bad. Most of the people who run these companies are nice, smart people. They often recognize that your ideas are good, but they just might not think that the book has enough sales potential.
NOTE: Another way to go is to self-publish the book and sell is locally and/or through e-commerce sites such as amazon.com. Amazon now has a print-as-you-go publishing company called CreateSpace. I just used CreateSpace to self-publish my new illustrated children’s book called Nobody Sounds Like You: Devan Plays the Drums. Amazon takes a royalty from the back end, so you don’t have to cough up any advance money. You can also simultaneously publish via Kindle.
If the book sells well through the self-publishing route, you can then go back to the publisher with proof that the book sells well.
That is a well-spring of advise Andy, you really understand that in order to be published you have to look at ever angle!What about the other more elusive revenue stream, how would you recommend a musician go about launching their own music related product or idea?
READ MORE: Interview with Andy Ziker, Part 2
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