 When I embarked on my entrepreneurial journey, I only had my experience as an artist to guide me through the ups and downs of building what is now #WomxnCrush Music. Over the last few years I’ve been able to hone those skills, learn countless new ones and coach creative entrepreneurs on how they can translate the skills they already have to help propel their business aka their artist careers.
Contrary to what most people believe, entrepreneurship is an art form. A lot of it does encompass trial and error, there are plenty of late nights, creating from scratch, collaboration - much like when making music. Last week during our South Florida/Atlanta #WCMOnTour stop, I was lucky enough to moderate a panel on How To Think Business When You’re A Music Creative, featuring Gabriela Ortega, Sr. Label Manager at Warner Music Latina and Audrey Gámez the Education Director of C4 Atlanta, an organization that offers professional development courses for artists looking to further their creative businesses and personal artistic careers. We discussed the many layers of being an entrepreneurial artist and while there are many different moving parts (as with any business), here are some tips that might help you get started. “The idea that you only need arts entrepreneurship at the beginning is a myth - learning throughout your career is important longevity.” - Audrey Gámez ADMINISTRATIVE WORK IS STILL IMPORTANT WORK. Regardless of whether you are a singer, songwriter, producer,etc. - if you’re a creative and are actively working on pursuing this as a full-time career, you should have an LLC. One of the first steps in propelling your artistic career is to acknowledge that it is indeed a business - with expenses and revenue streams. Having an LLC protects your personal assets and separates them from your business. You’ll have a much easier time with taxes and will be able to have a separate business banking account for all of your artist career transactions. Other important administrative tasks: copyright those songs and track those royalties! LEARN THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF YOUR BUSINESS. Regardless of whether or not you have a team, it is crucial for you to understand how all parts of your business function. Know where your money is coming from, know where it’s going, learn what effective marketing is, stand up for what is important to you. Basic knowledge of all of these things will help you build out the team of your dreams and know if they are making good decisions for your career. “You may not have that person but you can be that person, take a digital marketing class, learn adwords,etc. Knowledge is power.” - Gabriela Ortega BUILDING A TEAM IS IMPORTANT. While being knowledgeable about all of the aspects of your career is key, as you grow you’ll need to hire experts and outsource different tasks. Having someone else represent you not only elevates your status when securing gigs, press, etc. but also can help relieve you of some of the non-creative work related to building your biz. If you don’t have the funds to hire someone just yet, see who in your circle may want some artist managerial experience. You can build your own little brand ambassador team to help you at any point in your career. Don’t feel like you have to do it all by yourself. BUILD AN AUTHENTIC BRAND. Your brand is your artist business personality. Identifying your core values, where you see yourself in the future, what gives you energy and what takes it away is going to be the backbone of your brand. Gabriela lets her clients choose three or four pillars of things that are important to them and bases a marketing campaign around those. It makes creating, executing and sharing of those campaigns more natural and it will resonate with the audience you want to attract. Your business is an extension of you, don’t forget that! DEVELOP YOUR NETWORK. Connections rule the music industry so don’t be afraid to reach out to someone who you’re hoping to learn from. However, doing this thoughtfully can make or break the conversation. Learn how to pitch yourself, always offer something in return in exchange for their time, and never ask for a direct connection to someone. Once you’ve connected with someone, express gratitude towards them often and don’t just check in when you need something! And even if they cannot help you now, they may be able to in the future so never shut anyone out. Really fostering these connections will help in the long run. #WomxnCrush Music’s mission will always be to create opportunities for our community of rising womxn songwriters and our aim is to host more webinars like these to continue fulfilling that mission through one of our main programming pillars - education. We have so much more in store for you for the rest of 2020 so stay tuned! See you (virtually of course) on our next tour stop of Portland/Seattle starting this week with our showcase benefitting The Old Church and next week for our panel on Mental Health in The Music Industry. RSVP for both here. *This piece was written by #WCM’s Founder and CEO, Ashley K. Stoyanov. Keep in touch with her on IG at @ashleykstoyanov or email her at ashley@womxncrushmusic.com - she loves hearing from the community!
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 Stella Gotshtein is a Tel-Aviv based performing artist and audio engineer. I first learned about Stella while scouring YouTube for clear, concise lessons on basic mixing concepts. Stella recorded a series of videos for Waves Audio that were exactly what I was looking for. I was so impressed with her teaching and communication style that I emailed her to connect. Stella agreed to chat with me via Zoom so that I could learn more about her career in audio, her musical projects, and the growing studio scene in Tel-Aviv. How did you get started in audio? I went to record drums for a song of mine. I already wanted to find a studio where I could become an intern, and I came to this studio where they recorded mostly hard-core metal music, which was not my type of thing, but somehow I felt the engineer was very strict. I really liked it and I felt like he could teach me. I just asked if I could help him. I would help him and ask questions. It was one or two years that I was there, and then a big studio opened the position for assistant engineer and I got in. There I slowly became an engineer myself. I was also reading a lot of books, sitting with other engineers, and recording at home. I’m really grateful that I got to work in a big studio. What’s the audio scene like in Israel? Everything is happening in Tel-Aviv. We’re trying to get this industry growing. There are a few big studios, but it’s very limited. It’s small, but there are a lot of talented people. One thing I noticed about your experience is that you do everything! You can’t do just one thing here. These days, right here, there’s just not enough work to do just mixing. It’s possible, but it’s hard. I feel like, personally, I always was really interested in trying to master a lot of things. With time, I do understand that I actually want to focus. If you were to focus on one thing, what do you think that would be? I would say making music, but it's always a hard question because I love mixing and recording, so it’s hard to choose. I really love studio recording, maybe the most. Producing [other artists] doesn’t come easily to me. It never has. I really put my heart in it and I go to sleep with it. If you put your heart into something you don’t feel fits, it’s hard to wake up in the morning and go do it again. So I love producing, but it’s really, really specific. What are you most excited about working on in the future? There’s an artist that I work with, Assaf Amdursky, who’s very talented and a big thing in Israeli culture. We are working on one album and starting another album. We built his studio together and for the last three years we’ve been working there. It’s a big honor. I’m also releasing my own album, which is the most exciting thing for me. It’s an album that I was recording for the last two years and that I produced myself. Someone else is actually mixing it. I recorded it half at my studio and half at Amsdursky. My studio has a window to the sky. I love it. About Stella Gotshtein : Stella Gotshtein is a Tel-Aviv based performing artist. Graduate of the Music-Technology department in Bar-Ilan University. She released one solo album, two side project albums and collaborated with many great musicians in Israel and abroad. Parallel to this she has developed her production and engineering skills and spent hours working in recording studios. Today she's a producer and mixing/recording engineer at Assaf Amdursky's studio. Stella also composes music for dance, film and art installations and is a guest teacher for Omni Sound Project. Social Media Links : Website | Instagram Facebook Written by Lisa Machac Lisa Machac is a musician and director of the Omni Sound Project, an organization dedicated to being the most accessible point of entry to the music and audio industries. Omni Sound Project strives to provide affordable opportunities for learning to under-represented communities as well as spotlight the talents of female and gender non-conforming audio professionals. Social Media Links : Website | Instagram | Facebook Cyber PR Presents for #WCM: Aretha Franklin: 9 Women of Soul / Who Changed the Music Industry8/28/2020  In August we celebrate the birthday of the late, great Aretha Franklin. We’ve dedicated this post to her as well as other monumental women of soul. This article was written by Kiara Marques, a student at Fordham University and a self-proclaimed concert junkie, under the supervision of Jenn O’Hagan, PR Director at Cyber PR.  Aretha Franklin Years of Prominence: 1960s-2018 When the world thinks of soul music, they automatically think of one name: Aretha. Aretha Franklin is best known as the woman who established the 1960s golden age of soul. Although her legacy has garnered her the title of the “Queen of Soul”, she was so much more. A singer, songwriter, pianist, and civil rights activist, Aretha Franklin revolutionized the artistic culture of the United States. Having won 18 Grammy Awards, she is one of the most honored musicians in Grammy history, in addition to being the first female artist to be honored in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. Some of her classic hits include “I Never Loved a Man (The Way I loved You)”, “Think”, and of course, the infamous “Respect”. Franklin’s talent as an artist who could not only sing soul, but countless other genres, also earned her the title of “Greatest Singer of All Time” by Rolling Stone in 2010. In addition to her musical accolades, she was a powerful voice of not only music, but justice, fighting for women’s rights and the Civil Rights Movement alongside Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Some of the most revered contemporary R&B musicians such as Beyonce, Mariah Carey,, and Mary J. Blige have drawn inspiration from Aretha, who paved the way for female soul singers all over the world. The Queen of Soul will truly always be esteemed as music royalty, and her legacy as a trailblazer in the industry will forever be remembered. Spotify  Etta James Years of Prominence: 1960s-2011 Etta James is widely known as a woman who defied genre, having conquered the soul, R&B, blues, rock and roll, jazz, and gospel genres. She is remembered best for her hit “At Last”, the song that would define her as a legend in music. James’ intensity as a singer with her deep and earthy voice has accredited her for bridging the gap between rhythm and blues and rock and roll music. Her talent also won her a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, eight Grammy Awards, and inducted her into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993. Her influence is heard today in the music of superstars such as Adele and Christina Aguilera, and her iconic legacy is one that earned her spots on Rolling Stone’s lists of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time and the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. Spotify  Gladys Knight Years of Prominence: 1960s-1980s Gladys Knight is a singer and songwriter known as the “Empress of Soul”. She rose to prominence as the lead vocalist of the R&B/soul family musical act Gladys Knight and the Pips. The group put out several hit singles such as “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” and “Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye” and toured with iconic musicians such as Diana Ross and The Supremes, before Knight’s departure in pursuit of a solo career. With her massive hit “Midnight Train to Georgia” and recording the theme song “Licence to Kill” for the 1989 James Bond film of the same name, Knight amassed massive success as a solo artist. With seven Grammy awards, a spot on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and being regarded as Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, the Empress of Soul is an absolute powerhouse in the music world. Spotify  Nina Simone Years of Prominence: 1950s-1990s The “High Priestess of Soul”, better known as Nina Simone was a singer, songwriter, pianist and civil rights activist whose unique approach to music blended gospel and pop music with classical. Having been a musical prodigy since the age of four, and having attended the Juilliard School of Music, Simone was an exceptional talent. With the success of her 1958 hit “I Loves You, Porgy”, she became a major breakout star. Simone is widely regarded as one of the most influential recording artists of the 20th century and broke many norms in the music industry through her use of social commentary in her music. She was heavily involved in the Civil Rights Movement as well, performing and speaking at major civil rights meetings such as the Selma to Montgomery marches in 1965. Because of her legendary talent and activism, Nina Simone won the Grammy Hall of Fame Award, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and received honorary degrees in music and humanities from Amherst College and Malcolm X College, leaving her with a legacy that will never be forgotten. Spotify  Roberta Flack Years of Prominence: 1970s-1990s Roberta Flack is a singer known for her hit singles "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Killing Me Softly with His Song", with which she became the first and only solo artist to win the Grammy Award for Record of the Year for two consecutive years in 1973 and 1974. Throughout her career she has successfully overtaken the worlds of soul, pop, folk, R&B, and jazz, and has received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as well as four Grammy awards and thirteen nominations. Aside from her musical ventures, she advocates for artists’ rights to their own music as a member of the Artist Empowerment Coalition and founded the Roberta Flack School of Music in the Bronx in 2006. Spotify  The Supremes Years of Prominence: 1960s-1970s The Supremes were a pop-soul group made up of Diana Ross, Florence Ballard, and Mary Wilson, that took the music industry by storm in the 1960s, making them the most commercially successful vocal group in America to date. Their popularity spread throughout the world, rivaling the success of even The Beatles, with twelve number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100. The peak of The Supremes’ career coincided with a pivoting movement in the civil rights era, and their influence helped change the public image of African Americans during that time. They received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 as well as the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998. Additionally, the group is regarded by Rolling Stone as one of the “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”. The Supremes made it possible for future black R&B and soul musicians to succeed, and for that reason their legacy is truly empowering. Spotify  Patti Labelle Years of Prominence: 1960s-Present Patti Labelle is a singer, songwriter, and actress whose career has spanned over sixty years, earning her the title of the “Godmother of Soul”. Her fame began in the early 60s as the lead vocalist of vocal group Patti Labelle and the Bluebelles, who released hit disco song “Lady Marmalade”, which would be inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Their popularity got them the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, making them the first black vocal group to land the music publication’s cover, in addition to being the first pop group to ever perform at the Metropolitan Opera House. After the group disbanded in 1976, Labelle pursued a solo career and found much success, selling more than fifty million records worldwide. She has also earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, has earned three Grammy awards, and is on Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Singers of All Time list. Spotify  Dionne Warwick Years of Prominence: 1960s-Present Dionne Warwick is a soul singer and songwriter whose pop and R&B styled sound has earned her over fifty years of success as a musician. Her career began with the relative popularity she found as a teen as part of family group The Gospelaires, before high-profile artist Burt Bacharach discovered her talent and potential as a solo artist, leading her to release her first hit single “Don't Make Me Over”. Throughout the 60s, Warwick became the first crossover artist to receive a dozen consecutive Billboard Top 100 hits, and through 1998, eighty of her singles made all Billboard charts, making her one of the most-charted female vocalists of all time. She has sold over 85 million records worldwide, and is a six-time Grammy award winner, among these making her the first female artist in Grammy history to win both Best Pop Vocal Performance and Best R&B Vocal Performance in the same year, for the singles “I’ll Never Love This Way Again” and “"Déjà Vu". Besides her musical ventures, Warwick has also been an activist for many causes, serving as the U.S. Ambassador of Health, and being one of the first musicians to highlight public awareness of the AIDS epidemic, raising millions of dollars for the cause. Spotify  Mary Wells
Years of Prominence: 1960s-1990s Widely regarded as the first female soul superstar, Mary Wells was known as the “Queen of Motown”, helping define Motown as a record label in the 60s with her smash hit “My Guy”. She eventually left Motown and she found less success, but her choice in fighting for artistic freedom was not ignored. Wells’ legacy helped introduce soul music to a much wider audience. A true music pioneer, she was celebrated with a Pioneer Award from the Rhythm and Blues Foundation, and “My Guy” earned a spot in the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 2017 she was also inducted into the National Rhythm and Blues Hall of Fame. Spotify Written by Jenn O'Hagan : From event coordination and marketing, to community management and performing, the PR Director of Cyber PR , Jenn has glanced behind-the-curtain in many areas of this industry. Well-versed in all things Cyber PR, Jenn works with artists to identify if they’re a perfect fit for our company and if so, which services will be the best match. Find out more about Jenn and Cyber PR here. Founded by music entrepreneur and CEO Alexa Ace in 2016, and managed with business partner and Director of Operations Micayla Chandler, Gold Hand Girls is a multimedia music platform dedicated to empowering and connecting women in the music industry, by breaking industry norms, conquering patriarchal statistics and elevating universal inspiration for women, men and members of the non-binary community. In an interview with Womxn Crush Music, they delve into their new podcast Women and Music, the inspiration behind it, their plans for the future, passion for everything they do and much more. Listen to the podcast here. Read the interview below!
For more information on Gold Hand Girls : Website | Instagram | Facebook Written by Malvika Padin : Malvika is a freelance music journalist and publicist based in London and born in India. Currently the Editorial Coordinator at #WCM, she is also the Online Editor for alternative music magazine Discovered and one of the admins of Facebook journalism community 'The Journalist', founded by German-Indian journalist Johannes Koch. Malvika is most passionate about giving rising artists a chance to shine, and is also keen to focus on diversity and people of colour in the creative space. Email : malvikapadin@gmail.com: Twitter/Instagram : @malvika_padin26  I often get asked for tips on how to take care of your voice. As someone who suffers from quite a few allergies, and someone who spends many hours each day singing, here are some of my tips that keep my voice staying strong and healthy:
Those are some of my simple tips to keeping a healthy voice! Got any other vocal questions? Send me a message on Instagram (@audriix)! Written by Audriix : When it comes to pursuing her passion for music, Audriix is nothing less than a force of nature. Growing up in northern California, the singer/songwriter begged for violin lessons at age two, took up the instrument just a year later, and soon moved on to also mastering piano, viola, and singing (eventually adding guitar and drums as well). Having started writing songs at age six, she later self-produced her first batch of material in the midst of earning three degrees from Stanford University. Through it all, Audriix has developed her own unforgettable voice as an artist: strong and self-assured, thoughtful but light-hearted, clear-eyed yet infectiously hopeful. On her full-length debut Status Change, Audriix brings that voice to a brightly edgy brand of pop built on massive choruses and effervescent melodies. Website : https://www.audriix.com  I sat down (virtually) with Elise Solberg, classical-turned-pop extraordinaire and founder of Turn Up Her Mic, a brand new organization that spotlights women in the music industry doing behind-the-scenes work. Elise has a degree in classical piano performance from the Thornton School of Music at USC and has performed with multiple pop bands, including GRAMMY® winners Chloe x Halle. Turn Up Her Mic recently hosted its premiere virtual panel on women in the music industry, which can be viewed here. Part two of this series was streamed live via Zoom on Tuesday August 18th at 3pm PST. If you missed it, tune in for the replay here. Tell me a little bit about your musical background, Elise. I grew up as a classical musician, and it was a long journey doing that, because I started when I was four. And then I ventured off into college, and I majored in classical performance. And I was watching the popular music showcase at USC. They have a pop music program, and I was curious and I checked it out, and I was like, “Ah, this is so cool!” Because my whole life I had been playing piano by myself, and it gets kind of lonely. And when I was watching the students play, I was so inspired. I was like, “I really want to be part of something like this.” So I asked the head of the program, Patrice Rushen, if I could be in it, and she said they had room for one more keyboardist, so I joined. It was really inspiring because there were strong female instrumentalists in that class—bass players, keyboard, guitar players and drummers—that were really good, and I was like “Dang, okay!” I was so glad that there were women around me, and I was particularly inspired because the program was run by a woman. I got to take a few lessons with Patrice, and she said, “You know, this is something you can do.” What led you to found Turn Up Her Mic? When I got into the more professional musical settings, it became very clear that there weren’t many of us at all. I was still living in that world of not knowing what it was like, because my first gig was with Chloe x Halle, and they have a female band. But as I kept playing with different artists, I was like, “Oh, wait. I’m the only girl in the room.” And oftentimes there would be this energy of having to prove myself a little more than the men would have to. Men aren’t used to seeing women play, and so there’s this attitude of “Oh, we have to check her out first.” But if it’s a guy auditioning, they say, “Oh it’s gonna be fine,” even if he ends up not playing that well. I would show up to auditions for artists where I would be the only female. There was this one artist that I was auditioning for, and I was the only woman there out of 50 people. But there was one woman there, and I was like, “Wait wait wait! Is she a female musician?” But she was doing the admin stuff. I was really inspired to start this organization because I was seeing in the real world that there really aren’t that many female musicians. There are a lot more good female musicians out there now, but percentage-wise it’s still very low. I was at a jam session once, and my friend was playing—she’s the bass player for Chloe x Halle—and she was taking a solo, and people were like, “Oh my God, who is she?” And I want to get to the point where people don’t say “Oh my God, it’s a female musician!” So that’s why I started [Turn Up Her Mic], because I wanted to put female musicians at the forefront. As it is right now, there aren’t many resources that show what we do. There’s a lot of articles about songwriters and producers—like Nija Charles, Diane Warren, all these wonderful women songwriters, they’re getting good press, and that’s great, but sometimes I wonder about musicians that also make things happen behind the scenes for artists as well. I feel their stories are just as important. Sharing the struggles that we have to go through. You never know sometimes if you just put stuff out there. If it can make a difference in someone’s life, like a young woman who’s looking to get into this world and learning to play, or a man who’s been in the industry for years and goes, “Oh I’ve never thought of that before,” then that’s good. If you could speak to a young woman looking to get into the music industry in one of these behind-the-scenes roles, what would you say to her? Just the fact that there’s these musicians on this panel just playing and backing artists and that’s literally it—I think that’s a good message in and of itself. But sometimes it’s just really really nice to see yourself in somebody else. That’s the other aim of Turn Up Her Mic—not only giving musicians more humanity and a voice, but also inspiring younger musicians who don’t perhaps have a mentor. Because I know sometimes coming by a mentor or somebody you can look up to is hard, especially if there aren’t many female musicians. And just seeing them up there and playing I think makes such a huge difference. Is there a particularly vivid memory you have of not being taken seriously in your profession? There was an instance where we were in rehearsal and there was a new music director, telling us how we were going to do the intro and outro—this was with a band that I was playing with. It was so strange because he did not really question the guys—I was the only girl in the room. He wanted us to play this arrangement, and it was this other style that we hadn’t played together before. And so we were listening to it and he was going around and testing all of us to see if we could play it, and he said, “Well, I don’t think you can play it because you have a classical background,” and I was like, “Excuse me?” I thought it was just because I was a woman. If I could get into this band that plays R&B music, then why couldn’t I play this particular arrangement, which is also R&B? It was just a very weird situation, and then I proved him wrong. I could play it. I was disappointed that no one stuck up for me in that situation. The person who DID stick up for me—the coordinator of the band—she was another woman! And I was like, “Why am I surprised that this woman is the only one sticking up for me.” What do you envision for Turn Up Her Mic in your wildest dreams? I envision it to be something that not just women but men recognize as a platform showcasing women who aren’t afraid to speak out about their experiences. I want that to transfer over to young women who want to get into this industry. In terms of expanding, I want there to be a mentorship program where women can mentor younger musicians. Like I said earlier, sometimes it’s hard to find a female mentor. I just got lucky, especially to have somebody like Patrice Rushen, who’s been in music for such a long time. But I want there to be a program where young women can be paired up with a mentor, learn about the industry, learn how to go about auditions, learn how to respond to situations that can occur. Maybe they’re a beginner at their instrument and need some encouragement. Or maybe they’re close to a professional/collegiate level. I’m also thinking of starting this series where musicians lead a masterclass in recording at home. I think that might be helpful especially now when you can’t really do recording sessions. Just having resources like that—there’s actually a couple women that are really big on Instagram whom a lot of people follow to see their content. Maybe having a master class on that—“here’s how to get a big following and create good content”—because that’s been very powerful. A lot of musicians have gotten gigs just by people checking out their Instagram. I’m from the opera world, and even though there are many roles for women in opera, women almost always die or are killed at the end of the show. We need to change the stories we tell about women in classical music in order to create more equity in the field. Do you feel the one-dimensional stories being told about women (mostly by men) in pop music are contributing toward the way women are seen in the industry itself? That’s a really great question. I think the big topic about women in pop music is that everything is sexualized. As a feminist, you want women to have a choice. If they want to express their sexuality, that’s fair. The way that men—especially in rap—depict women, being really disrespectful, I wish that would change. Talking about women’s bodies disrespectfully often plays a part in women being objectified. We have leeway as a general public to say “That’s too much.” I think we need to support women that write about things that come from them. For men to project that onto women who don’t have a say in it—that’s not fair. Beyoncé, for instance, in her self-titled project, wanted to reclaim herself after giving birth, which came with her sexuality. A lot of the comments being made were that she was being a terrible role model. But what Pharrell said was “You set a whole bunch of women free. You said it was okay for them to feel good about themselves and their bodies.” Nicki Minaj and Cardi B—they brag about themselves in their songs. But whenever a female artist brags about herself, people say, “It’s too much. She’s stuck-up.” Whatever we write about, men will always say, that’s too much. So we have to keep supporting women songwriters who write content that provokes the public’s consciousness. Like Nicki Minaj says, “I’m a bad bitch.” Turn Up Her Mic will host part two of its virtual panel series on women in the music industry live via Zoom on Tuesday August 18th at 3pm PST. Replay here The meeting ID to join the panel on Zoom is 899 7516 9783. Password: 933666 You can learn more about Elise through her website, elisesolberg.com, and follow her on Instagram @eliseyuka Follow Turn Up Her Mic on Instagram @turnuphermic or on Slack @ turnuphermic.slack.com Written by Erica Furgiuele : Erica Furgiuele is a Boston-based composer, playwright, lyricist, and singer. She has performed off-Broadway and on tiny stages in mountain towns of Vermont, always for the love of the game and bringing stories to the people who need them most. Her work has been published by New World Theater and performed all across the interwebs. She has a B.A. in Theater/Film from Middlebury College. Twitter :@EricaFurgiuele 
Shelby speaks about something that everyone deals with at some point in life; the feeling that life can sometimes suck. Not everyday is going to be a good one, and not everyday is going to be bad. She may only be a teenager, but her outlook is something that everyone can relate to. This year has not gone the way anyone expected it to, and Shelby reminds us that it is OK. The song starts out talking about how life can be good and bad with Shelby singing with just a solo guitar. As the track progresses, though, it turns into more of a powerful song with a positive spin. The message in the song is something everyone needs to hear at some point. “Today was good, and tomorrow might not be” reminds us to look at each day for what it is. Towards the end of the song the tempo and strength in the music increase. She sings about not being able to see the future and that it can be a bit scary. Overall this is a song that can lift up the listener and remind them that just because they’re having a bad day, it doesn’t mean that everyday is going to suck. Good and bad days come in a mix as we go through life. CONNECT WITH SHELBY : https://www.shelbymerchantmusic.com/ https://www.facebook.com/ShelbyMMusic/ https://twitter.com/ShelbyMMusic Written by Amanda Esptein : Amanda is an avid music lover and supports independent artists in various genres. She writes for music publications in her spare time to share her love of music with the world, as well as learning to be a musician herself. She believes that music has to be experienced and not just heard.  Gina DiGiorio just released her single “This Isn’t That”. She is following in the footsteps of the great pop artists with this track. She tells us all to be ourselves and not compare ourselves to others. Hi Gina. Thanks for taking the time to chat with me. You started on screen and stage. What inspired you to make the change and become a musician? I’ve always loved pop music, and then I eventually decided to write my own songs. I wanted to write music that I liked, and also thought other people could relate to. Who are your musical influences? I’ve been inspired by a lot of artists throughout the years such as The Beatles, Backstreet Boys, Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande, etc. What can you tell me about the new song “This Isn’t That”? The song is about being yourself and not comparing your life to others. I wanted to create a song that would inspire and empower people. Where did the inspiration come from for the track? This has been a difficult year for a lot of people, and I wanted to make a song that others could relate to. Such a powerful message in the song about being yourself. What do you want your listeners to take away from the song? I hope people can be inspired, and not feel like they have to listen to other people’s negative comments. I want my listeners to find confidence through my music. What would you say is your creative process? I start by getting ideas for concepts and song titles by sometimes just thinking of creative phrases, observing others in everyday life, and also listening to other people’s conversations. There’s a lot you can learn just from doing these things. Are you a creative person with things other than music? Yes, I enjoy acting too. Recently, I’ve been a working actor in some indie films, and I also have music that’s featured in the soundtracks. I’m looking forward to continuing to do that. How has the state of the country affected your music release? It hasn’t affected my life much, I’ve still been able to put out music, but I miss performing for my fans. What would be your dream collaboration? I would love to collaborate with BTS someday. I think their music is inspirational to a lot of people. Always a fun question. What is your favorite thing about performing on stage? I love seeing all my fans come out to support me. I really thrive off their energy, and it keeps me going. What is to come yet this year for you? I’m going to be releasing new music soon, and I hope to perform somewhere by the end of the year. Something fun and random to end this chat. Favorite ice cream flavor? I love Ben & Jerry’s cookie dough core ice cream! CONNECT WITH GINA : Instagram | Twitter | YouTube Written by Amanda Epstein : Amanda is an avid music lover and supports independent artists in various genres. She writes for music publications in her spare time to share her love of music with the world, as well as learning to be a musician herself. She believes that music has to be experienced and not just heard.  The music industry has a reputation for sexism. We’ve all heard stories from the #MeToo movement, horror stories of women being harassed or abused by men. However, though less egregious than harassment, bullying of women in the industry happens far too often. Note, the point of this article is not to beat up on men, but rather to call attention to the sexism that so many of us have experienced. I’ve had far too many bad experiences being bullied, demeaned, talked down to, even yelled at, sometimes by men I’ve worked closely with for years. Some examples: I was at a writing session with a (male) producer and topliner. The topliner had suggested a line that I wasn’t really feeling, so I made an alternative suggestion which we both liked. Right there in the middle of the session, the producer asked me to step outside, and then proceeded to scold me and say that I was not to offer any suggestions and that we were going with the toplier’s suggestion whether or not I liked it. On the next session, he brought in a different topliner who asked if I had any song ideas, which I, being prepared for the session, did. The producer walked away and refused to participate in the session. After the topliner left, he told me I was to sit quietly in the corner, offer zero suggestions, and let the topliner and him write songs without any input from me. Another example: I was talking to the (male) member of my team who had set up those sessions, sharing my experience. This man literally yelled at me over the phone, was so incredibly demeaning, telling me I was wrong and I honestly have kind of blocked out some of the specifics from my memory because it was horrible. I remember my mom was walking by my room while I was on this call and she could hear through the phone this bullying and was horrified. The next day he acted nice and normal—I don’t think he even remembers that conversation. A manager I had previously worked with refused to collaborate on ideas. If I ever offered a thought contrary to his idea, he would get mad, and say I should listen to everything he said, he knew better, and make me feel stupid by saying “whatever, it’s your career (phone hangup).” It turned into a situation where I could choose to either not give my opinion or prepare to fight for it. And finally, the most recent experience I had was in a Zoom cowriting session with a male topliner (whom I’d worked with several times before) and a male producer. (I’ve had similar experiences as this one in the past.) The producer did not care that I was a pop artist and insisted on making a hip-hop vibe track, ignoring my input. Both ignored any suggestions I gave, pretending not to hear me, and then repeatedly, the topliner would make the same suggestion I’d already made several minutes later and take credit for it—and then use it in the song! These are just a few examples of some of my experiences. I’ve also had the pleasure of working with so many wonderful men as well! But this kind of bullying and sexist behavior that so many of us have experienced is not ok. If you are a woman in music and have felt bullied, you are not alone! Just remember, it’s ok to stand up for yourself. And men, if you observe this happening, please help change this behavior by calling it out. Let’s change the music industry’s reputation. Written by Audriix : When it comes to pursuing her passion for music, Audriix is nothing less than a force of nature. Growing up in northern California, the singer/songwriter begged for violin lessons at age two, took up the instrument just a year later, and soon moved on to also mastering piano, viola, and singing (eventually adding guitar and drums as well). Having started writing songs at age six, she later self-produced her first batch of material in the midst of earning three degrees from Stanford University. Through it all, Audriix has developed her own unforgettable voice as an artist: strong and self-assured, thoughtful but light-hearted, clear-eyed yet infectiously hopeful. On her full-length debut Status Change, Audriix brings that voice to a brightly edgy brand of pop built on massive choruses and effervescent melodies. Website : https://www.audriix.com  Multimedia music platform Gold Hand Girls have announced the launch of weekly podcast Women and Music, set to feature authentic and entertaining conversations with women, men and non-binary individuals in the music industry. Through interviews with emerging artists, production managers, photographers and more, Women and Music aims to provide a space for professionals to celebrate their achievements, share their experiences navigating the music business and discuss the parts of the industry that need to improvement such as the lack of women in positions of power in music. The first episode featuring an interview with American alt-punk musician, singer and songwriter Sizzy Rocket, on her first-ever podcast appearance is set to air on Thursday, August 13, 2020 on all major music platforms, including Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music and Stitcher. Tune in to find out about Sizzy’s creative process, the Grrrlalbum and new music dropping soon, among other things. Additional guests include Aysia Moratto, Lewis Capaldi’s tour photographer, SiriusXM Head of Music Marketing & Partnerships Gurj Bassi, and Production Coordinator + Road Manager for Lady Gaga, Samm Stangeland About the podcast, Gold Hand Girls founders, Alexa Ace and Micayla Chandler said: “We love everything music but the industry needs more women in positions of power, so with Women and Music, we aspire to inspire others to close the gap. We are stoked to launch Women and Music and hope we can provide a place where we can all be 100% real while building each other up.” Through the Women and Music podcast and other similar content, Gold Hand Girls continues to amplify voices of women in the music industry and raise awareness about issues affecting the music industry while celebrating the hustle of women. A new episode of Women and Music will be out every Thursday. About Gold Hand Girls Founded by music entrepreneur and CEO Alexa Ace in 2016, and managed with business partner and Director of Operations Micayla Chandler, Gold Hand Girls is a multimedia music platform dedicated to empowering and connecting women in the music industry, by breaking industry norms, conquering patriarchal statistics and elevating universal inspiration for women, men and members of the non-binary community. For more information on Gold Hand Girls : Website | Instagram | Facebook Written by Malvika Padin : Malvika is a freelance music journalist and publicist based in London and born in India. Currently the Editorial Coordinator at #WCM, she is also the Online Editor for alternative music magazine Discovered and one of the admins of Facebook journalism community 'The Journalist', founded by German-Indian journalist Johannes Koch. Malvika is most passionate about giving rising artists a chance to shine, and is also keen to focus on diversity and people of colour in the creative space. Email : malvikapadin@gmail.com: Twitter/Instagram : @malvika_padin26 |
