{"id":3224,"date":"2015-05-30T03:33:26","date_gmt":"2015-05-30T07:33:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/?p=3224"},"modified":"2015-11-20T02:14:57","modified_gmt":"2015-11-20T07:14:57","slug":"rule-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/?p=3224","title":{"rendered":"How To Become A REAL Independent Artist: One Thing EVERY Indie Musician MUST Do To Grow Their Music Career"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Step<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

\u00a0 A young man with his mind firmly set on becoming a successful entrepreneur, travels to see the wise guru<\/b>\u200b\u00a0<\/span>who knows the secrets to the success he seeks.<\/b><\/p>\n

The young man says to the teacher, \u201cI want to become rich and successful. Can you help me?\u201d<\/p>\n

The guru smiles and says, \u201cMeet me at the beach tomorrow at 4 AM, and I will tell you the secret to success.\u201d<\/p>\n

So the next morning, the young man shows up on the beach at 4 AM, just like the guru had asked, wearing a suit and tie. Upon arriving, he realizes that the guru is already in the water swimming, dressed not in a suit and tie, but in a pair of swimming trunks.<\/p>\n

The guru spots the young man and motions for him to come in the water. So the young man goes knee \u200b<\/span>deep into the water.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome out further,\u201d the guru says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is an expensive suit,\u201d the young man replied, \u201cI came here to learn the secret to success, not the secret to swimming.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe secret must be told in this water. It is your choice to learn the secret or not.\u201d So the young man goes waist \u200b<\/span>deep into the water, soaking his expensive suit.<\/p>\n

\u201cFurther,\u201d the guru said. The young man becomes irritated.<\/p>\n

\u201cListen old man,\u201d he says with impatience, \u201cI\u2019m already in the water. I didn\u2019t come here for a swimming lesson. Tell me the secret to success right now or I\u2019m leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n

The guru, unaffected by the young man\u2019s outburst, replies calmly, \u201cYou are already waist\u200b<\/span>deep. What\u2019s a few more steps?\u201d<\/p>\n

So the young man wades deeper into the water until the water is up to his neck. The sun is beginning to rise.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo tell me the secret,\u201d the young man demands. The guru says, \u201cSure,\u201d and suddenly forces the young man\u2019s head under the water. The young man, caught off guard, swallows salty sea water by accident and begins to drown!<\/p>\n

He flails his arms and tries to push the guru off him, but the guru continues to hold the young man\u2019s head underwater, using all of his strength to keep him there. Just before the young man loses consciousness, the guru pulls the young man back up, who begins coughing immediately and gasping for air.<\/p>\n

The guru immediately asked the young man a question:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen your head was under water, what did you want to do?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cKill…you…\u201d the young man sputtered out between hacking coughs.<\/p>\n

He grabbed onto the guru with the intention of drowning him, but the young man is still trying to recover and is unable to push the guru\u2019s head underwater.<\/p>\n

\u201cBesides that,\u201d the guru said, pushing the young man\u2019s hands off him. The young man coughs some more. He looks up at the guru and sees that he is still looking at him, waiting for a response.<\/p>\n

His stern look causes the young man to become enraged. \u201cI WANTED TO BREATHE!\u201d He shoves the guru aside violently and begins stumbling towards the shore, coughing up sea water as he wades and splashes.<\/p>\n

What the guru said next however, stopped the young man in his tracks:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you want success as much you wanted to breathe just now when you were drowning, then, and ONLY THEN, will you have success.\u201d<\/p>\n

And with that, the guru went back to swimming.\u201d<\/p>\n

How much do you really want this?<\/p>\n

Now, I\u2019m not saying that you don\u2019t work hard, or that you aren\u2019t trying, but I\u2019m saying \u200b<\/span>that in my experience those who really want their ideal vision, the lifestyle, the success they seek…<\/p>\n

They need it like the young man needed breath to survive. Now being in that state is not necessarily a constant condition, but at some point or another a man must make a choice…<\/p>\n

A clear choice to step up, to do the work for long enough and \u200b<\/span>make it happen.<\/p>\n

How To Become A REAL Independent Artist: One Thing EVERY Indie Musician MUST Do To Grow Their Music Career<\/h1>\n

You truly do hold the power that was just never before possible. NOW is the Artists Revolution. It\u2019s now! If you want that vision that you just experienced, and have now already activated and begun to set in motion which will continue to grow as you work your way closer and closer to it… If you want it, then you simply must commit to getting it. If you have not already, it\u2019s time for you to claim your power and take control.<\/p>\n

You can do it BETTER than a label or other gatekeeper could…<\/b><\/p>\n

The Modern Music Business is about the authentic branding of you, INC. It\u2019s up to you my friend. It\u2019s your show.\u00a0\u00a0That\u2019s the modern world we live in. It\u2019s about direct to fan communication and the community that YOU develop and build.<\/p>\n

75% of unsigned artists listed a major label record deal as their goal. I see more than a few artists not fully appreciating the power of the opportunity we have now. I don\u2019t see enough Artists and musicians truly taking the initiative to do the work \u200b<\/span>and first I want to commend you for being proactive and taking those steps. But when I see an artist hoping or expecting that a label or impressing a gatekeeper is the solution\u200b-<\/span>I have to say…<\/p>\n

Who\u2019s going to be a better steward of your career?<\/p>\n

Who cares more about the true connection with your fans and supporters?<\/p>\n

Who\u2019s going to speak better for you than… YOU?<\/p>\n

Modern Musicians start with building a core fan base from the ground up.<\/strong><\/p>\n

They develop their GAME. This is how they set themselves up for long\u00ad term success. This self\u00ad reliance and artistic freedom on their own terms\u00ad is the name of the GAME. (Grassroots Authentic Music Experience)<\/p>\n

YOU ARE STILL THE CEO of your Content Business!<\/p>\n

It\u2019s absolutely still your responsibility to manage assets and resources effectively. You are the owner and CEO of Your Copyrights, yes, but even more importantly, of your \u200b<\/span>Relationship Database<\/b>.\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

As we covered earlier, you\u2019ve seen why you don\u2019t need a Major Label or any gatekeeper any more, especially before you have a fan base built up first.<\/p>\n

Also remember that before you can put yourself in a position to be considered for a spot on their roster, you\u2019ll have to gain the kind of grassroots traction I\u2019m teaching you how to do\u200b\u00a0<\/span>anyways!<\/p>\n

No matter what your future goals, I highly recommend you fully focus on building a core fan base that supports you \u200b<\/span>first.<\/p>\n

But in doesn’t just casually come to you!<\/p>\n

You have to commit. To stand and plant your flag.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll either do what it takes and stick it out, (for many that\u2019s literally just a couple miles further) or you won\u2019t. And that\u2019s sad stories, excuses, regrets and not fun stuff.<\/p>\n

Not a place I want you to go, though it\u2019s never too late for anyone!<\/p>\n

But you can\u2019t sorta-kinda-maybe<\/em> I\u2019ll get around to it someday…<\/p>\n

I saw a quote the other day that said, \u201ccasualness causes casualty…”<\/p>\n

In the Infantry we used to say Complacency Kills, Stay Alert, Stay Alive…<\/p>\n

Even as a songwriter, I don\u2019t think I could say it better than that. lol.\u00a0Hard to be more direct…<\/p>\n

The Key To An Independent Artists Manifest Destiny?<\/h2>\n

IT\u2019S A COMMITTED DECLARATION right? When the founding fathers inked and established A\u200b<\/span>merica\u2019s\u00a0\u200b<\/span>Declaration of Independence, <\/b>\u200b<\/span>it\u2019s safe to say they were pretty serious\u200b<\/span>. <\/b>\u200b<\/span>This wasn\u2019t a fly by night idea, or a project that sort of fell to the wayside and never got finished…<\/p>\n

It was a life or death kind of DECLARATION.<\/p>\n

THIS is what I\u2019m going to do, this is something I commit to.<\/p>\n

So whether that\u2019s full time yes I\u2019m all in<\/strong>, or some style of slow \u200b<\/span>cooker\/part time side hustle<\/em> that makes steady progress over the long haul…<\/p>\n

You have to step up and plant your f%$king flag and say, I commit<\/strong> to making this happen.<\/p>\n

We call this the \u200b<\/span>Artists Declaration of Independence<\/b>.\u200b<\/span><\/p>\n

You have to say hey, this is a reasonable and practical achievement in the modern world, it is possible… Others have done it with less talent, potential, charisma, personality or good looks than me.. I can and am going to do this.<\/p>\n

Period.<\/p>\n

This is what Step two calls for… Commitment. That you DECLARE YOUR INDEPENDENCE.<\/p>\n

Step\u00a0#2: Make The Commitment and DECLARE YOUR ARTISTIC INDEPENDENCE<\/b><\/h1>\n

 <\/p>\n

Rule #2: Modern Musicians go from co\u200b<\/span>dependent and reliant on outside forces, playing by the traditional rules, to declaring their independence and living by the modern rules as master of their own destiny, creator of their own economy.<\/p>\n

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\u00a0 \u00a0 A young man with his mind firmly set on becoming a successful entrepreneur, travels to see the wise guru\u200b\u00a0who knows the secrets to the success he seeks. The young man says to the teacher, \u201cI want to become rich and successful. Can you help me?\u201d The guru smiles and says, \u201cMeet me at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"off","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[75],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-music-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3224"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3383,"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3224\/revisions\/3383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jamieleger.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}