“What are music supervisors looking for?” asked the audience member during a panel at the most recent TAXI Road Rally convention. Rookie question? Maybe. But everybody in the ballroom wanted to know the answer! Music supervisors are looking for whatever music works best with a particular scene. Music supervisors are NOT looking for music that is simply great! And that’s probably the biggest misconception among musicians. The right music is better than great music. Music that’s both right and great is what music supervisors are really looking for! Music that gets licensed for film, TV, and commercials always fills a...

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Learn exactly what Broadcast Quality Music is and what it sounds like. Hear examples and see TV commercials that have really simple one-instrument music beds that earned their creators thousands of dollars. Virtually anyone with a home studio can easily make Broadcast Quality Recordings. Also answering these questions: • Can I earn money with Instrumentals and Songs? • How long should my tracks be? • What are "Universal Lyrics?" • Do my tracks need to be "Mastered" to be competitive? • What is a "Buttoned Ending," and do I need one? • How much money can I make? • What...

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Thursday, November 5th 5:30pm - 'til close: Rally Registration - Hotel Lobby - next to Grand Ballroom - Must have your Photo ID to get your Road Rally badge! 6:00pm - 'til close: One-to-One Mentor Registration - Grand Ballroom Foyer - next to the Rally Registration desk. Refer to the Mentor Bios sheet to make your selection. Members only, please. One Mentor per member. First-come, first-served basis. Must already be registered and have your Rally badge with you to sign up. 6:00pm - 8:30pm: Dinner 8:30pm - 11:30pm: Open Mic - Grand Ballroom - Names are drawn at random to...

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How to Choose the Right Music Licensing Companies It seems like so many songwriters and artists have given up on the dream of getting a record deal with major record label. Flying around on private jets and trashing hotel rooms is a dream now long forgotten. Film and TV placements are the new "record deal." Most musicians don't know how to choose the right music licensing company or companies, because they haven't done their homework yet. They haven't learned how to know which company has the best chance of getting them a film or TV placement period, and they often...

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Film and TV Music Licensing Opportunities For Independent Musicians Running opportunities for Film and TV placements in our Music Industry Listings back in 1992 made me the laughing stock of the music business. It was unheard of for Indie artists and songwriters to get their songs placed in network TV shows or better yet, feature films put out by major Hollywood studios back then. Nobody seemed to know much about Production Music Libraries (which are Film & TV music publishers) - what they did, how they worked, or what kind of music they needed to license to TV or Film...

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Giving Your Tracks the Right Title Can Get Your Music in More Films and TV Shows You might think that writing great songs and instrumentals is the best way to license more of your music. You could be right, but here's a really simple tip that I'll bet you never thought of -- give your songs and tracks better titles that make them easier to find. Imagine that you're a music supervisor searching for music to license for a Television Show or Movie. As you type in your database query, "uptempo, male, country, instrumental," trying to find the perfect track...

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I recently had a member of TAXI's forum ask what the difference was between a production music library and a music publisher. Great question! Here's the answer I posted: Production Music Libraries and Publishers are both publishers, and it's my observation that the best music libraries get most of their best placements by doing hand to hand combat -- meaning that they develop relationships and actively pitch. Another observation is that Film and TV music supervisors really don't like to search databases for music. They'd rather email or call a human, have them cull a few tracks they think would...

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I just wanted to let you know that Mega-Hit Country Songwriter Jeffrey Steele will be our honoree this year and our keynote interview at TAXI's annual convention, the Road Rally. [caption id="attachment_356" align="alignright" width="150" caption="Jeffrey Steele at TAXI's 2003 Road Rally"][/caption] Here's a list of his professional accomplishments: 2007 BMI Songwriter Of The Year 2007 BMI Song Of The Year, “What Hurts The Most” 2006 NSAI Writer Of The Year 2005 NSAI Writer Of The Year 2003 BMI Writer Of The Year 2003 BMI Writer Of The Year 29 Top 10 Songs 24 Top Five Songs 8 No. 2 Songs...

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Dear Passengers, I've been having one of those weeks where "signs" are everywhere. You know what I mean... little signs that keep pointing to things you shouldn't or can't ignore. For me, the signs have all pointed to the same thing - songwriters, artists and composers missing opportunities that are staring them in the face. The first sign was getting a call from a top Film/TV publisher telling me that 70% of the TAXI members she contacted with deal offers didn't respond. When queried, the members told me they weren't sure if the deal offer was real or legitimate, even...

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