LGTWO Search 

Mechanical Royalties ASCAP, BMI, etc do NOT collect mechanical royalties. Spotify, Apple Music, Google, Amazon, etc etc pay these mechanical royalties directly to publishers (via collections agencies). NOT PROs. I repeat. Streaming services do NOT pay mechanical royalties to ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, SOCAN or any other PRO. So how do you get mechanical royalties? You need a publisher, admin publishing company or royalty collections company to collect these for you. Yes, technically, the DSP (Digital Service Provider – the streaming service) is required to pay you even if you don’t have a publisher, but the thing is, most don’t know how to FIND you. Hence all the lawsuits against Spotify and Apple. So make it easy for em. Work with a company who they know. If you distribute with CD Baby, you can opt in to use CD Baby Pro Publishing (however, they will NOT collect your songwriter royalties for songs you write but are distributed by anyone other than CD Baby distribution – like if another artist records your song and releases it themselves). If you use other distributors, other companies you can use to collect your mechanical royalties include, Kobalt, Tunecore Publishing and Sentric Music Publishing. These companies help you collect your mechanical royalties but don’t own your copyrights and have fairly short terms (for a small commission of 10-20% or so). For more info about the music business: https://www.patreon.com/TruWerdz

ASCAPa, BMI, SESAC, SOCAN, PRS are all Performing Rights Organizations (or PRO for short). These PROs collect performance royalties for songwriters and publishers. A performance royalty is earned anytime your song is “publicly performed.” “Publicly performed” is a loose term, but basically means anytime your song is played in public. Like on the speakers at Starbucks. On TV – TV shows, commercials, etc. On the radio – whether it’s the radio in your car or Pandora or Sirius/XM. When your song is performed live in a venue (yes even by you). And technically the PROs collect a little bit from YouTube and the streaming services. But it’s VERY little. Learn more about the music business: https://www.patreon.com/TruWerdz

Thematic - Where you follow a theme. Personal - Personal brand, think like Taylor Smith Persona - Think like Kiss or The Gorillas Genre - where you follow a genre. Following a genre is bat recommended but that’s one of the 4 you can do. There’s only 4 ways you can brand your music and it is 1 of these Archetypes above. Find out more here : https://www.patreon.com/TruWerdz

Finding Your Audience On Social Media. Follow engaged fans of the Artist or Band you feel best represents your brand and current sound (Targeted) Join in with the conversation. And when the time is right, then mention you are an artist or musician (No Spamming) Here’s a tip : You can identify the engaged fans in the Artist’s or Band’s comment sections. Locate them and follow them ASAP. If they are active then there’s a chance they will engage with your content.

Who Would Most Likely Benefit From My Blogs? • Those who understand this is a music business • Those who are willing to put in the work • Those who understand that it takes time Who Would Most Likely Not Benefit From My Blogs? • Those who think they can build a business without making financial investments • Those who are only hobbyists or fame seekers • Those who are unwilling to change and adapt to the new music business

Spanish translation of this article available here Pete Vagabond is the most recent project of Peter Nilsson, a young producer who is finding his own voice by applying his Swedish “pop magic” genes in the electronic music realm. This is resulting in a catalog of songs that contain the usual catchiness of the Swedish “Pure Pop” hits, but with a more progressive, electronic sound. He manages to combine the organic feel of acoustic instruments with engaging synth sounds, creating songs that cross seamlessly from one genre to another, appealing a wide range of audiences. His songs are sweet and catchy, some of them calm and romantic, and others full of disco feel and energy. In his short journey as a music producer, that started at the end of 2019, Peter has released 5 original tracks, and, just in Spotify, he counts with more than 9000 followers and almost 100K streams, a considerable record for a fully independent artist sailing in the extremely competitive sea of the electronic pop music. This success might be related to the fact that Pete has been fascinated about the magical process of making music since he was a child. Before his teens, he started to play around with DAWs (Digital Audio Workstations), making use of the first versions of FL Studio (Fruity Loops) and Cubase to program his very first sounds. Later on he studied piano, instrument that would become his favorite and the source of inspiration for a great amount of his musical ideas. Until his late teens he further developed his musical skills as the bass player of a Swedish rock band called "Shape" that performed covers of a wide range of musical styles (pop, rock, metal, etc) together with some original songs. This experience introduced Pete, quite early in life, to the world of live performances. The band ceased their activity in 2014, but, since then, Pete and the former vocalist of the band, the gifted singer Erik Ekström, have been taking any chance to get together for jamming, working in new music, and performing as musical duet in weddings and other social events. One can imagine that spending so much time in music, and having the control of the DAWs since such an early age would lead to a great amount of musical ideas. This is what happened to Pete, that one day found himself with hard-drives full of projects that still hadn´t had the chance of seeing the light. That was when he thought about start releasing his music. He was highly inspired by the sound of the late 90s, the techno era, so he decided that his electronic projects would be the first ones to develop until their final shape. Soon after that, his project Pete Vagabond came to life with a debut single that, interestingly, was titled “Back to Life”. Since then, Pete has been progressively incorporating more and more acoustic elements to his tracks, giving them a warmer feel. "Once Again" is his latest single, that Pete co-wrote with his brother. It is a song that talks about longing for someone important that has just disappeared from your life, and wondering if you would ever come together with that person once again. Although Pete Vagabond´s sound signature is electronic, Peter is actually a highly flexible artist, able to work with many different styles and always ready to help and provide feedback to fellow artists in their production endeavors. Currently, he is working as an IT specialist in Sweden, but one of his dreams is moving to the USA and start his own production studio, where keep making original music whilst helping other artists to make the most of their tracks. He is also great in photography and design, and, I am sure he would like me to highlight that he loves coffee very much. He is also very collaborative, and he is always seeking for opportunities to work with different artists, make new friends and take new musical challenges. He is preparing a lot of new songs and other surprises for 2021, when he plans to release an EP and some acoustic versions of his electronic songs. Stay tuned to see what he is up to by connecting with him in the following links from social media and streaming platforms: Webpage: https://petevagabond.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/petevagabond Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PeteVagabondOfficial Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/petevagabond_official/ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/petevagabond If you want to listen to the AleOli Music Sauce radio program, when we interviewed Pete Vagabond, click here. I hope you have enjoyed this article and had a good time listening to Pete's cool tracks! More soon, KiMi

Spanish translation of this article available here One good day of November, my friend Oli, from RadioTFSC sent me over a song – Check out this track! You’ll love it! – he said. I trust him always with his recommendations, so I clicked the link straightaway and started listening: amps plugging sound followed by a hard, catchy guitar riff, smashing drums and strong vocals with high energy shouting out quite funny lyrics talking about calling the police. The song title was “Disturbing the Peace”, and it contained the spirit of the early days of punk, but with much better quality sound and modern production style. The minds behind the scenes are Steve and Dianne Moore, aka The Cranberry Merchants. They are a rock duet from Atlanta, EEUU, which met when they were students in The Art Institute of Atlanta, learning Music Business, Management and Production, and stayed together since then as life partners and music makers. Although we could track down their origins to 30 years ago, what we know today as The Cranberry Merchants is a relatively new project, started in 2018 with their debut EP “In the Blood”, that was very well received, and that soon got into different radio stations all around the globe. The Cranberry Merchants have a very interesting music catalog, where one can find tracks ranging from relatively calm instrumentals, with a nice touch of post rock feel, such as “Diosa de la Luna”, to hard rock, full energy tracks, like “The Black Maria” or “Disturbing the Peace”. It is an inspiring experience to go through their playlist and get surprised by the different colors The Cranberry Merchants manage to put in their music. Their punky sound, that a lot of people found in some of their tracks, is totally unintentional, although the band is delighted to hear about it. They see themselves more like a four chord rock and roll type of band, that tries to have fun and make party music. They set their influences in classic hard rock bands like Led Zeppelin or AC/DC (for Steve), and the 80s new wave groups such as Depeche Mode or Duran Duran (for Dianne). By checking their songs, you can experience the unique creations that come out from such a blend. When asked about the inspiration behind “Disturbing the Peace”, they explained that it was a song that came out spontaneously whilst they were working on another track – “I just started bashing out something on the drums – said Dianne - and it sounded very loud and boisterous. Something you would disturb your neighbors with”. Apparently, the entire arrangement of the song came to place in about two hours, a really impressive speed that even the authors seemed to be surprised about, taking into account that, as they confessed, there are some tracks that can take years to be completed. Nevertheless, music is not the only love in the life of Steve and Dianne, there is another one, a hobby that they have been enjoying for years that they are not shy to share: Lego games. Together with their high creativity, their Lego mastery allowed them produce an amazing stop motion music video for “Disturbing the Peace”, where The Cranberry Merchants feature their awesome Lego collection together with their construction and storytelling abilities. This video is a mandatory stop for anybody interested in checking further this band or witnessing the creative possibilities that a great dose of patience and a stop motion smartphone app can offer. As you might've experienced already, The Cranberry Merchants bring us great music and an original and developed style. Their abilities haven't passed unnoticed and Dianne and Steve have recently won the Gold prize as the best vocal duo in the ISSA Awards (International Singer Songwriter Association) in 2020, and the mention of “Artist of the Year 2020” in Radio TFSC. Apart from being great musicians, The Cranberry Merchants are highly supportive to the indie music community online, and they are really engaged with fans and other musicians from all around the world in their social media pages. Follow them… you won’t regret it! Web: www.cranberrymerchants.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CranberryMerchants Twitter: https://twitter.com/cranberrymerch2 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cranberrymerchants/ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVzYnUI2z628Q4Dp4odPJpQ Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/user-422120341-646901807 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2Vy368Y2NS7niJDyqCvX49 If you want to listen our the interview with The Cranberry Merchants in AleOli Music Sauce, click here. I hope you've enjoyed this article and that you got a little more hooked to this cool band! More soon :) KiMi

Merry Christmas one and all! We'd like to bring you a summary of 2020 events in the world of Bad Haz Techno (BHT). First, the mailing list has grown from 360 techno DJs who received promo 001, to over 1000 receiving promo 020. It has been a great first year for the promotional service, with many proof of concept targets achieved, such as promotions being used in DJ sets online and in clubs; in radio shows, podcasts and YouTube videos; purchases on Beatport; track feedback comments; and collaborations between BHT promoted producers. Over the course of the year we sent out 20 BHT promotions drawing from a diverse talent of mainly independent producers with some on Indie labels. Here is a quick review of each promotion (click on the artist or track name for a link to all platforms). After the promos, please check out the Mixcloud sets by our in-house DJs, Electrostatic Nightmare Disco & Peter Harich, and guest DJs, Rwbel & Komotive, featuring many other tracks by our BHT promoted producers: Bad Haz Techno 2020 Promos 001 - Hegstraction - Eine Kleine Nachtmusik - 140 bpm "A Berlin techno underground sound. The beat pushes the pace with level changes and sounds to stimulate and energize, whilst creating an industrial feel and encompassing atmosphere." 002 - DZM - The Worm - 128 bpm "A hypnotic acid techno track." 003 - Electrostatic Nightmare Disco - King of Spite - 129 bpm "This track isn’t typical of the genre; it’s a bit more Industrial and dark, but that’s what I like, creating an atmosphere. It’s music for the 3am walk home through empty alleyways, and ... did that bin just move?!" 004 - E1GHTH PLACE - Create A Monster - 128 bpm "The concept behind "Create a Monster" was spawned from the various video games that I had played when I was younger. Just thinking about the idea behind how there were human experiments done to produce something so vile was really dark and spooky, so I created a song that was based off of that. I first came up with some dark sound designs and sound effects which I then later on added in that repetitious arp to give it a feeling of insanity. As the song progressed, the track became tense and chaotic which is precisely what I was aiming for." 005 - Hegstraction - Berghain Hard - 170 bpm "This track is a Berlin techno underground sound made to represent the pace & hardness found in the top Berlin club, Berghain, whilst mimicking the imposing Berghain building itself with its austere qualities. It has industrial & minimal elements throughout." 006 - Many Elephants - Minima Alpha - 125 bpm "A dramatic evocative haunting techno track with space-like elements and a big room sound." 007 - Skaarl - Even More Acid - 129 bpm "A smooth flowing techno track dripping with acid." 008 - Cylotron - The Mangler - 140 bpm "It is a bass heavy techno track with textured hard beats and dark threatening elements." 009 - Peter Harich - Dirt, Dust & Deception 128 bpm "I wanted to create a drum based, earthy track influenced by nature. Dirt, Dust & Deception is about conquering those dangerous areas where man should not be. It's also an homage to my outdoor raving days, the dirt floor, the dust in the massive tent in the middle of nowhere." 010 - Gerard H - The Realm 128 bpm "Created by throwing in multiple genres and influences picked up over the long period of time listening to electronic music, carrying old skool and new age vibes." 011 - Daz Scott - Geiger Counter 130 bpm "We are sensing high volumes of radiation coming from this track with its intense hard tech style, hammering kicks, sophisticated samples and epic FX. The Geiger Counter is going off the scale!" 012 - klimaschreck - Past of Our Future 128 bpm "A pulsating driving techno track with thoughtful percussive elements; 'a reminder of this time, and that this time will be our history'." 013 - DJMarz - Figures Remix (Chris Keya) 130 bpm "An atmospheric remix with a little 90’s trance vibe in it." 014 - Karnevor - Tech-No-Prisoners 125 bpm "A rhythmic techno track with trippy vocals & minimal melodic elements." 015 - Robin Hirte - Manhatten 123 bpm "A soulful driving atmospheric track with iconic synths and subtle acid elements, inspired by experiencing the energy of walking through New York." 016 - Dom3n - Corpulent Wave (Dub Mix) 129 bpm "A deep dark driving techno track with unearthly synths from the depths, contrasted with trance-inducing calming elements." 017 - Chris Keya - Renaissance 130 bpm "A dark techno track influenced by Berlin techno imagery with a hint of Gesaffelstein dark clubbing style that gives the track its characteristic melodic but still powerful sound." 018 - Renee Lincoln & Dogstare - Vagabond (DeepDownDirty Label) 126 bpm "A combination of almost wistful melodic top-lines laid over driving percussive beats, interspersed with atmospheric sounds and vocal samples." 019 - Electrostatic Nightmare Disco - Drill 140 bpm "A dark driving industrial track featuring vocal samples from the 1999 Japanese horror film, Audition." 020 - Peter Harich - There Is No Planet B 131 bpm "A hard hitting techno track with an energetic beat that is equally at home on the dance floor and in spinning class. 'You're treading on the edge of disaster', and that's what we are doing with the planet. There is no planet B guys, so lets succeed with planet A." Bad Haz Techno 2020 Mixcloud sets See you in 2021 for much more Bad Haz Techno!

Click here for Spanish translation In the little town of Alburtis, in the middle of Pennsylvania, there is a band that is working hard to bring back the classic sweet, upbeat power pop sound of the 70s: short songs, full of energy and good vibes and catchy, made to help anyone to forget the daily difficulties for a while and have fun. These guys are called “The What?”, and they have been releasing original tracks since the first half of 2019, when they put out their debut single “Flower of the North”, a nice, happy tune where The What? managed to present in a sweet style their memory of Fleur Manville, a talented fiddle player of Pictou County, Nova Scotia, that passed away due to cancer at a young age. On the 27th of November 2020, two years and 55K streams after their first release, The What? presented to the world their fourth studio single, “You’re Still Alive”. This record was originally inspired in Paul Christman’s (lead vocal, bass) reflections about school bullying. After the incidents related to police brutality and subsequent social movement occurred in the USA last summer, the band decided to adjust the lyrics and transform “You’re Still Alive” in a song of reflection and protest against police brutality, echoing with their voices a problem that is not exclusive of the United States. The song is not only special in terms of meaning, but also it is special because of the way it was written and composed, as a result of a songwriting collaboration between USA, Japan and Australia. “I like collaborating, to be honest” – said Paul in his last interview for the radio show AleOli Music Sauce – “I do not know enough about music, about writing. I like some of my ideas, and I don’t like some of my ideas, so I take them and give them to someone else to make them progress further… and I think it comes out a better song that way”. “I like collaborating, to be honest I do not know enough about music, about writing. I like some of my ideas, and I don’t like some of my ideas, so I take them and give them to someone else to make them progress further… and I think it comes out a better song that way”. Indeed, this song contains an interesting blend of styles. Some people has found on it a bit of Depeche Mode, probably due to the contribution of the Australian artist Mark White, former band member of the new wave band “Serious Young Insects” whose major hit “Be Patient”, has been also linked to Depeche Mode in terms of sound and mood. Other listeners have also found there a glimpse of the ethereal vocals of Amy Lee from Evanescence, singer that highly influenced the vocal style of the featured artist Kireina Michan. Finally, the amazing guitar solo, in David Gilmour’s line, was something Paul had clear since he heard the first demos in the studio, and it became reality thanks to the contribution of the artist Not John; singer, guitarist, and owner of the recording studio Papa Bear’s in Duryea, Pennsylvania, where The What? has recorded and produced, so far, all of their works. These influences nicely complemented with The What?’s style, their easy going rock feel and upbeat sound, and made posible this special and unique record that is “You’re Still Alive”, that I am presenting here today. Before listening to it, I would like all the readers to know that there's and ongoing discussion about The What?'s sound… and it is related to their vocalist! There are several opinions about Paul Christman’s voice and style: some people clearly see in him the influence of The Beach Boys, and others point out Status Quo, Joey Ramone... whilst Paul acknowledges bands such as Kiss, Queen, Sweet and Slade. So many different colors and flavours! What can you hear? Follow The What? in Social Media and Streaming platforms: Spotify Youtube Twitter Listen to the whole interview to Paul, from The What? in AleOli Music Sauce, and find more details about Paul’s musical preferences, experiences, desired superpowers and time traveling targets here

"Good Morning @_lgtwo, are you ready to be "hyper-interrogated?" "LOL, Good Morning! Yes, I am ready! Thank you for taking the time to do this." I Couldn't Think Of A Better Way To Spend My Free Time, Well Other Than Jamming Out To The Dope Artists Involved With #LGTWO! "So, mystery man behind this dope movement, what should we call you?" "Justin or Mike aka People Of The Parallel both are my names so either or is cool with me. But the full name is Justin Michael" So I Can Stop Calling You Mr. LGTWO Guy? Sweet! "So people see this hashtag #LGTWO hundreds of times a day from artists and creatives from all walks of life, from all over the world... Can you tell us what "LGTWO" stands for?" "LGTWO stands for Let's Get The Word Out." "Is that sort of like "word of mouth?" "From a social media perspective, you could say the word of the tweet." Haha! Word Of The Tweet! Brilliant! "So how did this hashtag get started?" "Well, in the beginning, I met this guy named Studious Pupil, a rap artist on Twitter. Throughout our chats, we would talk about how to find ways to grow our audience while also building relationships with the new artist. Where we could all help each other grow at the same time by sharing each other's tweets and doing something along the lines of cross-promotions. At first, it was really simple and we just went about looking for people who were already active with us and started to listen to their music. I would make the post with a flyer letting people know that I was going to tweet their whole catalog out the following day. Studious had suggested changing the way I was hashtagging the tweets because the tags were too personalized. He gave me an awesome idea that shaped the foundation of LGTWO. To create a tag that could be interpreted by the people as a community effort, not just geared towards one person. Each artist that I added to the flyer would receive a listen, follow, and save to all of their songs in their entire catalog. The following day I would post all of their work, and we would go and retweet it all. After a couple of weeks, some of the artists started responding to the promo and started to send me dm's to let me know that they liked what we were doing and thought it was cool. I would then ask if they would like to be a part of the movement. Unfortunately, not all were interested but I did end up connecting with a couple of really cool guys by the names of AyeFelon, Substance P, and Jdot. So, in the beginning, it was 5 of us. We came up with a strategy to spread the feature tweets out so they were able to reach a wider audience. The original members of LGTWO all had a major impact on the style and strategy at the inception. The hashtag used to be all lowercase and then became all capitals. Simple things like this I truly believe help overall when trying to make an impact. I never would have thought of this if it wasn't for AyeFelon. So although things changed over time I will always remember what the originals members did at the origin of all of this. Ok back to the story, LOL, things were going great and I finally decided to create a dedicated LGTWO page on Twitter. It was to be kind of like the central hub for it all. Made a Twitter page for people to drop their music links into as well. This was the collection phase. We all had a quota to meet and deposited a certain amount of artists we wanted to be featured in the following months. What was most excellent about it, was that there were so many responses, we were able to plan for almost 2 months of features after only two weeks. The features eventually became videos all with original audio, that would display the artist's Twitter handles letting them know we were going to be tweeting out their catalog the following morning. The videos were a hit and took off from the beginning. Which was fantastic. This was when the hashtag and its true purpose started to take effect." That is Very Interesting, Justin! "What is the mission behind the hashtag?" "To create a community of like-minded individuals that are willing to help each other out through the means of cross-promotion. It is important to find a place to belong or individuals that are willing to help one grow, especially on social media. Social media is a really difficult place to grow if you aren't working with anyone. When you work with others and find ways to establish a healthy and professional connection, growth will come at an exponential rate. Instead of one person tweeting or retweeting it is extremely important to have a team and a place where individuals can share their work so others can help spread the word through the tools set in place by that platform. But it is not a one-way street the relationship has to be mutual. And advice for anyone reading if you have access to tools, use them. If you are involved with people that are willing to help you out, help them out. This also comes with a warning, don't expect the favor to ever be returned in any way shape, or form. This will only lead one towards a negative thought process and will inhibit your growth. One should find a way to move past it, and reconnect with their original goals as an artist." "How is this mission being accomplished?" "Through the use of various community support rooms and Team Member meetings every morning." Id Love To Be A Fly On The Wall In One Of Those Meetings Justin! "So, There's a lot of people involved in "Getting The Word Out?" "Yes, I would say there are a lot of people getting the word out." Very Cool! "How does one become part of this important mission, and can anyone use the hashtag, or join the collective?" "Well just reaching out sometimes is enough. But more of reaching out with a purpose makes more sense in my opinion concerning productivity and accomplishment of a certain objective. Small talk or just someone dropping a link and saying listen will never get the job done. The small talk and link drops are more appropriate after some sort of connection is established. But someone that drops a link and retweets your pin definitely will achieve their goal concerning me and checking out their work. This is my idea of mutual respect. 80% of people that say they are down to help or be a part don't follow through and think the name is supposed to take care of them. The movement works as a unit. If people aren't willing to help each other out it doesn't work. People have and will continue to experience growth when they are present in a productive environment. it is as simple as that. You have two people, one that holds the door for others and one that just walks through and never thinks twice about the person behind them. When you hold the door open for others you can see and do more, not just for yourself but for a wider audience as well. The moral of the story is that one is ultimately able to make that many more connections and accomplish a great deal of work when there is mutual respect. Yes, anyone can use the hashtag or join the movement. But the movement only works if support is mutual. One can't just show up thinking they get auto respect because they think they are the best in the world or don't have any time to contribute. They need to take the time to build a relationship. So I know I have gone on quite a bit of a rant in this section but basically if one is optimistic and open-minded then it is an easy and most productive process when involved in cross-promotion and social media growth." "Are You Bored Yet?" "LOL, no never. I am passionate about all of this so I could go on for days on end about this stuff." Great! "Ok, So I know #LGTWO is much more than a hashtag, can you give us a little insight into what LGTWO is as a brand? Like, what services you offer, and in what creative ways you promote?" "Going forward 2021 LGTWO will mainly be focused on Production, Mixing, and Mastering. The promotion is and will be exclusive to the artist and projects we have and will have worked on. Also, more focus on the Blogging aspect of the website is going to be a major focal point. There will be LGTWO merchandise, Sample-based loop libraries, and the website will remain in a state where people can submit their artist information for free real estate on the LGTWO website all they have to do is ask for the link. This is probably the best and easiest way to reach out concerning your question relative to becoming part of the movement. Creative ways we promote and the most effective one has been the creation of a collaborative playlist. Over the past year we have kept track of what works the best and what we have noticed is that when everyone is included or has the choice to be included the effort is less strenuous and a lot more can get accomplished." I'm Going To Link One Of Your Collaborative Lists At The End Of This "What was the inspiration behind the name and the hashtag?" "The inspiration behind the name was making it so everyone could be involved "Let's" meaning all of us together not "I'' get the word out. Strength in numbers regardless of the genre. I listen to and work with almost every genre so the target audience was never a factor in all of this. The target audience has always been people that enjoy music and individuals that support the essence of it. So there are a plethora of fantastic individuals and artists to work without out there. Some may disagree with this but it was never my intention to get people to agree with me or the ideas behind what we chose to establish from day 1. We simply found a hole in the market and decided to fill it. Anyone can find LGTWO all they have to do is look it up." ☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝ This Is Why I Love You Brother! 🤜🔥🤛 "Tell us about the LGTWO website" "The website is all original design and we decided early on to not use templates or anything that looks like another website. We have an Artist section where artists that have submitted their profiles can be seen. It includes an artist menu section and an artist page where the visitor can read their bio and link to either Spotify, YouTube, or Twitter. We have a Meet The Team section with a majority of the LGTWO key players involved on the inside. Featured videos are artists we have featured in the past when we first started LGTWO. ItzAWrap Yo! is dedicated to an awesome YouTube reactor by the name of Rob Detlor. The playlist section requires a massive update LOL cause there are so many that haven't been uploaded to the site yet. The Spotify and YouTube bar is kind of an experiment and not sure if they will stay in 2021. It is a place where you can access everyone on the website and follow them all at one time. The blog section will more than likely be the center point in 2021 there is a lot in the works concerning tips tricks advice and artists reviews so we are excited. The promo section is to be changed to mixing and mastering which we will offer affordable mixing and mastering packages with promo attached to all of the orders. All client's work will be handled by certified industry professionals that have graduated from the Conservatory Of Recording Arts & Sciences. There will also be a list of examples from past work concerning before and afters, so potential clients can see what we are offering if they choose to work with us. The contact section is just for people that may just be reaching out or wanting more information about material concerning the website. About us section LOL, while this should be the very first thing anyone does when building a website we have not made it public yet due to the constantly changing outlook on what we plan on offering as a Service/Brand. For now, it is as simple as this, we support independent and mainstream music. Lastly will be the gift shop where anyone can purchase LGTWO merchandise like shirts, hats, cups, magnets, and sample-based loop libraries." My Favorite Spots On The Site, And The Most Unique Of Any Website Out Here, Are The Spotify And YouTube Bars! And I Cant Wait For The Gift Shop To Be Available! "Do you have any advice for artists struggling to be heard?" "Don't expect anything from anyone." "Be willing and prepared to go the distance." "Mutual contributions are key." "Use the tools social media offers. Don't just present the page as all about you. If you are genre-specific, then use the pin function to the top of your page. No one wants to see pictures or tweets of the same thing every day. Be creative and mix it up. Tweeting out your friends or retweeting their work is a great way to generate curiosity in what you are doing, believe it or not." "Develop a team with five or more like-minded individuals willing to share your work with their followers, and you share theirs with yours. It won't happen all alone, and if you aren't willing to step outside of the box and show love getting heard will be virtually impossible." "Don't be sensitive. If you are an artist, chances are you are doing something in a way that may be the same or different from everyone else. So people will always be more than willing to give their opinion on what it is that you do. Be prepared to accept it and move forward. If your material is lacking in quality accept it. Move forward and always be willing to reinvent yourself. The only way to grow is by absorbing what is happening around you and learning from it. Bouncing it back into the other direction where it came from will eventually prove to be extremely ineffective. "Do your best to create a quality product to the best of your ability. If you cant pay someone to do it, then do your research and analyze what it will take for you to produce something great with the tools that you already have." "Say Thank You and Your Welcome. It could be an emoji, retweet, and even a heart. Social media allows multiple ways for users to show appreciation for something someone has done for you. So it is important not to forget how and when to use them." "Keep it simple." "People will have on days and off days be willing to understand and not hold a grudge. Find common ground with everyone you are working with and respect those boundaries." "Recognize that the wins will be, spread out not all in one chunk or just one place." Great Advice! I Know From My Own SM Experiences That These Are Key Factors In Gaining And Retaining A Loyal Audience/Following! "In your opinion and from your experience, can you give us your best marketing tip?" "Measure twice, so you only have to cut once." I Try To Apply This Tip To Everyday Life, Something My Old Man Used To Tell Me All The Time "Do you have any long term goals set for #LGTWO? Any changes or implementations that will drive your mission further?" "The long-term goals would be way too long to share here, but we have plans on massive development into ultimately maturing into a label. First and foremost is to secure a comfortable place in the market. This will enable us to consistently offer artists something of value. Being able to provide the artist with opportunities that will warrant personal growth and monetary gain is the objective. And to be honest, this admittedly will take some time. But willing to go the distance is my number 2 on the list, so this ok with me. The hashtag will prevail as it is, and to put it simply, it will endure a searchable way for people to unite and encourage each other." "Well, that's extremely dope! Now that we learned a little about LGTWO, I want to give some of your followers a chance to ask a few questions. Are you cool with that?" "I don't have enough time left. LOL" That's too bad because they've already asked!! "Ok, let's do it." "Oh, you are! Dope! Let's do this!!" "Thanks! So are you! And yes, let's get to it!" DJ Brad @Royaltyproduc on Twitter asked; "Do you feel that female artists get equal representation or, are they overshadowed by male artists, being the bigger demographic?" "Yes, the data says so. Even though the word overshadowed sounds more nefarious, I don't believe what is occurring to females in connection to equal representation is being done intentionally, just because they are females. I think worldwide business is dominated by males so herein lies the concerns. Once the investments backed by capital or acquired assets come from an equal playing field and the board consists of 50% male and 50% female there will, unfortunately, remain an unhealthy balance. Their future projections will more than likely be based on the Profit and Loss statements from the years previous. This won't make room for new ideas and strategies to help females establish a bigger impact in the music industry until there is a huge shift in who is managing it all at the top. Males will continue to dominate the market and invest more time, money, and energy into something that is relatable to them as males and this is valid across all levels of business. is it right? No, it is extremely unfair and creates a never-ending biased environment. Is it unfortunate? Yes. Now look forward years into the future I believe that the market will eventually level itself out gender-wise, and it will through a lot of work become a more balanced environment where the opportunities offered can and will become equal. I think women will end up dominating the entire music industry." HunterFoxzAC @HunterFoxzAC on Twitter asked; "Why should I, as an indie artist, CARE if I am a part of this group of artists?" "One should care because it is a place where one receives support. It may not always be consistent, it may not be in the millions, thousands, or even hundreds, but it is better than having nothing at all. It is awesome to have a place you know you will receive some kind of support, regardless of the type or even the amount of it. Especially when and if you are busy in the other aspects of your life. These groups are great because they help one get an immediate result on one's self-promotional efforts." Howie Dillard @DillardHowie on Twitter asked; "How do you deal with negativity?" "The first step is that I acknowledge and accept that negativity exists. The second step is, when I face it because I know that it exists, I become aware that I don't have to engage with it or even entertain it. Negativity can have a real impact on how you perceive the world you are in and even the people that surround you. So sometimes, I have to step outside of myself and collect my thoughts. Once I do this, I realize that the best strategy is to not engage in dealing with negativity on social media. Eventually, after some time, they will go away and find something else to do. Unfortunately, 9x out of 10 individuals of this nature that like to cause friction and create problems for others are doing it only to gain attention. So knowing these things and taking note of them helps to deal with negative situations when they present themselves." God$on @beckman_jay on Twitter asked; "As an artist/engineer, do you spend more time creating music or connecting with fans and other artists?" "I would have to say it is a 50/50 balance throughout most of the year." People Of The Parallel @potparallel on Twitter asked; "Do you ever want to quit?" "LOL, The question I ask myself to answer myself. Yes, every day I have felt like I want to quit. This is the element that keeps me extremely pragmatic and to not get mentally too big for my britches. I believe to have a strong balance of both positive and negative emotions is important in all aspects of development. You can't have more than the other. When one should have to face adversity, it will be tough to manage and develop an effective strategy to move forward if the balance is off. So there is an equal amount of positive and an equal amount of negative that I embrace. The negative outlook keeps me grounded and realistic. The positive outlook allows me to set the bar high and dream big." I Can Relate To That 100% As A Creative Interacting With Thousands Of Other Creatives Daily I Experience Fluid Amounts Of Negative And Positive Energy All The Time, Sometimes The Negative Gets Overwhelming And I Feel Like Giving Up, But, Something Or Someone Always Throws Just Enough Positive Energy Into The Universe To Help Me Balance The Two And I Remember My Mission, Which Will Fail If I Give In To The Negative. So I'm Starting To Understand The Actual Need For Both, And I'm Learning To Embrace Both As A driving Force In The Overall Mission. Thank You For Personally Helping Me Understand This 👊 Justin, This Is Really Helping Us To Understand What #LGTWO Is And The Mission Behind The Hashtag! Now WE Know It's Not As Cut And Dry As Just Hashtagging A Tweet To Be Retweeted, There's A Purpose To It, Providing A Support Tool For Creatives, And Also Driving The Brand's Growth, Which Not Only Continues To Gain Reach, But Also Developing Itself Into A BRAND! You Give Artists Hope, No Matter How Unknown Or Known Every Artist That Gets Involved Can Benefit, Exponentially, From The Tools And Services Provided! I'm Extremely Proud And Humbled At The Same Time To Be A Part Of This Important Movement! Thank You For What You've Created, And Thank You For Letting Me Pry Into Your Life A Little Bit! Click Play On The Player Below To Preview One Of #LGTWO's Collaborative Playlists! #LGTWO Collaborative Playlist No.9 👇👇👇👇