Music Success? There's More To It Than Luck.

This article is the first in a series of tips & successful independent artist profiles.

In this competitive world of searching for opportunities through social networking and finagling, it seems counter intuitive to just be one's self and  hope for the best in one's career.  We've all heard the stories-- this one stepped on five hundred necks, that one reinvented themselves and marketed their hineys off to make it to the top.  And then here are those who are just lucky enough to be discovered.

Yet those are just... stories.  With the exception of Madonna.  She still has the neck stomping heels in the back of her closet.  But if you don't feel like investing in new footwear, please know there are real people out there making money at their craft simply by being their true authentic selves.

One of the best examples of this phenomenon is Matt Kanelos of The Smooth Maria in New York City. While Kanelos is not a mega-music sensation (yet), he's definitely made inroads with his music by expanding his audience beyond a limited circle of friends, playing regular gigs at night clubs, consistently generating new music with dedicated musicians and maintaining his own music interests without getting a puffy head. 

Matt is quite humble when he talks about his craft.  His admission that he never "felt like it was a big choice to become a musician" explains the organic quality of his music.  In fact he describes himself as "lucky" to pay his bills with his work.  Granted, too many musicians never cross that hurdle.  Yet after talking a little bit deeper with Matt it is easy to see that there is more than luck at play in his career.

The most telling thing Kanelos says about making connections with others through music is "I want to enjoy my friendships.  I don't like to be phony."  Judging by events in Kanelos' career,  it seems his sincerity is returned via cosmic karma. For example, through some musician friends Kanelos made friends with a journalist who happens to occasionally write for NPR.  The journalist genuinely liked The Smooth Maria's latest album and featured the song "Sing" on NPR's song of the day.  The spot was good PR, complete with a list of positive comments by music lovers.  Most importantly, it came easy with minimal pressure but lots of real friendship.

While the thought of cozying up to some cool networking connections to help your career might get you all too warm and fuzzy inside, try to remember that the foundation of those connections is a polished product.   It's obvious that Kanelos puts a lot of quality and detail into his music.  The graphic on "The Silent Show's" album cover is tasteful yet intriguing , as is the matching website.  More importantly, the music on the album is well rehearsed, the orchestration is carefully planned and executed in a thoughtful, emotive way.  Kanelos says his approach to making music is to make the music first then finding an audience who will like it, not creating music to fit a preset group of people.  

Combining all these attributes makes for an attractive product that people can really feel.   It's easy to network with confidence when work is presentable yet authentic, not slap dash because the package practically sells itself, leaving the artist to be themselves.


Still there is a bit of marketing legwork as well as side gigs involved to keep one afloat.  This is where a smattering of focused diligence comes in.  Kanelos says he works to put himself "out there in different directions" to keep the momentum going.  If Matt isn't playing with his band he's teaching piano to students, or doing freelance piano playing for other bands, he's on the internet looking for opportunities like connecting with music supervisors in television shows to send his latest CD to.  Scouring for opportunities to open up new connections led to Kanelos landing a music feature spot on ABC's Private Practice.   Matt claims landing the spot was just plain "luck" (that word again!) but that luck wouldn't have happened if he hadn't made phone calls, mailed out his cd's to strangers or followed up with previous contacts by sending them his new material.

This isn't to say Kanelos is going over board with marketing himself, just that there is some concentrated, organized energy being beamed in that direction. There's a lot to be said for that. In the face of gimmicks and ridiculously outlandish antics in the art world, combining focused work with an open personality is a really tough combination to beat.

If you want to hear what it's all about, catch The Smooth Maria on May 19th@ The Living Room
145 Ludlow St, NY NY, 7pm or at www.thesmoothmaria.com.