What's in your mind?

TOPMICS UK SHOW

Topmics DMV Director "Latoya Gordon"

TOPMICS & BLACK PEARL RECORDS PRESENTS: TOPMICS GOSPEL SHOW in Maryland Sept 14th 4pm-8pm 

@ "Upscale Ballroom • Suitland" 

3900 Bexley Pl, Suitland, MD 20746

TOPMICS SHOW in The Park

TOPMICS & G-MAN ENT PRESENTS:

TOPMICS SHOW in VIRGINIA Sept 13TH 2014 12PM-6PM 

@ "Berkley Park" 701 Berkley Ave, Ext Norfolk, VA 23523 

Next Tour Stop is UK

TOPMICS & STANDTAWL
Doing it big in the UK, G'up Stand Tawl Hatease has manage to lined up the Best of The Best indie artist Southend England. Such artist like Wry Aslan Molyneux,De'Blend PersianPaper, Skrilla Ugq, Messy,Regine Garnier, all great artist thats making noise in the underground.

6 Industry musical myths

Myth #2
Your music video will possibly go viral on YouTube.

Again, 99.9999% of the time the viral videos are from artists (like Karmin [90 million views now] and Noah [21 million views]) that built up a solid foundation of subscribers through consistent WORK and content before their big video went viral.
There are always exceptions to the rule, but if your business model is founded on the success of these very rare occurrences you’re naïve; you’re setting yourself up for needless disappointment.
FYI, the algorithms change, ranking you higher on YouTube, when a large amount of people view a video within hours of it being posted.
The better ranking can post you on the front page of YouTube thus creating a ton of organic traffic.
Then it takes on a life of its own when corporate money comes in.

Tonight

TONIGHT 5PM TiLL 4AM

PROBE MAGAZINE Photo Shoot featuring TOPMICS APPROVED ATISTS, 

plus PERFORMANCES/ BATTLE ACTS/ PRODUCERS/ & FASHION SHOW!
JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM

TOPMICS PERFORMERS/ TOP GUESTS:
LORD VITAL
KOD
TATI GENOVESSE
ALEX PHOENIX
JULY SAINT ROSE
NITE aka MADAME MURDA
CUZZIN BOP
TERP DE SOUL
DEE ROC
TRIFE BOSS
T PARRIS
T HUNY
GUNNA
BREEZE
FIRE KIDD
FYA TRAKZ
G-SOULEXPERIENCE
LEEZY DA DON & More..... 

@ "CLUBFIRE"
615 EAST 187 STREET,
BRONX, New York 10458

-- 

Topmics Office 310.433.4812

topmics@gmail.com

We see you

You see anyone you recognize? If so, their apart of TOPMICS world, 

Some are participating in TOPMICS Show tomorrow night in the BRONX, NY. 

TOPMICS SHOW in BRONX, NY 

JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM 

@ "CLUBFIRE" 

615 EAST 187 STREET, Bronx NY

Nite aka Madame Murda as done it again

Come see why they call this awesome female indie artist "NITE aka MADAME MURDA" 

at The TOPMICS SHOW in BRONX, NY 

JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM @ "CLUBFIRE" 615 EAST 187 STREET, BRONX, New York 10458

TRU7H is in

TOPMICS, D-BLOCK WEST, V RECORDS, QWEEN DEE MANAGEMENT, CORNER 2 CORPORATE, INDIEBOOM & ASTREETZ PRESENTS:

TOPMICS SHOW in CALIFORNIA 
AUGUST 13 ST, 9PM-2AM

FEATURING: "TRU7H" (RnB Sensation)

"THE KAVA LOUNGE"" 
2812 Kettner Blvd, San Diego, 
CA 92101

This Friday

Born Bad Ent., Topmics, Brooklyn Club, Indie Boom, UBL, Probe Mag & V Records Presents:

GRAND OPENING AT CLUB FIRE JULY 25TH 2014

LIVE PERFORMANCES FROM: Boogie Black & Twan Da Dude

Surprise guests, Fashion Show, Hot Models, Independent Artists, Interviews, Birthdays celebrations & MORE!

HOT DJS:

D.j. Hpnotiq

Dj Rell

BOTTLE SERVICES:

$50 - $250

Doors Open: 5pm

Show Starts: 6pm SHARP

AFTER PARTY:

12am n Beyond

ENTRY FEE: $20 (Ladies are FREE b410pm)

ID Mandatory/18 to Party & 21 to Drink

DRESS:

Fly ... (No hoodies)

CONTACT:

Donell Djtechniq Robinson or

Topmics 310.433.4812

DONT MISS THE HOTTEST BRONX EVENT OF THE YEAR!

July 25TH THIS FRIDAY TOPMICS HYDRATES EVERYONE

"AQUA HYDRATE" - Sean "Diddy" Combs & Mark Wahlberg's newest product - is sponsoring the THIS FRIDAY TOPMICS SHOW in BRONX NEW YORK/ JULY 25TH 2014, 9PM-2AM  

Fashion Show

Topmics @ D-BLOCK TEAM UP ON THE WEST COAST

TOPMICS & D- BLOCK WEST in CALIFORNIA 

AUGUST 13TH, 9PM-2AM

@ "THE KAVA LOUNGE"
2812 Kettner Blvd, San Diego
CA 92101 

LEEZY DA DON is down with Topmics

TOPMICS, V RECORDS, INDIEBOOM, BORN BAD ENT, BROOKLYN MIC CLUB & PROBE MAGAZINE PRESENTS:

"LEEZY DA DON" Performing Live at
TOPMICS SHOW in BRONX, NY 
Next Friday JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM

@ "CLUBFIRE" 
615 EAST 187 STREET,
BRONX, New York 10458

D-BLOCK WEST is on board we going to Cali

TOPMICS, V RECORDS, QWEEN DEE MANAGMENT, CORNER 2 CORPORATE, 
INDIEBOOM & ASTREETZ PRESENTS:

TOPMICS SHOW & D- BLOCK
in CALIFORNIA AUGUST 13TH, 9PM-2AM

@ "THE KAVA LOUNGE"
2812 Kettner Blvd, San Diego
CA 92101

D-Block found it's home.

TOPMICS, V RECORDS, INDIE BOOM & D-BLOCK PRESENTS:

TOPMICS SHOW in CALIFORNIA AUGUST 13ST, 9PM-2AM

"The Kava Lounge" 2812 Kettner Blvd, San Diego, CA 92101

Fya Trackz goes Live 7/25/14

TOPMICS SHOW in BRONX, NY 

JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM 

FEATURING: "FYA TRACKZ" 

Performing his new single "LEAD HER"

@ "CLUBFIRE" 

615 EAST 187 STREET,

BRONX, New York 10458

Sign Up

TOPMICS 2014 STATE TO STATE & NOW THE UK SHOW DATES:

HOW DO I GET ON TOPMICS TOUR?

FL  JUL-18

NY JUL- 25

UK  AUG- 9 

CA  AUG 13

AL  SEP- 7

MD SEP- 14 

Send your mp3 music to Topmics@gmail.com

A. Number

B. Facebook

C. Twitter

D. Which Topmics State

TOPMICS OFFICE 310.433.4812

topmics.com

Tati GENOVESSE is back

TOPMICS, INDIE BOOM, V RECORDS, BORN BAD ENT, BROOKLYN MIC CLUB & PROBE MAGAZINE PRESENTS:
TOPMICS SHOW in BRONX, NY 
JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM 

FEATURING: "TATI GENOVESSE"

@ "CLUBFIRE" 615 EAST 187 STREET, BRONX, New York 10458

HIP HOP VS THE NEW SLAVERY

Greetings,

Ladies and Gentlemen. I greet you here at the offices of Interscope Records, in the year of Iggy Azalea, 2014.  First, I shall thank you, for releasing and promoting rap music that affects so many people.  But I am here to help you solve some of your problems with your rappers and the general public.  Lately, I have been experimenting with some of the newest, and, still, the oldest, methods for controlling artists and the general public.  All the world has begun to envy America’s rap culture. Today, I will show you how your record labels and media companies can maintain racism and get your artists and the general public to carry out this task for you. Some call music the great unifier. Well, today, I will show you how to use music and popular media and culture as the great divider, so that we – executives and the White community – can remain powerful and keep people of color oppressed.

Travelling around the globe and seeing how widespread rap culture is, I saw enough to know that your need to control and brainwash society with rap music is not unique. You can expand this brainwashing so that the entire globe will be under your control.  While, in history, your society used the tree, the rope and Jim Crow laws to control negroes, now, you can use mainstream rap music to do the job.  I AM HERE TO INTRODUCE YOU TO A FOOLPROOF METHOD FOR CONTROLLING BLACK PEOPLE  and, eventually, the worldwide globe.  Since it has been 300 years since the old Willie Lynch method, I offer you a modern, improved method that is guaranteed to last at least another 300 years.

My method is simple. Any one of your executives or A&R’s can use it.  I HAVE OUTLINED A NUMBER OF DIFFERENCES AMONG RAPPERS AND LISTENERS; AND I TAKE THESE DIFFERENCES AND MAKE THEM BIGGER. This method worked on Southern plantations, and will work throughout America via mainstream rap culture. Take this simple list of differences and think about them. At the top of my list is “RACE,” but it’s there only because the foundation of America was built on racism.  The second is “COLOR” or shade. There is INTELLIGENCE, SIZE, SEX, SIZE OF HOUSES, and STATUS in a gang or social group. Whether the rappers and listeners live in the valley, on a hill, East, West, North, South, have fine hair, course hair, weave, natural hair, whether they are tall or short, have a big ass or small one, big breasts or small breasts, I will show you how to use their differences against them.

Now that you have a list of differences, I shall give you an outline of action, but before that, I shall assure you that DISTRUST IS STRONGER THAN TRUST AND ENVY IS STRONGER THAN ADULATION, RESPECT OR ADMIRATION.  The slave rappers and their listeners, after receiving this indoctrination, shall carry on and will become self-refueling and self-generating, self-hating modern slaves for HUNDREDS of years, maybe THOUSANDS.

You must pitch the OLD, CLASSIC Black rappers, Hip Hop emcees and fans against the YOUNG rappers.  The younger generation of Black rappers shall not respect the older generation and must not seek their elders to instill in them the knowledge they need for longevity. We must put them against each other to disrupt unity and a cohesive culture.

You must use the DARK skinned rappers and listeners vs. the LIGHT skinned rappers and listeners. You will make sure your rappers talk about skin color in their music and videos. I say “your” rappers because they are just that. They belong to you. They are nothing without your companies. They make money for you. They do as you tell them, and they are not allowed to make their own decisions. You are their masters; your executives are their slave drivers. Remember that. YOU, and only you, have power. Now, by putting the old against the new and the dark against the light, they will choose a side and be divided by their preferences, making their listeners do the same. They will start incorporating LIGHT vs. DARK into their identities and relationships. They will find different ways, slang terminology, and methods to separate themselves based on color and skin tone. Artists and the public will then carry out the division you started and begin nurturing the oppressive seed you plant. Dark skinned negroes will despise lighter skinned negroes and vice versa. They will never unite and both will learn self-hate through separation.

You must use the FEMALE rappers and listeners vs. the MALE rappers and listeners against each other.  You must also have white listeners and executives who distrust all Blacks – but don’t worry, because the music will help you achieve this. But, remember, it isNECESSARY THAT YOUR BLACK RAPPERS TRUST AND DEPEND ON US, the media companies and record labels. THEY MUST LOVE, RESPECT AND TRUST ONLY US. They should not be able to realistically reach the fame and exposure they desire without our record labels and media companies.  As I will explain later, they must be completely dependent upon our companies and us. They must not be content with being underground, independent or anything less than mainstream, radio artists. They should crave popularity and mainstream acceptance. Gentlemen, these kits are your keys to control. Use them. Have your wives and children use them, never miss an opportunity. IF USED INTENSELY FOR ONE YEAR, THE RAPPERS AND LISTENERS WILL REMAIN PERPETUALLY DISTRUSTFUL. Thank you gentlemen.

LET’S MAKE A SLAVE RAPPER AND LISTENER

What do we need? First of all, we need a Black negro man, a pregnant negro woman and her baby negro boy. You will expose the Black negro mother to our corporate mainstream rap music at every chance. Her every day life will be surrounded by these sounds, images and ideas. She will constantly be reminded of her hypersexualized role and that her Black male counterparts prefer her this way. She will constantly be told that her Black male counterparts do not want her exclusively and they seek multiple mating partners. She will learn to resent her Black male counterpart and project these negative ideas onto her negro boy child. The father, will be sure to engage in violence and criminal behavior since he will try imitating the violent behaviors you constantly expose him to through rap music. This way, his criminal behavior will cause him not be around to mitigate his mother’s negative influence on the negro boy child.  In the event he does NOT succumb to the criminal influence we surround him with, we will constantly expose these negative images to  EVERYONE, so that ALL PEOPLE, including law enforcement will distrust negro men and charge them with crimes based on the belief that they are all violent criminals. This will be achieved via rap music. Thus, the negro male will be incarcerated whether he is indeed criminal or not, breaking up the possibility of a stable negro family. Again, they must depend on only us.  

Second, we will use the same basic principle that we use in breaking a horse, combined with some more sustaining factors. What we do with the horses is that we break them from one form of life to another; that is, we reduce them from their natural state in nature, as explained earlier. Whereas nature provides negroes with the natural ability to take care of their children, we break them, making negroes dependent on us so that we can exploit them and use them for producing our own business and PLEASURE. 

In the case the Black negro male does attempt to be around his child and family, even if only temporarily, our mainstream rap culture will instill in him misogynistic ideologies so that he disrespects his female negro counterpart, nevertheless. The Black negro male, through both his presence and absence, will program the Black negro boy to imitate his misogyny once the boy is an adult negro male. The Black negro female will teach her child to distrust negro men, since the one she mated with treated her poorly. This will also help lead him into criminal behavior.

Because of our rap music, the negro female should become hypersexualized, causing her son to distrust and lack respect for her as well. Thus, the younger generation and offspring of both male and female negroes will distrust virtually all other negro men and women.  In the event the negro male and female mate and have a female offspring, the same measures will produce very similar results in our favor.  The female offspring will distrust negro males, become hypersexualized like her mother and/or the images we expose her to, and perpetuate the above cycle of self-hate and oppression.

For orderly future, special and particular attention must be paid to the FEMALE and the YOUNGEST child.  Negroes must continue to be CROSSBRED to produce a variety of skin color and features, and a division of labor, even within the entertainment industry.  Thus, male rappers must pay particular attention to skin color. They must covet women with lighter skin complexions – the lighter, whiter, the better. They must use their music to reference the beauty of lighter skin and make darker skinned women feel inferior. Lighter skinned “artists” must be treated better. They must be given more opportunities and reach broader audiences, including audiences outside of the great United States. This way, we will use rappers to divide the negro community, but also, to make social acceptance depend on us. We decide who and what type of negro can be accepted, popular, and considered attractive. They must value European and whiteness above all else. Anything related to them or produced by them must be considered and treated as inferior.  Through this method, dark skinned people will hate lighter skinned people, and neither will fully accept the other. They will believe that the possibility of being accepted relies on their ability to become popular in the media, only through us and with our acceptance.  We must make it impossible for them to achieve complete acceptance from themselves and their own communities.

The female rappers and the women that male rappers feature in their videos or visual performances MUST appear EUROCENTRIC, either in skin tone or fashion. We must make it clear that the negro in its natural physical state is undesirable and intolerable. They must try their very best – no matter how futile their efforts – to look as European and white as possible, buying products manufactured and sold by us only. This makes them dependent upon us both socially and economically. We must limit their roles toCONSUMERS, they must not be able to be PRODUCERS, as that role is for us only.

We make negroes depend on the entertainment industry for what they consider success. We make them think they are best suitable as actors, rappers, singers, etc.  We make them want to become popular within the media and the platforms we provide. By making them dependent upon us for their success, we can then control their actions and control how those who look up to them act, all while making money off of them – while their communities remain poor. If they want to become doctors, lawyers, educators and executives and believe these goals are realistic, we lose power and control. They would become independent instead of dependent on us, the media industry. We must first convince them that this is the most desirable and most fitting job they can attain.  They must not believe becoming a doctor, lawyer, educator, financial advisor, politician or any other non-entertainment center position is possible or desirable. We must make them WANT most to entertain us, and, thus, dependent upon us.

CARDINAL PRINCIPLES FOR MAKING A NEGRO

It is not good enough to control negroes for a short period of time, we must implement a system that comprehensively breaks people down, and that will allow us to remain financially and socially superior for centuries to come. Both horse and negro are no good to the economy in the wild or natural state.  Both must be BROKEN and TIED together for orderly production. For this reason, we must train them to spend their money in ways that economically benefit ONLY US. We must surround them with images of alcohol, fancy cars, clothes, houses, and other luxury items – all owned by us. We must teach them to be reckless with their finances, rely on debt – from us. They must covet what we have and be willing to financially struggle in order to obtain it. They must not establish long-term wealth. Your media companies must surround negroes with Eurocentric consumer values, so that they are consumers and never producers. They must be taught to spend instead of save and invest, so that their offspring and future generations will never attain what we have – financial security and generational wealth. This will be achieved by promoting grandeur images of your rappers and partnering with companies that your rappers will promote to their communities, encouraging rappers and negro listeners to spend in ways that economically benefit us, while destroying them.

Whenever possible, we must award WHITE “artists” more than negroes to further condition them as inferior. They must never attain the same level of recognition and success as White artists. They must remain inferior both psychologically and historically. They will be given awards only with our permission and when the images and messages they send forward our mission and mislead them. We must PREVENT or DESTROY any governing faction they attempt to create that gives them the opportunity to autonomously govern and reward themselves. They are DANGEROUS near us and as producers/owners, and it requires too much labor to watch them away from our control and record labels. Above all, you cannot get them to work in this natural state. They are inherently ignorant and any attempt to govern and reward themselves with only result in chaos and foolishness, since they are mentally inferior.  They must also believe in their inherent foolishness and inferiority. They should feel they can only trust and conduct business with White people. Once they are rewarded with popularity and minimal monetary compensation, they must think other negroes are incapable of supporting them in business (i.e. as lawyers, doctors, financial advisors, etc). This is because they will believe in their own mental inferiority. As a result of them feeling like they are inappropriate for roles as lawyers, doctors, business conductors, they will alsoWANT to play the role of gangster, drug dealer, womanizer in their music and in visual entertainment, even if they are not gangsters or drug dealers in real life. The entire method proposed here uses rap music and entertainment to brainwash a community into believing and acting as though they are inferior, untrustworthy, hypersexualized, and inferior to us. If you follow my method, ladies and gentleman, you will achieve total control, subjugation and oppression of the negro population in no time! Eventually, if you continue to use these methods, these ideas will spread across the world and EVERYONE, EVERY RACE, EVERY CULTURE AND CREED, will believe these negative images to accurately represent the negro population and they will see these behaviors reflected in them. You can achieve total, global brainwash and re-programming.  KEEP THE BODY, TAKE THE MIND! In other words, break the will to resist. There is an art in long range economic planning and my methods will equip you all with what you need to remain superior socially and economically for centuries to come.

Hevn' Li Angel is joining Topmics in MD

TOPMICS & BLACK PEARL RECORDS PRESENTS:
TOPMICS GOSPEL SHOW in Maryland
September 14th 4PM-8PM

FEATURING: "HEVN' LI ANGEL"

@ "Ballroom • Suitland"
3900 Bexley Pl, Suitland,
MD 20746

GUNNA finally is on board

TOPMICS, INDIE BOOM, V RECORDS, BORN BAD ENT, BROOKLYN MIC CLUB & PROBE MAGAZINE PRESENTS:
TOPMICS SHOW in BRONX, NY 
JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM 

FEATURING: "GUNNA" 

@ "CLUBFIRE" 
615 EAST 187 STREET, BRONX, 
New York 10458o

Gospel Show September 14th

TOPMICS & BLACK PEARL RECORDS PRESENTS: 
TOPMICS GOSPEL SHOW in Maryland 
September 14th 4PM-8PM

FEATURING: "D. YOUNG"

@ "Ballroom • Suitland" 
3900 Bexley Pl, Suitland, 
MD 20746

ALEX PHOENIX takes over in the Bronx

JULY 25TH 2014, 5PM-4AM 

"ALEX PHOENIX" TOP SPECIAL PERFORMANCE GUEST  

Along With TOPMICS TOP PERFORMANCES:

By, TRIFE BOSS, LORD VITAL, T. PARRIS & G-SoulExperience 

Also Performing: GUNNA, CUZZIN BOP, LEEZY DA DON, NITE aka MADAME MURDA, TERP DE SOUL, BREEZE, FIRE KIDD, JULY SAINT ROSE

BROOKLYN MIC CLUB "BATTLE ACTS" FEATURING:

JUV VS NUFSED

J.COBE VS MIAS LANSKEY

TOPMICS NY HOST: "NERVZEEN"

@ "CLUBFIRE"

615 EAST 187 STREET,

BRONX, New York 10458

"BLU" Performs in Topmics Show in Alabama September 7TH

"BLU" Performs in Topmics Show in Alabama September 7TH

TOPMICS ARTIST ON TV IN OVER 70 MILLION HOME NATIONWIDE

Topmics & V. Records in Association with "Miami Music Television" will be Broadcasting Topmics Independent Artists on "Galaxy Satellite Network" & "Punch TV". 

MIAMI MUSIC TELEVISION has been broadcasting since 2010, reaching over 70 Million households worldwide plus 250 Million Hand Held Devices. 

The playing field is now leveled. 

July 18TH Topmics Show in Miami will be filmed for television, artist that wish for their segment to be filmed and more info please contact Topmics office at 310.433.4812 or email topmics@gmail.com. 

4 Ways To Be A Boss A$$ Indie Artist | Indie Artists Chronicles Series

4 Ways To Be A Boss A$$ Indie Artist | Indie Artists Chronicles Series

A Guest Post by Ava Bella

Everywhere you turn, somebody is claiming "Boss Status" in this industry. The thing that bothers me about that is, most of the bosses I know don't have to even utter the word. They just live it. They utilize the tools of this game, both written and basic understood industry rules, as well as their immediate circle of influence to be massively successful. Most of the folks that we see on the TV screens and magazine covers are not bosses. There's probably 1 to 2 of the hundreds of people behind that person who are the ones getting all the major bread for whatever or whoever is the front man in that 15 minutes of fame countdown. It's never who or what we get to see at face value. For instance, as a little girl, I always was interested in commercials. Not what was being sold, but who wrote the jingle? Who was singing the jingle, and how did they get their money? How did they even start doing it? I later learned that is all a part of music licencing. Believe me, its no coincidence that everywhere you turn right now, you hear Pharrell's super mega hit 'Happy'. It's in movies, on the radio, and in at least 2 or 3 commercials; probably playing right now as your reading this. That's what I call BOSS! I'll be giving you a little more info on music licensing in about a week, but until then let's talk about the basics...

4 Ways To Be A Boss A$$ Indie Artist

1. Get Your Circle Tight!

Okay. So first, a couple questions about your circle...Who are they and what do they do? Are any of these people a 'Boss' in their own right? Do they have more than one stream of income? Are they a bunch of 'Boo-boos' waiting on you to get on or have they referred you to at least 1 check of some sort? Seriously though, what does the group of people you spend the greater majority of your time with add to what you do? A few years ago, I began to take a close look at my network. 90% of the people I hung with were artists. Literally, about 100 singers, poets, writers, songwriters, authors, spoken word artists, drummers, clothing stylists and designers, keyboard players, producers, beat makers, and let me not forget the wanna be manager/promoters. While most of these folks are massively talented, have standing local cover gigs with cover bands, and are by all means popular and loads of fun to be around; I wanted a little more than that. After doing countless open mic nights, being the go-to dedicated wedding singer, and the one you can always call on for a pretty moderate to decent Jill Scott cover, I looked around and realized the majority of my 'friends' weren't living off their art full time and neither was I. I had a pretty killer corporate management job with a more than decent salary, but I wanted to create for a living. The bug bit me and I quickly learned that what was important to me was to record and perform my own music-nationally and eventually internationally. To add to that, I wanted to do it all independently. I also knew, first, I had to change my network and circle of influence. Now, I'm sure by now you already know if you are at all on a path to your own individual greatness: "Birds of a feather flock together". That didn't start or end in school with what your parents or elders in your family told you. It applies more than ever if you want to be successful in the Indie world or music business as a whole! 

A little AvaBella history...

I originally signed a management deal with a multi-media company, The Anarchy Movement, in 2012. The roster at the time was comprised of a genre-defying rocking awesome band, 3 lyrically impressive MC's, and me, a singer/songwriter. The founder, an artist himself, was already successfully touring as a solo MC, getting commercial radio play in a several markets, both blog and traditional media coverage, clothing line sponsorship, and a publishing and distribution deal with a major for a few songs- all as an Indie Artist. Now, I saw what was going on and when I was approached with the opportunity to work with the company, I began to see it was some Boss type ish going on! Within 6 months of my management signing I had a digitally distributed single on a major, and later I'd have the same for my debut project. To date, I've been on a regional tour with not one, but two national recording artists and shared stages with both music legends and up and comers. Now, I'm not saying this hasn't been a winding and at times down right bumpy road. What I am saying is- look at what you'd like to do, make a list even, then look around and see who's doing or done it. That's who you should be spending the greater majority of your time with. Now go NETWORK to change your NET WORTH...

...I mean keep reading #2

2. Get Your Calling Cards

How are you gonna approach a Boss to network with no cards?? If you're reading this, then you probably already know you need a few things to get active in this industry. Some must haves are business cards, flyers, your music of course, and merch. Get creative with every aspect of your brand, because guess what, THE CALVARY AIN'T COMIN'! You are your marketing team, design firm, and advertising agency. I suggest you do like I've been doing and take some classes in at least those 3 elements of branding. Better yet, find and partner with a student in those disciplines. Forget about the MUSIC for a second and think about the BUSINESS. Until you have your dream team in place, find a way to make it your marketing materials aesthetically pleasing so people will want to listen and learn more about your brand; YOU! Case and point- no matter where I am, when I've handed out a card or a flyer, people ask me about the graphic on my debut EP. It's been a great conversation starter. For my business cards, I wanted to not only convey a little more of who I am and what I do, but since I tend to run out of flyers pretty quickly, my cards have to serve a dual purpose. I sell my music online, so I let people know that across the top of the card. Also, I have the cover art in the bottom right corner, because , like I said, it's always been a conversation piece. Then instead of listing out all the millions of things that I do- singer, songwriter, web designer, producer, artist business services, blogger, artist bio writer, press release submissions, etc. I simply chose "God's Vessel" as my job title. Again, a conversation piece. I also take my cards EVERYWHERE! When I go to happy hour, lunch with my Mom, the park, basketball games, the bathroom at a restaurant, seriously, every where. When I'm booking an appointment, I pull my card out and hand it to the receptionist. They can read it as I recite my email, name, and number. A little trick I learned working in corporate sales, put something in their hands. The person has in that moment read the information once, and heard it twice; they've read it in their heads and you've said it aloud! You're welcome:). At the very least, whenever you step a foot outside of your home you should have your cards. Once you are fully functional, you really should not be seen ANYWHERE without merch, music, flyers, and even a few hard copy one sheets or press kits. You never know what opportunity you'll be presented with- BE PREPARED.

3. Get Your Social Media Together

Now, pause. Before you go out and buy a bunch of youtube views, facebook likes, and twitter followers(PLEASE DON'T DO ANY OF THESE), hear me out. Social media is not the end all be all. Furthermore, if your aim is to eventually get a distribution deal, the labels ain't checkin' for you any quicker if you spend hundreds of dollars on faux numbers. NEWS FLASH- the labels really don't care about anything, but your real life fan base, that will in real life buy your music and tickets to your shows. Neither do the blogs, AvaTheAnarchist.com included. Nor do the clubs where you wanna book your next gig. Social Media is a tool. Let me rephrase that, Social Media Marketing is a tool. It is no different than your business card, your flyers, your merch, your press kit, or your one sheet. It does not work independently. At the DJ's United Conference there were a few panels on Social Media where the experts in the field said that youtube now does a cleanup and basically deletes purchased views, Twitter virtually does the same. These fly by night companies that offer to boost numbers really have people thinking all they have to do is buy views or followers to get on; it's not happening, they've caught on to the game. There are ways to effectively utilize social media and establish your brands social equity. If you want to know how, ask me:). Just remember the key words are social and marketing. Be as authentic on social media as you would if your audience was right in front of you. Social Media is a tool- not THE tool.

4. Get Your Business Straight

This is the Music Business. Every business sells something. For the Indie Artist, that something is music. But did you know that you need to protect your music, your thoughts, your words? If you have not already done so, its very important that you become a member of a Performance Rights Organization. Here's the breakdown for PRO's: In the US there are 4, ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, SoundExchange(the newest guy), and ACEMLA in Puerto Rico. There are 5 in Canada, 1 in Mexico, 1 in Saint Lucia, and a little over 50 countries have a minimum 1, sometimes 2 for that country. I encourage you to click the links and base your decision on what's important to you as an artist, but more importantly as a business. Once you've gotten your social media, your network, and your marketing materials together, you may not be making tons of money. In fact you'll be spending tons(spend wisely). It's inevitable, however, you CAN make money on some of those promo shows that you are going to have to do by becoming apart of a PRO and obtaining a quarterly performance royalty check. Now depending on how many shows your doing, it can be a little check or a lot a check...lol. For me, it all adds up! I list every live show, then sure enough, in a few months BMI Live, hooks me up:). I also strongly encourage registration of your DBA(Fictitious Business Name). This way you're ready to rock when our dear Uncle Sam is looking for his piece of your pie. Here is a little more info on DBA and PRO's. This is probably one of the most important keys to being a Boss. I've never quite understood why people don't have these 2 in order. I released the LadyGun EP on Assilem Music(& Media) Group[my company] with The Anarchy Movement. Again, that was something that was important to me. I needed to establish my brand and business to do just what Anarchy Movement had done for me, and the way that works is to take the steps to be able to legally put a stamp or my creative works and to aid others in doing the same.

So being an Indie Artist is a means of expression, right? It allows us to creatively speak to an audience that is hungry for the real. Some of us have chosen this path, while others are really wanting that major deal, complete with all the bells and whistles we've seen in our daydreams:). Whatever your personal goal, you have to set yourself on a path with a foundation that speaks for itself. These are the minimums. Improve your network so you can raise your net worth, round up some marketing materials for the sake of presentation, utilize social media marketing as a tool, and finally, protect your brand, name, and your creative works. I've spent the last few years after putting out my EP asking questions, reading, taking classes, and getting certifications on everything I could that would help me to be not only a better artist, but to be able to consult other artists on their branding. I'm proud to say, I have a heck of a network, I designed and re-coded this very website, have built a few great artists sites(including mobile optimized apps), and I'm currently free lance web designing for small businesses. In the last few months I also added bio writing and press release submission to services I offer fellow artists. Sometimes, it is hard to execute the basics because you aren't a full time artist quite yet, but as always, if you all want to connect, you can comment under this post, email me right from the home page, and directly at info@AvaTheAnarchist.com. I'm available for a FREE 20-30 minute consultations if you want assistance. I look forward to hearing from you and seeing how you're going to change the world with Indie Art!

DEEROC 3rd Appearance on Topmics

D.E.E.R.O.C da S.O.B Performing Live at:
TOPMICS, PROBE MAGAZINE, BROOKLYN MIC CLUB, INDIEBOOM, V RECORDS & BORN BAD ENT PRESENTS:

PROBE MAGAZINE Photo Shoot featuring TOPMICS APPROVED ATISTS, plus PERFORMANCES/ BATTLE ACTS/ PRODUCERS/ & FASHION SHOW!
JULY 25TH 2014, 9PM-2AM

@ "CLUBFIRE"
615 EAST 187 STREET,
BRONX, New York 10458

It's time

Happy 4TH

K.O.D is set to rock at Topmics Shows State To State

Topmics, in Association with PROBE MAGAZINE, BROOKLYN MIC CLUB, INDIEBOOM, V RECORDS & BORN BAD ENT Presents:

PROBE MAGAZINE Photo Shoot featuring TOPMICS APPROVED ATISTS, plus PERFORMANCES/ BATTLE ACTS/ PRODUCERS/ & FASHION SHOW!

JULY 25TH 2014, 9PM-2AM

FEATURING @[100000648147388:2048:Kod Made]

@ "CLUBFIRE"

615 EAST 187 STREET,

BRONX, New York 10458

JULY SAINTROSE heads to the BRONX

Come out and join us as Topmics, in Association with PROBE MAGAZINE, BROOKLYN MIC CLUB, INDIEBOOM, V RECORDS & BORN BAD ENT Presents: 
A PROBE MAGAZINE Photo Shoot featuring TOPMICS APPROVED ARTISTS,
plus PERFORMANCES/ BATTLE ACTS/ PRODUCERS/ and FASHION SHOW!
JULY 25TH 2014, 9PM-2AM

TOPMICS TOP PERFORMANCES BY: "JULY SAINTROSE"
TRIFE BOSS, LORD VITAL, T. PARRIS & GSOULEXPERIENCE 

BROOKLYN MIC CLUB "BATTLE ACTS" FEATURING:
JUV VS NUFSED
J.COBE VS MIAS LANSKEY

@ "CLUBFIRE"
615 EAST 187 STREET,
BRONX, New York 10458

TOPMICS 2014 TOP APPROVED ARTISTS

ALERT! TOP NEWS/ Ladies and gents we bring to you 

TOPMICS 2014 3RD QUATER TOP APPROVED ARTISTS:

Winners are not people who never fail, But people who never quit.
Topmics has the top independent artists in the US and UK. 

United Kingdom:

De' Blend Persian Paper

Wry Lion

New York:

Mike Moet

Trife Boss

Lord Viral

T Parris

New Jersey:

Nite aka Murda Mamie

Miami:

Nym Murcia

Killa Kno

Messiah

Young Kali1

West Coast:

P. Smoove

HEVN LIL ANGEL

DMV:

July Saint Rose

New England:

TP

Letia Larok