As we continue our A3C Festival coverage, we’re happy to link up with TuneCore artists featured in this year’s lineup. TuneCore is thrilled to be able to help independent artists on their paths when it comes to distributing, publishing and sharing their music with their ever-growing fan bases! We caught up with TuneCore artist Shome and trio Goldyard (A.T., IN-DOE, & Flick James) to see how they plan on approaching the festival.
If you talk to just about any independent hip-hop artist, they’ll tell you that promotion is a big piece of the puzzle. But when you visit a festival, it’s important to bring that mentality each day. When asked how Shome tries to stand out, there’s no gimmick necessary, “Just be me. I’m a firm believer in that being real is what sells and makes listeners gravitate towards you.”
“We promote our brand every day. We try to make it a habit. As far as A3C goes we’re just trying to get everyone familiar with Goldyard as a brand, and trying to get everyone we can to come to our show,” the members of Goldyard say. They’re a local name you’ll find on flyers, walls and venues all around the streets of Atlanta.
It’s easy to get wrapped up in the fun and commotion of a festival like A3C, but independent artists know that there must be a balance of work and play. While Goldyard reminds us that being a fan is non-stop, they still have plans to be “meeting new people to work with, whether it’s artists or just people that we can build relationships with to work with in the future.”
“Networking and getting to know more people in the game,” Shome tells us, will be a priority, and he also hopes to utilize some of the many panels at A3C for education.
The ability to get your music into online stores and streaming services prior to getting to a festival is a huge bonus. Goldyard released their EP, F**k Culture, through TuneCore this year. “TuneCore has helped us put our music on platforms we didn’t necessarily have before, and not just in the States but all over. It also helped us make money while doing it, through the Internet, which can be a big hassle,” they attest.
“It’s opened an outlet for me to get my name and music out, as well as generate revenue,” says Shome, who released his single “Hold Me Down” through TuneCore.
Aside from distribution, being independent requires you to build a network or team of your own to drive your goals forward. Shome makes sure to stick around “people with a similar vision, faith, and love [of] music.”
“Being independent in 2014 is nothing but grind,” Goldyard reminds us. “Your team has to be ready for everything at every moment. Your relationships with people is your biggest asset in being independent. The right relationships with the right people can be your biggest opportunity or your biggest downfall. The people you surround yourself with have to be as hungry as you in every way.”
At TuneCore, one of our mottos is, “You take care of the music, we’ll take care of the rest.” But we still love to know what sort of processes and preparation techniques our artists have before hitting the studio!
“We normally don’t prepare for the studio, it’s all organic with us,” the members of Goldyard reveal. “We normally write songs as we tell the producer what we do or don’t like. Most of the time it’s the producer in our group, Flick James, so we’ve all gotten to the point where we know each other’s vibes and how we’re feeling at certain moments. If we work with new producers we normally have them adapt to our style of song writing, and most of that is just vibing, getting to know the producer. Making music has always been our strong point, we can make songs with anybody in a reasonable amount of time if were feeling the production enough.”
For Shome, creating music isn’t about mapping things out. “Pick out the right sound and what I’m feeling in the moment. It’s hard to just sit down and say, “Hey, I think we should rap about this and that”. Concepts kind of just flow and whatever comes natural when I start writing is what usually works.”
Are you in Atlanta this weekend? Be sure to check out both of these TuneCore artists in and around A3C! For more information, their A3C artist profiles are below.
Shome at A3C Fest
Goldyard at A3C Fest
Tags: A3C A3C Festival goldyard Hip Hop independent music rap Shome tunecore