Rod Harris is owner of Jenn-Rod Artist Directions, lives just outside of Nashville, and is an experienced Artist Manager, Talent Developer and Producer. He also owns his own Publishing House. I contacted him this morning to talk about Negotiating in the music industry and he talked about some of his experiences.
We spent some time getting acquainted and talked about a mutual acquaintance, Sherrill Blackmon who is a premier song-plugger in Nashville.
Mr. Harris told me about his current project and some qualifications artists need to make it in this business. Artists need to develop very thick skin, have an open mind and be agile…in order to fit in whichever way the door opens! That is a great way to look at the
opportunities that show up when you least expect. He also talked about the reason artists get into the industry; the real ones do it because they would be making music even if they weren’t making money!
When we turned the conversation to the topic of Negotiating, Harris talked about his personal Business Concept: “We believe integrity and quality must be first and foremost in our business and everyday life. We believe in the artists we represent as people first and talent second. We believe in planning, persistence and hard work.” (jenn-rod.com 2010).
Before you begin negotiating for your artist, you need to know what your product (artist) is worth and put a fair price on that. What will your artist be able to draw (according to past history in venues)? Then add 20-30% to that price.
Mr. Harris gave the example:
Set up the contract for the artist, and then call the buyer at the venue you want to fill. You would tell the buyer: my artist will be in that area and would like to perform on a certain date for X amount of dollars. Can you put him in? Harris’ objective is to negotiate a “fair deal for everybody concerned” (Harris, 10 Nov 11). That speaks highly of his character and falls back to his Business concept he has posted on his website!
Harris related some information about “riders” to contracts that artists frequently ask for when they are negotiating. From just green M&M’s, to ungodly amounts of food, booze and amenities to the simple, and realistic of just enough for X amount of people. First of all, I would object to the waste and second, yes the artists are away from home; but they chose this life so there is no need to throw their “importance” around.
Toward the end of our conversation, Mr. Harris related a negotiating experience. He had booked an artist in a venue in North Carolina for three nights. He was also working with replacement bass and lead guitar players. During the first night’s performance, there was trouble with the sound system. Not enough volume, they blew a fuse (Harris took one out of his car) and it turns out, one cord was plugged incorrectly. Even through all the difficulties, the show turned out well and had a good crowd.
The owner decided to fire them after that first show and only paid them a portion of the contract. Harris related the owner was very arrogant and told Harris “We don’t want you tomorrow.” The owner left before the show went down so Harris told the band to not break down. At that point, the manager kept insisting they would have to load out; told Harris the owner went to a party. Harris refused to leave without getting paid. The manager threatened to lock the door with them inside. When Harris told her “I’ll call the FBI for kidnapping”, she immediately called the owner who arrived shortly. Harris stood firm on the contract, and asked the owner what he would propose. They finally agreed on cash, all expenses paid plus 50% of the contract with 10% added for the booking agency.
After this conversation, I realized how many parts of negotiating Mr. Harris actually used: Objective Criteria-by working with the venue owner to create a “win-win” situation for both and dealing with Dirty Tricks/Tactics in which the owner left before paying them for the remainder of the contract.
This conversation was a great way to start my day and to hear first-hand how negotiating can be handled in the industry. It was a pleasure meeting Mr. Harris during our phone interview and I hope to meet him face-to-face soon.
References:
Contract Rider. (n.d.). Greg Osby Press Kit. Retrieved November 10, 2011, from www.gregosby.com/press_kit/go5rider2008.doc
Fisher, R., Ury, W., & Patton, B. (1991). Getting to yes: negotiating agreement without giving in (2nd ed.). New York, N.Y.: Penguin Books.
Harris, R. (n.d.). Jenn-rod home. Jenn-rod home. Retrieved November 10, 2011, from http://www.jenn- rod.com/index.html
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