Artist Management Conference 2010 Highlights Important Roles Played By Managers In A Shifting Music Industry Landscape

Website: http://www.amconevent.com

Gaithersburg, MD May 3, 2010 -- The Artist Management Conference 2010 (AMCON2010), taking place in New York October 14-15, 2010, aims to highlight the important roles played by artist managers in a shifting music industry landscape, and provides a forum for networking, learning, showcasing, and conducting business.

"In an era of 'do-it-yourself' (D.I.Y) and vertical integration, stand-alone artist managers are becoming both under-appreciated and over-hyped by some in the music industry", says Jeremy Rwakaara, conference producer at the Artist Management Resource and author of the Artist Management Manual. With relatively few people having direct contact and interaction with managers, many urban myths and legends have been allowed to take root, resulting in extreme misrepresentations by some in the music industry of managers as either unscrupulous con artists of yesteryear, or omnipotent deal-makers of tomorrow.

To be sure, the behavior of some managers has helped to perpetuate the stereotypes upon which the urban legends have been built. Negative perceptions of managers have caused some music industry professionals to view managers as adversaries on a battlefield eager to extort unjustifiable concessions from them for their artists. Some artists view managers as opportunists who simply want to collect a commission for doing nothing and putting in nothing. Additionally, many independent musicians and some industry professionals believe that management representation should be reserved strictly for artists on major labels.

Yet even as the music landscape shifts and new music business models emerge, artist managers continue to play important roles in the careers of artists, and the conference serves as a forum to highlight some of those roles and re-calibrate the image of artist managers. For artists and companies within the music industry, "quality" artist managers continue to play important roles in the following ways:

• Managers help to craft winning game plans and provide effective solutions for artists, and their objective analysis helps to unearth crucial opportunities at a time when everyone is trying to figure out ways to make money in a shifting music industry landscape.
• Managers see the big picture. Musicians are often too close to their own projects to step back and see things from an outside perspective - undistorted by emotion or personal bias - and managers can help them make the right decisions for their careers based on realistic facts.
• Managers can be strong advocates for artists in communications with labels, agents, publishers, licensees, brand partners, sponsors, promoters, radio stations, etc.; and help to keep them all accountable, interested, and energized. Managers also help to translate the "band language" into "brand language" while speaking to members of the music business community.
• Managers help to encourage artists through the many moments of frustration, disappointment, self-doubt, and fatigue that artists encounter as they go about their business.
• Managers help out with the workload. There are simply too many things to be done for most artists to effectively do themselves. Managers can spend time analyzing data and paperwork and monitoring progress so that artists can create and perform their music while interacting with and growing their fan base.
• Managers act as filters and buffers to protect artists from unscrupulous individuals.
• Managers can help bring credibility to an act in negotiations with labels, sponsors and brand partners, who believe that an artist is more likely to fulfill their obligations with a strong manager on board than without.

For those interested in the field of artist management, there has never been a better time to be an artist manager. With roughly 13 million artists worldwide on MySpace alone and a limit to how many acts a manager can effectively manage at one time, there is actually a shortage of quality artist managers out there, and many more need to be encouraged to join the ranks. New tools have made the job of finding artists and analyzing data easier than ever before. And even in this D.I.Y. era, most independent artists are failing to earn a comfortable and predictable living from their music alone. Success will be attained when principled, knowledgeable, and committed managers utilizing well crafted and executed game plans are teamed up with talented and hardworking musicians.

About the Artist Management Conference 2010:
The Artist Management Conference 2010 (AMCON2010) is billed as a unique music conference organized to bring together managers, artists, and other music industry professionals in a shifting music business landscape. For more information, visit the official conference website at http://www.amconevent.com.

Sonicbids
Band showcase submissions are being accepted until June 30, 2010 via Sonicbids. The Sonicbids EPK (Electronic Press Kit) is an easy-to-use, web-based graphic interface that contains all the basic information of a musical act such as music, photos, date calendar and riders and can either be emailed to anyone with a click of the mouse or submitted in online promoter accounts through a virtual "Drop Box". Register your band showcase submission here: http://www.sonicbids.com/AMCON

Contact Information:
Jeremy Rwakaara
Artist Management Resource
Tel: 240-813-2466
http://www.amconevent.com