Rhythm Section INTL

Introduction to the Label and how we run it…

Bradley Zero. June 2020

First Steps
You’ve got the music, now spread the word.

• Think of a name: don’t worry if it sounds silly - some of the best labels have
ridiculous names. Do consider something searchable and unique. check
discogs to be sure.

• Design a logo: this will also develop with your sound and aesthetic. Some of
the best logos ( DFA) are pen on napkin sketches. Don’t overthink these
decisions. Be decisive and act quick. This excited energy at the start of anew
venture won’t last forever!

• Website : Less and less people visit company websites now. All you need to
get going is an access point and some content to make the idea real. Make
an IG & facebook page and sign up to bandcamp & soundcloud
Pro tips for starting right:
• If you can afford to copyright the logo and name - do it now. It might save a headache
later.

• If you’re based in the UK - consider registering a LTD Company. It only costs about £30
and as well as being tax efficient and more easily scalable if the company does grow - it
allows ultiple directors and limits your liability say for example you get sued for a sample
- the company is liable not you. (LLC in USA I believe). The tax structure can be a bit
complex, and you might need to speak to an accountant - but if you start right - HOURS
can be saved later.

• even if you don’t need a website, register a domain name and take this into account
when choosing your name. It looks much more professional to email from a private
domain and gives you greater control as you expand.

• Make sure all sites link back to each other and include signature with links on your email.

• Set up a business paypal account distinct from your own personal one.
A+R
“ Artists & Repetoire ”
• This is the process of discovering new artists to sign.

• A big label has dedicated A&R teams ( Morell left rhythm section to A&R for Young Turks)

• If it’s a one person operation this is your primary role as label founder: discovering the music and
leading the process of getting it out in the world as “ executive producer”

• This should be the fun bit that comes naturally but you can make it a lot easier by cataloguing
new music methodically by month and year and rating incoming music.

• A+R can be active - reaching out to people for a release, or passive: listening to demo
submissions. A key part of this is being active online and IRL and listening to many diverse music
sources to widen your reach. I’ve signed bands I’ve stumbled across at a festival, I’ve followed up
on recommendations from RS INTL fans, I’ve heard a USB after a gig and I’ve shazamed a track
on foreign radio which has led to a deal. I’ve also hit up friends, heard music from peers at house
parties and accepted a few demos - some people trawl soundcloud for hours - whatever you do -
keep the process dynamic and make it part of your enjoyment of music.
Contracts
Get it in writing before it’s too late
• Contracts can seem unnecessarily heavy handed, especially if you’re working with friends or talking about a
very small project, but I can’t stress this enough - SIGN AN AGREEMENT.

• A “Recording Contract” is the signing over of the rights of the recorded music to a label in order for them to
‘exploit’ those recordings for a set ( or even unlimited) amount of time.

• It doesn’t have to be complicated legaleze - just a document outlining key terms such as royalty splits,
license length, accounting terms and a number of clauses to cover potential eventualities like the right to
repress or having a clause that requires the artists permission to use the recordings for an advert or film.
(synch)

• It’s best practice to offer to cover the legal fees for the artist to have a lawyer look over the contract for
them. This is then recouped from sales afterwards - but gives the contract a much stronger standing if
anything where disputed or deemed to be unfair.

• Nobody ever regretted agreeing terms on a contract but there’s countless stories of artists & labels who
never signed a contract and got into a whole world of pain when some aspect of the relationship broke
down. An agreement is to avoid this.

• Keep it simple. 50/50, over 7 years, written permission needed for any extra usage is a good starting point.
Publishing , Registering the Repertoire and Royalties.
PRS, PPL + MCPS… OR get a P&D deal
• This is the back end stuff that is no fun, but crucial in getting right from the start in order to
make sure artists and performers get paid correctly and the label doesn’t end up with a
huge bill or court case! It’s pretty complex and watching this might help.

• If you manage to get a P&D (pressing and distribution) then chances are this will all be taken
care of for you - but for a % of course. Companies like Prime and Juno will usually only offer
deals to people with a track record or a bigger name. Either way - it’s best to understand as
much of this as possible to avoid being ripped off or charged for any mistakes.

• Any music that is being pressed or distributed online has to be registered correctly in order
for artists to be fairly remunerated. Make sure all performers are logged and a split of
songwriting and performance is agreed per song. Artists and labels should also register with
PPL & PRS individually.

• Every song is given an IMEI code - this is the metadata used to track a songs usage and
then decide what share of royalties is shared with the publishing and recording owners.
• PPL (Phonographic Performance Ltd) collects and distributes money on behalf of
performers and record companies for the use of their recorded music.

• PRS ( Performing Right Society) collects and distributes money on behalf of songwriters,
composers and music publishers, for the use of their musical compositions and lyrics.

• MCPS is the part of PRS concerned with paying artists royalties from music which is
pressed onto physical format. It’s important that you register with MCPS when first
pressing records, as it can come back to bite you further down the line.

• The money collected comes from Radio + TV paying license fees and public venues paying
subscriptions for a license and is distributed based on radio plays, submitted club/festival
track-lists and reported usage on film and TV. It will feel like a slow start but it adds up. A
daytime play on Radio one can be £40, an evening play on 6 music, £30 and drive time
Radio 2 - £50+ …this is why being on national rotation can be very licrative - but only if
you’re registered correctly!

• A publishing company will collect this on behalf of an artist WORLDWIDE as well as

pushing for synchs. In reality, A limited amount can be collected by an artist individually. A
publishing company will pay an advance in order to have the right to collect onbehalf of an
artist with the standard spit being 30/70 in favour of the artist.
Manufacturing
Mastering / Cutting / Sending to Press

• Once you have the first release prepared, you need to get it ready to be Mastered. Mastering is the dark art of
bringing the best out of any given track, sonically speaking. A good mastering engineer doesn't deal with
genres but waveforms. It’s a scientific process that works differently for digi and physical.

• First off you need hi- res files ( 44.1khz/16 bit min) with at least -6dB headroom. Much less than that & there’s
no room for the engineer to work. Supply a compressed file and it’s simply polishing a turd. Ask artist to
submit files without any compression/limiter effects on the master channel along with any notes for how they
might want the final sound to be: “high dynamic range / Loud / bright etc”

• Digital masters should be okayed by both label and artist before proceeding to cutting.

• If you’re pressing vinyl - you need to get the Master disc cut at this stage too. This is the disc from which the
stamp will eventually be moulded from. ( short story - for the full lowdown watch this.)

• The runtime of each side will effect the volume of the final cut. The longer each side - the lower the max
volume and less room for dynamic range. This is because the grooves are closer together and cannot be cut
as deep. If it’s a club banger and more than 7 minutes, just keep one track to a side. for an album, you don’t
really want to go over 24 mins per side if at all possible.
Test Presses, Final Presses + lead times…
• Once cut, the laquer will get sent to a pressing plant, who will send a test press
back as a quality control measure. Listen back carefully and compare to the digital
master. Listen out for any inaccuracies, pops or skips. Make sure the lead in is
smooth and you can go “ wiki wiki” without skipping. Send a copy to your artist or
if you’re in a rush, rip a recording and email it over.

• Once the TP is signed off, and artwork for label and sleeve is proofed and
confrimed, you can put in the order for the final press. As a rule of thumb - 300
copies will break even, sell more than that and you can expect some profit.

• Lead times vary but exect each stage to take 4-6 weeks. Resist announcing your
release date until you get ETA on the final pressing. a Promo cycle also takes
approx 6 weeks.

• There’s a number of companies that deal with mastering and brokering deals with
a plant: We use THE CARVERY and can also recommend CURVED.
Streaming vs Digi vs Physical
The eternal debate…
• 0.007 pence per play on Spotify sounds tiny, but those plays really add up. For most labels, the revenue for streaming is
way over digital and physical sales combined.

• The system is far from perfect and IMO needs to be overhauled but it’s far better than the days of Torrents, limewire and
piratebay. The income from the casual listener now accounts for a major chunk of a labels income.

• For me it’s a brexit situation: aim to fix a flawed system from within or just leave and face the consequences and get none
of the benefits. Much like brexit I’m a DSP (Digital Service Provider) remainer.

• If you stick to vinyl only you appeal to a tiny minority of music fans and add an element of exclusivity to your art - not to
mention a cost barrier to appreciation ( and an invitation to piracy)

• Bandcamp’s model is rightly touted as the great saviour of independent music. It offers fair terms and allows labels and
artists to profit directly off their art. Overlooking bandcamp would be foolish - but the fact remains this is largely a platform
for the DJ’s and die hard supporters rather than the everyday appreciators.

• Digital sales on platforms like iTunes, beatport, boomkat etc will represent a tiny percentage of overall sales - but visibility is
key.

• Being included on big spotify / itunes playlists can make or break a record. You want to be hitting up the curators directly.

• Long story short - do the music justice and support the wider industry by making it available on as many platforms and
formats as possible.
Distribution
Digital / physical / DIY
• You can upload yourself ( via distrokid / cdbaby / tunecore etc) but if you have a label and you plan to
grow it - it’s best to go through a digital distribution companywho have established links and strong
influence on the placement of products with the big DSPS. Many physical distro / P&D partners like Juno
or Rubadub can offer this themselves, or you can go with a dedicated digital distro provider like
“Believe”.

• Compare services they can offer and the amount of data they can provide- this could prove key as the
label grows

• You can negotiate deals depending on how much leverage you have.

• There’s still a big network of vinyl distributors. In Europe you have Kudos, Rush Hour, Rubadub, Prime,
Cargo, Juno, Above Board, wordandsound. In America there’s Groove, FIT and some more commercial
ones. Japan still has a big industry for CD as well as vinyl and the big players are P-Vine and Ultra Vybe.

• Generally speaking your primary distributor will have deals in place with different territories as well as
individual record stores to make sure it gets sent far and wide.

• If you have lots of time but little money, you can aproach shops yourself and sell direct. This way you cut
a lot of the costs but it takes A LOT of effort and most shops would only offer you “ sale or return”.
Promos / Premieres + Press
Letting the people know…
• The music being good isn’t quite enough. You have to use that belief to fuel your promotion of it; Shouting
from the rooftops and trying to widen the reach by getting platforms bigger than yours to share it.

• 2 key elements to this: PERSISTENCE and PAYING. ideally engage both!

• Make a list of your favourite DJs, producers, labels and anyone who’s influenced your journey so far. Find out
who produces your favourite radio show and hit them up. Make introductions personal where possible and
leverage any connections you may have or introductions you can get. Your DJ hero is probably overwhelmed
with new music - so you gotta just cut thru the noise. Bolster this approach my continually growing your own
platforms for sharing music.

• PROMO SERVICES - there’s a heap of online providers that exist to get unreleased music out to pro DJ’s
such as HYPE-FILTER, HUSTLE, Dispersion & Tailored that operate on platforms like FATDROP ,
PROMOBOX & INFLYTE. These Services send music out to a huge database and also gather feedback and
ratings that can be used to help promo the Release

• Some services will include PR services like securing Premieres, locking in mixes and interviews and
positioning the release in charts and reviews.

• Prices vary from couplehundred quid to thousands for a more detailed campaign. Results can vary, but
chances are improved.
PR / Radio Plugging + Playlisting
Giving it the extra push

• The promo services mentioned in the last slide offer a limited amount of PR, but if you’ve made your mark
and want to make a real push you might want to look into working with a standalone PR company /
Publicist. We’ve used Amethyst, Joshua Byrne, Shine & Worldwide Friendly Society to name a few.

• They’re more likely to charge 4 figures but will aim for printed press, national reviews and more in depth
press and newspaper coverage, engaging contacts in national radio for features and worldwide music
magazines for consideration.

• Radio plugging is the next step up: engaging an insider to lobby for your music to be played on national
radio - with the aim to get it into a playlist ( A,B,C) for daily circulation. Pluggers are generally industry
insiders who work strategicall to maximise the impact of a bigger release, setting impact dates and working
up the ladder of radio hierarchy in order to maximise the reach. It’s not cheap, but can be worthwhile.

• Play-listing is essentially the same as radio plugging but for getting in major in house playlists. If you work
with a digi distributor they should have someone working on this. You may need to apply some pressure
here .
Advertising & Marketing
Paying for increased reach and awareness

• You can outsource a lot of the work here as described in the previous slides, but
a lot of this will be done internally and will start small, but grow exponentially with
the label

• A key thing is to maintain a mailing list and keep fans and key industry figures up
to date with what you are releasing. One day you may be able to charge others to
be included on your list.

• Advertising is often an afterthought at our end of the industry - but clever

targeting across facebook and instagram via fb’s ad manager can yield
tremendous results. Only the biggest independent releases see paper or billboard
advertising but there’s always more guerilla ways to approach this. For example
when PINTY threw up his album cover on a full sized bill board in Peckham…
Accounting
Keeping record of all the ins and outs and distributing as per contract

• In most standard contracts, the label has to account every 3 or 6 months.

• Roaylties are to be offset against and production costs and advances. Once a
release has broken even - it has ‘recouped’

• The label has to keep track of all sales and downloads and share them with an
artist upon request.

• THere’s usually a minimum threshold where the money due rolls over until the
next period until the reelase has recouped sufficiently

• Start as you mean to continue by cataloguing these royalties - as well as all

incoming and outgoing costs meticulously.
Growing a team
Appointing roles and delegating work
• If all goes well, one day you may get to a point where you can’t handle all this
alone! Building a strong team is an important part of growing any label. The right
decisions will make a huge difference and what seems as an extra cost could
soon bring huge growth. At this point you’ll need to think about a workspace.
(more on that in next slide)

• When looking for staff take a step back and analyse your own strengths and
weaknesses. Aim to fill any existing skill gaps and look into outsourcing work that
will free up time to be more creative. Finding staff & training people takes time but
will pay off.

• We now work with record science who fulfil all our bandcamp orders, and we
engaged !k7 as label services partner- who now take care of distro/ pressing/
registrations / accounting / royalty collection and advancing allowing us to focus
on the creative side.
Moving into an office
the house that house built

• We started on the kitchen table, moved to cafes as the team grew and the finally got an office
in bermondsey in 2017. What seemed like a massive outlay brought a real sense of purpose to
the label and allowed us to grow exponentially.

• How much room do you need and what do you want to be able to do from there? Do you need
to be able to host guests? Have a DJ set up? Be able to make noise late? Do you need to be
able to make presentations and host workshops…or do you jsut need somewhre private to
quietley get on?

• Our needs have evolved over time and continue to alter as we move into our second office in
july 2020. As we have slowly outsourced many of the more menial tasks over time - the idea
with the Greeniwch space is to be able to use it as a space for gathering, learning and
performing. Think tiny desk meets brownswood basement… we want to get to a point where
we can open the doors and share more of our knowledge with others, both in the office and
the studio…
Running a Studio
That “Rhythm Section” Sound

• It was always a dream to be able to open a studio linked to the label. So

many great imprints - from motown to XL to Moodhut where centred around a
production space where artists could record for the label and where new
talent could be nurtured.

• A large part of our Patreon initiative is aimed at opening the doors of our
studio to more and more people and ontroduce them to production and
demistyify the industry

• A beautiful culture evolves around a creative space like a studio and having
musicians pass through on a daily is inspiring to our work and feed right back
into our process
 Thankyou
I hope you’ve found this both informative and interesting and with a bit of luck you’ll be able
to use this as a handbook to crack the label game.
More people creating good art isn’t competition - it’s comunity and I hope I cna help you all
to grow your ideas into reality that will hopefully inspire someone else.