Sponsorshop: One Alternative to Getting Signed & The Dashing Suns
Winning label interest is still most bands’ dream, but many are looking for alternatives. What about sponsorship? Generally, advertisers look for big names in sports, hollywood and music to front their brands, but there are some rare, interesting opportunities for new bands with a unique sound.
Case and point, I was recently introduced to The Dashing Suns, a band that did just that with JanSport, the ‘backpack’ company. Since then, they recently rocked SXSW, produced a psychadelic music video (see below), and received this gushing praise from MTV:
”This seductively sunny little intersection of every band the ’60s and ’70s ever loved is really making my morning with its scratchy guitars, ooh-ahh Caramello vocals and vintage head cold production value.” (more)
Pretty sweet. (I would totally be willing to carry a fanny pack around with me if I could get my music funded.) I sent a couple questions about the sponsorship both to the band, as well as to JanSport. All the answers follow directly after the trippy “Van” music video below:
THE MUSIC VIDEO: “VAN”
A COUPLE QUESTIONS FOR THE BAND:
GARAGESPIN: Quick history lesson — how and when did the The Dashing Suns form, and how much success had they had before the sponsorship?
KEVIN WALKER (from the band): The Dashing Suns formed during the winter of 2007. Only a year and a half ago. Matt and Jeff, the guitar guys in the band, had been hanging out and writing small little songs for the hell of it. One of their first songs was a Renaissance type song that dealt with dragons, castles, potions, and ren faire. Matt, David, and Myself were just ending our illustrious stint in a psychedelic country rock band called Sweetbriar. All of us were experiencing dark days from bad relationship break-ups and figured The Dashing Suns would be a better outlet than waking up in gutters. So we started playing and writing all of our songs about the complexities of the opposite sex. Before the sponsorship, The Dashing Suns just finished a small tour in New York as well as completing our first 5 song self titled E.P. Other than local Bay Area success we have not toured the country or world with hopes of gaining a wider audience.
GARAGESPIN: How did The Dashing Suns score the sponsorship? (Or, re-phrased, what selection process did JanSport go through to pick the band?)
KEVIN: So far we have only heard about the selection process through word of mouth. JanSport hired TEAK to create a brand video for them. TEAK compiled a list of bands and music to use in the video for JanSport to review. That list had some local Bay Area bands and other well known acts such as The Rolling Stones, The Velvet Underground, MGMT. JanSport employees and the CEO heard our song “Future Thunder” and felt that it had the right sound. Which is funny because the original song was recorded in a crappy studio with a broken 8 track and lots of tape hiss. So they commissioned us to re- record the song.
GARAGESPIN: What advice would you give to bands hoping to find a sponsor for their next tour?
KEVIN: Hmmmm….. well… sometimes its a bit of luck, connections, and luck. And then its a bit of persistence, patience, and luck. To answer this question for real, I would say pick your sponsor and knock on their door for days and days. If that doesn’t work, try becoming really good friends with someone who works there and convince them that your music is the best in the world. If that doesn’t work there are professionals out there who you can pay to shop your music around to advertising agencies. Good Luck!
A COUPLE QUESTIONS FOR JANSPORT:
GARAGESPIN: What inspired JanSport to take the approach it did with this particular sponsorship campaign?
JanSport: JanSport initiated our relationship with the Dashing Suns through the development of a brand video that would represent JanSport’s intersection with contemporary youth culture. We wanted to make a video that was fun, interesting to watch and above all connect JanSport to our audience through modes of self-expression, whether it be music, a roadtrip, grafitti art, etc. It’s an authentic representation of the Brand and where we live in our consumer’s lives.
GARAGESPIN: How has the sponsorship helped the band so far? How has it helped JanSport?
JanSport: The sponsorship has helped the band in many ways: [publicity/ and promotion] — they got sponsored by JanSport to tour from SF to Austin; [they]played ReadyMade Rocks showcase at SXSW (JanSport sponsored showcase); [and they received] visibility/promotion on Jansport.com. The Dashing Suns were also wrapped into our press outreach surrounding SXSW – and as a result, landed a very nice piece on MTV.
***
Thanks to all, especially The Dashing Sunds, for taking the time to share their experiences.
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Added Music to AmieStreet.com – Need Your Help
I recently uploaded my songs “Spinning Daydream” and “20/20 Foresight” to AmieStreet.com, a site that prices tracks based on demand.
What does that mean? Well, because my songs are new on the site, they start out free. As more music fans download the song, the songs’ prices will begin to incrementally increase. (I actually wrote about Amie Street two years ago…it’s a pretty cool site, with some great music that I’ve discovered over the last couple years while poking around.)
So, if you have yet to download a copy of either song above, head over to my Amie Street page fast to pick up copies before their prices sky rocket. :) Actually, even if you DO have a copy of both songs, please download them…I’d love to see their prices go up from $0.00 to $0.05. ;)
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New Song: “20/20 Foresight”
I finally finished recording a new song. And this isn’t just any song, mind you. “20/20 Foresight“, when accompanying a marriage proposal, leads to a response of “YES” 100% of the time.
Alright, so it’s only been tried once. By me. With my wife. But the math is pure and true. In any case, this song is the only song I’ve ever written for someone. (It’s also more acoustic than my typical stuff). I’d promised myself I wouldn’t do so unless it was for the girl I’d spend my life with. (My wife knew that, which made it all the more special when I whipped out my guitar on that special night.)
Listen & Download (Free)
Listen to it here, or click on “download” to get the FREE Mp3. (Just enter “$0″ as the price when asked how much you think it’s worth…I won’t be insulted.)
Share Your Thoughts
I’d love to know what you think of the track — please share in a comment below. And PLEASE feel free to share the mp3 with any friends, family, co-workers, penpals, pets, snuggie lovers, or meerkats you think might enjoy it. (Your kind words are gold to an unsigned artist like me.)
Other Stuff To Do
In case you’re interested, you can also:
- Sign up to the mailing list so you know when new songs are available
- Check out more GarageSpin music
- Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter, Friendfeed, or MySpace
- Read the song lyrics
- See song feedback at Home Recording forum and Cakewalk forum
Thanks for listening. Three new songs are in the pipe…and one of which, I’ll be asking for YOUR help with. More soon on that…
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Kia Spectra Commercial Song: Music & Lyrics
The Kia Spectra commercial song has completely conquered me, running through my head whether I’m bummed or psyched. The car commercial is only 30 seconds long, there’s only one verse, and yet, I couldn’t help but wonder: what is the song played in the Kia commercial, and who sings it? (Answer: it’s called “Can’t Get It Right” by Joe Purdy from his album You Can Tell Georgia.)
A song like this reminds me of the beauty of simplicity. As well as the “hook” value of repetition. The song’s first verse (which is all that’s in the Kia commercial lyrics) does just that:
I just can’t seem to get it right today
I just can’t seem to get it right today
I just can’t seem to get it right today
I guess I’m gonna give up
Oooh, I guess I’m gonna give up
It’s a nice eye-opener, especially since I’ve been obsessing and over-thinking my two most recent songs, which I’m on the verge of releasing…several months late. (The song itself also echoes my exact feeling when I’m frustrated with a song…fortunately, it’s a cheerful echo.)
Kia commercial music choices have stood out in other commercials as well, such as with the Kia Soul and Kia Sportage, but nothing has taken off like this ditty. If you haven’t seen it yet, check it out here (or just listen to the full track at Last.fm):
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McDonalds Filet O Fish Commercial: Song & Lyrics
The new McDonalds Filet O Fish Commercial may be one of the most impressive lyrical and musical creations of the year. The filet o fish song itself is genius…possibly worthy of an eventual ”filet o fish ringtone”.
If you haven’t experienced the musical myth, the lyrical legend that is the filet of fish commercial, then you need to check this immediately:
McDonalds Filet o Fish Commercial:
McDonalds Filet of Fish Ringtone (mp3):
Get the filet-o-fish song mp3 by signing up for GarageSpin downloads here:
McDonalds Filet of Fish Commercial Lyrics:
For those of you who want to sing along, but can’t understand the talking-wall-fish, here are the filet-o-fish lyrics:
Give me back that filet o fish
Give me that fish
Give me back that filet o fish
Give me that fish
What if it were you
Hanging up on this wall?
If it were you in that sandwich
You wouldn’t be laughing at all!
Songwriters take note — it’s a new age of commercial jingles, it is. Speaking of which, for those that are curious, Pulse Music is the music house that created the song for the commercial.
Update: Check out the new 2010 follow-up commercial here.
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Even a Fool Deserves a Day in the Sun
Only a few minutes from midnight, and only a few more opportunities to psych out the nearest ‘fool’ with a prank. Search Engine Watch had a nice wrap-up of some of the more valiant April Fool’s Day efforts by Google, Live, Cafe Press, and others. Where does one apply for the job of “April Fool’s Day” content editor?
Anyone who can comment with a link to a web-based April Fool’s Day joke by 12:00 PM tomorrow, EST, that’s NOT listed in the post above, gets a free MP3 of my latest song, “20/20 Foresight.” (Not a joke.)
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The Ultimate Funky YouTube Loop Mashup Music Video
This guy, Kutiman, took loop groove creation to the next level by mashing up a bunch of YouTube clips together. Funky, funky, funky. It’s kind of like…consumer generated media-generated media.
I wonder where this all falls with regards to licensing, content ownership, clearance, permission…oh, never mind. Awesome stuff. (via Mashable)
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Hey Amazon, CreateSpace is Broken
I was checking out some of the great comments from folks at Nimbit (Kevin Ebaugh), ReverbNation (Jed Carlson), CD Baby (Tony van veen), and TuneCore (Peter Wells) in the post 7 Ways to Sell Your Music on iTunes, and happened to notice this Google ad on the page for Amazon’s music service, CreateSpace:
“
How nice, a relevant ad regarding digital distribution for indie artists,” I thought. I clicked to learn more (and not just to earn the $0.05 or so I’d get from the click), and arrived at CreateSpace’s landing page:
The link titled “Learn more about the selling music as mp3 downloads”, while grammatically incorrect, sounded interesting, so I clicked:
Wa-wa-wa-waaaaa…. The page was not available, and I, a potential customer (or interested blogger?), left disappointed. (Ok, so CreateSpace isn’t broken, exactly, but its landing page is.)
Moral: Check your links before spending money on a Google AdWords campaign.
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