Even if it is hardly known to the public and in the media and creative industry, production music publishers have one of the largest creative outputs in the entire music industry. Large music publishers such as UNIPPM or Sonoton publish a large number of labels with more than a hundred albums a year, international independents such as West One Music release up to 80 albums a year and even a small publisher such as RipCue Music releases almost 40 albums in a current year with 100% new and exclusive tracks. An incredible output from an entire (partly unknown) industry.
In order to reach this number of 40 albums, I have to work with a fixed release schedule that is meticulously planned. But at the same time, individual projects need so much breathing space that I can offer creatives and composers the best framework to work out an album and theme perfectly. It’s a balancing act. Every publisher and label out there is like me, we are all extremely busy fulfilling our schedule and at the same time we take care of distribution, marketing and rights management.
What does that mean for you as a composer/producer?
As a producer and composer, how do you still manage to break this cycle and attract attention and arouse the interest of a library?
The best way is certainly with the help of someone who is already active for the Music Library. A positive recommendation from an active composer is by far the best and quickest way. Working together with an active composer can also be a quick door opener for individual projects. Because, let’s be honest, we all like to work with familiar faces, we know each other and understand each other much better than if a relationship starts from scratch.
If you have no contact with a library via a colleague, the following tips could help you:
(1) Stick to processes
Find out if the library you are approaching has fixed processes for submitting demos and showsreels. If so, please stick to these processes. There are reasons for this and often these processes serve to support the production teams and help them to work through all the demos in a short space of time (which can be quite a lot)
(2) The right contact person
You should make sure you are talking to the right person. Remember that it is often sales and marketing people who answer the phone and not the production team. However, they can always help you when it comes to the submission process and can be a help when it comes to the actual selection.
(3) Ask but do not penetrate
Ask if your demos have arrived, but don’t ask about the status every day or every week – the production teams have a lot to do (see above). Stick to this point, even if it’s hard. The likelihood of you working with the library in the future does not increase by asking. I myself try to answer all inquiries and give constructive criticism. That is my way of showing respect. Your way of respect should be to stick to certain processes and accept that some things just take time.
(4) ‚Hit me with your best shot‘
Your submissions should have a clear line and emphasize your strongest skills. In the first phase, it is easier to focus on your known musical strengths and passions.
4.1 Think for yourself about what the market might demand. Of course, it’s easier for each of us to decide to produce something that can be refinanced. Reflect your thoughts in your submission – for me, there’s nothing better than working with composers and creatives who understand how my clients work and recognize active potential.
(5) Quality
Do not submit „rough demos“. Your work should always be as final as possible – remember that you should demonstrate your strengths. This should also include a certain level of quality.
(6) Less is often more
Keep it short. It’s more pleasant not to have to listen to 20 tracks when time is short anyway. Keep it to 5-8 meaningful tracks. Always put the strongest one first, because that’s the track you hear first and the one that decides whether you press ’skip track‘ or ’stop button‘.
(7) References
Submit a list of your previous work and uses with your demos. In the end, names will help to assess your skills and make an initial assessment. Who have you already worked with, which commissioned compositions have you already done, in which TV programs have your titles already been used, have you perhaps already published things with other production libraries – all this information can be useful for making a decision.
(8) Be patient!
Be patient! Production music is an entertaining, inspiring and also financially rewarding field for many composers. You get the creative freedom and the necessary support. So it can be worth your time and patience and these eight tips should help you successfully get your foot in the door.
All in all, I can only recommend everyone to seek direct contact. We are a very communicative industry that has an open ear for all topics and usually has the right answers to all kinds of questions.
I am therefore looking forward to your informative email to kontakt@ripcue.com if you want to become part of the RipCue Music family.
Keep ripping,
Yours,
Patrick
