About Spec Deals...
I'm currently producing two full length CDs entirely on spec. Hopefully they will both be released regionally this fall.
This is the way I see it:
I'm a nobody, a newbie, a wannabe, whatever. In Philadelphia, mind you. Not many "big pro" studios here, and I'm a tad too late in the lifegame to do the intern thing then rise to second assistant etc. nevermind the fact those jobs are dwindling anyway.
But I want to work with music, make money, be happy living an exciting life and hopefully see my name printed in the NY Times at least once before I go south to the next life.
So I decided, wisely or otherwise, to write my own game plan: Find exciting young energetic stars in the making, produce their recordings - not demos! But really make them sound like superstars, with balls-to-the-wall production the likes of what I've learned from you folks and the guest mods on Jules forum, plus listening to hit recordings and doing my own experimenting.
My ultimate goal: Help make a superstar out of one or more of these amazingly talented kids, which will hopefully get me noticed and lead to - who knows? SOMETHING. Something is always better than nothing.
It is a total friggin' gamble, I know that. That's a big part of the fun. My artists and I, and their associates and mine, we all feel a little bit like Ocean's Eleven most of the time, laying our collective asses on the line to pull off the impossible heist.
Yes, we have contracts. The "nuns" amongst us most likely would be offended by them, but my artists and their lawyers are not. I'm doing a boatload of work and gambling my time away, and my artists and their lawyers all agree I should be handsomely compensated should my gamble pay off.
This life is not for everyone. I don't encourage anybody to follow my example. Especially if you have wives and kids at home waiting for bills to be paid and food put on the table. I don't. I sleep in a futon on the floor in the corner of my studio, and the rest of the crib is gear and gear and more gear, and a kitchen where I cook meals for myself and my artists. My mom tells me we're just like the Beatniks in the '50s in the East Village, and she's actually kinda proud of me. We have a scene here and I'm the "producer" in the crowd and we're all dirt poor, working outside "the system," not knowing what the hell is ever going to come of it.
Sorry for writing a whole article, but I wanted to show how "spec" can be a way of life, not just some contract agreement, or something to sniff down upon.