Gospel Music from a Managers Perspective

I was allowed the opportunity to speak with Devon Kelly who is the owner of DRK Productions and a manager of one of Gospels greatest choirs.  That group is located in Chicago and is known as the Tommie’s.   They were originally known as the Thompson community choir from the Reverend Milton Brunson who was the original leader and who passed away in 1997.  Devon began managing the Tommie’s who is under the direction of Darius Brooks back in 2004 and has worked closely with their continued success. 

            He recently produced a reunion concert for one of gospels greatest choirs to come out of Brooklyn New York, The Institutional Church of God in Christ. (Facebook.com 2011)   He was the creator of Soul Searchers, which was one of the hottest choirs to come out of Queens, New York as well as Togetherness.  He has worked with many great gospel artists such as David Gates & Love Peace and Joy, Monique Walker, Darius Brooks, Desiree Coleman Jackson, Melonie Daniels, The Institutional Radio Choir and many more.

            I asked Devon what is the future for gospel music from a manager’s perspective?    

            The future of gospel music is wide open with many opportunities for growth and expansion.  We have made great strides over the years but still have a long way to go in order to reach the status of mainstream musicians who has audience appeal.  We have so much ground to cover since we are well known in church circles but must come out of the that circle and make ourselves known to the world. 

            The church has produced many of the greatest gifts that we enjoy today in the form of singing and we must become responsible with our talents and share Jesus Christ with the world.  If gospel artist would realize the power they hold within them then we, as a whole would be able to go much further and cover more ground. We have some of the best artist, singers, performer, musicians and then some, but we settle for so little instead of growing and expanding.  The future is great if we make it great!

Facebook.com 2011 Devon Kelly retrieved from (http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=281793055178661)

The Art of Negotiations within the Entertainment Industry

The entertainment industry, which comprises of music, television, movies and technology has evolved and is moving at the speed of light.  Success within these industries requires knowledge of the past, present and the unforeseen future with your sights clearly on succeeding.  Many people state they would like to succeed within these industries but very few do. To shed some light on the skills that are needed I spoke with an industry executive who has the experience and knowledge within these turbulent waters.  

Tone Boots, (linkedin.com 2011) president of District Media in New York City is a prolific writer, director, producer and executive who has harnessed his knowledge by immersing himself within the industry and learning from negotiation to negotiations and deal to deal.  His experience has created and co created outstanding projects such as Luke’s Parental Advisory, Hip Hop Hold’Em, Direct Effect Presents, MC Battle I & II and many more.  (Imdb.com 2011)

I asked Tone Boots how do you separate the people from the problem and his answer was wrapped with wisdom, lessons and insight.  The world of media is now surrounded with the negotiations of intellectual property, which by definition is property that results from original creative thought, as patents, copyright material and trademarks. (Dictionary.com 2011)  We are no longer dealing with brick and mortar concepts but with ideas, creative works that can make money rather quickly. 

When negotiating you are dealing with the person or persons who do not want to relinquish control of their idea.  It’s hard to separate the person from the problem if they are willing to stagnate the project and let it die instead of moving their ego’s out of the way.  Some people are very savvy and want complete control.  People use their money, power and influence to enter into deals and will use shady methods to get what they want. 

Dirty tricks and tricky habits will present themselves but you must create parameters that will not be breached. Be willing to walk away from deals by putting your foot down and leave a mark of Do Not Cross Me! Business deals and negotiations is a marriage. Would you remain with a spouse that constantly cheats on you?  Would you sacrifice your dignity over a bad deal and lay your precedence on the line?  Do not tolerate! Nip it in the bud and walk away for the sake of your principals and reputation.

Negotiate what you want and understand all aspects of the deal by asking many questions.  Speak to people who know such as attorneys and other executives by gaining multiple opinions and third party perspectives.  The question with negotiations is always “what do you bring to the table?”  Generational gaps in negotiations will lead to different ways of thinking. 

            For instance someone can make one phone call and bring millions to the table while the person working within the project feel they should receive more.  But without that one call the resources would not be available. Calls are measured by weight the difference between the old and new school way of thinking.   This within itself requires negotiations as you measure and weigh the input each brings and decipher who gets what which is not always easy to do.

            I was not able to present everything we discussed but truly appreciate the time he gave out of his busy schedule and the wisdom he shared for guidance in your respective careers.  You can view Tone Boots profile at http://www.linkedin.com/pub/tone-boots/7/ab/a79. 

Reference:

Dictionary.com 2011 Intellectual Property retrieved from         http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/intellectual+property

Imdb.com 2011 Tone Boots retrieved from          http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2176895/

Linkedin.com 2011 retrieved from http://www.linkedin.com/pub/tone-        boots/7/ab/a79