July 29, 2016

Center Stage - Mike Stocksdale


Mike Stocksdale is an artist you've listened to your whole life, or at least it feels that way. There is familiarity in his melodies, and the honest stories he tells hit home. His ability to translate his personal experiences into relatable lyrics is, in a word, captivating.

Los Angeles native Stocksdale embodies all aspects of true musicianship, with a technical education in guitar from the Musician’s Institute in Hollywood, CA, and a past rich with classic influences including Paul Simon, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, and B.B. King. Stocksdale got his start playing lead guitar and writing songs for Three Minute Mile, a band he formed while studying psychology at Indiana University. When the group disbanded, Stocksdale began honing his songwriting and vocal skills, and found new direction as a solo artist.

He has since forged a reputation for himself in the Southern California independent music scene with thoughtful, well-crafted albums that resonate with a diverse range of audiences. His most recent records have been conversational collections of songs melding together the best parts of folk, rock, blues, and country. Stocksdale teaches music in Culver City, CA, and is currently touring in and around California.

His song "All Right" was one of the top 10 winning tracks in Radio Airplay's 2016 Summer Song Contest, and for good reason. The cool and mellow feel of the acoustic indie folk tune manages to transport us from the mundane to the easy breezy open road. Take a listen for yourself here and get to know the talented artist in our latest Q&A and Center Stage feature. 


Describe your sound in one ramble-on sentence
Lyric-driven storytelling bolstered by a raw mix of folk, rock, blues, and country.



What's your earliest music-related memory growing up?
Exploring xylophones and random percussion instruments in Karen Vinje's music class. I was probably three or four years old.



What was the first tune(s) you learned?
The first thing I could actually play on the guitar that sounded decent was the riff from "Epic" by Faith No More. My guitar teacher made me learn it because we were working on power chords. I had never heard of that band before. I was ten.


Do you write/compose your own songs? Briefly describe your songwriting process
Songwriting is one of the most important parts of my life. I don't feel normal if I'm not writing...it's sort of like having an itch that needs to be scratched. I'm usually kind of grumpy if I'm not working on something. Songs and inspiration come differently depending on the day or my mood or I don't know what. Sometimes a chord progression inspires a melody and then lyrics, sometimes the roles are reversed. It's rare that I write lyrics first, but when I do those are often my favorite songs, because I can flex the lyric muscle without having to be constricted by the melody line and rhythms. The key to a great song is creating the time to allow inspiration to strike. When I'm writing a new album, I'm at my best when I have 2-4 hours a day of uninterrupted time with my guitar, a notepad, and a small recorder. A verse that might seem terrible today might be the best bridge in the world the tomorrow. You never know. Oh, and coffee. Don't forget the coffee. 

If you were to cover another artist's album, which would you pick and why?
Lately I've got my eyes and ears on making an all acoustic album, so I'd have to say "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" would be my number one choice. It's the best sounding stripped down record of all time with the best songs ever written. Hard not to pass that up. If I was going to make a record with a band, though, I might have to go with "Smoke Ring Halo" by The Wood Brothers. That album is so lively and funky, and the songs would be so much fun to jam on. It's rare to have that kind of music and vibe combined with such brilliant songwriting and lyrics. All hail The Wood Brothers! Oooh, or maybe the answer is Graceland by Paul Simon...or OK Computer by Radiohead. Damn. This is hard.


What was the highlight of 2015, either for you personally or for the band? What was the low point?
One big highlight of 2015 was winning 2nd place in the International Songwriting Competition (performance category), but my secret highlight was simply writing songs for the next album. They're my best ever, and I can't wait to record them.
Low point? Extreme frustration from trying to book the perfect show. Turns out it doesn't exist, and I'm way happier just playing a lot of shows. Some are great and some fall flat, but at least I'm out there.


What is 2016 looking like for you? Upcoming projects?  Can you give us a little hint, on what we can expect for this year?
2016 is a lot of fun so far. I've been playing out quite a bit, really trying to hone this new set of songs before I head into the studio and track them live. I want to make my own acoustic, stripped down, early Bob Dylan sounding album, but that means I need to "know my song well before I start singin," if I could quote the man himself.
I'm also heading up to play The Gilroy Garlic festival next week for the third year in a row. It's always a yummy adventure.

What do you enjoy doing outside of music? Does your hobby rejuvenate their creativity?
I hang out with my wife and son, teach, rock climb, play basketball, hang with friends. Not sure if the hobbies themselves rejuvenate creativity, but a little distance from any project can be powerful as long as you're heading back to it soon. And when I'm deep in writing mode, my brain will gather bits and pieces for songs from anyone, anywhere, anything. No one is safe.


What do you like the most about Radio Airplay?
It's a brilliant way to connect and share my music with people who otherwise may never have had a chance to hear me.

 "A Passing Phase" 





https://www.instagram.com/mike_stocksdale

July 27, 2016

How Do Music Laws Affect Local Venues?

"Restaurants, bars, clubs and similar places often play recorded music or have bands or solo artists play it live to lure and keep customers. Playing this music, however, comes at a price literally and figuratively.."
Check out this interesting and informative new post by our friends at Music Think Tank - explaining the legal relationships between venues, performing rights organizations, and artists - a great reference, to better understand the laws and current situation in the music business.

Building Your Team as You Build Your Career

For the artists who are fortunate to have success, eventually their team will grow. That will allow the artist to focus on writing, rehearsing and performing, while their support team handles the business, financial, legal and marketing aspects of their career.

Take a look at this great post by our friends over at Tunecore, which outlines the most common team members, and a timeline on when they would usually come on board in a musician's growing career. 

http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2016/07/building-your-team-as-you-build-your-career.html/

Radio Airplay Staff Picks (Week 29 2016)



We here at Radio Airplay absolutely love music and moreover, we love sharing new music with you! Being exposed to so many awesome independent artists in our Airplay community is an amazing experience. Getting to listen and share up & coming artist's music is even better!
Fellow rockstar members of the Radio Airplay staff want to give our artists even more opportunities to be heard. Erin, Kelly, Tara, and Adam are on board so far, and will be hand picking their favorite tunes each week. We'll be featuring them here on the blog, the Radio Airplay Facebook, and our weekly Airplay newsletter.




Check out our Staff Picks of Week 29 Below!
View all past staff picks here!

Erin's Picks: 

Radiofix - Already Gone





Tara's Picks:

July 26, 2016

Musician's Atlas PopScore Pick (Week 29 2016)


Top PopScore band Erik Vargas was chosen for Week 29 as the Musician's Atlas PopScore Pick for his song, Gusto Kita (Cover) Listen here!

He received a full year's membership to Musician's Atlas, the music industry's most reliable contact database service.

But you don't have to wait until you reach the top of the PopScore charts to get VIP access to the best performance, promotion & distribution.


July 21, 2016

Center Stage - Jake Vance

Meet our newest Center Stage artist, Jake Vance - An up and coming singer/songwriter  with a background in piano, bass, guitar, mandolin, and vocals. 

Growing up in a musical family in Southern Alberta, Jake is a burgeoning artist in the Canadian music scene.

Recently, Jake completed the Artist Entrepreneur Program at CMI in Toronto, and played the TD Green Room at the 2016 Juno Awards. He was a top 10 regional finalist in the 2016 CBC Searchlight competition. 

Jake has spent two summers in London UK, taking music programs in Songwriting, Vocals and Recording. He has been lucky to have instructors that have also worked with the likes of Adele and Amy Winehouse.

Jake's first EP "White Elephant" (2015) charted on several Canadian college stations reaching as high as #4 in both Alberta and Ontario. 


In May 27th 2016 EP, Jake released his second EP “Eden”produced by Russell Broom. 
The first single “The Poet” has been receiving airplay in Canada, the U.S. and Europe, and was selected as a top 10 winner in Radio Airplay's 2016 Summer Song Contest. The track is also a semi-finalist in the Unsigned Only Songwriting Competition.

The Poet has resonated among Jango listeners with acosutic folk pop bliss, chugging fingerpickin guitars, and a pristine vocal by Jack Vance. 

Get to know more about this promising young artist in the Q&A below and make sure to check out the video for "The Poet" at the end of the feature. 

Describe your sound in one ramble-on sentence
Cinematic-Alternative-Folk n' stuff

What's your earliest music-related memory growing up?
I remember my dad (who is a musician) bringing me to a songwriting contest he was in at the local bar. I was about 6.

What was the first tune(s) you learned?
The first tune I learned was Sharp dressed man by ZZ top.

Do you write/compose your own songs? Briefly describe your songwriting process
The way I compose songs is like putting a puzzle together, I piece together different phrases and ideas I’ve written down and collected, under a unifying theme or a title. Writing the music is the easy part.

If you were to cover another artist's album, which would you pick and why?
I would cover A Rush Of Blood To The Head by Coldplay, because it is one of my favourite albums of all time, I first heard it when I was about 12, and starting to get into music. It was the first time I knew I wanted to be a songwriter. 

What was the highlight of 2015, either for you personally or for the band? What was the low point? 
The highlight of 2015 for me was releasing my first E.P. White Elephant, as well as recording my second E.P. Eden.  2015 was a great year and I really didn't have a low point, I can't complain!

What is 2016 looking like for you? Upcoming projects?  Can you give us a little hint, on what we can expect for this year?
I just released my second E.P. Eden so I’ll be promoting that as well as writing some new material for a full length album.

Any embarrassing on stage moments you'd like to share? C’mon, don’t be shy.
-I have many, but my favourite story is when I played a fair out in a town called Millarville. I was slated for a 7am slot on the “stampede stage”. I showed up and the stampede stage hadn’t arrived, instead, a farmer had parked his trailer attached to his truck in front of the bleachers. I started my set, with only my grandma in attendance, halfway through my first song, while playing through speakers borrowed (stolen) from a church (I’m not religious but that’s probably some bad karma). A man started measuring the stage with the oldest loudest tape measurer ever, then proceeded to unhook the truck with no muffler and drive away. While behind me a group of Irish dancers started stomping around on some plywood, making it very hard to concentrate. I finished my set and people started flooding the stands, I was wondering what the hell was going on, then I found out that there was a rooster crowing competition right after me and everyone  went nuts for it, especially my grandma. 

I also got hit by a car on my way to play the TD Juno’s green room, and I got electrocuted setting up to play at my friends restaurant.

What do you enjoy doing outside of music? Does your hobby rejuvenate their creativity?
-Outside of music, I do almost nothing. But when I’m especially poor I work in the movies. Last year I worked on a movie called the Revenant as a carpenter. It’s great to get away from music and let the inspiration rejuvenate.

What do you like the most about Radio Airplay?
-The ability to bring my music to a large audience. 



The Poet











July 20, 2016

How To Become A Part Of Your Local Music Scene

"Moving to a different town can be difficult enough, but it’s even more daunting if you’re a musician who wants to lay down some roots in a music scene that’s totally new to you."

Check out this article posted by our friends at CD Baby's artist blog DIY Musician, with great tips to help you break into a new music scene and stay connected with artists and bands in your area. 

http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/3-things-right-away-trying-break-new-music-scene/

July 19, 2016

Radio Airplay Staff Picks (Week 28 2016)



We here at Radio Airplay absolutely love music and moreover, we love sharing new music with you! Being exposed to so many awesome independent artists in our Airplay community is an amazing experience. Getting to listen and share up & coming artist's music is even better!
Fellow rockstar members of the Radio Airplay staff want to give our artists even more opportunities to be heard. Erin, Kelly, Tara, and Adam are on board so far, and will be hand picking their favorite tunes each week. We'll be featuring them here on the blog, the Radio Airplay Facebook, and our weekly Airplay newsletter.




Check out our Staff Picks of Week 28 Below!
View all past staff picks here!






Tara's Picks:

Musician's Atlas PopScore Pick (Week 28 2016)

Top PopScore band The Aquaerials was chosen for Week 28 as the Musician's Atlas PopScorePick for their song, Flight of the Crow.

They received a full year's membership to Musician's Atlas, the music industry's most reliable contact database service.But you don't have to wait until you reach the top of the PopScore charts to get VIP access to the best performance, promotion & distribution.




July 15, 2016

Get 20% off Music Contracts NOW!



You should always have a contract when doing business in music. You can now download a music business contracts pack from our friends musiccontractshub.com. Each of these contracts can be edited and printed to your needs.  Do not be caught without a contract. Music business contracts are a must!


SPECIAL 20% OFF DISCOUNT FOR RADIO AIRPLAY MEMBERS ONLY! 
At Checkout Use Coupon Code: Radioairplay

In the package download, they provide you with the following contract templates:
Artist/Producer Contract
Artist/Management Contract
Booking Contract
Event Sponsorship Contract
Producer Contract
Publishing Contract
Publisher/Royalty Contract 
Record Company/Producer Contract
Recording Contract
Songwriter Contract
Recording Studio Time/Charge Contract

TV/Film Sync Contract

July 13, 2016

Radio Airplay Staff Picks (Week 27 2016)

We here at Radio Airplay absolutely love music and moreover, we love sharing new music with you! Being exposed to so many awesome independent artists in our Airplay community is an amazing experience. Getting to listen and share up & coming artist's music is even better!

Fellow rockstar members of the Radio Airplay staff want to give our artists even more opportunities to be heard. Erin, Kelly, Tara, and Adam are on board so far, and will be hand picking their favorite tunes each week. We'll be featuring them here on the blog, the Radio Airplay Facebook, and our weekly Airplay newsletter.




Check out our Staff Picks of Week 27 Below!
View all past staff picks here!

Erin's Picks: 

Josh B - Ride or Die





Tara's Picks: