“Thoughts from a Music Industry Knucklehead”
by Sean O’Bryan Smith
Greetings and salutations to my fellow inhabitants of this place we call Earth. My name is Sean O’Bryan Smith, and for 40 years I have been a willing participant in this thing called music that we all seem to be consumed by. I’m not complaining though. I have been very blessed with a career that most artists and creatives would only dream of and it would appear that there is no end in sight for this spirited knucklehead.
So, why would this interest you? Well, like all of us, I am constantly adjusting from the “ways it used to be” to the “what in the world is going on?” parts of our beloved music industry and I thought some of you fine folks might be able to benefit from some insight of someone who has most definitely “been there, done that.”
As you can probably tell already, I’m Southern. To some, a good ‘ole boy from Chattanooga, Tennessee. That being said, it is no surprise that I ended up calling Nashville my home for nearly twenty years. Music City was very good to me. I am very fortunate to have spent my career playing coliseums all over the country and recording in the best studios with some of the top names in the industry. Where am I going with that? I saw firsthand the REAL parts of this industry and ALL of its faults on a near daily basis. It’s not a pretty sight as we all know and it is, honestly, why in 2017, I walked away from it and moved to the beach in South Florida. I thought my career was over and truthfully, I was 100 percent fine with it and then I met… a New Age artist. What possibly could happen next?
Right before COVID really started being a word we actually had heard of, I decided to reach out to recording artist John Gregorius after hearing his music online. There was something about what I was hearing that blew me away and I knew I wanted to know and hear more. We forged a fast friendship. I end up recording on his album “In Awe,” and seemingly overnight, I am back in the music industry and in a “brand new to me” genre. Through getting to know John, I immediately find myself networking with other artists and start noticing major differences than what I had witnessed in the more “popular” genres and industry. This is where all my ramblings thus far start to forge something cohesive… I promise.
Upon diving into the New Age genres, I noticed something right out of the gate. To my amazement, the industry of the genre, labels and artists carried themselves differently. The slick, arrogant, money obsessed attitude was absent. Instead, the harmony in the music translated to the individuals making the music. There was an inner peace, an openness and a very NON-music industry attitude. Granted, some of them still acted like “artists, beggars, and thieves,” but as a whole everyone seemed more open minded and helpful and THIS is what the last 400+ words have been about. WE…AS ARTISTS…MUST….CAPITALIZE ON THIS…AND…HELP. EACH. OTHER. This is not up for debate. You Cannot Pass Go and collect $200. This is not a drill. This must absolutely happen and here’s why:
For whatever reason that possesses each and every one of us, we have decided to make it our life’s work to focus on a genre that makes some of the least amount of sense from a business perspective. Granted, there are very lucrative outlets out there and some do quite well. Some, myself included, get into film composition and licensing. Others do well with sound design and doing libraries for the software developers. It’s a hustle but, guess what? So was the big stage. I did ALL of these things even while being on the top gigs with the top artists. That’s the business but, guess what? That’s not a bad thing. It is what fuels our creativity.
Lots of artists, many I chat with on a regular basis, are always searching for how to keep funding their craft with hopes of the big reward. Sometimes that happens, other times it does not. The key is not to lose heart. We are all consumed with passion. If we weren’t, we wouldn’t be in this genre. Now, does that mean we’re morons getting into this genre? NO! It just means we have to channel that same passionate creativity that fuels us to imagine these other worlds for the listener and use that same energy to further ourselves in the business of music and the best way to truly be effective at that is to bind together.
There is safety in numbers and from my observations of the various new age genres, we already do it better than anyone else in the music industry naturally due to the mindset we have to create our art. So, be deliberate with it in the business part of your music career! If you’re seasoned, be open to helping a younger artist development. If you’ve had a good review, don’t be guarded and share your information so that another artist can benefit.
We’re all pretty good about collaborating with each other but, I encourage you to do it on a regular basis. That is an easy and effective way for artists to help each other but, remember there’s more to it than that. We are the genres promoting harmony with our creative works. It is up to us to carry that attitude into everything we do. Just a couple of thoughts from a “been there, done that” good ole boy from East Tennessee.
_________
Sean O’Bryan Smith is an award-winning film composer, author, producer and recording artist. As a musician, he has recorded and/or performed with over 100 major and independent recording artists worldwide in multiple genres.
Sean originally emerged onto the new age/world scene in 2012 while on the Australian record label Wolf Entertainment. His single “Rain” from the album “Tapestry” became an international jazz/new age crossover hit. The album also included the single “Vashon” which was featured on multiple new age stations overseas. These ventures into the genre continued when a number of Sean’s original compositions from the Indian motion picture Mrigtrishna were heavily featured on a collection of ambient/new age works in India.
As an author, Sean’s regular columns have been published in numerous musical periodicals and he was a contributing author alongside Gene Simmons and Nile Rodgers for a series of books dedicated to the ins and outs of the music industry. Sean’s music continues to be heard across the globe on radio, film and television. He is currently composing, recording and producing from his home in South Florida as well as consulting with record labels to help in the development of upcoming and existing artists.
