Earth To Blog: I'm Not Dead

As I was going back through my flagged emails in my inbox (where I put all of my important stuff), I found an interview that I had done back in November. The questions were asked by Angela, but as far as I'm aware, it was never published. So after a two month hiatus in the blogging world I thought I'd go ahead and be pretty narcissistic and post an interview with myself.




Most of the factual stuff in this interview no longer counts, as I closed Venture Mag (my previous music publication) in December. I have a new project now though. And while you can find out all about my journey into the music world from this interview, I'm actually more proud of the general life advice I gave people, and myself too. I think as a society we're used to selling ourselves short and are afraid to believe in what we do incase people think we are cocky, or a dick, or think too highly of ourselves that we can't be a nice person. The answers I've given below have just reminded me to fight for your dreams, whatever they are, and that believing in yourself is important.

I'm only 21 and sadly no longer have the teen excuse to hide behind, but your 20s are supposed to be about finding yourself. I think life is about finding yourself, and creating yourself,  there's no expiration date on that, and why the hell should there be? Do you, and that means have a strong sense of self - it's important and what really counts.

Interview:

Can you tell us a little about your background, and what led you to launch both your music website Venture Mag and your PR agency, VM Publicity?
I accidentally got into "Journalism", I guess, when I was about fourteen. I used to "promote" bands on MySpace, set up my own website and made weekly "Band of the Week" polls. It was all going really well, but I never felt like I was getting anywhere. After a few months a girl contacted me about getting a quote for an article she was writing. I asked what it was for, learned about the website the article was going to be posted on and applied to join the team. I didn't really have any experience but I liked writing and was willing to work as much as I needed too. Kayley, the Editor, took a chance on me and I used to write my articles really early in the AM in between episodes of Grey's Anatomy. MySpace was dying out at this time, so I was pretty thankful for another outlet. Eventually that previous site relaunched into thesoundalarm.com, and I continued to write for them for two years. In my spare time I used to write for a couple of other sites too, but I still wanted to get more involved, so I created Venture Mag back in the summer of 2011. 

Venture Mag was created as a place just to share what music I liked. Finding new bands was, and still is one of my favourite things to do, so it became a home for that. I made a really bad YouTube video talking about how I wanted to get more people involved. The next day I had 40 emails in my inbox and the rest is history. We went from a Tumblr site to a fully functioning website, and me myself and I to a great team who I'm really lucky to work with. We fell off the music wagon for a while when I moved into student halls for University, but we relaunched last March and things have been going strong ever since. We started releasing monthly online music magazines last year, they were print for a while but the costs weren't realistic. I'm a student and had to give up my job to continue studying, so we made them online only and they're doing well. Venture Mag as a whole has been a big learning curve, and a lot of the time it's been a learn as you go situation. I've often stumbled through phases that others have handled with grace, but sometimes the more bumpy rides make for better stories. If I was to create another magazine I would definitely change the way I've handled some things but I don't regret any minute of Venture Mag or what it has came to be. I'm eternally proud. 

As for VM Publicity, that's still pretty new. I've always wanted to somehow get my feet into this industry, and while I love what I do at Venture Mag, it's not enough in terms stability and continually helping out a band. I can write a bunch of stuff about a bunch of bands, but I'd rather showcase them in a better way and encourage other people to listen to them and get their reactions. I'm currently working with a great band from Florida called Empire Theory, and they're super cool to work with. While things are steadily moving forward with the company, I have much bigger plans for it next summer when I graduate. 

What advice do you have for bands seeking PR services?
Make it easy for yourself. Write a bio, get some press photos done and make sure your music is accessible, whether that's on Facebook, SoundCloud or wherever. Know what it is that you want to achieve as a band and what type of message you want your music to portray. Don't be surprised when you find out PR companies won't work for free. Most importantly, promote yourselves. I don't mean that in a send out a thousand tweets per day and invite all your Facebook friends to like your band page. I mean network with people, and put in some graft and show people how much you want to succeed. If you're passionate it shows, and if you're not working to help yourself, PR companies aren't going to take you seriously. 

What about for bands seeking placement on music blogs?
Before you contact a music blog make sure your music fits with the type of acts they cover. Make sure you have a bio and a link to some of your music too, and don't forget to be patient as music blogs get a bunch of requests and emails. You can always attach a longer bio as an attachment in your email if you want, and photos can come later or you can put a link to where they're hosted online to help save email space. Don't forget to try and make your message a bit personal and not just simply "Hi, I play in insertbandname, insertlinktomusic". We can tell when messages are copied and pasted. I know it's time consuming to write out "Hello insert name here", but it helps establish relationships and you're much more likely to hear back from someone if you contact them directly. Also, if you're after a feature or after a review, say so. We're not mind readers unfortunately!  Not spamming also keeps you on the good list. If you're eager to hear back from someone, send them a tweet to know to look out for you and follow up on your email in about a week.

You manage a team of over 15 members, which for one person is impressive! What advice do you have for those in similar positions?
Thank you! Don't get me wrong it certainly gets difficult especially as a lot of our communication is done via emails. I think the best thing you can do is try and be organised. If you read an email deal with it there and then, unless it is absolutely 100% something than you can come back to without issues. Write everything down. Twice. And keep back ups. Also remember that people deal with things differently, so try explaining things in multiple ways so it's easy for everyone to understand.

And for those hoping to gain advancement (in any industry)?
I wouldn't even class myself as part of the music industry, but to advance in any industry I think it's pretty clear that you need to work hard and you need to want whatever it is that you're hoping to achieve more than anyone else. Be passionate, be genuine, and work your ass off. The world doesn't owe you anything, and sometimes things will get so tough and so bad you'll want to quit, but you have to power through, and if you want it enough you will power through. I think we all have those days, and it's okay to doubt yourself, but just remember to pick yourself back up and work even harder. Also, like I said be genuine. There's nothing worse than those that step on you as they fight to the top.

What is one question that you don't think is asked nearly enough (be it by artists submitting, seeking PR, or professionals going into the field, etc) that you'd like to offer insight on?
It's not a question, but I don't think people ask for help enough. I think people just presume you can make it on your own without any help, but in reality we all rely on someone. I'm a big supporter in collaborations, asking for advice and help (as long as the feedback is constructive and not unnecessarily negative) and I don't think people do that as much as they used to. It's all about competition and letting the "best man win", and while I'm all for giving things everything you've got, it doesn't mean you have to treat people like shit in the process. If you can't accept other people's success, you don't deserve success yourself. People are your best resource, use them.

You have an extensive background as promoter, writer, journalist, and now publicist. Naturally, you also handle various aspects of the industry through your magazine. Do you feel having exposure to these different sides of the industry has given you a better understanding?
Definitely. I don't think I could class myself as a promoter in it's true sense, but it's interesting to see the different sides of the industry and I feel really lucky that I've already been able to experience a few of them. I think the best way to get an understanding of an aspect of an industry is to try it, and if it's not for you it's not for you. It's also really cool because I've been able to meet a lot of different people through trying my hand at other roles, and they've always been fountains of knowledge about what they do so I've learnt a lot. I think it's important to keep learning and to keep growing as people, it stops you getting bored and it stops you settling.
 
Along those same lines, what advice would you like to pass along to those looking to get into the music industry?
I guess I'm kind of repeating myself here but learn your craft and don't be afraid to ask for help. Everyone was once at the same level you are and it's okay to make mistakes. The music industry is a tough world and I'm still fighting to get myself in it, but don't back down. For every yes there will be a thousand no's. You need to learn to take rejection, criticism, and all of that stuff and turn it into something positive. If you crumble at the first stumbling block you're not made for it. You have to have tough skin. Don't give up and don't turn your back on people who have supported you from the start.

What is the best piece of advice you've ever received regarding the industry?
When I started out I was scared of the rejection from artists and PR's and everyone else. Now I get it all of the time and brush it off because it happens and that's life. The quote "I can accept failure but I can't accept not trying" by Michael Jordan is one of my favourite sayings and I've stuck by it. You're not going to know unless you try something, and if it's a no, you haven't lost anything, and if it's a yes you grow. Also, there will be people who talk shit about you to either make themselves feel better or because they have nothing better to do. Fuck them. Do what makes you happy and not what makes everyone else happy. One of the best things someone told me is that not everyone will like you and you won't like everyone, and that's okay. 

Is there anything else you'd like to add?
Thank you so much for doing this interview with me, I really enjoyed it. And thank you to everyone who helps and supports me in what I do, I really appreciate it. You can catch me on Twitter @bekkacollins. Oh, and keep fighting for your dreams, whatever they are! x