The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: The Black Keys

http://www.last.fm/music/The+Black+Keys/+images/58154643

The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: The Black Keys

One summer day as I was watching television, a commercial came on and completely grabbed my attention.  It was not the car that being advertised, but it was the music on the commercial that really captivated me.  The song was Tighten Up by The Black Keys.  After further review, I realized that I had discovered a gem. The Transcendent Music Movement presents The Black Keys.

The Black Keys are one of the most electrifying musical groups gracing stages across the world and making records in today’s popular music culture.  Their combination of blues, soul and psychedelic rock, as last.fm describes it, makes the group very attractive to a wide audience of listeners.  Their pleasantly unique sound is very exciting and is mostly due to their pioneered instrumentation.  I do not claim to be aware of every artist and band’s work but I am sure that most people would agree that there are very few bands that offer a sound even remotely similar to The Black Keys.  Particularly in modern popular music, there are not many groups who can balance making music that appeals to a large audience and still remain true to the roots of classic blues and soul.  They sufficiently and amazingly managed to incorporate a traditional blues and soul sound in to their progressive rock style.   

 

The group consists of a Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney.  Dan is the lead singer and guitar player.  Patrick is the drummer and they have other varying contributing musicians.  The duo hails from Akron, Ohio.  These guys had really humble beginning launching their music career from Akron.  The group has labored long and hard and has truly earned their respect in the music industry.  They released their first album in 2002 and created great music that was used in movies, video games, TV shows and commercials.  It was not until 2010 that the band recorded an album in a legitimate studio.  The album was Brothers, which included Tighten Up.  Tighten Up was the song that I heard on that Subaru commercial.  The song was also used for the 2011 FIFA soundtrack.  Apparently, it really because popular from a viral YouTube video called Dancing T-Rex.  After increased popularity and their album’s incredible success, The Black Keys found themselves winning three Grammy’s. 

http://www.last.fm/music/The+Black+Keys/+images/51463261

Recently they released their sixth album, El Camino.  This album is sure to continue in the exponential success of the Akron, Ohio band.  The steadfastness and perseverance of The Black Keys is extremely commendable and their story is an encouraging one.  The Transcendent Music Movement will continue to support the unique work of this great band.  We look forward to them continuing to create TRANSCENDENT MUSIC.

http://www.theblackkeys.com/product/el-camino-cd

The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Wale and his Self-Publishing and Distribution Efforts

http://thisbeatgoes.com/tag/wale/

The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Wale and his Self-Publishing and Distribution Efforts

Musicians increasingly are finding value in self-promotion and self-production.  These activities have become prevalent particularly in the advent of home music production software and Internet publishing and distribution tools.  Tools such as MySpace, iTunes, CD Baby, Reverbnation and others are some of those mostly used for self-promotion or publishing.  One newly popular Hip Hop artist who earned a recording deal using these tools is Washington D.C. native Wale.

Wale was born Olubowale Victor Akintimehin.  His parents are Nigerian immigrants who raised their son in Washington D.C.  When Wale became of age he attended college.  He transferred schools twice before dropping out and pursuing his career in music.  Wale worked hard developing as a locally recognized artist.  He first got commercial exposure with one of his tracks being played by a local DJ over the radio.  This type of word-of-mouth promotion resulted in him earning national recognition from Hip-Hop magazines and others.  With Wale realizing his potential to become a national recording artist, he began to consider other promotion artist.  Wale did this by promoting mixtapes and by creating a commanding MySpace presence. 

http://www.killerhiphop.com/wale-bait-remix-lyrics/

Wale’s MySpace presence could arguably have been the single most contributing factor that led to his popularity.   In the spirit of self-publishing and distribution, Wale and his team used the methods as a means to another end.  Even those who have great success self-promoting and distributing, a recording contract with a major recording label is usually still a sought after goal.  Wale captured the attention of several major recording labels before Interscope Records signed him to a recording contract.  He has obviously transferred the responsibility of publishing and distributing his intellectual property had been transferred over to his recording company.  A major recording deal offers the artist leverage and greater distribution power.  Now Wale is working with Maybach Music Group accomplishing the same.

The record labels use their resources to publish and distribute Wale’s work.  This is incredible leverage for the artists.  In Wale’s case, he does not have to worry about using his personal assets to record and promote himself.  The major recording companies also have the capacity to have your music reach every corner of the planet using both conventional and online mediums.  Wale has done a great job of first working hard for himself, particularly with his self-publishing and distribution efforts.  From that hard work he gain the attention of recording companies to take on the burden of those efforts.  Now he is an internationally known Hip-Hop artist creating TRANSCENDENT MUSIC thanks to his pioneered self-publishing and distribution efforts.

Transcendent Music Movement Presents: David Ratner

http://replinrhoades.com/attorneys/

Transcendent Music Movement Presents: David Ratner 

Transcendent Music is seeking to launch a new company with a product line that will require patents, trademarks, and other types of intellectual property.  We talked about a few potential intellectual property liabilities that this company might face in our last blog, The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Legal Liabilities that will Effect Transcendent Music’s New Product Line.  Recently we identified potential legal counsel in order to better analyze those liabilities as well as other factors to enhance our business plan.  The attorney we discovered is a leader in entertainment and intellectual property related law in the state of Colorado.  The Transcendent Music Movement is pleased to present David Ratner.

http://replinrhoades.com/

Attorney Dave Ratner is licensed and practices law in the state of Colorado.  Mr. Ratner is a partner of the entertainment and intellectual property law firm, Replin Ratner & Rhodes, LLC.  Their office is in the mile high city of Denver, Colorado.  Ratner began work there following a successful career as an artist manager and business consultant.  Ratner graduated from the Ivy League school, Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.  Upon graduation he worked as a tour manager and then started his own band management firm.  This experience helped Mr. Ratner to realize the value of sound legal counsel, particularly in the entertainment industry.  He found himself negotiating contracts on behalf of his bands and working extensively with attorneys during his time as a band manager.  He learned from those experiences that there was a lot more he could offer to guide and protect the creative process by pursuing a legal degree.  Dave Ratner decided to go to law school at the University of Denver following five years of priceless band management experience.  Ratner did not consider his experience a prerequisite to success in his field of law, but he did agree that it gives him an extra level of credibility with many of his clients.

Dave Ratner is now having great success as an attorney serving the needs of many clients in the Denver area.  His clients include authors, designers, artists, small business owners, entertainers and many more.  Ratner acknowledged the fact that Denver was not the most amicable place for the typical entertainment industry clients, such as those related associated with music and film.  However, he said that it is still a place with a large number of entrepreneurs across the spectrum of creative arts that require similar representation.  Many of his clients are entrepreneurs so he does a great deal of work related to asset protection, employee agreements, intellectual property valuations, and other work related to properly forming and operating a small business.

Attorney Ratner encouraged me to really take a meticulous look at every relationship that the business enters in.  This includes business-to-business relationships, employee relationships and even client relationships.  To further his point, he expressed the importance of proper documentation that clearly states the expectations of all parties involved.  In a manufacturing company he advised drafting employee manuals that included nondisclosure agreements and the like.  He also strongly advised framing my budget to include legal costs.  This would help any small business to avoid pitfalls and get started on the right path, exclaimed Ratner.  Transcendent Music’s new company will consider and apply the nuggets of knowledge that Mr. Ratner graciously provided.  We are thankful to him and on behalf of the TRANSCENDENT MUSIC MOVEMENT; we wish him continued success in his quest to provide expert legal guidance and representation to all involved in the creative arts.

The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Legal Liabilities that will Effect Transcendent Music’s New Product Line

The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Legal Liabilities that will Effect Transcendent Music’s New Product Line

This year, Transcendent Music has begun work on its first product line.  Launching this product is going to be a huge step for the startup.  The business plan surrounding the product has elements of several industries.  The two primary industries are entertainment and manufacturing.  The business plan is to develop both a line of percussion instruments and smart technology that enhances previously existing percussion instruments.  Three legal liabilities that will impact the business plan are compliance with manufacturing and trade regulations, the products trademark, and its patented technology.  The guitar manufacturer Gibson, the band the Velvet Underground and technology company Apple, all recently dealt with those liabilities respectively, in one way or another.

http://www.libertarianrepublican.net/2011/08/feds-raid-non-union-gibson-guitar-again.html

Gibson Guitar Corporation has been a prominent name in guitar manufacturing for years.  Countless well-known guitar players have played their guitars as well.  Much of what makes Gibson guitars so popular is derived from the high quality components used in manufacturing their guitars.  However, The Wall Street Journal reports that the U.S. Justice Department has authorized several raids of the Gibson factories, “seizing guitars, wood and electronic records.”  The Justice Department is citing The Lacey Act of 1900 to justify their raids and their investigation of criminal activity.  The Lacey Act, as amended in 2008, was enacted to regulate the trade of wildlife, fish, wood and other plant products.  Gibson allegedly imports wood that violates the export laws of the countries from which their fine woods are supplied.  The Lacey Act also covers the violation of any laws in another country with regard to wood or other plants.  I do not have a strong opinion on the matter considering I do not have all of the facts.  I believe however that it is extremely important to be well informed on the laws that govern other countries that you do business with.  In particular, it is important to know those that deal with the product or service you are dealing with.  Leonard Krause a consultant is reference in the article suggesting that businesses hire legal professionals in the countries they do business.  He goes on to explain that there are not many U.S. attorneys who know the laws in other countries, to further his point.

http://www.collegedj.net/2012/01/11/music/velvet-underground-files-suit-over-rights-to-iconic-banana-image/

The Velvet Underground filed suit against The Andy Warhol Foundation.  In the 60s Andy Warhol designed an album cover for the band the Velvet Underground.  The band claims that the album cover design became synonymous to the band.  Andy Warhol has since sought to license the design.  Eriq Gardner reported in his Billboard article  “After reading reports that the Warhol Foundation planned to license the design for ancillary products associated with Apple's iPod and iPad, the band made moves to put a stop to such activity.”  Apparently neither party registered the design.  The Velvet underground is arguing that many consumers will associate the album design with the band and the band does not want to be associated with such products.  This is very much so understandable and it shows the importance of registering trademarks.  Once the product line’s logo is designed we will seek to register it.  We will do this prior to it becoming representative of the product.  This way the logo will be privy to the protection of the law.  It will have legal standing to discourage issues like the ones between the Velvet Underground and Andy Warhol.

http://www.maclife.com/article/columns/law_apple_secret_deals_dismissed_patents_and_appeals_denied        

          Apple for sometime now has found itself in a battle over patented technology.  Apple has accused other companies of infringing on their patents and vice versa.  Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. filed suit recently resulting in an injunction on Apple.  Reuters reported Motorola as saying that they were, “suing Apple for infringing six of its patents involving technologies related to wireless antennae, software, data filtering and messaging.”  Though the injunction has since been lifted, infringements of this sort can lead to legal ramifications that can destroy the accused company.  The lesson learned is to avoid violating the registered patents of other companies.  Secondly, it is important to properly register any patent worthy technology or device invited as a part of or therefore an invented product. 

          TRANSCENDENT MUSIC is extremely excited about developing its new product line.  The lessons learned from the above companies as cited in these articles are sobering though.  There are a lot of details involved in any business adventure.  You have to be conscious of the laws and regulations that govern every aspect of your business.  It is more important that you adhere to them though. 

Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Mitch Wetheringthon

Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Mitch Wetheringthon

It is not very often that musicians from South Carolina make a name for themselves on a national stage in the entertainment industry.   Frankly it is not often that anyone from the Palmetto State does anything substantial in this particular industry.  This is not to say that there is no talent in the state, because that is certainly not the case.  It is just not a state that receives that much exposure in the area of entertainment.  There have been a few athletes, Vanna White from Wheel of Fortune, some others and let us not forget Stephen Colbert.  These people have represented South Carolina extremely well in the entertainment industry.  Now though, thanks to national talent contests such as America’s Next Top Model, American Idol and others, individuals from every nook and cranny of the country get their shot at making it.  The Transcendent Music Movement is pleased to present one of the most recent recipients of this incredible opportunity, acoustic singer/songwriter Mitchel Wetherington.

Twenty Four year old Mitch Wetherington was born in Lexington South Carolina.  He progressed through the public school system in the central region of the state before moving to the Low Country to attend College in Charleston, SC.  Mitch attended the Military College of South Carolina, The Citadel and graduated in May of 2010.  Mitch participated in many activities growing up.  He played soccer and was a hang gliding instructor among other things.  Out of all of his activities, his most notable was and is his talent as a musician.  While in Charleston, Mitch began taking his passion for music more seriously.  He began writing his own songs and performing them on YouTube, right from his barracks at The Citadel.  Mitch’s talent was self-realized and validated by his friends and family.  He then participated in an acoustic open-mic contest where his live performing career began.  At that event, the owner of Other Brother Entertainment, Bryan Mahanes, took notice of his talent.  Bryan helped propel Mitch’s career by landing him gigs all over Charleston.

After Mitch’s rapid success as a solo artist, he wanted to have a more dynamic presence on stage, particularly as his crowds grew bigger and bigger.  Mitch began The Mitch Wetherington Project, which included Brayan Mahanes playing lead guitar and later Trey Swinton on drums.  The Mitch Wetherington Project was an exciting band that excited crowds with enthusiastic performances.  Following the Mitch Wetherington Project, Mitch moved on to form an even more electrifying band called Southwood.  As Southwood, Mitch began to take his performances out of the local bars and in to local music venues doing shows that drew even larger crowds. 

Mitch has always kept a catalog of original music that he performed along with music covers.  After the passing of his mother shortly before he graduated college, Mitch’s song writing became his refuge.  Mitch found a deeper motivation to truly impact others through his lyrics and music.  His mother, in her absence, has further motivated Mitch to continue his pursuit of exceptional   musicianship and a songwriting.  This has been exemplified in his recent decision to audition for American Idol.  Mitch repeatedly declined to audition despite encouragement from friends, family and even his mother.  However when American Idol hosted an audition in the area he finally felt he would be remiss not to audition.  He was even more so compelled because it was a desire of his mother for her son to try out.  Mitch auditioned and unsurprisingly was presented with a golden ticket to compete in Hollywood, California to become the next American Idol.

Mitch Wetherington, in is humility, has impacted the lives of many through his music.  He continues to focus his work on positively affecting others.  Mitch’s spectacular personality and incredible talent are sure to carry him far.  His journey has already begun, as he has now been presented with an opportunity to display his craft to a national audience.  He is going to need the support and encouragement of his friends, family, Citadel family, state, and others as he labors in pursuit of national recognition as a musical artist.  Join the TRANSCENDENT MUSIC MOVEMENT as we lobby our support for Mitch Wetherington as he seeks to expand his audience, all the while continuing to create and perform TRANSCENDENT MUSIC.

The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Lyrical Profet

The Transcendent Music Movement Presents: Lyrical Profet

Lord knows making it in the music industry is no easy task.  We all know those who have come and gone.  There are those hometown heroes who seem destined to be recognized by the major record labels.  We also know those who captivate local audiences and work day in and day out to earn and preserve their unwavering support.  Some artist are infatuated with the celebrity aspects of music, I do not blame them.  However, there are some artists with a message.  These artists are not motivated by money or fame.  They explicitly and solely seek to speak to the masses using the beloved medium called music.  So here we are in the age of Youtube, Myspace, iTunes and the like.  What an opportunity for an aspiring musician or artist to become known or better yet, disseminate their message to the world through music.  With that said it gives The Transcendent Music Movement great pleasure to present someone who is doing just that, the lyrical and poetic maven, Kyrah A Ayers, better known as Lyrical Profet.

Poetry by the Bay

Born in the Bay Area of California, Lyrical Profet realized his adoration and innate gift for writing.  More specifically he found himself writing poetry.  This Fresno State Mass Communication major graduated, and supplemental to his career began writing and performing his poetry publicly.  It all began as an innocent hobby.  He wrote inspiring words and strung intricate combinations of words and other literary devices together over beats that he created.  Lyrical Profet began performing his spoken word in local venues in the bay area.  He later began a local event called Poetry by the Bay to showcase local talent.  He is the host of this event and it has been growing in popularity since its conception in 2008.

Product of Environment (P.O.E.)

From Lyrical Profet’s Poetry by the Bay event and others he began to be more comfortable on stage in front of a live audience.  He has always felt comfortable as a writer but performing on stage was a new challenge.  His ultimate goal is and was to merely be a songwriter for other artists to perform but Lyrical Profet could not deny his calling to the stage.  From Poetry by the Bay and other local events Profet formed his own band.  This band along with a vocalist made up P.O.E.  P.O.E. stands for Product of Environment.  Profet began to market his music empire as Profetic Lyrics, which became the name of his business.  Profet’s spoken word performances as P.O.E. stimulated him to tap in to his love for Hip Hop and begin writing more Hip Hop songs.  These songs included R&B vocals and the eclectic instrumentation from his live band.  Profet graced every track with the same intelligent and thought provoking songwriting.  His performance as a Hip Hop vocalist and the energy derived from the live band provoked excitement from crowds wherever they performed.   Lately though, Profet has been working on solo productions.

This is my Prayer

Lyrical Profet has been releasing individual tracks periodically while he has been working on his latest major production; a mix-tape entitled This is my Prayer.  He recently released the video for the title track This is my Prayer and has set a release date for the mix-tape of January 7, 2012.  The music of Lyrical Profet is sure to possess profound songwriting and lively instrumentation.  Lyrical Profet is one hard working artist with incredible talent and tremendous potential yet.    Profet is doing great work to promote his music and his message.  The Transcendent music movement encourages you to further explore his work on the various social and media mediums highlighted throughout this blog.  Also continue to support the movement to support artist such as Lyrical Profet as they continue to create TRANSCENDENT MUSIC.