ARTIST MANAGEMENT - Assignment 1 Artist Selection, Target Audience Profile, and Artist Analysis

FOUNDATION

1. Toccara Thomas, Alexzandra Halbritter & Ashley Hebert 2. Artist’s name: Tommy Paxton-Beesley AKA “River Tiber” http://www.rivertiber.com/#!/home

3. Similar to well-known artist: James Blake a. Potential research methods:

i. Facebook Audience Insights (https://www.facebook.com/ads/audience-insights/) ii. Search the profile of the well-known artist you identified and find a post with more than 50 engaged users (likes, comments, reactions). Determine demographic and psychographic data below from the “About” section of public profiles of the engaged users.

TARGET AUDIENCE

4. Target Audience - Demographics: a. River Tiber’s target audience age ranges from 22-32 years old. His fan base is predominantly female with a 45% male base. The average income range is from $30k to $40k annually. The primary ethnicity of his fan base consists of White and Hispanic. His music is targeted to those in a relationship.

5. Target Audience- Psychographics: i. Hobbies/Lifestyle Choices: music blog readers, concert and festival goers, instrument players ii. Clothing/Accessory Brands: Urban Outfitters, Supreme, Adidas iii. Food/Restaurant Preferences: Vegetarian, coffee-drinker, gastropubs, cocktail bars iv. Other Artists: Kaytranada, BADBADNOTGOOD, Charlotte Day Wilson, Daniel Caesar v. Movies and TV Shows: Black Panther, Drive, Suits, Stranger Things

6. Target Audience – Description River Tiber’s target audience primarily consists of relationship statused Caucasian and Hispanic males and females aged 22-32 with a household income of $30- $40k annually. Lifestyle choices include urban outfitters or Adidas wearing concert goers who may be vegans and coffee drinkers that typically hang out at gastropubs and cocktail bars, with similar interests in musicianship and jazzy hip-hop fans of bands such as BBNG.

Target Audience- Geographic: a. 5 cities within a 500-mile radius that have niche-specific businesses, venues, schools, or other organizations that would be frequented by the target audience you have defined.

Hometown: Toronto, Canada

i. City 1: Montreal (314 mi) Streetwear Pop-Up Shop: The exposing brand or artist gets visibility and awareness, meets his/her customers, checks out new and potential markets and sells more products. The customer discovers new brands, meets designers and artists, gets discount rates on products, and will more than likely end up with a cocktail or two. http://bestkeptmontreal.com/show-up-for-pop-up-montreal/

ii. City 2: Elora ON, Canada (71.6 mi) Bissell Park: (popular community park that features a mix of amenities; also, the host to one of the biggest music festivals in the area (Riverfest Elora)

http://www.centrewellington.ca/beactive/Pages/Recreation,%20Parks%20and%20Facilities/Park s%20and%20Outside%20Facilities/Elora-and-Salem-Parks.aspx

City 3: Peterborough ON, Canada (86 mi) The Ceilie (student pub near Trent University, hosts pub nights & special events weekly, great place to hang out with friends

https://www.theceilie.com

iii. City 4: Mississauga, Ontario (23.5 mi) University of Toronto Mississauga (University of Toronto’s 2nd largest division; serve diverse audiences with tons of avenues for advertisement)

https://www.utoronto.ca/university-life/campuses/mississauga

iv. City 5: Boston (431 mi) Guitar Center - world’s largest retailer of guitars, amplifiers, drums, keyboards, recording, live sound, & more http://www.guitarcenter.com/pages/company-information Two pictures of ideal members of the artist’s target audience.

GETTING TO KNOW THE ARTIST:

Discuss the questions sections below thoroughly with your group in regards to your artist, then answer them in writing.

Choose at least 3 talents out of the list below that apply to your chosen artist and write 4 sentences describing each talent. (Total of 12 sentences) Please elaborate and provide specific details.

1. Songwriting: River Tiber writes all of his songs himself. He also produced beats for artists like Ghostface Killah and Pusha T. River was nominated for the SOCAN Songwriting Prize in 2017 for his song “Acid Test.” River wants to show how he’s progressing and instead of writing lyrics to a beat he wrote lyrics first and then wrote the music or came up with the beats for the songs on his album Indigo.

2. Live performance: River Tiber sings live with a band and plays the electric guitar and keyboard. His band members play bass guitar, electric guitar, and drums during live performances. The backdrop usually consists of a neon sign that reads “River Tiber.” There is no stage production or design element.

3. Instruments played: River Tiber is a talented musician that excels in various instruments. He started out at a young age and has advanced his craft since then. Throughout his adolescence, he learned to play the cello, trombone, drums, and guitar. His skills as a multi-instrumentalist identifies him as the jack-of-all-trades which is good for his image. It is also beneficial to him as an artist because it enhances his entire music listening experience.

Choose at least 3 elements of experience that apply to your chosen artist and write 4 sentences describing each element of experience. (Total of 12 sentences) Please elaborate and provide specific details.

1. Co-writing: River Tiber has co-written songs with a variety of artists. He most recently co-wrote a song with Charlotte Day Wilson titled “Take Me There.” In 2016, he co-wrote a song with Jazz Cartier titled “Tell Me.” He also co-wrote 2 songs on Kaytranada’s most recent album 99.9% titled “Bus Ride” and “Vivid Dreams.”

1. Publicity – Within a few short years of the relentless pursuit of his music goals, River Tiber has already gained global attention mainly due to the EP released in 2013 as well as a follow up song released in 2015. He has been making headway under both U.S and Canadian spotlight, especially since his song titled "No Talk" ended up becoming Drake's "No Tellin” song. Additionally, he has attracted wide publicity not only by obtaining credits on Drake but on the albums of other notable artists such as Kaytranada and BBNG. At this rate he will soon be sought out by other musicians because of his intuitive ability to produce samples of his blended talents.

2. Merchandise- River Tiber doesn’t have much for merchandise. You can buy a t-shirt or sweatshirt with his name on it. You can also buy Prophets/Atlantis on a 7” vinyl. You can buy this merchandise directly from his website.

ARTIST SWOT ANALYSIS:

To evaluate your chosen artist, write 4 sentences describing each element of a SWOT analysis. (Total of 16 sentences) Please provide a minimum of 2 specific examples of each category and give specific details.

A. Strengths: One of the strengths of River Tiber is that he has the ability to produce high-quality music that sets him apart from other artists. Case in point, Drake sampled his music for a song on his album which is a pretty big deal considering he’s an indie artist. Another strength that he possesses is his humble personality. This makes him capable of acting as a supporting artist in collaboration with others.

B. Weaknesses: A weakness that may prevent River Tiber from reaching mainstream success is his abstract sound. One might say that his music can feel out of reach to an everyday listener. This would prevent his music from getting radio play. He has also received critique of having too similar of a sound to Thom Yorke of Radiohead. Though River Tiber reaches a different audience -R&B opposed to Alternative. The R&B market may not be suited for a Thom Yorke rendition.

C. Opportunities: River Tiber’s relationship with other artists can open several doors for him in the music industry. One reason being is that it could lead to great exposure for him as well as for his music. Another option is that if he remains consistent in a niche market, it will grow and allow him the opportunity to provide his artistry to new audiences. For instance, he can expand into new genres. One particular festival that he would fit well with is the TDOT Fest which showcases indie artists and a number of mainstream artists. It’s been known as the most popular free community urban festival and best of all, it’s based out of his hometown in Toronto. An artist that he could collaborate well and be booked with for a show goes by the stage name H.E.R. The two have a similar sound in their music and it could give him a good chance of experimenting with more creativity. He could also do a cross-genre collaboration with an artist like Chance the Rapper.

D. Threats: River Tiber’s sound being so different is one possible threat to his career. People’s taste in music changes all the time and if he doesn’t update his sound with what’s popular he may lose fans. Another possible threat to River’s career is not being able to keep up with the ever-changing way that people buy and listen to music. If River is only releasing cd’s but all of his fans use digital downloads than he’s not going to be able to sell his music.

ACTION ITEMS:

Read this article regarding potential revenue sources for an independent artist: - http://ambitious.com/10-ways-to-make-money-as-a-musician-in-a-world-of-digital- sales-and-streaming/

For each of the 2 strengths identified in the SWOT analysis, brainstorm a list of 3 potential revenue sources for the artist. (Total of 6)

STRENGTH 1 – Potential Revenue Sources 1. Get a publishing deal 2. Be a master producer 3. Teach lessons on how to produce STRENGTH 2 – Potential Revenue Sources 1. Write songs for other artists 2. Start a YouTube channel to help other artists learn his technique 3. Collaborate with other artists

For each of the 2 weaknesses identified in the SWOT analysis, brainstorm a list of 2 potential ways to improve or fix the issue/circumstance. (Total of 4)

WEAKNESS 1 – Potential Solution 1. One potential fix to having a sound that is deemed not radio-friendly is the release of a remix. A remix track can be produced by River Tiber himself or produced by an entirely different artist. In some circumstances, a song that was not produced for radio can become a mainstream hit with the help of a remix, as was the case for Lana Del Rey’s “Summertime Sadness” (Cedric Gervais Remix). 2. Another solution is to feature a well-known artist on a song. If River Tiber were to feature someone like Drake, The Weeknd, or SZA, the song would reach a wider audience and have a better chance at radio play. WEAKNESS 2 – Potential Solution 1. If similarity to Thom York is inescapable, River Tiber could use it to his advantage. When female R&B singer Banks first began releasing material, she was instantly dubbed the “female version of The Weeknd.” She went on to tour with The Weeknd as his opening act and reached mainstream success herself. If River Tiber followed the same steps and embarked a tour with Thom Yorke or Radiohead, he would gain a new following and give his fan-base a new perspective. 2. Another solution would be to evoke more of an R&B sound with his future projects, to stray from references to Thom Yorke. River Tiber’s earlier works sound so similar to that of Thom Yorke, one might not be able to tell the difference. However, once River Tiber’s sultry productions are brought in, the difference is unmistakable.

REFERENCES:

Audience analysis James Blake's Fans Interests & Passions. (n.d.). Retrieved March 04, 2018, from http://customer-profile.com/entertainment/music/dance-and-electronic-music/james-blake- audience-analysis.html

Carty, M. (2018, March 22). Flaming Lips, Blue Rodeo to headline Riverfest Elora 2018. Retrieved March 22, 2018, from https://globalnews.ca/news/4099343/flaming-lips-blue-rodeo-to- headline-riverfest-elora-2018/

Darville, J. (2017, November 09). Meet River Tiber, Toronto’s Most Valuable Young Collaborator. Retrieved March 04, 2018, from http://www.thefader.com/2016/12/20/river-tiber- interview-beat-construction

Distance from Toronto to ... (n.d.). Retrieved March 04, 2018, from https://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/distances.html?n=250

(n.d.). Retrieved March 22, 2018, from https://www.centrewellington.ca/visitus/Pages/What to See and Do/Festivals-and-Events.aspx

Next Big Sound. (n.d.). Retrieved March 04, 2018, from https://www.nextbigsound.com/profile/1084013

Peralta,T. (2015, February 26). Who the Hell is River Tiber and Why is He Suddenly Everywhere? Retrieved March 04, 2018, from https://noisey.vice.com/en_us/article/ryzd3k/rivertiber-is-one-credit-away-from-being-famous

River Tiber. (n.d.). Retrieved March 04, 2018, from http://meltbooking.com/artist/rivertiber/

River Tiber. (n.d.). Retrieved March 04, 2018, from http://www.socansongwritingprize.ca/nominee/rivertiber/

Urban Outfitters. (n.d.). Retrieved March 04, 2018, from Urban Outfitters. (n.d.). Retrieved March 04, 2018, from http://www.urbn.com/our-brands/urban-outfitters

Retrieved March 23, 2018, from https://tdotfest.com/

Tiber, R. (n.d.). River Tiber. Retrieved March 04, 2018, from http://www.rivertiber.com/

Yeung, N.Z. (n.d.). River Tiber | Biography & History. Retrieved March 04, 2018, from https://www.allmusic.com/artist/river-tibermn0003456799/biography

Zoomph. (n.d.). River Tiber's Twitter Follower Analytics | Zoomph. Retrieved March 04, 2018, from https://zoomph.com/twitter-followers-profile/rivertiber/

IMAGES Retrieved From: https://dq1eylutsoz4u.cloudfront.net/2017/05/31144048/how-to-meet-men-in-real-life.jpg