Progression

In the entertainment industry the goal is progression. But, the question is which is the best way to move forward. Moving forward is hard especially when you are trying to focus on more than one thing at a time. I believe that the best way to move forward is to work on one thing at a time. Once you have perfected the one thing begin working on something else. This is where the problem lies. An artist can work on one part of their craft but there is always room for improvement. When is it time to move on to the next thing. My company has successfully thrown events, but there is a lot of things that we can work on. We want to expand, and we also want to work on other ventures. I believe that we are in a good place with events but we are far from reaching our goals.

The question I am faced with is should I continue to focus my efforts on throwing these events or should I try to begin to work on other things as well. I am at a place where I feel as though I can start to work on other things and it won’t take away from events. Not all of my business partners feel the same way. Other members of my company feel that we should keep throwing parties and events until we sell out every event. Until we can charge more for entry because of the demand. Until we become celebrities for our events.

I am not sure if what they are saying is the best option. I think that we could venture out and do other things and that will in turn help promote our parties. While working in groups majority rules. I am not sure if one way of approaching the situation is right. Or even if one way is better. 

More Is Better

In the entertainment industry, is working with more people better? I ask this question because there are a total of seven people who equally run my company. So far, I have noticed the good and the bad. The first thing is that all seven individuals bring something different to the table. Each member has their own set of skills and talents that they have developed. Also, exposure is a huge deal in the entertainment industry. This may be the biggest benefit of having more people to work with. Getting the word out, getting people involved, covering a lot of ground are all benefits that we reap from having seven people work together. A lot of our circles of friends overlap. But, we all know different people. We all make sure that we touch people who are outside of our circle to make sure that we are successful in everything that we do.

There are also many cons to working with a lot of people. When working with lots of people there are many different minds that are working together. This can cause problems. There is not one decision that everyone agrees with. No matter how big or small the decision there will always be at least one person who looks at the situation differently (which is also a relative concept and could be looked at as a good thing). This effects efficiency. We are not as productive because we spend more time in the thinking and decision making portion for each problem rather than the action portion. If there were less people who had to agree then we could spend more time "doing" instead of "talking." Another con is splitting the money. We can host an event which is very profitable, but since that has to be shared by many individuals the profits dont seem to be as much.

There are benefits and setbacks of working with lots of people. I personally feel that in the long run, having more people will help. Once there is more structure and chemistry work will become easier and smoother. And consistency will allow for us to make a significant amount of money.

Comedy in Media

Everything seems to be leaning toward comedy. Comedy seems to be the new “sex.” In the past, we would always here phrase like “sex sells,” but now everyone is putting a funny spin on things to grab the attention of consumers. If you sit down and watch television you will understand what I am saying. Every company on TV has a commercial that is funny. Most of these commercials have nothing to do with their product or service but the commercial has some type of joke in it that they hope will get the customer to remember their product or service.

Even in music there seems to be more comedy. Songs and music videos now even feature comedians and other thing to add a funny element to their work. Even the artist that tries to say witty things that is funny. Some artists are even comical musicians, where every song they make is funny, and the whole purpose of their music is to make people laugh.

In the past comedians were big deals. They were on all of the talk shows. They were in all of the movies. They took over award shows. They were even featured in music. I am a firm believer of history repeating itself. Now we have comedians like Mike Epps and Kevin Hart who seem to be the biggest comedians out at this time. They are in lots of movies, you can hear everyone on TV recite their jokes, and can go any given place and hear their names.

Comedy is used not only in advertisement and music. But it seems like there are more funny movies being made. There are a million sitcoms on TV.  Video games even use comedy within their story lines. Having something funny just makes things better no matter what it is.

Fame

Fame, fortune, and power are all things that come with being a celebrity. In today’s society there are plenty of ways to become a celebrity. As stated by many, fame is considered to be a drug. It is addictive and can cause many problems. Being in the lime light gives many people a feeling of ecstasy. Rather you are a actor, athlete, musician you can become addicted to fame. Not only is it the exposure but the lifestyle  that famous people have to live.

Plenty of people have said that fame has made them crazy. Some people say they cant take. Some people love it. Being famous has accounted for many people having mental breakdowns, people turning to drugs, and many people living a fast lifestyle.

Most people look at fame as a good thing. And it can be a really good thing if you don’t let all of the extra things get to you. Most people fall victim to fame instead of controlling their lives. They let everything that is glamorized become a priority. They also let all of the attention make them feel like they are better than other people.

“Fame is not for the faint of heart.” I agree.

iPad

One trend that has been keeping steady in the entertainment industry is the use of Apple products. The main reason for this is performance. Apple computers are usually more powerful and faster which is very important when you are working with a lot of data. In studios across the United States Apple is the standard computer used, rather it is a audio recording studio or a television studio, to a movie studio.

Apple can out with a device called the iPad which is a unique device. The iPad is essentially Apple’s tablet but the iPad is powerful enough to effectively control a recording studio for music. iPad studios are being used by professionals as well as amateurs. The iPad is cheap in relation to other studio computer, and it has software that is specifically for this device and purpose. Not only is it cool, to set up a iPad studio, but it can also be cost effective and efficient.

After researching iPad studios I found out that not only are they used in recording studios, but they also are used for other types of studios. People use these devices for video, animation, and for many other types of production work.  The iPad can use almost any application or program that a Macbook or Apple desktop computer can use.

The iPad would be perfect for me because I can work off of this one device instead of having multiple devices for each singular thing that I want to work on. I work with music, videos, graphics, and web design. The iPad will allow me to have a portable device that I can use for all of these things. Of course, I would still want a larger more powerful device that I can work on. But for convience sake the iPad would be a great investment for my business.

Loyalty or Money?

In the entertainment industry the best asset you have is your network. Networking is key. While networking you will be presented with lots of opportunities. Some of these opportunities will make you ask yourself this question “Is loyalty more important than my money?” Meaning there may be a point in time when you have to do something that someone in you network might not like to make more money.

Growing up I found out that loyalty is important in any relationship that you pursue. My opinion is that loyalty is more important, but making money is the goal. You have to find a middle ground for both. And the key to this is open communication. I am one of the founding members of a entertainment company and we are faced with this problem everyday. We mainly throw parties and events. I also have my personal brand that I am building separate from the company. The loyalty part comes in where my personal brand is asked to work with a competitor, then I have to make a decision. Should I take the money the competitor is offering or should I remain loyal to my company.

Everyone is not going to agree with every move that I make. But in order to remain loyal I keep them informed and if something is brought to my attention that it is in fact dis-loyal I choose loyalty every time. I feel loyalty is more important. Do you?