June 29, 2010

The DeVillebillies at Moondance Jammin' Country Fest


Hi Jango!

We're back from the Moondance Jammin' Country Fest in Walker, Minnesota, and it was interesting to say the least. A dangerous situation developed when severe weather blew through the concert site just before and after our show. Tornado warnings, lightning, and tremendous downpours. Fortunately for everyone, despite a huge low-hanging wall cloud that passed directly over the campsites about 100 feet off the ground, there were no tornado touchdowns at the site, and everybody there got through it okay (although tragically, there were injuries and a couple of fatalities just 35 miles southwest of us).

On the positive side, the concert hosts, sound techs, and of course the fans were great! We had a really fun show on the Saloon stage, sold some CD's, and the promoter told us to keep in touch with an eye towards next year. Overall a pretty good day for us, and we stayed over and watched the main acts for free while we partied hearty well into the wee morning hours.

Our thanks to Jango and all our great Jango fans for making it happen - it was a trip!

Keep Twangin'!

the deVillebillies
www.jango.com/music/the+deVillebillies

June 28, 2010

Jango PopScore Top 5

And here they are, the Jango Airplay PopScore Top 5 for the week ending June 28. Check 'em out now, new great artists are rising to the top week after week.

Artist: Shay
Shay is an alternative hip-hop artist from Indianapolis. His musical interest was sparked at a young age, and continues to provide a breath of fresh air to listeners.

Click to hear Shay:
Sunshine (Feat. Keen)
Artist: Bobby Cool
Bobby Cool grew up listening to the rock, folk, and pop his parents would play, until in high school he began an affair with country music. Since then he's been playing the music he loves, while maintaining a healthy dose of those early influences.

Click to hear Bobby Cool:
Wishin' Time Away
Artist: Burzinski
Burzinski is a Parisian musician making indietronica, featuring low voice, vintage electric guitars, drum samples, old-fashioned mellotrons. His most recent album, Untimely Tales, was released in January of this year.

Click to hear Burzinski:
Here
Artist: 76 Degrees West Band
The 76 Degrees West Band is a jazz/funk outfit from Washington, DC. Their latest release has been well-received by fans, critics, and smooth radio throughout the United States.

Click to hear 76 Degrees West Band:
School Boy Crush
Artist: Chained Fate
Chained Fate is an alternative rock band formed in 2004, at a Halloween party. Their music has "an explosive... hard hitting sound, and lyrics that reach out as if the song was written for you."

Click to hear Chained Fate:
Without You Here

Want To Play Meany Fest in NYC ?

Jango Airplay has teamed up with MEANY FEST 2010 for their festival this fall in New York City from September 16 - October 2.

This year MEANY FEST will book 10 New York State based bands from Jango Airplay. You heard it right, 10 talented Jango Airplay bands will be added to the bill this yearand here's your chance to be that band.

There are a few simple rules to submit your band for this event:

1. You need a Jango PopScore for the week of June 28- July 5

2. Target the following artists or similar big name rock acts
- Three Days Grace
- Shine down
- Muse
- Kings of Leon
- Coldplay
- Thirty Seconds to Mars
- Train
- Stone Temple Pilots
- Journey
- Oasis

3. Leave a comment in this blog post with your band name and a link to your Jango Profile

4. Be a New York State band. ONLY bands from New York State will be considered

The 10 bands with the best PopScore for the week will be announced and lined up to play this year's MEANY FEST

For more info on MEANY FEST - Click HERE

Also, if you are from outside of New York State and still want to be considered then go to www.sonicbids.com/MEANYFEST2010 - Enter promo code MEANY10 for $10 off submission!

Looking forward to hearing what you've got

- The Jango Juggler

June 24, 2010

Coast 2 Coast Convention - Miami Beach









One of our great partners, Coast2Coast Mixtapes is hosting the 2nd anual Coast 2 Coast Convention, August 27th-29th, in Miami Beach, FL. The Coast 2 Coast Convention bridges the gap between the streets and the new music industry for independent artists and producers.

There's a special discount for Jango Airplay artists and a special VIP discount until the end of June.

GET A 50% DISCOUNT ON VIP PASSES THIS MONTH ONLY USING THE PROMO CODE: VIP

JANGO USERS GET 10% OFF ALL REGISTRATIONS USING THE PROMO CODE: JANGO

VIP passes include VIP entry to all events and afterparties.

To register and get more info go to

www.coast2coastconvention.com

June 23, 2010

Bootleg Live at Wakarusa

We're back with one more report from the Wakarusa festival. Bootleg was one of the three Jango Airplay bands that was able to play this year. Looks like a good time to say the least.








































June 22, 2010

That Noise - Live at The Viper Room - June 30















The results are in and the guys from ShowListLA have chosen Jango Airplay band That Noise to play the ShowList/Jango industry showcase at The Viper Room in LA next week.

So a big congrats goes out to That Noise, we're sure they'll knock 'em out...Check out their Jango profile HERE

If you're in LA then definitely head down to the gig, should be a good one. The Flyer is below here for details

June 21, 2010

Jango PopScore Top 5

Hello Airplayers,

Here's this past week's artists with the best PopScore across all the bands that were getting Airplay. Skyrocket Love is also one of the finalists to play the Viper Room in LA next week as well at the ShowListLA/Jango Airplay Industry Showcase. Keep an eye on them.

Artist: Sarah Darling
Ambitious, young country artist Sarah Darling hails from Des Moines, but she was not long for the Midwest. Just one year out of highschool Sarah saved up & moved to Nashville, and has been going strong ever since.

Click to hear Sarah Darling:
Jack Of Hearts
Artist: Dan Mills
Dan Mills is a Brooklyn based singer-songwriter. Inspired by the artist-audience bond he was experiencing on the road, Dan recently released his second full-length album.

Click to hear Dan Mills:
Those Clothes
Artist: John Maison
Country artist John Maison's musical interest was sparked by the radio in his father's van on their way to work, and it's a personal touch that has stayed with him since. "If you listen to enough of my music, you can tell what type of life I lead."

Click to hear John Maison:
Hit Your Heartbrakes
Artist: Space Kundun
Space Kundun is the alter-ego of DJ and dance artist Alexander Gaas. The music delivers an exciting mixture of exclusive loops, melodies, live instruments, drum patterns and layers of textured sonics.

Click to hear Space Kundun:
The River Of Dreams
Artist: Skyrocket Love
Skyrocket Love is a 6 piece alternative rock band from Hollywood, CA. Their debut album was released this year, built on a solid foundation of ringing chords and earnest lyrics.

Click to hear Skyrocket Love:
Save The World

Viper Room LA - The Finalists


Hello Airplayers,

We had some great bands submit to play next week at the Viper Room in LA for the Showlist LA/Jango Airplay Industry showcase.

The 10 bands below received the best PopScores for last week while targeting a selection of 10 bands that fit the sound of the night. The guys from Show List will make their final selection from there.

So stay tuned right here...back soon.

Skrocket Love - California
Half Mile Radius - Taiwan
Elizabethan Report - California
Blair - California
Jack Morgan - UK
That Noise - California
Jesse & The Dandelions - Canada
The Loomis Fargo Gang - Virginia
W. Dire Wolff - California
The Heads - New York

June 15, 2010

Want To Play The Viper Room in LA ?





Jango Airplay has teamed up with ShowListLA.com for their Industry Showcase happening at The Viper Room on June 30. One talented band from Jango Airplay is going to be added to the bill and here's your chance to be that band. Their last event was a sold out room full of managers, agents, promoters, music supervisors & record execs.


To be considered for the opening slot just follow these simple instructions.

1. You need a Jango PopScore for the week of June 14-20

2. Target only the following artists
- Animal Collective
- MGMT
- The Postal Service
- Yeasayer
- Phoenix
- Caribou
- Grizzly Bear
- The Shins
- Modest Mouse
- Passion Pit
- Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti

3. Leave a comment in this blog post with your band name and a link to your Jango Profile

The 10 bands with the best PopScore for the week will be announced and the guys from ShowListLA will pick one band for the opening set.

It's best if you live in the LA area since being an Industry Showcase there are no fees paid to the band. But hey, if you want to drive or fly from anywhere in the world, that's up to you. And since there's no fees we struck a little deal with the guys at ShowList for you so the drinks are on Jango.

Looking forward here to checking out all the submissions...so until then...

The Juggler

How do you impress a listener on Jango?





This week we have a great guest blog post from Jay Frank author of 'Future Hit DNA'. Future Hit.DNA provides a road map to the digital landscape, outlining 15 points that must change in a song if the artists, songwriters and producers of tomorrow want a chart topping hit. Check out the book HERE


For the benefit of all the artists we had Jay to run five Jango Airplay artists that had received high PopScores through the Future Hit DNA wringer....this is what he came up with...

How do you impress a listener on Jango?

It's not just as simple as effectively targeting a like-minded fan and purchasing some plays. The song has got to impress. The model that Jango delivers in music exposure is exactly the type that I discuss in my #1 Music Business book Futurehit.DNA. On Jango, the good news is that you're mixed in with top artists which other services don't deliver. The bad news is that you're placed next to these same artists. Make no mistake, the person who came to listen to their radio station wants to hear the hits. HOWEVER, if you follow several of the rules I discuss in my book, you'll find some success.

To show this in action, I asked Jango to send me five artists of varying genres and see if they fit the model I discuss in my book. These artists were not pulled for any other reason other than their Jango success. Yet without fail, I can show that their success can be proven through the Futurehit.DNA model. Take a listen...

This goth-rock band from New York is typically the type of band that feels my theories can't apply to their music. Indie bands with an edgy genre can't possibly benefit from a formula, they say. At first listen, I thought that the Ropes were largely achieving this success outside of my ideas. Their songs mostly had long intros, a variety of forms, and yet still had a significant online following. That was, until I went to MySpace to discover their most popular song. That song, "Be My Gun" had plays that were nearly 4x the second most played song. Lo and behold, that song adhered to much of my formula. It starts with a short intro (not the seven seconds I advocate, but it gets into the vocals in 9 seconds). It plays with a very provocative lyric in the chorus with "I'm the bullet, will you be my gun?" It has an arrangement change-up at the two minute mark when the instrumentation drops out keeping the listener engaged. Then the song ends with no resolve allowing for the listener to more likely hum the tune after it's completed. All said and done, many of the hallmarks of Futurehit.DNA.










As a disclaimer, Jaron and I discussed my theories just before he wrote and recorded the Country hit "I Pray For You". He thanked me by including Futurehit.DNA in a cameo role in the first video for the song. I've discussed this track in a blog entry on my site at length. The short answer is that there's a very short intro, strong repetition with the "I pray your..." line, a change up at about two minutes (horns in a country song?)...all elements used to full effect. No wonder this track got signed and is now at about half a million paid downloads.




A young emo band has to impress quickly. This band does it in spades. At least half of the songs I checked out jumped right into the vocals. No intro needed. Many emo bands have been doing this for awhile, which is why they tend to have solid fanbases and sales without much radio airplay. They are instantly engaging to the audience. The songs use a variety of other elements to varying degrees, but this band mostly relies on the short intros to engage the listener.





This Baltimore rapper also mostly relies on the short intro. The songs themselves have a variety of hip-hop styles. But they all engage in quick trips to the vocals to make sure that the listener is engaged. There's not many other elements in his songs that I discuss in the book, save for some pointed lyrics that one would hope occurs in hip-hop. But for the audience, that's what matters and those quick intros are helpful.





An alt-country artist also begs to be a type that would not subscribe to a formula. Much like The Ropes, I investigated this artist further on Myspace to see which of her tracks were most successful. Not surprisingly, the track "Worth Keeping" stuck out with the most plays. Guess what? A two second intro, an instrumental change up at about a minute and a half in to keep the listener engaged, an ending with no chord resolution, PLUS a song at five minutes plus, which is crucial in owning the listening experience. Her most popular song, according to Myspace, turned out to be the one that followed the formula.

While Futurehit.DNA has fifteen tips on how to be successful in the digital age, no one song could contain all fifteen elements. Indeed, as shown above, all five artists above show different examples of how these tips can be combined to success. The one common element is that short intro that I recommend is seven seconds or less. This is even more crucial for Jango listeners because they can hit that skip button. Remember, they want to hear the name brand artist so you better make it count, you need to impress them, and fast. The best way to do it is with the shorter intros. These five Jango artists have taken the short intros into new fans.

How are you doing?

June 14, 2010

Jango PopScore Top 5

Here's Jango's top 5 artists from last week, check them out here and show them some support.

Artist: Savor
Featuring a unique blend of rock guitar and pop song structure - and fueled by a smoking percussion section - Savor creates their own style of fusion music.

Click to hear Savor:
Moviendote
Artist: Bendikt Brydern
Benedikt Brydern is a composer and performer, frequenting film & television screens, as well as the stage. His music is informed by this experience, as well as his early classical training in Munich.

Click to hear Benedikt Brydern:
Motender
Artist: Trans Atlantic
Trans Atlantic is a US-based melodic trance & house artist. His music focuses on "dreamy melody with a nice beat."

Click to hear Trans Atlantic:
The Happy Feeling
Artist: Tim Crabb
A singer-songwriter from Georgia, Tim Crabb's music comes alive thanks to his deft fingerstyle acoustic guitar playing. He's played Carnegie Hall, toured internationally, and shared the studio a myriad of talents.

Click to hear Tim Crabb:
No Time To Lose
Artist: Sylvain Vallee
Born in Montreal, world & new age artist Sylvain Vallee has spent 30 years involved in the music business, receiving conservatory training, touring with country and metal bands, composing for picture, and writing on his own.

Click to hear Sylvain Vallee:
Innocent Beginnings