Season 2 - Episode 2: Justin Morgan - Persistence Is Key

This week I’m talking with Centricity Music Publishing songwriter and producer Justin Morgan.  Justin shares his experience going from a struggling indie band to charting on Billboard all without a label. Plus, we talk about what it’s like signing your first publishing deal and what the first year will probably be like for most newcomers. 

Sponsors: Edenbrooke Productions - We offer consulting services and are offering listeners a 1-hour introductory special. To request more info on consulting services, email Marty at contact@johnmartinkeith.com. 

In this episode we talk about:

*Taking the initiative to connect with industry people.
*Don’t be scared to ask but you can’t be annoying. 
*Don’t be afraid to send a couple of songs to a publisher. Don’t send them 50 though.
*There’s persistence and there’s over persistence.
*Persistence is key to obtaining any level of success in the music industry, over persistence will kill any level of success in the music industry.
*Anytime an indie artist starts getting Billboard traction, labels started noticing and we were playing showcases in Nashville.
*Exploit your contacts and ask people to meet and get coffee and ask questions, etc.
*Ask people to a breakfast meeting.
*You’re not going to get signed from your first meeting. 
*If you’re a good hang, they will listen to your songs.
*When you sign a pub deal, you will spend the first year writing with everyone they can put you with. They have to figure out who you work well with and what you do best.
*Be a sponge and learn as much about co-writing as you can from seasoned writers for that first year.
*You can be a great writer and a horrible co-writer.
*If you’re going to email a producer or publisher, etc., find out what they’re excited about and working on and who they’re working with.
*When you approach a publishing company you want to work with, try to find a mutual friend who is working with them already.  That’s the best way.
* www.pearlsnapstudios.com

BIO:

Justin Morgan is a producer, writer, and artist from Nashville TN. Justin grew up in the great state of Texas and feasted on a diverse selection of music from Glenn Miller to George Strait and The Eagles to The Wallflowers and everything in-between. That may be the reason Justin can't sit still in one genre for long. As a songwriter and producer Justin has had cuts in Country, Christian, Rock, and Pop and has had over 50 songs placed in TV and Film. As an artist, Justin has had over 10 million streams across his various artist projects and streaming platforms.