How To Succeed As An Artist

For a while I\’ve been swamped with a lot of projects so time has been very limited. I can\’t remember the last time I had time to sit down and write a journal so I figured it is long over due. I wanted to drop a few gems about a lot of things I\’ve experienced and advice to other artist. During the last year things have became a slight bit more hectic in terms of a lot of things I\’m dealing with. Career wise everything is great musically, but with that said their is a lot of bullshit that comes along with that success. Do I feel I am at a level where I have arrived? No. Do I feel I am on the right path to getting there? Yes. With that said I will tell you about a lot of the things that I have dealt with, what I have learned, and how you can spot these problems to prevent them from happening to you.

Protect Your Brand
Brands are important. I didn\’t understand branding and marketing until a few industry friends I have really sat down with me and educated me in regards to the importance of brands, and why it is very important to limit poor associations. As an artist you have to view yourself as a brand. For this example, let\’s say you are McDonalds. As McDonalds you earn millions of dollars in inventory on a monthly basis. One day a food chain named Bob\’s Burgers approaches you to join a business campaign. Bob\’s Burgers suggest that the both of your organizations should work together to help maximize profits. However after research you observe that Bob\’s Burgers network does not reach nearly even a fraction of the network that your network reaches on a global scale. Further more Bob\’s Burgers only has 10 restaurants in the USA. In comparison to your restaurant chain that has over 300,000 restaurants world wide. With that understanding would you continue to deal with Bob\’s Burgers? If your smart hell to the no. Because you understand that Bob\’s Burgers is a liability. As an artist the same logic applies. You must protect your brand at all cost. Once your brand is messed up your screwed. I can\’t begin to tell you how many E-mails I get daily (roughly 50) and about 30 of those go something like this \”Yo wud up K…we need to collab fam\”. Am I rude to these artist? No. Do I respectfully decline to collab? Yes. Because I understand I have to protect my brand. Which means I can\’t collab with every artist under the sun because it\’s counter productive. This applies to people I know as well. Because people that know me regardless if it\’s through present or past dealings feel a false sense of entitlement. They feel as if I should be down to do a million collabs with them or a million mixtapes with them. So I constantly deal with an onslaught of needy people that always want me to do a song with them so they can pitch it to the blogs and Hip Hop sites that post my music as if that will be their magic pill to get them out of the Matrix. In laymen terms I say all of this to enlighten ya\’ll that niggas are lazy and always wanna piggy back off of other people\’s success. Buncha fake ass Tito\’s and Jermaine\’s with bad jerry curls tryna make you their version of Michael Jackson for a come up. However, when I do choose to do collabs I do them in a strategic manner. If it is an artist that I see is trying I work with them. When I say trying I don\’t mean someone that is delirious and feel they have a great buzz in their mind, but in reality their name holds no weight in the Hip Hop community. I\’m talking about legitimate artist that when you Google them you see they have a strong Internet presence as well as touring and etc. In summary, protect your brand at all cost. Work with artist that are on your level or higher. Limit poor associations that will only hinder your success. You may think \”But damn K…me and MC Get Buzy been boys since Junior High School…we use to be so broke we would share a slice of pizza from Margaritas on Jamaica Ave…I can\’t front on him son\”. Correction, if your home boy/girl is too damn lazy to get their buzz up they already fronted on themselves and working with them won\’t do anything for you but hinder your success and tie up your time with non sense. Cut the dead weight and do what\’s best for you. And if their a real friend they will understand. I\’ve come to the realization that I simply do not have the time to carry a lot of dead weight. In the past I\’ve done countless collabs with artist that are struggling in an attempt to help them. The problem is that those artist treat collabs like potatoe chips (betcha can\’t have just one!) after one collab…one turns into two…after two collabs two turns into three and etc, it\’s like a shitty game of addition that keeps going on and on until I put a stop to it and started to protect my brand.

Build A Strong Team
Michael Jordan is a great and phenomenal basketball player, and we all remember him because if your from New York you remember how he would always come to Madison Square Garden and shit on us (pause). However if MJ didn\’t have a great supporting cast he wouldn\’t have won those games. As artist we must build a great team around ourselves. No one can do it alone. I\’ve been fortunate to have a team of DJ\’s, Producers and other adviser\’s that are a part of my movement and help make things happen. If you don\’t have a great team I suggest you start that asap. This business is very grimey and there are only but so many hours in each day that you can do things alone. I started rapping when I was 15. But I always say my career took a positive turn for the best in 2007. In 2007 I left a bad management situation. Myself and Kid Cudi were under this same management and we both left around the same time. After I left the first thing I did was sit down and make a game plan. Why? Because I understood that if I didn\’t make a game plan for myself that meant I basically planned to fail. I outlined how I would essentially build a buzz from nothing. I also outlined what road blocks I may encounter. I then outlined how I would deal with each road blocks if they were to occur. Within a time frame of two years (2007-2009) I\’ve seen 100% improvement in regards to what I was able to build with a strong supporting cast. A strong team is important, and with their help you are able to make things happen quicker and more efficiently. 

Actions Speak Louder
Most people are full of shit. If you always comprehend this basic premise in the back of your mind you\’ll be far more productive and less prone to fall for the bullshit. Most people that tell you they are going to do something don\’t. Most people that tell you they are going to E-Mail blast your song to their massive pool of DJ\’s for a certain amount of money don\’t. Most artist that say they want to collab with you and they will push the song or mixtape as hard as you don\’t. Shit is sad but it\’s true beyond measure. Most people are full of shit and don\’t do anything except talk. Why? Because it makes them feel important, and in the process they have the slight hope that you actually believe the crap they say because lawd knows even they don\’t. My point is simple, you don\’t have to have a 1-800 Hot line and fake Jamaican accent to see what is going on (Call me now!). Actions speak louder than words. I qualify everyone around me every day without them even knowing. I watch, observe, and don\’t always speak on everything. Some people pass, some fail, and others fall somewhere in between. What really matters is that people\’s action\’s out weight their words. I can say to a million people I am the best rapper in New York City (which I never would because who cares). But in reality if my buzz is no where near where it is in my head and there are at least 100 other artist with a greater buzz does it really matter that I feel I\’m the best artist in New York City (which I never would because who cares)? If you don\’t remember anything else from this blog remember this one thing…success cancels out all doubt. Therefore if I tell you I am the best rap artist in New York City (which I never would because who cares) regardless if you like my music and think it\’s the best thing since sliced bread, or think my music sucks like having to pay taxes, the fact is that as long as my actions speak louder than your words my success is the only thing that matters. I used myself as an example to drive home my point that actions always speak louder than words. I don\’t care if someone tells me they are the best singer in their town, or if they claim to be the best promoter in their state, or if they claim to be the best artist in the world, at the end of the day all that matters is one thing…prove it. Because money talks and bullshit walks.

That\’s it for now, as far as recent things on my agenda…I\’ve been working non stop on my album Super Senior. My goal is to make a classic album. Every artist nowadays is dropping an album that is so hot in their eyes. My goal with Super Senior is to make an album project that is so classic people will be wondering why the hell is it a free download? Much props to DJ Z, Shake, and Kev for co signing Super Senior. A lot of people are looking forward to this and I won\’t let them down.
-K. Sparks

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K. Sparks
The Future Problem
Double Up Entertainment
www.Myspace.com/Ksparksmusic
www.Twitter.com/Ksparkstv
www.Youtube.com/Ksparksthefuture