JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum Have you heard of this company?

Chicago executive MTM. Have you ever heard of them? They approached me to sign a contract with them but I don't like locking myself into any deal, seeing I've been burned before with publishing companies. I checked them out on the net and they seem legit. I need advise. They offer several deals according to their website, right from publishing to co-publishing or catalogue management for a fee. .

No,
Never heard of them. It is illegal for a Publishing Company to charge for Publishing. I would never deal with a Foreign Publishing Company unless it ts thru a Publishing Company based in the U.S, or in this case Canada. Can you give us the Web Site.

Is this it Everett? https://www.chicago-executives.com/ Seems like a management firm, not a publisher. Yeah, I'd never pay anyone up front in this business. If they want a cut, that's a different story. Good luck!

Best, John

Everette,
I think I was asked about this company last night on a writers show here. I’ll tell you the same thing I told him.

I’d first ask how they knew to contact you. Any one on the Internet that seeks you out is usually getting your info from a data base, contests, song registries, Pros, attending music conferences, etc. they are simply data mining.

Every thing we do now is picked up by someone which is why we get so many scam and spam emails, so I’d be wary of anyone just randomly reaching out to me.

If you had a variety of songs recorded by artists, getting activity, some referrals, etc. that might be one thing and could have some legitimacy to it. But those companies are few and far between, so again, if you don’t have a personal relationship, beware.

What you might do is see if they have names of artists/writers they represent, and contact a few of those people, asking their experiences with the company. The. See if what they do works with your budget and game plan.

But don’t expect some secret new pathway to getting songs recorded. There is none. Most people now have to have some proprietary interest in a so fbwhich is why almost all artist record their own songs and rarely even listen to outside songs. The days of the “random pitch” are all but looooonnnnggg gone. Too many songs, too many artists and artists and too many self interested people. That era has gone.

Trust but verify.
Good luck,
MAB

I think they found me through LinkedIn. They are not asking for money or even to publish my songs, even though that option is there. I don't like the idea of giving over exclusive rights to my songs, even though it is only for three years with the option of getting out or renewing. Decisions, decisions.

It is possible that they create the appearance of just wanting a cut of future profits at the outset and then once you are signed up, the emails start showing up for billable offerings or the incidental fees come to light.

It doesnt make a lot of sense that a company which is unfamilar with anything that you write would want to spend their resources setting up a relationship on the basis of future income.

I'd write and ask...What exactly is your plan for my songs?

If they come back with anything tantamount to "great things"...I personally would thank them and dismiss it.

Anytime a company sends me something, it usually goes into trash bin unopened.

There's thousands upon thousands of musicians, songwriters, singers, and every one of them has something posted somewhere, be it soundclick or soundcloud, youtube etc. There is no way in hell a company needs to send spam emails LOOKING for such people. That's all I see is non contacted songwriters out there. In their defense, thats the right end of the business to be on if you want to make anything.

Id rather be the guy selling to dreamers than be the dreamer

I had to put on a sweater after reading that.

If I was in it for that, that is. Easier to be a teacher of how to sell real estate, than sell real estate, easier to sell critiques to songwriters, than have a hit yourself. Etc...

Hey guys,

As I have been trying to say for years, once the Internet came in and the overall money in music pretty much ended, this was going to happen. Songs are almost irrelevant now in a career.It is all about artist branding and since songs are for the most part, forgettable, which is what everyone complains about the radio for, artists record their own or are a part of a larger company, publisher, record label, production deal, they are not going to go to outside songs, period.

It is why I have stressed trying to recruit your own artists before they are signed in order to up the level of your odds, in having songs involved with that artist.

The "random pitch" of these services are very very rare, if at all. A blind squirrel finds an acorn now and then, and a stopped watch is right twice a day, so it is not impossible, but highly improbable.

The Internet exploded with writers and artists. All posting their own songs endlessly every day. It is said that around 100,000 songs an hour are uploaded to the Internet. So that is going to bring down every bit of money that can be made. Hundreds of millions of streams have to be accomplished to achieve any significant monetary gain. In order to make money on songs SOMEONE HAS TO PAY FOR THOSE SONGS. And most people don't pay for songs any more. So there is your rub. Most music is FREE.

And yes, the majority of hit songwriters now do workshops, online courses, and instruction and make more money off of that than the actual songs themselves.
Livingston Taylor (James Taylor's brother and artist in his own right) teaches at Berkelee conservatory of music. He once said "I don't know what to tell these people trying to graduate. At the end of the day, there is not a lot of music business left." (I'm paraphrasing)

The point is that the business is gone and not coming back. Doesn't mean there are not companies out there doing this, their are the reality shows, American Idol, The Voice, and still legitimate companies that do this. There are more people who are creating their own musical universes, through social media, performing their own shows, recording their own projects, creating their own fan bases.
There are regional and local artists who are out there doing it continually, although they don't reach the heights they wish they could, they are active.

There are people that have dual lives by doing this niche. A very good friend of mine has a regular job for a major industrial company, yet, has created his own niche touring in Europe several times a year playing festivals and other events.
There are things that can be done.

But signing up for some service that contacts you out of nowhere, claims to have all kinds of inside tracks, is always going to be sort of an iffy proposition. The road to Hell is paved with good intentions and I don't think any of these companies set out to rip people off. They would love to get a big hit. They would love to be able to do the morning talk shows or the late night Jimmy Kimmel's and say "This song came from a guy on a web site in Canada...." That would be nice.

Just doubtful it is going to happen. There are viral sensations that happen all the time. But like everything, fame is fleeting and even being famous now does not really translate into monetary gain.

So should Everett get into something like this? I have no idea. He should check it out as I suggested and contact some of the people who have actually been involved with this company. But I will tell you this, any involvement is not going to be free. They don't do this for free. If you can get someone pitching your stuff for a percentage or something on the back end, that would be more desirable.

But it is all just one more attempt at something that for the most part, doesn't exist any more.

And that is a fact we all have to face.
MAB

Well Damn Marc,
Here I am waiting for all this socalisim to kick in where I will be able to sit back and wait for the money to roll in! You mean I will have to work for my supper! Oh sorry, sing for my supper. Yep folks, as good as some things sound, there is STILL no free lunch. Can't wait for that High Speed Rail to Hawaii!!! Well, back to the Salt Mines.

Im a believer in capitalism, but there are some cases where socialism works. Are you collecting Social Security Ray? Well there ya have it.

Well, I disagree with your SS analogy Fdementrio. I consider Social Security to be a forced insurance on the workers. People pay their entire working career paying for that insurance. They should use it.


John

Well FD,
There are numerous reports of all the Entitlement Programs running out of money. However so you know I don't make the News, I just report the News. Not only are the Entitlement Programs running out of money, a lot of Private Programs are severely underfunded as well. What me worry? You bet. Don't count your Chickens before they hatch. And there is the Aesop's Fable about Killing the Goose that laid the Golden Egg. And last but not least it is said, Those that don't learn from History are bound to repeat it. Write a Hit!

Ok To John and Ray let me put it another way, you dont have to agree, just take a look at my thoughts.

Jackhammer Joe works 8 hours a day, during sweltering hot summers, to where over a period of time his skin
resembles something like a beige leather jacket. He comes home from work and barely has enough energy to make it to the bathroom, let alone talk to his wife or play with his kids. His feet and back hurt so bad, he needs to get to bed as soon as possible to feel somewhat refreshed in the morning.

Meanwhile, Typewriter Tim, works as a librarian. He has to get up from his stool all but twice an hour, to possibly helps somebody find something, but the majority of the time he's sitting while talking, or talking on the phone. He gets out at 4pm and still has plenty of time to go to the mall for a stroll and shop. Has time to play with his kids and go to their school plays and his wife makes him a nice dinner every night where they sit for hours just talking.

At the end of the week both Jackhammer Joe and Typewriter Tim make the same wage, and bring home the same amount of money. And therefore, they both paid out the same amount into social security, and will receive the same amount when they retire.

Who worked harder for it? Who sacrificed more for it? Who has more medical problems because of it, and more stress?

Is it fair that the harder working guy gets the same reward as somebody who barely did anything?

So its nice we all can get a payment when we retire (socialism), but not nice when the harder working guy doesnt get more (what capitalism is supposed to be)

In actuality, I dont think that it is working. The govts unfunded liabilities are so high that if anything ever undoes the governments ability to sell IOUs (borrow). there will not be any real money there to pay for anything. In my life, I have never seen anything having to do with finances that looked real real wrong, yet did not have a day of reckoning. The national debt looks real real wrong.

I return you to the prior broadcast. Something about song publishing.

in reality social security is a ponzi scheme. But I dont know anybody, socialist or capitalist, Republican or Democrat, who doesnt like getting a payment when they retire.

And its not a payment they saved for themselves. Its a goverment dispursement. Very much socialism.

Most people if they didnt HAVE to pay social security wouldnt save it and wouldnt have it.

So it is a case where socialism works. Whether its fair or not is another story

True enough. But I think that there is a quantitative difference between a ponsi scheme working and socialism truly working.

How these always seem to go from one subject, about music manipulators and schemes and scams and then veer off into Ponzi schemes and social security, is always beyond me.

Same reasons your girlfriends change the subject and start nagging you about one thing or another.
It's just the way things are.

I guess. I never cared much for the deflection and subject change in that either. Why most of the girlfriends were always "ex's." They call them ex's for a reason.

Oh well, tossed out my two cents on a subject that seems to be asked a lot in today's music market.
Enough from me.

It always amazes me how it DOESNT, lol

people here are no different than anyone else you have a discussion with. I talk with my niece on the phone, we talk about her College, then we talk about Spotify, then we talk about her Dog, then we talk about careers, then we talk about different places to visit and live. etc

Eh, Well,
Marc you post, time after time how the music industry is mostly dead for most people but you show people around, that come to town, for a price, and tell them what? Yes the music industry is hard as most professions in life. It has always been that way and will continue to be that way. And yes, there are people out there that will scam you out of your money if you let them. I have been propositioned by people that want to pitch my songs, for a price, and to publish my book for a lot of money. If it sounds too good to be true it probably is. But as P.T. Barnum says, THERE IS A SUCKER EVERY MINUTE. Enough said.

Also, be careful not to be too careful. One could lose legitimate opportunities, if one is too afraid to take chances.

John

Yes, but capitalism doesnt exactly work perfectly either.

Capitalism +'s Taking the skills or the opportunities you are given and turning them into a great a life. Get as rich and prosperous as you like, it's all out there for anyone to take.

-'s Creates vicious cut throat competition, creates great divide between communities. Its said that 1% of the people make up 50% of the wealth in this country.

So it wont happen for everyone, and most likely wont work for the majority. Lets face it luck matters in anything you can think of.

Socialsm +'s Everybody gets some. Creates a quality of life for every person out there, people with no chance of succeeding in a capitalistic world, can live a happy life.
Social security or similar programs, free healthcare.

Socialism -'s No incentive for the go getter. A Doctor for example cant become an empire, he is restricted on how far he can go financially and socially.
No reward for harder working people and creates freeloaders.
Free Healthcare means waiting weeks to get an appointment .

I believe in capitalism 100% but I also think its a disgrace that in this country anybody should be hungry or homeless

You have apparently found a spot for yourself in the game John. I assume that you work and promote your portfolio and seek places to market your portfolio
.
People such as me are trees in the forest that dont make a sound in the music business, whether they fall or not. And if someone just shows up, not knowing anything about me, but says that they have a great opportunity for me...

They don't. Not maybe. Not possibly. Not Perhaps. They don't.

Eh, Well,
We are morphing into Captialisim versus Socialisim are we? They tried Socalisim on the old Soviet Union. In Socalisim or Communism everybody is supposed to be equal. Well there were shortages all the time in the Soviet Union. People stood in line for as long as 45 minutes to get some food products but when the got to the front of the line much was gone. When Kruchshev visited the U.S. he couldn't believe what he saw in the grocery stores. They took him from a place in the east to the Midwest where he saw another grocery store. He couldn't believe it. He thought they packed everything from the earlier store and put in the store he was visiting. Today, you can take a grocery list in any grocery store here in the U.S. and get everything you want on the list. And if you can't get it from one supplier you can probably get it from two more. That is an example of Capitalisim or more to the point Free Enterprise. Is Capitalisim perfect? No. Business can and do fail. Gee now let me think. They say Charity begins at home. That means before you ask somebody else to do it for you, you need to try to do it yourself. Yes, that requires effort. And last but not least, there is still No free lunch.

Your social security did not come out of your social security kitty. It's a big pot of gold that everybody who worked gets. Whether or not you worked hard, hardly worked, whether you carried your coworkers or they carried you, you all get the same.

There is a free lunch, thats it. Get a job where you dont have to do anything, free lunch.

Socialism wont work in this country, but a FEW things can and do work

The Social Security Kitty is an IOU now. Has been for years.

SS checks are funded either by current tax income or borrowed money, depending on how you want to look at it. It's is only "working" because of govt borrowing. It's not actually "working."

I got sucked in by a company like this before. They'll promise you the sky. They'll tell you they have access to anybody you want. In my case, when I called them out to their face and told them I would no longer be working with them, they threatened me. Then months later, called me saying they had an opportunity for me. So, they won't listen to you or respect you.

Don't walk into a nightmare. Don't fall for their "dream". Just keep doing you and if the right situation comes, you'll know.

This one isn't it.

That's my advice if you want it.

GW

I expect a few of you have heard of SONGTRADR they got slagged off

on here , but my son who has written songs for several small time French Films

has done quite well with Songtradr; He generally writes Rock and Punk plus

Duo Songs For Male and Female He submitted some finished songs to them

as they were asking for songs in his favorite genres They dont want The Publishing

of any songs, they just do a deal with Various Supermarket Chains and he gets a

regular Monthly check from them of approx 80 to 120 Euros , Comparing the low

payments paid by virtually all these various leading companies like Spotify , it strikes

me he is doing something worth while He is still free to do any deals with Bands Film Tracks

or Advertising . He Records his own Songs and my own Backing Tracks in a very

professional manner; and he performs live with a couple of Bands both French and English

As I understand he has about thirty different songs that bring in a regular royalties via

SONGTRADR --- He does not write Country Music ----but he gets daily plays all over Argentina

and the likes of Peru - Brazil -- Cuba -- and many many more Cant be bad

A proud mama - and rightfully so! Kudos to your son Cheyenne! Yes, there are markets out there for composers & songwriters. It's just a different ballgame today. One has to adapt.

Best, John

That's the Ponzi side of it. But it's good for the people in the system.

Ray, I tell them exactly what I have said here for ever. But that is not what they usually come to me for. They come to me for elements of the process of songwriting, performing help, networking tips and understanding the business. They want their catalogs reviewed which I do, and in most cases, introduce them to other people who end up being co-writers, co-performers, hosts on writers nights, etc. When they only have a day or two to get an overall approach, it helps speed up what they do.

Then most, go back to their own home areas and have a better understanding of what they are trying to do.

I do lay out the hows and whys we have gotten to where we are, a history on Nashville and the overall music industry, and usually save them money on dead ends, recording songs that are not ready or dispel some myths they have bought into. Often it is doing damage control after they have already spent money, time, and effort going down dead ends.

Is one part tour guide, one part guidance councilor.

MAB,

How many thousands of times have we had to say all this, over and over and over against the tide of laughable scams that never end.

To Everyone else:

Let me (for once) try to be brief. Anyone with the wherewithal to do something legitimate for someone else without screwing them over is going to have a long long list of people they already know who are worthy of that opportunity in line ahead of you to NEVER EVER have to contact someone they haven't had a direct relationship with and know each other on a first name, face to face, how is your son, didn't your daughter get married, I heard your Dad got a promotion, I heard your sister got into Ball State University and so on. They are NEVER going to contact a stranger through Linked In or anywhere else trolling for suckers ...er... business.

Brian

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Regards,


Bob

When I lived in Nashville I went to a couple of MAB's seminars when I first got to town. Good stuff. I went off into Video work (saw the handwriting on the wall and videos = branding so we are still needed)

I'm ready to sign up for the Starmaker Machine right now.

Thanks for the laugh!

Gosh Bob:

I didn't know anyone else knew where Swamp Hollow, Arkansas was located. This sounds like a "deal made in Heaven!" Do you accept counterfeit Confederate Money? How long will it take me to achieve "Stardom?"

Put me in coach!!!!

---West Mayberry Dave (King of the Lemmings)

Nothing works about SS. They rob money from people and pay a tiny portion of what they stole back to people who have to pay at the end of a gun (literally) if you do not pay your taxes. So getting a portion of your own money back, minus all the interest it would have earned during your life is a massive rip off and people who conveniently die before getting back what they paid in (nearly everyone who worked) just lose that money to a typical socialist nightmare. There are plenty of programs for people to invest that money in which would pay them WAY more for their forced payments with interest and a balance to be paid to survivors. Socialism is a heinous waste of people's money taken by the end of a gun. Had the government not stolen and wasted the money illegally (both parties, they are all crooks) the compounded interest alone would like have kept our debt at bey and certainly would have funded the "program" since it pays out pennies on the dollar overall from a lifetime of theft.

Holy crap Bob, I missed this originally.. I laughed out loud because it almost sounds EXACTLY like those old "Colonel Buguphisass" scammers that ripped off people for many decades. One of those a-holes stole 30K from a 70 year old lady we tried like hell to convince not to waste the money on, for a single DEMO of her song. But he was connected, don't you know. Mike Dunbar, myself, John Braheny before he passed and many others tried and tried to talk her out of it to no success. She came back later crying and begging me to help her get her money back. I asked if they gave her the demo of her song they promised? She said yes, they had. I said then you got what everyone said you would get, so there's no complaint to be filed. Sometimes idiots will just do idiotic things and no amount of reason can save them. But man, you NAILED them in a perfect parody!

Brian

Brian,

That's just a composite I put together of all the scammers I've run into through the years.

Ah, you mentioned John Breheny! Brings back fond memories from 1971, going down to the L.A.S.S. with my little cassette for the Cassette Roulette and Pitch-A-Thon!

John and Len started it all. TAXI owes him for their entire concept- but TAXI is a cold thing compared to LASS, where people felt a kinship in the craft. There were some future Grammy winners in that membership too.

Thanks for bringing back some great memories. John was a fine man who is greatly missed.



Regards,


Bob

Bob,

Well John was certainly the Granddaddy of it all in my view. Diane Rappaport from San Fran area was the Grandmamma herself. I had the pleasure to work with both on my way up and used their council often. John told me I was the reincarnation of him (he pretty much wrote that in a book dedication to me) for the next generation. Michael at TAXI took good care of John for much of the last 15 years of his life which he saw as payment to him for all his work. He also told me that he feared I would turn out like John, someone who had given and given to others who often made a lot of money and most of the time didn't give back or worse, didn't even acknowledge the help. He told me early on that I would have to live with that and I have. For every Chris Young who is very publicly thankful (along with his Mom who also has had great industry success after I helped her) there's a lot of other superstar level artists who I helped early in their careers without asking for anything in return other than acknowledgement when they made it, but it just doesn't usually happen and it is the reality of this work. I was warned by Michael and John both and they were right. But I love my life. The breadth of people I have met all over the USA and in over 40 countries who know me from JPF and who welcomed me into their communities and even their homes is such a unique pathway I have much to be thankful for just like John did in the end. He lived a GREAT life, not with money, but with life experiences and friendships and pride in the cumulative work he did. I hope I still have some surprises left in my tank. but it's a win nonetheless.

Thanks for keeping his memory alive. Many more people owe him the respect and thanks for his help and I am right there. He's the man, I am a willing disciple carrying on the work.

Brian

With that type of publisher, royalties from music is not how they earn money.

They earn money by charging songwriters/artists, etc. Songwriters and artists, not the general public, are their profit center.

Now then, a lot of studios charge for recording, etc., but they don't try and lock you into some kind of publishing contract so they are a legit service.

I'd avoid them.

That's not quite right.

https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-...d-social-security-what-you-paid-what-yo/