Wasted Time and Money... a Warning and Lament.

Relic

Voice of Illmuzik Radio
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 83
So last December we played at the MidAtlantic Music Conference. It was a good experience, nice networking experience. So my MC meets some guys who do marketing. Cool we need that.
We have a telephone conference with said guys. They assure us that our goals we wish to get accomplished are attainable and that it could all be done for X sum of dough.
X sum of dough was WAY outside of what I had at the time so we met with 1 of them lets call him JA..
J.A. says we can hire him as a consultant for $---.00 a month and that he likes the project and that he is sure he can make this move, starts listing people he knows that would like this.
So we're cautious but sooped up. We sgn a contract stating that we will pay him x a month in exchange for services.
We get some cd's printed up(didnt need him for that) we get some flyers and some graphic design done ( I needed and still need that) but not much. Keep being told that we will have to get with this photographer of theirs and blah blah blah. I never met that guy. Keeps telling me about this guy and that guy they got at the radio station, they have the clubs on lock blah blah blah. I still have yet to se anything that can be considered near a succesful function.
Eventually all the "Staff" they have sorta disappears and I dont her from any of them again.
I am now down soley to J.A. Every month its a we need $ for this or that so fine here get it done, there will be this week to 2 week pause then somthin will happen then its my fault for not doin this or that. Whatever.
Anything that we have ever been directed to do is done within 48 hours. He's tellin me I move too fast. Too fast?
Time is money and I dont have an ass of either SO:
Fast forward 6 months till yesterday. Much money now spent no contacts, I will say the guy helped me get organized a little better but after a meeting the middle of may in which more $ was needed to get 200 cd singles for promo and about 3000 slicks, 2 weeks go by with various reasons why the 2-3 day turn around aint turnin around. Then last thursday he tells me the cd guy is sick and he needs to get me to approve this artwork before before he sends it off. Cooly and calmly I tell him ok send it to me this weekend, weekend comes and goes and nothin.
Monday AM, In the shower I have an epiphany(sp). How much time and money is gone and I cant get a call or the proofs or anything. All the shows were wack and there were only 2 or 3 of those. I have met like nobody I can kick it with in the industry bottom line we havent moved up at all. Like I said a little better organised but nowhere.
So I leave a not nice message that took me back to my thuggery days about I need $ or product TODAY period.
Homes called me back and left a message saying that he is tired of me callin every 2 days hounding him about somthing. He will handle the business and I sould handle the rest........ EXCUSE ME?
I thought that I was the client here.... Where the hell is my $? Said he's tryin to spend time with the fam for memorial day. Well I hope he ate well because all my cookout dough is wrapped up in the project.
I dont know about yall but I do this music on Christmas or any other holiday. In fact I watched all my friends and family disappear aound me for this music, so that arguement doesnt fly to me.
I have not called him back since that last message but the contract ends on thursday and I feel the dude was draggin his feet intentionally to get us to resign another 3 month bid with his ass.

Think I should fire the guy? Thats what Im gonna do right now Im thinkin.
Anyone been down this road? Advice comments?
Im blowin off steam mostly. Im too GD nice!
 

Relic

Voice of Illmuzik Radio
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 83
Funny Stress I was gonna do that too. I waited until I KNEW the cookout was on and was gonna go but I got smoked out and lazy and that shit makes me chill so I just did voicetags instead.
Whoever got the snipet with on Ima come get my money thats what that was aboutlol.
I hate conflict cuz I know my temper and I dont like burnin bridges. Thanx yall.
Anybody got a good duplicator/printer connect? LOL
I got someone who owes me more than this dude and I had called him right after and Im waitin to hear back from him. Hope I dont kill that connect its also my tech support. lol
You just gotta draw a line in the sand sometimes....
Keep the comments commin I love it!!
 

J-ReZyN

Soul Slinger
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 1
The dude sounds like a slacker Relic, you need to fire his ass. I seen this shit happen to my boy - this dude said he would do all this shit and had all these connects and in the end he didn't do anything that my boy couldn't have done for himself. You should just try and get back whatever dough you could then fire his ass and take this as a lesson learned. Now if he get's stupid with you, then a beatdown may be in order - let me know I got ya back! Good luck R!
 

5th Sequence

Hip Hop Head, Certified
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 198
That's fucked up Relic, cut him off immediately.

I am taking a business law class at my college an we just covered contracts for about a month... If you guys agreed on a price of "X-dollars per month", then thats all it should cost you. If he charges you more becuase of his own "miscalculations" you arent legally binded to pay that (regular business costs are their responsibility, you'd only pay extra if some unforseen disaster happened like a random flood or something). I would say that you may have a chance at a case but it wouldnt be worth it to hire a good lawyer. Anything you would win would probably go to lawyer fee's anyways.

Definitely fire that dude an give him a peice of your mind.
 
T

TeeBlack

Guest
i'm sorry but this may come off as very violent!! the first thing is admitting u been scammed!! the second thing is get righteously angry about it!! does this dude have any idea how we mcees and producers have to suffer to save money for all the ish we mcees and producers need the money for? he aint gonna have no ideas let when i grab his ball and squeeze, he'll be singing soprano, i'll be recording and making something much better than the opera with it. Hmmmm a new star is born. i promise u, i'll get my money back!!!!!!!!!!
 

Lazy Eyes

The Beat Konduktah
ill o.g.
Battle Points: 7
Yo, Rel, that was a nice read, sorry to say that... But it was..

Fucked up situation with dude man! what's happening now? U still paying him or firing him?

I would get rid of the guy unless he's been of any worth in the past, which from the story i think he wasn't.. But it's your choice..

Anyway u got more of this industry minded stories Rel?
 
O

open mind

Guest
fire him dont wast mo money and mo time on this dude.dude is takin bussnes not serious.
 

shadeed

Go Digital or Go Home
ill o.g.
Relic said:
So last December we played at the MidAtlantic Music Conference. It was a good experience, nice networking experience. So my MC meets some guys who do marketing. Cool we need that.
We have a telephone conference with said guys. They assure us that our goals we wish to get accomplished are attainable and that it could all be done for X sum of dough.
X sum of dough was WAY outside of what I had at the time so we met with 1 of them lets call him JA..
J.A. says we can hire him as a consultant for $---.00 a month and that he likes the project and that he is sure he can make this move, starts listing people he knows that would like this.
So we're cautious but sooped up. We sgn a contract stating that we will pay him x a month in exchange for services.
We get some cd's printed up(didnt need him for that) we get some flyers and some graphic design done ( I needed and still need that) but not much. Keep being told that we will have to get with this photographer of theirs and blah blah blah. I never met that guy. Keeps telling me about this guy and that guy they got at the radio station, they have the clubs on lock blah blah blah. I still have yet to se anything that can be considered near a succesful function.
Eventually all the "Staff" they have sorta disappears and I dont her from any of them again.
I am now down soley to J.A. Every month its a we need $ for this or that so fine here get it done, there will be this week to 2 week pause then somthin will happen then its my fault for not doin this or that. Whatever.
Anything that we have ever been directed to do is done within 48 hours. He's tellin me I move too fast. Too fast?
Time is money and I dont have an ass of either SO:
Fast forward 6 months till yesterday. Much money now spent no contacts, I will say the guy helped me get organized a little better but after a meeting the middle of may in which more $ was needed to get 200 cd singles for promo and about 3000 slicks, 2 weeks go by with various reasons why the 2-3 day turn around aint turnin around. Then last thursday he tells me the cd guy is sick and he needs to get me to approve this artwork before before he sends it off. Cooly and calmly I tell him ok send it to me this weekend, weekend comes and goes and nothin.
Monday AM, In the shower I have an epiphany(sp). How much time and money is gone and I cant get a call or the proofs or anything. All the shows were wack and there were only 2 or 3 of those. I have met like nobody I can kick it with in the industry bottom line we havent moved up at all. Like I said a little better organised but nowhere.
So I leave a not nice message that took me back to my thuggery days about I need $ or product TODAY period.
Homes called me back and left a message saying that he is tired of me callin every 2 days hounding him about somthing. He will handle the business and I sould handle the rest........ EXCUSE ME?
I thought that I was the client here.... Where the hell is my $? Said he's tryin to spend time with the fam for memorial day. Well I hope he ate well because all my cookout dough is wrapped up in the project.
I dont know about yall but I do this music on Christmas or any other holiday. In fact I watched all my friends and family disappear aound me for this music, so that arguement doesnt fly to me.
I have not called him back since that last message but the contract ends on thursday and I feel the dude was draggin his feet intentionally to get us to resign another 3 month bid with his ass.

Think I should fire the guy? Thats what Im gonna do right now Im thinkin.
Anyone been down this road? Advice comments?
Im blowin off steam mostly. Im too GD nice!


Your case happens to a LOT of artists, production companies, and independent labels.
For every reputable company in business, there are thousands that are all show and no deliver.

To answer your first question: Should I fire this guy?
Yes.

But on the flip side, you should fire yourself or whoever made the decision for R.I.P. because you could have exposed this fraud in one phone conversation, IF you took the time to review his track record and references and other key ingredients to a good company.
Sounds like he just rattled off a radio contact, and maybe a couple A&R's and you got starstruck, which happens at times, but you gotta check these companies out throughly.

Marketing/Consulting is a "cloudy" term, because there's no standard to define good service. You also hinted that money was an issue with the first company you spoke with,
you gotta understand that you get what you pay for. The good companies that will put your music in the right hands, and get you meetings and interviews, are gonna cost you, it's that simple.

Congratulations, your misfortune may have inspired me to write the next Blowing Up from the Basement Article.
 
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