Who Can Sell 25,000 Units? Can It Be Done?

[tadou]

For some reason, I arrived at this number. I figure its something like this:

In the Seattle-Tacoma area, someone might be able to push a cool 1000 if they're local, 5000 for out-of-towners.
In The Portland-Eugene area, about the same, 10000/5000
Spokane-Area --- 5000/2500
Vancouver BC/Victoria --- 5000/2500
Yakima --- 3000/1500
Tri Cities/Walla Walla --- 3000/1500
And so on.


Picking and choosing areas, i figure someone around here should be able to sell at least 25K, by doing HEAVY shows and touring. Maybe the radio play wouldn't be there to start it, but with enough momentum, the radio would follow.

 

[chiligrrl]

no one up here is professional enough..i think that byrdie's got the best chance right now.. cool nutz is only known for bosko by folks in the bay so i guess if he keeps everyone elses names on his albums (c-bo, e40, bosko) than he has a good chance too..

 

[Zicafekt]

I would like to see Red Head Steve's album do those numbers...he deserves it with all the hard work that he put into the Redrum album that will be beating up on all yall's eardrums real soon...1

 

[YOUNG KRIME]

no one up here is professional enough..i think that byrdie's got the best chance right now.. cool nutz is only known for bosko by folks in the bay so i guess if he keeps everyone elses names on his albums (c-bo, e40, bosko) than he has a good chance too..

@Tadou you do math Real good You need a Job with Felony???
@Chiligirl Are you sure??? We will see

 

[Turf_Tycoon]

no one up here is professional enough..i think that byrdie's got the best chance right now.. cool nutz is only known for bosko by folks in the bay so i guess if he keeps everyone elses names on his albums (c-bo, e40, bosko) than he has a good chance too..

shut the f.uck up....i'm sorry but every post you make you try to down the NW and mention some sh.it about the Bay, and how we need the Bay to blow.....shut yo a.ss up........

 

[Shaniac]

cool nutz is only known for bosko by folks in the bay so i guess if he keeps everyone elses names on his albums (c-bo, e40, bosko) than he has a good chance too..

your joking right, lol, hes more likely to sell more albums with tadou tellin him what to do

 

[Shaniac]

and oh ya take that pic outta ur avatar

 

[Tribal]

We can only dream. I'll make that the goal for our first album from Havdreamz Entertainment.

 

[chiligrrl]

and oh ya take that pic outta ur avatar

umm gee i guess if you want pics of hot grrlz u gotta hit the east coco board.. we talk about music not grrlz on this board sorry...
and like i said i doubt anyone's gonna do it, cuz for the most part over half the people on here are artists trying to seel their stuff.. not trying to buy it..

 

[Juice]

no one up here is professional enough..i think that byrdie's got the best chance right now.. cool nutz is only known for bosko by folks in the bay so i guess if he keeps everyone elses names on his albums (c-bo, e40, bosko) than he has a good chance too..

No one up here is professional enough? What does that mean? What makes somebody professional enough? I say anything is possible. Artists just need more people to back em and believe in em. Too many people out there are lookin for handouts and aren't willin to support by buyin an album. Instead it's this..."I'm a big fan of yours and I go to all your shows, so can I have a free cd?" If I got a dollar for everytime somebody has asked me for a free cd I would be rich. People are already expectin you to drop your prices on a cd, but when they ask for a free one that gets a little ridiculous. Every once in a while it's cool to give some out at shows, but we all gotta eat too.

I feel it's only a matter of time before somebody in the Northwest blows up. Throw a product out there and hope that it hits. If it doesn't then all you can do is go back to the drawin board and get it all figure out. All artist need to succeed these days are more supporters and less haters...and that's real.

So, my answer to this question is YES it can be done. Who will do it? I'm not sure. Only time will tell. There's a lot of talented artists out there and eventually people are goin to take notice. So, all we can really do is wait and see what happens.

 

[youngwillz]

THIS IS SYKO-
----------------
u got alotta professional minded people in the NW..its the ones who dont get out the NW who limit themselves

 

[inasense206]

I feel it's only a matter of time before somebody in the Northwest blows up.

not pickin on you or nothin juice.. but SOOO many people say give it time.... i use to do the same thing... "i'll record when the time comes..etc" and i now i suck ass at recording.. so then i turned to the keyboard and i'd say im pretty good at it for someone who has been producing for less than a year... shit i got some beats that NBD spit some shit over.. Lil' G got a beat..etc etc...

my point being.. DONT WAIT!!!!! thats the worst thing to do... MAKE MOVES... when you make an album.. dont go for the beats that sound tightest to YOU.. go for beats that sound tightest to the MAJORITY of the people... in order to "blow up" you need music that many people will like... and sorry to bust everyones bubble.. but for THE MOST PART the NW is just too hard for everyone else.. 80% of the artists around here are hardcore gangsta rappers... which isnt cuttin it! if you want to make "it big".. you gotta say... FUCK WHAT YOU THINK IS TIGHT.. and go with WHAT OTHERS THINK IS TIGHT... i think the beats that come from producers such as D-Sane and RHS are tight shit... i just refuse to make those... cause thats not what alot of people like... sure alot of people here like it.. but what is the siccness.. "the last sanctuary for gangsta rap" (or something like that) its on the opening page... so in order to make it big IMO you need to say fuck what you feel... and only take what other people feel..

back to the topic... i think Cool Nutz and Byrdie got the best chance... they have the most appealing music style IMO.... people who could do it in the future: Unexpected Arrival, Citizen Cain, Candidt, and yes tadou... you go the business stuff on lock.... you know how to hit mainstream with rapping (different syllables in each line..etc.) now you just need the beats... and that is $$ and youre young... start recording over mainstream beats and listen to some ludacris and jay-z and modify their styles to your own...

pz

 

[djbuttnaked]

Well I don't know about people not being professional enough. Just like Juice said someone is gonna blow from this area who it is humm we wont find out until it happens. I think that I have the right business plan to do it and my finacial backing is starting to work itself out so humm you will never no.


I don't know how many records those cats from Ramos Records has sold but I thaught I read somewhere that is was over 25k but I am not sure.

anyways

SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL HIP HOP

you can start by coming to the show on the 20th in tacoma. shit its 18 and over

AUGUST 20TH
NORTHWEST SOUND
PERFORMANCES BY:
TREAL, E DAWG, MR BENJAMIN, YOUNG KRIME, LAC OF RESPECT, AND US PHATBACK RECORDS

VENUE:
TORCH LIGHT NIGHT CLUB
11104 PACIFIC HWY
TACOMA

me and my crew will be doing our thing and trust me you will be entertained!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[D'struction]

SP can do it. Better Late Than Never. Dude got heat

 

[Sick Wid It]

I'm interested to see how Cool Nutz and E-Dawg would respond to this since they are a couple of the very VERY FEW people who know what they're talking about. Especially since they're both artists and are (I assume) optimistic about NW music but also have real world legitimate knowledge & experience in the music business, which should keep their views in the realm of realistic rather than day-dreams & fairytales.

One quick comment... I don't think the major issue here is lack of professionalism, I think it's more lack of knowledge. It's a severe case of the blind leading the blind. And when cats who DO, and again I'll mention Cool Nutz & E-Dawg, know what they're talking about speak on things, most people seem to want to debate or argue the shit rather than listen & learn. That's crazy.

 

[Cool Nutz]

Right now it;s going to take alot to sell 25,000 records. There have been alot of people to come out of the NW, and only a few have even come close to those numbers. It will take the support of the consumers to move those types of units. I think that people think that those types of numbers are easy to attain. And when I say 25k, I mean that number out of stores and soundscanned, not someone saying they sold those out the trunk for $5. The true test is getting 25k real fans of the music to go into the store and cop it for $11.99 or more. That's when you know that you have arrived.

It's easy to sit on the internet and talk about it, and stratgize the idea of moving numbers like that. But the actual work that it takes to move those numbers is tremendous. It will take radio play and strong promotion of the product, and a nice investment of money to set the album up correctly.

I think that my new artist Clarence Unique has the best chance of doing it. I am retiring after my next album and turning the game over to the newer, younger, and smarter young cats that already know what it takes to be successful. Ya feel me??

I think people don't respect the artists that are really trying to reach those goals. Everyone thinks that we are just playing around with this shit and trying to fail. We are touring the NW, promoting, doing retail work, publicity, internet promo, and with all of that it doesn't guarantee that you are going to move hella units. Nothing is promised people, you can do all of that work and see nothing come out of it. I have already moved over 25k albums, and it hasn't been easy at all.

 

[tadou]

What the fuck! SOn of a BItch! i didn't mean to post this! I had like 6 other paragraphs that i was going to perfect before "going public" Damn! Damn!

 

[tadou]

ADDENDUM:

Let me explain further......

Everyone is always saying this, "____ is going to blow up the NorthWest!" shit, but how? The radio is going to magically jump behind a song and play it non-stop until that artist ships ten or twenty thousand records? Some A&R or label executive with a magic wand is going to scoop up a NW artist, and they'll be on TRL the next week?

I also see labels on here all the time, talking this shit about: "We gonna do the ____ Compilation, then the ____ group album 2 months after that, then the ____ solo album 5 months later which comes with a DVD...", and it gets me to thinking, "What is your point? Who you trying to impress? Why don't you just take the one project and stick with it? Instead of staying in the studio all day making new songs, why aren't you practicing your "old" songs and trying to put together shows and appearances?"


So then we arrive at the ideas of, "What is a rock solid number of units to sell?"...."Why are so many labels stopping at 1000 units, the first pressing, and not going on?"

Also, "What is a good price to sell an album for?"


I know Bullet, the last count i heard had broke the 5000 mark for "When The Rain Falls" (this was a couple months ago), selling them for $5, $4 and less. Why don't more labels do this? Why sell 1000 albums at $10 each, when you can be selling many times that at $3 and $4 each, and getting your music out to 4 or 5 times as many people? What is with this, "I got bills to pay" mentality? How you gonna sell 5000+ (let alone blow up), when you so obsessed over the $$$ and not even concerned about the getting-your-music-heard part?


@inasense
I appreciate the kind words. i just want to walk into the mall one day and see E-Dawg and J-Ritz posters right next to the Chingy and DMX posters. My plan A was never to be the superstar rapper, but if it came along, i'd humbly carry the torch.

@Cool Nutz
If you "retire" retire, I am going to shit myself. Hopefully you'll run with the Jay-Z schtick about "No more solo albums".

@Young Krime
I'm HORRIBLE with math, but I do have a couple dozen spare ideas floating around.

 

[marcus]

@Cool Nutz- Where can we hear some music from Clarence Unique?

 

[inasense206]

take what i said into account tadou... ive learned alot from people who know what they're doing.. by no means am i a professional.. but i know a bit more than what people think... but yeah... i think you could push a decent number of albums you just need to work on a few things

pz