Want a music career? You need to know this, says industry insider Morace Landy

No one wants fashion tips from a plumber. Or marital advice from a Real Housewife.

So first, let's be clear about Morace Landy's bona fides — before we bring him on to talk about the secrets to a successful career in music.

One — he's been associated with at least five major labels, including Atlantic, Island, Warner Reprise, Epic and Profile, as a promoter and marketing executive.

Two — he has helped propel hit records for Jay-Z ("The Blueprint"), Trey Songz ("Ready"), Luther Vandross ("Your Secret Love", and T.I. and Rihanna ("Live Your Life"), and has been active in the careers of dozens of others, including Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Babyface, Fat Joe and Missy Elliott.

Three — he helped make a hit of out "It Takes Two" (Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock), one of the most insistent, earwormy tracks that ever swept through every single club in the Western Hemisphere.

And if that wasn't enough, he's now CEO of Evolution3, his own artist development company.

So when Landy tells you what it takes to have a music career in 2023, you'd best listen.

"The number one thing I would say is, don't do yourself a disserve by focusing mainly on getting a hot record," said Landy, an Emerson resident and Bergen County-ite for the last 26 years.

Sharing his secrets

He'll be sharing his advice for up-and-coming artists in a June 6 presentation: "Ingredients for a Successful Career & Not Just a Hit Record in the Music Industry." (RSVP necessary; admission is $60).

The 6 p.m. event at Creative Space at H.B.A., 275 Malcolm X Boulevard, New York, N.Y., comes with refreshments: Freixenet sparkling wine, Shinju Japanese whiskey, and catering by Ben Pollinger, a Michelin-star chef from The Hill in Closter.

It also comes with a slate of sub-topics: "Negotiating your Ask for Longevity" "How to Leverage & Sustain Relationships to Win" and "The Future of the Industry with Artificial Intelligence."

"It's a little scary where that's going," he said.

But his main advice is to the young hopefuls. Those just starting their careers, in the brave new world of social media and overnight stardom on shows like "The Voice" and "American Idol." Especially to the Little Nas X's and Wé Anis of the world — who suddenly strike gold with a viral sensation or a big TV moment.

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It's not enough. You have to be thinking three moves ahead.

"There are hundreds of artists who go on these shows and you never hear of them again," he said.

The music industry, he says, has changed drastically in the last 20 years.

Production has become decentralized. Where once a few big labels held all the cards, now anyone with talent and a home studio can produce a fluke that goes viral. The audience, too, has changed. Young people think more in terms of singles than albums. And they're fickle. There'll always be a new internet sensation tomorrow. Who remembers Psy? Or Afro B?

All of which is good news — and bad news — for new artists who want to establish themselves.

The good news? It's easier, these days, to have a hit. The bad news? It's tougher to have a career.

"There are no iconic stars that are being developed," he said. "It's harder and harder to say of this person, 'She's the next Rihanna.'"

Studio system

A lot of this is the fault of the studios.

"The thing with TikTok is, is you have a big enough song the labels will find out," he said. "They'll offer you a contract, they'll offer you anything so they can get it to stream under their umbrella. But the reality is, you want to deal with a label that sees you beyond your single."

Back in the day, a label like Motown would do just that. It groomed its acts.

It would refine the image, the dance moves, even the speech of its stars. It would work to find the exact writers, producers and arrangers to make them shine. It would invest time, and not expect instant success.

Such labels were in it for the long haul. No more.

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"Labels are not focused on investing in artist development," he said. "That's the piece that's missing. With young artists, it's almost totally on them to develop their own audience, and that's it. The label focus is on putting out a hot record that can stream."

If Landy takes the long view when it comes to careers, it's because he himself is a long-hauler. Originally from Brooklyn, he first set his sights on becoming a studio musician, and did a lot of theater work in New York as an instrumentalist (for Joseph Papp's Public Theater, among other places).

In the 1980s, he had a job as a buyer for Tower Records — back when Tower Records was the Grand Central Station of the downtown music scene. Tina Turner, Billy Idol, Robert Plant and Elton John all did in-store shows there. An education in itself. "It was such an amazing place to work," he said. "There was so much talent in and out."

Now there's no Tower. No records, for that matter. But Landy's advice, to the young and gifted, might apply to anyone, in any era.

(1) Try to have, as your manager, someone who really knows the music business. (2) Don't sign anything without a lawyer present. (3) Always be thinking ahead. Not just the current hit. Five hits from now. Five years from now.

"You don't want one album. You want a series of albums. You don't want to be looking back in a year's time and you're broke."

Go...

moracelandy.splashthat.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NJ music promoter Morace Landy gives advice for music career