Over the last few years, industry “experts” have been telling musicians that DIY is the way to succeed: become a master of self-booking, self-management, self-distribution, etc. Enter Josh Katz, frontman of Badflower, who took the opposite approach, assembling a career-management team to handle industry matters.
“What I’ve learned is to stop focusing on the industry side of it,” says Katz. “Stop trying to be the best business man. If you [focus on your creativity] and just become the best band that you can possibly be, every single door will start opening for you, you won’t have to pry them open anymore.” So how did Katz and company land their deal with Hundred Handed?
“If you [focus on your creativity] and just become the best band that you can possibly be, every single door will start opening for you.”
“We played a show at The Troubadour and we were showcasing for the industry,” an event that was set up by management. This was a prime example of the band’s ability to allow the business decisions to be made by their team. “We showcased for agents and labels. The president of [Hundred Handed], David Bason, saw us opening for, I think, Kongos and immediately got in contact.”
Bason was interested in the band right away. After a few months of negotiations, Badflower signed on the dotted line. “We really liked what the label had to offer,” Katz explains, “and we liked that it was a small label that seemed like a community of people who really understood what we were doing. It wasn’t too difficult; we clicked immediately.”
Read More: Live Review - Badflower at Saint Rocke
Katz warns, however, that just because you don’t have a team in place to take you to the next level doesn’t mean you should settle for the first person to approach you. “If you don’t have those people yet, don’t seek out and take the first that shows the slightest interest. Really make sure that you feel overly confident about what you’re presenting to the world before you start building your team. If you aren’t the best that you can possibly be, then you won’t get the best team that you deserve.”
Badflower's debut EP released in May. On it is the group’s first single, “Soap.” You can catch them on their upcoming 2015 tour.
– Andy Mesecher
