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Monday, August 11, 2008
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Heart Rocked the House at The House of Blues in New Orleans, 8-7-08
Current mood:  rockin
Category: Music
by Robin Kirby
Luck…
 Last week I was on a call with the infamous Music Coach and Founder of GoGirlsMusic.com Madalyn Sklar…when she asked me if I would accompany her to see Heart at the House of Blues in New Orleans and write a review for GoGirlsMusic.com I was stoked! I told her that I would not only like to I would LOVE to go! (Talk about being on the right call at the right time!) Madalyn was on the other line with Chip Schutzman of Miles High Productions about the show and he needed the name of the person accompanying her ASAP… I lucked out! I got to see Heart VIP in New Orleans at the House of Blues!!! I have always been a huge fan of Heart. They have had a big influence in the music I write so I was honored to be in the presence of two of the worlds most infamous rocker chicks!
..TR>
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HEART ROCKED THE HOUSE AT THE HOUSE OF BLUES IN NEW ORLEANS ON AUGUST 7th | ..TABLE>
 Over the years Heart has had a profound influence on Rock Music! Ann and Nancy definitely showed the crowd Thursday night at the House of Blues in New Orleans, that WOMEN CAN ROCK! Nancy's perfect guitar licks with a kick and Ann's angelic vocals were so amazing. Nancy Wilson is featured in the July/Aug. issue of Performing Songwriter. Make sure you check it out! Ann, known as the queen of rock and roll, belted out "Barracuda" making her vocal performance the highlight of the show. Heart's music has a lot of substance, power, passion and conviction. The show was both memorable and brilliant ;) A spectacular show!
The experience of Heart…
 The House of Blues (Ann and Nancy's favorite music venue) was an awesome, intimate venue. Outside were lines of people waiting to get into the show. Chip Schutzman of Miles High productions was interviewing the fans in the line. Thanks to Chip we were let in as the first people at the show...I photographed the empty stage… Then the Heart Mongers (top fans) began to flow through the door…as Pink Floyd played aloud as background music Madalyn and I introduced ourselves to some of the Heart Fans. I first introduced myself to the number one fan of Heart, Paula. According to other fans, Paula has attended the most Heart shows through the years, hence giving her the 1 fan spot. Among others was one very interesting fan "New Orleans Monger" known as Dann Wilson aka Carl Floyd. He divulged to me that he had seen Heart 38 times and told me later in a note, "I Must say that 38 shows and counting-that was one of the BEST Heart shows I've ever attended (they were ALL great and very memorable), if not THE best, and what a love fest! It was nothing short of a secular spiritual revival or something akin".
 The Heart Mongers were all such great fans! The fans continued to flow in until the House of Blues was completely packed. The lights went down...and the crowd screamed and out came the Wilson sisters. The first song was "Wild Child"…the second "Magic Man" and so forth. (See pics of the set list) Madalyn took a photo of the set list which was securely taped to the floor…so after Madalyn took the pic we then knew what song was coming next. There were songs that have been in their set list for 30 years. Their set also included some Led Zeppelin! These women pioneers of rock and roll performed with the same passion they started with back in the 70s. My favorite Heart song "Crazy on You" was next to the last song they played. I made my way through the crowd again to get closer to the front for that particular song… Yours truly smiled and rocked to the music! I definitely recommend you get out and see them at a venue near you!
   
Click here for more photos from the Heart concert
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 Robin Kirby is a Powerful singer, songwriter musician from Houston, Texas. She recently released a 5 song Demo called Robin Revealed and will be releasing a new CD soon called High Speed Wobble. She is also a member of GoGirls Elite.
Check out her music at:
www.myspace.com/robinrevealed
http://www.ourstage.com/fanclub/robinkirby
www.reverbnation.com/robinkirby
www.sonicbids.com/robinkirby
Photos by Robin Kirby + Madalyn Sklar
Copyright © 2008 GoGirlsMusic.com ~ All rights reserved.
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Thursday, July 10, 2008
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GoGirls is featured in Curve magazine!
Category: Music
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Wednesday, June 11, 2008
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How To Get Labels Knocking At Your Door!
Current mood: rockin
Category: Music
Last week I had the opportunity to chat with Rosie Lopez, Vice President at Tommy Boy Entertainment in New York City. She gave me some great insight that I would like to share with you today.
But before I get to that, here is Tommy Boy's company profile according to Yahoo! Finance:
Hip hop is all grown up, and Tommy Boy is now a man. Pioneering record label Tommy Boy has produced gold singles from historically significant rap artists such as Afrika Bambatta, De La Soul, and Digital Underground. Other current and former artists include Queen Latifah, Biz Markie, and Handsome Boy Modeling School. Tom Silverman founded the company in his New York City apartment in 1981. In 1986 Time Warner purchased 50% of Tommy Boy; it bought the remaining half in 1989. Tommy Boy operated as part of Warner Music until 2002 when Silverman bought back his label, making it independent again.
When I asked Rosie what is the number one thing she looks for in a band that she's interested in, her response was, "I want to know how many people they are pulling in at their live shows."
Her second question to bands is how many CDs have you sold.
I think these are both no-brainers for any indie artist. Whether you want to get signed to a major, indie or do your own thing you should always strive to consistently draw people in to each show and sell lots of CDs and digital downloads.
My next question to her was the age factor. We know major labels are interested in signing very young musicians. Rosie said age does not matter to her. But she said if you ask the men it's their number one question. They want to know how old you are. Sad isn't it?
The thing to keep in mind when it comes to labels, they are a business. It's about making money. You need to be able to draw a crowd to your shows. You need to make sales. But also remember, these things are just as important if you go the DIY (do-it-yourself) route. If you are serious about your music you should be treating it as a business. Your number one question to yourself should be how many people are coming out to your shows. Your next question should be how many CDs are you selling. If you expect to earn your living in the music business you have to re-think what you are doing, what your goals are and how to get yourself from point A to point B.
Give me your two cents on this. I would love your comments!
 Copyright © 2008 Madalyn Sklar, IndieMusicCoach
Madalyn Sklar is a music business coach, consultant and author. She founded IndieMusicCoach and has spent over 12 years working with a wide range of independent musicians all over the world - U.S., Canada, Ireland and Japan thus far. Her goal is to help indie artists achieve greater success in the music business by working smarter not harder. She is also the founder of GoGirlsMusic.com, the oldest and largest online community of indie women musicians, with a vision of bringing together and empowering musicians from around the world.
Madalyn is available for one-on-one consulting and coaching at affordable prices. Check out http://www.indiemusiccoach.com/ for more info.
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Wednesday, May 14, 2008
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GoGirls Hosts Sarah Bettens Q&A and Meet & Greet in NYC June 4
Current mood: rockin
Category: Music
Join Madalyn Sklar + Team GoGirls at...
We will be hosting a Q&A with Sarah prior to her show and a Meet & Greet after her show. Here is your chance to get UP CLOSE and PERSONAL with Sarah Bettens of K's Choice!
This event WILL sell out. Get your tickets now at http://www.mercuryloungenyc.com/calendar/show/1514
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Wednesday, April 23, 2008
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Monday, March 31, 2008
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Kelly’s Lot and GoGirlsMusic.com Present
Current mood:  busy
Category: Music
"Hep C Aware" Shows:
April 12 - North Hollywood, CA details here...
April 18 - Houston, TX details here...
Kelly’s Lot and GoGirlsMusic.com
Present
"Hep C Aware"
Saturday April 12 7-11pm
Hallenbeck’s General Store
5510 Cahuenga Blvd., North Hollywood, CA 818-985-5916
A night of music, info and testing for Hepatitis C
(North Hollywood, CA): HepCAware.org and GoGirlsMusic will present an evening of live music, free Hepatitis testing and info on Saturday, April 12, 7-11 p.m. at Hallenbeck’s General Store, 5510 Cahuenga Blvd., North Hollywood 818-985-5916. There will be live music by Kelly’s Lot, Scott Detweiler, Annette Conlon, Lauren Adams, Gail Chasin, Genevieve, Julie Moffitt, Mellani Day, Annelise LeCheminant, Kimbo, Natalie Kaye Arazi and Maura Murphy (from Aura). Free Hepatitis C screening and testing will be available.
Kelly’s Lot, which was honored with the "Best Blues Band" award by Rock City News and named one of the Top 13 bands in the U.S. by Independent Songwriter Magazine, has been involved in raising awareness of Hepatitis C since 2000 when lead singer Kelly Z learned her friend Gioia Siciliano had been diagnosed with the virus. That year, Kelly and Gioia worked with the American Liver Foundation (ALF) to create a marathon of music on the Santa Monica pier and educate as many people as they could. The event was a success but Gioia lost her battle months later after receiving a liver transplant. To honor their friend, Kelly’s Lot became the spokesband for the ALF and created a tour that brought them on the road from Los Angeles to Boston to educate people about this disease. At the end of the tour Kelly ran the Boston marathon and performed afterwards with her band to heighten the awareness. It worked and in 2002, with the ALF as their official charity, Kelly partnered with GoGirlsMusic.com in creating events across the country to raise money and more awareness of hepatitis C.
In 2004 Kelly formed HepCAware.org and began working again with GoGirlsMusic on a yearly basis for their annual Invasion of the GoGirls in Austin, TX. Through the years Kelly and Madalyn from GoGirls have met many who were suffering with Hep C, which has inspired them to continue the journey of raising awareness through music. They will be working together in October 2008 to kick off another series of events across the country. Producer of an annual telethon to raise both funds and awareness, Kelly Z has also recently teamed with MusiCares and The City of Los Angeles to create awareness in Los Angeles.
GoGirlsMusic.com’s mission is to promote, support and empower indie women in music. Madalyn Sklar started the organization in 1996 with a vision of bringing together independent women musicians from around the country. Twelve years later, GoGirlsMusic.com produces the GoGirlsMusic Fest, Invasion of the GoGirls, Battle of the GoGirls and more. In the last eight years, Sklar has spearheaded well over 100 benefit showcases for various organizations including the Rock ’n’ Roll Camp for Girls, MusiCares, American Liver Foundation and Nicole Brown Charitable Foundation.
There is no vaccine for Hepatitis C. It is a virus that attacks the liver and is spread by blood-to-blood contact. Although 1 in 50 Americans have the disease, 2 out of 3 do not know it. Persons who most at risk include those who have received blood, blood products or an organ transplant prior to 1992; those who have been involved with drug abuse (either injecting or snorting); those who have been patients of dialysis, those who have been tattooed or pierced, shared personal care items, been incarcerated or have been a war veteran (especially Vietnam).
This is a free community event that is open to the public. Musical performances by Kelly’s Lot, Scott Detweiler, Annette Conlon, Lauren Adams, Gail Chasin, Genevieve, Julie Moffitt, Mellani Day, Annelise LeCheminant, Kimbo, Natalie Kaye Arazi and Maura Murphy (from Aura). Also there will be free Hepatitis testing. For more information call 310-377-2527.
For Interviews, More Information:
Tom Kidd/Pres Pak Public Relations
310-377-2527 cell 310-433-6734
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Thursday, March 20, 2008
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SXSW ’08 Observations...
Current mood:  happy
Category: Music
I love being part of the GoGirls community during a music conference, especially Folk Alliance and SXSW. They are both large and well attended by members of our community. It’s a great time to connect and get to know each other.
So at SXSW last weekend, after our daytime event at El Mercado a bunch of us hung out. Making connections is what this is about. Knowing that there are others out there doing EXACTLY what you are doing. Finding gig swap opportunities. Forging new friendships. Being part of something special.
Madalyn, Ina, Bettina, Onya, Maura, Debbie
TX GoGirls: gfire, Madalyn and Tish
As you can imagine at a music conference everyone wants to hand me their CD and/or press kit. I’m a nice person and will always take one. Do I really want it then? Um, not really. It sucks to get weighted down with CDs that I have to pack for my trip back home. I really wish someone would ask if they could mail me one AFTER the conference. See, I coach bands to do that. It’s much more professional to ask someone that than to to shove it in their face and say, "here."
And how many of you take the wrapper off before you hand it to an industry person? I already know the answer... very few of you. Do yourself a huge favor, take off the wrapper. You have a better chance of getting it listened to. And you will look way more professional than most others doing exactly what you are doing... trying to get ahead as an indie artist.
So here is a little story...
Last Thursday I went to visit one of my manager friends at a SXSW day party. I had two of my clients with me and they wanted to give him a CD more than anything. Especially because he manages someone quite big. I told them both NOT to hand him a CD but rather strike up a conversation then ask him if they could mail him a press kit. After all, this is a relationship business. It’s better to get to know someone a bit. Get your picture taken with them so they’ll remember you when you follow up and attach the photo. Ah, good one... I know! And when you offer to mail a press kit, tell them you would love their feedback on it. Who better than a veteran manager? I was going to introduce them to each other but ended up on a call from a frantic band who was on the road making their way to Austin and needed my assistance. My clients ended up on their own and did great without MY help. I was so proud. He eagerly gave them each a business card. It worked well. Now the ball is in their court to send the press kit then to follow up.
So I have a stack of 20 CDs on my desk right now. Each one was handed to me by an artist at SXSW, each wanting me to take a listen. It’s cool really. I’m not trying to be critical. I’m trying to make a point. ASK first. Luckily I drove to/from Austin so no biggie taking these on the road. If I was flying I’d have to fit this in my already packed suitcase. Yes, packed because as a promoter I have a lot of other shit with me. Hmm, bet you didn’t think about that. So I just threw the CDs in the backseat of my car for my trek home. Except I did want some music to listen to on the 3 hour drive to Sugar Land. Guess which ones got the listen... you’re right, the ones with the wrapper off.
Copyright © 2008 Madalyn Sklar, IndieMusicCoach
Madalyn Sklar is a music business coach, consultant and author. She founded IndieMusicCoach and has spent over 12 years working with a wide range of independent musicians all over the world - U.S., Canada and Japan thus far. Her goal is to help indie artists achieve greater success in the music business by working smarter not harder. She is also the founder of GoGirlsMusic.com, the oldest and largest online community of indie women musicians, with a vision of bringing together and empowering musicians from around the world.
Madalyn is available for one-on-one consulting and coaching at affordable prices. Check out http://www.indiemusiccoach.com for more info.
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Currently
listening
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I'm Not Dead
By
Pink
Release date: 04 April, 2006
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6:48 PM
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Sunday, March 16, 2008
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GoGirls @ SXSW ’08 PICS!!
Category: Music
Check out our photo album with pics from our "Invasion of the GoGirls" @ SXSW weekend. I have TONS of photos and video so check back soon for more!
And we are so cool that Austin360.com’s A-LIST hung out with us on Friday night at Trophys. Check out pics at http://www.austin360.com/alist/content/alist
Rock on,
Madalyn Sklar
fearless leader of the GoGirls
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Monday, March 03, 2008
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Need Myspace Promo Help??
Current mood: busy
Category: Music
Hey friends,
In addition to running GoGirlsMusic.com and coaching + consulting indie musicians at IndeMusicCoach, I also run a Myspace Promo service.
Not everyone has time to work their myspace. That is where we come in.
Our strategic promotion campaign includes increasing targeted friends, sending comments, managing your bulletins & blog. Our experience shows that when this is done consistently it will dramatically boost your profile views & song plays. It will attract more fans, promoters, bookers, managers, labels, radio, musicians, etc. Through our campaigns our clients have received radio play, added to compilation CDs, booked new gigs, etc. Don't miss out on countless opportunities!
Learn more at www.gogirlsmusic.com/promo
Rock on,
Madalyn Sklar
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Sunday, March 02, 2008
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GoGirlsMusic.com Prepares to Invade Austin with Indie Showcases
Current mood: busy
Category: Music
Sugar Land, TX…GoGirlsMusic.com, the oldest and most popular website for women in music, will continue their tradition of highlighting the best in independent women musicians at their 8th Annual "Invasion of the GoGirls," March 13-15 during Austin's annual "South by" weekend.
Four showcase invasions will feature over 60 bands and performers. "We worked very hard to create a lineup that was stylistically exciting and appealing to a diverse crowd," explains Madalyn Sklar, founder of GoGirlsMusic.com. "We fully expect to see an electrifying blend of music industry professionals, musicians and the general public at our event," continues Sklar.
Since 1996, GoGirlsMusic.com has dedicated itself to bringing together independent female musicians from around the world and becoming a welcome destination for women in music through networking and events.
All GoGirlsMusic.com events are free and open to the public. For more information and a list of performers, please visit www.gogirlsmusic.com/sxsw
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Thursday, March 13th
Invasion of the GoGirls @ Trophy's
7th annual GoGirls "2 song" night
(This night will spotlight 20 artists/bands!)
9 pm - 2 am
2008 S. Congress
Friday, March 14th
Invasion of the GoGirls @ El Mercado
12 pm - 4 pm
1302 S 1st St, Austin
Friday, March 14th
Invasion of the GoGirls @ Trophy's
7th annual GoGirls "2 song" night
(This night will spotlight 20 artists/bands!)
9 pm - 2 am
2008 S. Congress
Saturday, March 15th
Invasion of the GoGirls @ Trophy's
9 pm - 2 am
2008 S. Congress
LIST OF PERFORMERS
3 Kisses
Alex Sweeton
Aly Tadros
Annie Sidley
AURA
Audrey Ryan
Beehive
Bettina Schelker
Before Dawn
Bon Terra
Breanna Fye
Celeste Terrell
Colleen Reilly
Crosswind
Debbie Deane
Erin Sax
Evrim
gfire
Ginger Doss
Goodbye Gadget
Green Bracelet
Hear Kitty Kitty
Julie Loyd
Julie Moffitt
KaiserCartel
Kelli King
Kelly Feeley
Kimbo
Kimo
KOONCE
Kristina Ingham
Laura Marie
Laura Stark
Lena Potapova
Lindsay Jane
Lovie
Maren Morris Band
Michelle Suesens
Onya
OSIRUS
P.J. Flowers
Rachael Sage
Raina Rose
Riveter
Robin Leigh
Rocket Girl
Ruby Rendrag
Ruthie Bram
Shelly Knight
Shiela Harrison
Sunspot
Swati
Sweet City Action
Terry Winchell
The Locals
The Passive Aggressives
Tori Sparks
Treva Blomquist
Vanessa Van Spall
Witchburn
INVASION OF THE GOGIRLS IS SPONSORED BY:
GoGirlsMusic.com, Jakprints, Musician's Atlas, Sonicbids, Mpress Records, metromix.com, Onlinegigs, Festival Network Online, Folk Alliance, Foley Entertainment, The Indie Bible, Indie-Music.com, IndieMusicCoach.com
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