Why I love SXSW...
I've been going to SXSW every year since 1998. Ten years now and I love it. Why wouldn't I go? I mean c'mon I only live 3 hours away. When I'm coaching musicians we talk about why music conferences and the networking that goes on is so important. And why wouldn't you want to go to the largest music conference in the US?
A long time ago I tried getting onto the SXSW bandwagon with an official GoGirls showcase. No luck.
Then something interesting happened...
In 2001 I hosted our first "unofficial" event at Gaby & Mo's. It was an amazing night. The energy was infectious. The talent was incredible. And interestingly you didn't hear about anything other than "official" SXSW shows. I felt like we were onto a new trend here. Times were going to change. Why not provide opportunity to talented musicians who didn't make the SXSW cut.
For years people would say to me, "why would I go if I don't get an official showcase?" I say why not! I know, SXSW is terribly expensive and so corporate. So what! Now there are just as many "unofficial" showcases as there are official. It's about finding (and sometimes creating) opportunities.
In 2002 I was ready to step this up and host 3 GoGirls showcases. And I got the crazy idea to host a "2 song" night which has now become an annual event for us during SXSW. Basically everyone plays 2 songs with backline provided. You get 10 minutes on stage with 5 minutes between acts. It has proven to be one our most fun and successful nights! We typically get more fans and music industry people out for this.
Over the years we've had some amazing talent grace our stages!
2004:
2005:
2006:
2007:
2008:
The A-List: Invasion of the GoGirls at Trophy's, 03.14.08
Rock on,
Madalyn Sklar
IndieMusicCoach.com
~providing one-on-one indie music consulting & coaching~
http://www.indiemusiccoach.com
A long time ago I tried getting onto the SXSW bandwagon with an official GoGirls showcase. No luck.
Then something interesting happened...
In 2001 I hosted our first "unofficial" event at Gaby & Mo's. It was an amazing night. The energy was infectious. The talent was incredible. And interestingly you didn't hear about anything other than "official" SXSW shows. I felt like we were onto a new trend here. Times were going to change. Why not provide opportunity to talented musicians who didn't make the SXSW cut.
 Echoset (formerly known as Shade) |  Elizabeth White |
 Doria Roberts |  Ginger & Sarah Band |
For years people would say to me, "why would I go if I don't get an official showcase?" I say why not! I know, SXSW is terribly expensive and so corporate. So what! Now there are just as many "unofficial" showcases as there are official. It's about finding (and sometimes creating) opportunities.
In 2002 I was ready to step this up and host 3 GoGirls showcases. And I got the crazy idea to host a "2 song" night which has now become an annual event for us during SXSW. Basically everyone plays 2 songs with backline provided. You get 10 minutes on stage with 5 minutes between acts. It has proven to be one our most fun and successful nights! We typically get more fans and music industry people out for this.
Over the years we've had some amazing talent grace our stages!
2004:
2005:
2006:
2007:
2008:
The A-List: Invasion of the GoGirls at Trophy's, 03.14.08
Rock on,
Madalyn Sklar
IndieMusicCoach.com
~providing one-on-one indie music consulting & coaching~
http://www.indiemusiccoach.com
Madalyn Sklar is a music business coach & consultant, blogger, social networks expert and author. She has spent over 15 years helping independent musicians and music business professionals achieve greater success. Her motto is: working smarter not harder. She also founded GoGirlsMusic.com, the oldest + largest online community of indie women musicians.
"Madalyn not only gives me marketing strategies during our consultations, but she gets me thinking in a whole new direction."
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"Madalyn has played a key role in helping me build a strong foundation for my music business."
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