Arts & Entertainment, Music

Building the Right Team

Lesson time 08:11 min

When it comes to the music business, you need the right people around you. Learn how to build your team, choose a manager, and kick off your singing career.

Students give MasterClass an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars

Topics include: Managers • What Makes a Good Team Member

Preview

What's really important in your business is to have a great team in your family life, personal, and your business. You can't do it all. I don't know anybody who would want to. I sure don't want to do it all. When I first got started in this music business, I knew absolutely nothing about it. And I relied on friends and people who were new to me, but I took an instant liking to. So, I trusted them. And then when I'd ask advice, I mean, I believed what they said. And thank god they were telling me the truth and it was great advice. Now, not everybody is like that. And not everybody is as lucky and blessed as I was to have people that cared about me and who were truly honest with me. I like to work with people who are fun, creative, honest, and loyal. People who you want to go out and have dinner with. People that you would go on vacation with, even. But they love to work. And they're always-- they're dependable. You know when they say they're going to do something, they're going to do it. And I try to be the same way with them. When I tell them I'm going to do something, I'm going to do it. I've been working with people for many years, since 1984, that are still with me. And we're working hard, having a good time, and talking about great memories of things we used to do in the '80s, '90s, and 2000. And here we are in 2016, just still having a blast together. [MUSIC PLAYING] To me, a good manager is one that has your best interest at heart, that's very interested in your talent, believes in you, and wants you to have a great time, and really watches over the things that are happening with your career, whether it's television, movies, concerts-- but also guides you to make sure that those right decisions are made. I think you need to look for a new manager when the interest is not there anymore. You don't feel like a priority. You feel like you're doing the same thing over and over and there's nothing new happening. If you feel neglected. I wanted my own individual agent. And my manager said, you know, that's just not the way-- we don't do it like that. OK. So, mental note to myself. One of these days, that's what I want. The reason I asked for that is because they had booked me in an arena. And now, this is middle 80s. And when we got to the arena and performed, it was a 17,000-seat arena, and we had about 1,700 people show up. And it looked like soundcheck. And I said, that's why I said I will my own agent to be representing me. And they said, we don't do it like that. Yeah, but if I had one agent, they would've known not to book me in an arena. I can't fill that. I can't even halfway fill that. And so that's when I started seeing that there is a better way of doing things. And I knew it was right for me to make the change. And so that's when I let my manager go. I divorced m...

About the Instructor

You know her songs. Her Oklahoma charm. Now learn directly from Reba in her first-ever online class. Join her as she records a never-before-heard song, creates a new acoustic version of Fancy, breaks down her hits, and delivers emotional performances on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry. This is more than a music class. This is Reba's life, business, and country music MasterClass.

Featured MasterClass Instructor

Reba McEntire

Reba teaches her approach to making great country music and navigating the business in 21 video lessons.

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