Tommy Dubs - Straw Man

It could not be more appropriate to realease this song and video today, on Superbowl Sunday. I am very excited to share this with everyone, it was written and recorded on Friday with help from Dk (seismic Leveler), and he worked non-stop to produce this moving video. This is a protest song of hope... It is not pro "anyone" its more a self realization of what I have seen through my lifetime.

I have written thousands of songs and only a few handful have carried this type of meaning for me. Please enjoy and share this with your friends.

Much Love and thanks DK!

Knowledge Born

So Indie Rapper KB07 and I finally hooked up after a few years of initially talking about a possible collaboration. He reached out to me via a mutual friend, Ron (props!), about doing a dub version for an upcoming project of his. I was of coursed stoked and chose to remix/dub the track "Dead Willow Blues", which can be heard in its album version in the youtube clip below. KB07 is also voicing a tune over one of my beats called, "Impact Rhythm" and I will be releasing that via my mailing list so make sure you sign up at reverbnation.com/tommydubs

Party Bus to the Belly Up - Jan 7th

PARTY BUS!!!! Jan 7th to the Belly Up in Solana Beach leaving from Ocean Beach. $30 gets you a ride to and from the show, a ticket to the show and drinks on the bus.

We are playing 2nd of three bands and could not be more stoked. Pick up your ticket and admission on the bus through the paypal link below. This bus is filling up fast so don't wait till the last minute and find yourself driving alone...

Last Music Success in nine weeks Blog Post

OK so for the last 9 weeks I have been blogging weekly about the book "Music Success In Nine Weeks" in order to hopefully win a marketing campaign by Ariel Publicity. At first my intention was to win this thing and then I quickly saw how beneficial to my career following the weekly advice was. I am going to do this blog post in 2 parts: First I want to go over what I have accomplished over the last 9 weeks and Second I will address the 9th chapter of the book which is all about creating a continuum program.

A look back at 9 weeks:

• Came up with my pitch that I am stoaked on and is on my banner above
• Branded my social media and websites for uniform design and message
• Tripled the size of my mailing list
• Established a quality Newsletter
• Started a weekly giveaway of a brand new song made exclusive only to my mailing list
• Recorded 15 songs from start to finish that will all eventually be released to my mailing list and they will vote on which ones will be on my next album
• Gave an in depth interview on musicbailout.com
• Received play on the "best of Itunes" podcast Coverville
• Wrote a song for a fellow artist which is in heavy radio rotation
• Collaborated with artists in Buenos Aires, Barcelona and Brooklyn
• Played over 20 shows and have many high profile gigs booked
• Secured a top dubstep producer to remix one of my tracks for my upcoming release
• Worked with a college to get a free video shoot for my band the WATCHLIST which is almost done
• Had 6 free professional photo shoots
• Created a picture bio which has received great feedback
• Started reading and interacting with 12 blogs that specific to what I have going on musically
• Completed 95% of the WATCHLIST record
• Was mentioned in Citybeat (local mag) and sent press kits out to all markets within a 3 hour drive of Ocean Beach for CD reviews.
• Placed a song in an upcoming Indie Flick

Looking back I am proud of what I have accomplished by hustlin' and no matter what happens with this contest, I am moving forward at this pace.

Week 9: Creating a continuum program

The Ultimate goal for any musician is to be able to support themselves by doing what they love and if you look at the statistics in regards to people who actually can do this.... it is very dismal. That is why I love this book. The idea is not to get a gold record, but rather connect with a manageable amount of people who will support you in your career. When you realize you can achieve financial success by making 1000 true fans rather than 1 Million, your attitude starts to change and become more positive.

Right now I am giving away all my music, If you come to my shows you probably have seen me dumping boxes of CD's into the audience. I would rather my music be heard for free then ignored for a price. Hopefully that person I gave a disc too will listen to it, burn it for their friends and then come out to the shows... that is the goal.

Moving forward however, I will continue to build my fan base and start making things available ranging from low to high price. The idea I am most stoaked about is custom handmade merch made to order. I have been screening shirts, jackets, hoodies and other shit in my garage for years and in the near future I am going to offer this up to everyone on my mailing list. The idea is you can pick any article of clothing, any color of design and any location of screen and I will hand make them and ship them out. I don't know anyone who is doing this and I could not be more excited about it.

We are also talking about deluxe releases with video, posters, stickers and double discs that would be limited run and available in low quantities.

I hope you have enjoyed this blog series, I know its a little different to click on a bands website and see career goals and marketing tactics discussed, but it seems like everyone has enjoyed reading.

I have really learned what can be done if you put your mind to something and wanted to let all the fans know that I will be pushing forward at this pace for as long as I can. All I ask is if you enjoy my music, please share it with others that you think might as well. If you need a CD, hit me up and I'll get you one, If you want to help me... hit me up and we can figure something out and if you want to just enjoy.... do that too.

Much Love

Its the network - Verizon wasn't kidding

Week 8 In "Music Success in Nine Weeks" is all about networking which could arguably be the most important part of DIY promotion. This chapter talks all about promotion through business cards, Social Media and face to face interactions in a way to build your fan base and mailing list. These ideas come full circle with the idea of always increasing your list/fan base, but I want to touch on another application which I have seen tremendous results from lately.

Networking with other working musicians is a sure fire way to book better gigs, increase your fan base and supporters and increase your overall exposure. Great marketers and bands with quickly rising success are champions of this philosophy. I think a lot of times we (musicians/bands) are threatened by other musicians for many reasons including intimidation, fear of "sharing" fans/loosing listeners or just jealousy, but the plain and simple fact is bands that work together, promote together.

 I have always worked with other musicians but for some reason I kept that circle of influence to a specific area like recording. Lately I have been more conscious of working with other bands that are "doing things" and building relationships based on mutually beneficial situations. Just like bloggers or fans, you can't go seek out bands with your hand out looking for an realistic result. The best situations come from bands that can benefit from each others exposure. It's a great idea to reach out to other markets and talk to bands about gig swaps for when each other is coming through town. This may seem like common sense but trust me, it gets overlooked.

Speaking of collaboration, check out this video of the song "Da Me Un Poquito" I did with Aleko from Planeta Lem who is based out of Barcelona Spain. This track is another exclusive release to my mailing list members which can be joined through the Reverbnation widget on the left side bar. Sign up and get free exclusive demo tracks every week that will eventually be voted on by the list and the songs that receive the most votes will be further produced for my upcoming album.

Much Love

The Tommy Dubs Story

Check out this project I worked on with my homeboy Chris. Nice little BIO.

Building a list and staying up!

As I look back through years of shows and mailing lists come and gone, I can’t help but be a little disappointed in my efforts to collect and maintain a large database of people that I have come across in my musical career. Since I started this competition I have been making a daily effort to increase mailing list members through exclusive giveaways and by trying to create an interactive environment.
I am on so many lists and there are ones that I will open weekly and then there are ones that I ignore completely. Here are things that turn me off:

• Errors – please take the time to check before you hit send
• Spam – I want a direct connection with the lists I am involved with. If you are committed to the philosophy of 1000 true fans, there is no reason for any of your communication to look like spam. There should be no shortage of things to discuss with your mailing list members.
• S.O.S – Same Ole Shit. We have all heard it before…. By now…. WE HAVE ALL HEARD IT BEFORE! Be original, be descriptive and be concise. Please get to the point and make sure your list flows. Follow the “intro, guts and call to action” format as outlined in “Music Success in Nine Weeks”
• No offer, just asking – Always hitting me up on your email list asking me to do something is annoying. What’s in it for me? Always reward!

I have really thought about what I like/dislike and I am taking that and applying It to my mailing list. I am committed to giving something away weekly in the form of an exclusive e download, giving everyone on my mailing list a free album and letting my mailing list vote on things like which songs should be included, T-shirt art, sticker art, etc.. I also want to try and communicate twice a month.

The biggest thing that I need to accomplish is growing my list. I have gone through my contacts on Gmail and asked their permission to add them to my band list, most said yes which increased my list instantly. I am also making sure to collect emails at every show by walking around and trading CD’s for emails. Now this next idea is something that I think is totally unique and well worth the small investment. Not only is it effective but it works in so many situations.

Go to a coffee shop with a nice looking bowl, tell the coffee shop that you want people to drop their business cards in the bowl for a chance to win a free lunch, you pay for the lunch and get to keep all the email addresses. Clearly have it stated that the email addresses will be added to your mailing list and make unsubscribe very easy to do. This can be done anywhere your demographic shops: Surfshops, Skate Shops, Music Stores, Record Stores, Art Supply Stores, Bars, etc… This technique has worked in the business world for years so it easily applies to the MUSIC BUSINESS world.

Check the video below out, It is a little highlight reel from our studio session on Friday: