Your mind might be on Midem at the moment, but it is not too soon to start thinking about next year’s CMJ. The CMJ Music Marathon, which will take place October 21-25, 2008, has plans to feature a whopping 1,000+ bands, taking the stage at over 60 venues scattered across NYC – and of course, the audiences of the shows will be chock full of music industry people checking out the new talent. Officially, you’ve got lots of time to get your CMJ application together, but you can save some cash if you act fast. In fact, if you enter before December 31, a mere $25 will cover your CMJ application and a 6 month Sonicbids membership. Everyone who applies to CMJ must do so via Sonicbids, so this early bird special means you can kill two birds with one very lost cost stone. (Besides, take it from someone who is frantically trying to finish up some last minute applications of her own at the moment – get it done early. Life is so much more enjoyable without pressing deadlines!)

Written by Heather McDonald

For more education on careers in the music industry, check out: www.Music-Career-Guide.com

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Who wants hip hop money? Hip Hop entrepreneurs are a force to be reckoned with. The ones that understand the game of business and money are making waves everywhere. And we are still in the early stages of this new generation of entrepreneurs, but with no real limitation to the culture it has made crossing over into different business ventures seem natural. And so that’s exactly what their doing.

This growth is evident by the likes of Russel Simmons, Jay-Z, Sean “P Diddy” Combs, Ice Cube, and 50 Cent to name a few. But that is just a preview of things to come. Hip Hop has it’s hands in nearly every industry in one way or another. Including clothing, movies, video games, jewelry, charities, automobiles and porn to name a few. Even the food industry is making Hip Hop snacks and drinks, but what other industries will this new generation of hustlers go after or maybe create.

The new artists of today are using music as a stepping stone into big business. They parlay their money and new found celebrity into whatever investment they see fit. This is only natural since the music industry isn’t necessarily the most profitable business for everybody to survive and thrive in. Most artists have short lived careers and rappers are very aware of this concept. They’ve learned from the mistakes of those who’ve came before them just as the next generation will learn from theirs.

Having grown up with Hip Hop on their TV sets and radio stations, many can’t help but be influenced by these artists with their rags to riches stories. Those are the one’s who will eventually grow into the next generation of Hip Hop business men and women. We already live in an age where anyone can be in business all around the globe almost over night. So what does that mean for them? Well, it really depends on where they think this culture should go. They’re the new architects creating and building a new world for the culture of Hip Hop. One that competes and plays side by side with some of the biggest financial powers of the day.

Is it all going to be just about the business and the money in Hip Hop, I doubt it. Hip Hop may be big business, but it means a lot more than that to many in the culture. While business is not going to go away anytime soon nor is real Hip Hop. They have to meet somewhere in the middle, because it’s more than making money… it’s a lifestyle. One that has proven to be more than profitable to many of the biggest icons in Hip Hop.

Why wouldn’t you take a shot at living the life of your dreams through this lifestyle. You don’t have to be a rapper, just be yourself. If you’re real, Hip Hop will have your back. This is a new era for Hip Hop, one where technology will kick open new doors and create new outlets for those with the guts to use them. There has never been a greater time to be Hip Hop.

Many consider Hip Hop the fountain of youth and history tells us the future does indeed belong to the youth. So what the heck does that mean, I don’t know. I think it means Hip Hop is not dead. It’s just maturing a little, trying to make new friends (business) and trying to figure out what it should do with it’s life and how it’s going to pay the bills. With friends comes peer pressure and a lot of learning about yourself. After that, Hip Hop will decide what it wants to do with rest of it’s life.

For more education on careers in the music industry, check out: http://www.music-career-guide.com

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