Dave Patten's University of Entertainment

Failure Has To Be an Option

Taken from The Lesfetz Letter, James Cameron (yes, the Avatar JC):

"...But what James Cameron said was:

"'Failure has to be an option.'

"Whoa, isn't this what killed the major labels?  They wanted to eliminate all the failure!  You can't trust the act you sign, you've got to hook 'em up with famous songwriters, you've got to use the name producer, you've got to buy insurance.

"'Failure has to be an option, in art and in exploration.  Because it's a leap of faith.  And no important endeavor that required innovation was done without risk.  You have to be willing to take those risks.'

It hurts to fail.

But if you come to bat more than once every two or three years, you're gonna get better, you're gonna learn something, your odds of success increase."

Read the rest of the post here.  I think Lesfetz has said everything I could say.  Cameron doesn't wait around for producers in Hollywood to present him a script and a budget -- he goes out and writes his own (Avatar, for example), invests in his own equipment (3D Cameras, which was like a $70MM+ expense), goes out there and gets it done!  I'm doing that now and will continue to do it until I reach a similar level of success.  It's not always about money, but I do believe it's always about succeeding.

"Failure is an option, but fear is not" -- James Cameron

You can watch James Cameron's video here too (2:45)

Travel travel travel

My day consists of waking up at 4am to drive to the airport to hop on a 730am plane, flying in to MN and hanging out in the airport for a few hours before hopping on another plane back to PHL, which arrives at 7:30pm.  Full day of doing nothing but sitting haha it's exhausting.  I'm looking forward to tomorrow...

MN Airport, blizzarding outside

We're Gonna Make Ittttt

I was sipping some terrible tasting fresh brewed hotel-room coffee, standing out on the balcony looking at this view:

And it just put me in a great mood.  We're gonna make it!!  My team and I are making moves and even when we face walls and people trying to hold us back, we always seem to find another way around it.  I love my team.  Let's go!!!

Warner Meeting, Eh...

Scheduled up a meeting at Warner Bros Records out in LA yesterday, met with one of the execs of the outfit (not just some A&R guy) which was cool.  Hung out in the lobby for a good while before the meeting, watched Wacka Flocka and Gucci Mane videos in succession the entire time lol.

I'm not gonna type up some pipedream bs and tell you that the meeting was wonderful and we're off to the races.  I have no reason to lie... it was a bad meeting.  We played all of my videos, checked out the new album, etc., and then he passed on me.

The main issue is that my songs aren't "hits", so there's no way he or anyone else at the label would walk my music up to the Chairman to check out.  By "hits" he mentioned Lady Gaga, Justin Beiber, Katy Perry and other such similar joke artists (in my opinion).

And so the line was drawn.  This is the difference between the old generation and the new.  Why do you think the Best New Artist at the Grammy's this year was the jazz cellist chick (Esperanza Spalding)?  Not Drake?!  Not Beiber?!  omgomgomg.... this cellist woman won #1 because she's an actual musician and that's what the Grammys are supposed to be celebrating and #2 because a statement needed to be made.  Everyone is sick of the bs we're being fed.  I'm sorry but the majority of Young Money songs on the radio are NOT GOOD lol but after hearing them 100 times/day we naturally assume other people must like it, and that it MUST be good bc it's being played so many damn times, and so we go ahead and start bobbing our heads to the beat.

I dunno, I'm not going to just rant about how the industry sucks and my music is the greatest and no one understands great music like I do haha bc that's not at all my mentality.  Obviously I think my music is pretty good or I wouldn't be here.  What I can't stand is the labels and how risk-averse they are.

If you read between the lines, the guy at Warner basically said he and the label won't be interested in me until I have a #1 hit on the radio and 100k fans already in the bag.  Sure, then they'll come a-knocking and want me to sign away my masters and publishing and give up everything I've worked for!!  That's like me saying hey, go out and start up a small bookstore.  Once you get to the point where you are looking to franchise and have as much profit as Borders does... come to me, and sign over the company into my name :)

I just don't get it.  But it's cool with me because I'm just more motivated than before.  My team is going to takeover and become the next record label.  I've never been one to depend on others... Just wait til a year from now.  6 months from now.  Yall will see!!!!! haha I'm feelin extremely tough and empowered right now

Warner Bros Records Building, LA

Scope - Part 2

I just got back in from Chickies and Petes with Courtney -- we had to go out to celebrate the wrap of the music video documentary project we shot earlier today, and just to go out because she's up here from SC.  I'm legit in the best mood ever right now haha it was an awesome time, there was an awesome 9-piece cover band going hamm the whole time, and the crab fries almost changed my life//although I def am running my 5-miler tomorrow lol

Anyway the reason I've titled this post Scope part II is because that's what it is.  Part 2.  Tonight I had the opportunity to clear my head and re-align.  Re-assess and really take a moment to appreciate where I'm at and what's about to come.

I've been hung up like crazy over this one girl lately, and although she's one of those girls I know I'll never quit thinking about, the point is there's more to life than the tiny scope we sometimes get caught up in.  For me it was thinking about her.  Obsessing about what I did wrong or didn't have or said or didn't say.  It was destroying me -- like, depressing the shit out of me every day all day -- making things that I should have enjoyed miserable...

Life's too short to be spent miserable.  Chase after what makes you happy and what you want, but don't let it bring you down [I say this as though I didn't let my own chase tear me down for the past few weeks haha but I think yall know what I'm talking about].  No one likes a pessimist ;)  No one likes the kid who talks about his/her depressing problems the whole time.

So f-it I'm going in.  It's 2011 and it's time to get the hell to work.  There's so much out there that I want to taste and experience and I'm not going to let anything get in my way.  Embarassingly cliche but it's ok.  I'm going to do it for myself and for my team and for the people in my life who actually care, because heartbreakers really are just out for themselves.  And if you just took offense to that, or felt a slight pinch in your heart it's probably because you've screwed someone over in your past and you know you did it because you had something better lined up, looking out for yourself and nooooo one else.  I guess from a business standpoint it makes sense, you want to better yourself wherever you can.  But I don't think that will work too well as an explanation haha

I digress.  Let's make this music thing happen.

I Seriously Can't Wait for Summer

That's all that needs to be said.  Good thing I'm out to LA on Thursday :)

Flip Flopping

If you read my blog at all you may notice I go through some pretty raging ups and downs in mood haha I'm starting to think I'm losing my mind but it just keeps going -- I've got a very important meeting to be at in a few hours which I'll tell yall all about when I return!!

Scope

Scope is an interesting thing to me...  Perspective -- it can be so different from person to person.  When I talk with my sister she's always thinking about classes and schedules and majors in college.  When I talk with ma it's about family.  Not that we never talk about other things, I'm just saying that's the main focus of thought for them.  For me it's music and film stuff.

I'm in an existential mood I apologize ahead of time.  But everyone has self-doubt and I just feel the need to express mine now.  Two things are bothering me like crazy right now.  #1 is I can't get this damn girl out of my head and it's kiiiiiillin me #2 is the live show I'm workin on with @duffbone. 

#2 -- I'm scared of certain parts of the live show...  Not to be confused with stage-fright, and I have no problems at all with the music and performance part of playing live.  Once I start playing I zone out anyway.  My fear is of the time in between the songs haha.  It's hard to think of what to talk about!  What do people want to hear?, what don't they care about?, etc.  It's an all-attention-on-you kind of situation, which comes with some pressure.  I'm the kind of guy who has a lot to show and to say with my music, but it's still a little awkward for me because with that showcase comes all eyes on me.  It's just something I need a minute to get used to, and I know I'll fall into a groove after a few shows.  That's what has happened in the past.  Ok I feel better already.  Props to Steve too for building up mad confidence haha he's an awesome guy to have around -- one of those all-positive energy all the time kind of dudes.  This live show project is going to be pretty amazing once we get the initial grind out of the way.

#1 -- I don't want to dwell on the sappy love story that is my life, but for the record this isn't just a girl that I met last weekend in LA or down in the Dominican... this is the girl that I've written like 90% of my songs about haha and alllllll this week I have done nothing but think about her.  Like I have literally missed whole conversations with people because I zone out while they're talking

But back to scope -- I think it's a pretty cool phenomenon.  I'm averaging 25,000 views a day on my videos right now, am in demand for a live show tour, am flying out to LA next weekend to meet with agents and figure out management and then am flying down to Miami right after to meet with Rick Ross and pick out equipment for one of my sponsorship deals and all i care to think about is this girl I know.  Scope!

When you look at it objectively and practically, I'm not really prioritizing my thoughts too well.  But that's what's interesting about it.  I can do what I want :)

It also serves as a reminder that when things are really bad, like really really bad and you feel like you're about ready to die -- you have to just take a minute and step back and really look at what's around you and what you've got going for ya.  It's never as bad as it seems

Looking Looking Looking for Help

I'm looking for a young person who is hungry.  I need someone who knows what their skills are and have worked (and yes, that means outside of class...) on them.  Someone who reads ahead in the textbook -- who loves what they do and wants to prove to the world that they're awesome at it.

That's my mentality.  Thus, that is the type of person I want to work with.

I have my team, but our hands are tied.  We need to expand.  And by expand I mean we need 1 to 2 extraordinary individuals to join us.  To ride and fly out with us everywhere we go.  It's our own Taylor Gang if you will.

If you want to join because you just want to meet Meek Mill, Young Chris or DeSean Jackson or Lou Williams or Gillie da Kid or anyone else we work with, you need not contact me.  If you are a film student in film school, but don't have a portfolio of videos I can look at, you need not contact me.  If you don't have a resume already saved as a word document somewhere on your computer, that is a SURE SIGN that you are not fit for this job lol...

On the other hand, if you have great people skills, please contact me.  If you find it extremely easy to talk to girls, or to get what you want (vice versa for women), please contact me I'll put you on the sales team haha I need you!!  I don't want another director -- that's my job, idiot.  I'm looking more for PR and Marketing and Tour Management positions.  If you love business, making money and facilitating then you're probably exactly the person I want to talk to haha so shoot me an email!!

Things are really about to take off.  I'm setting up a legitimate East Coast tour for the spring.  I'm going to be with Meek Mill and Rick Ross and Wale out in LA and down in Miami at least twice before March.  I'm out to LA this weekend to meet with Master P.  Meek and I are about to drop a complete album together.  I'm telling you, it's gametime haha and yeah I know I just name dropped mad people but I'm trying to prove a point.  With success comes scumbags and sheisters out the woodwork.  I don't want to give some established manager 10% of my cash flow, I want to give it to someone I'm friends with, who's been part of the team for the past few years building with me = YOU!!!!!!

Seriously, I do a lot but I can't do it all.  Ricks does a ton but he can't do it all.  Who else is out there looking to team up?

Send me an email, and make sure you mention this blog post so I know.  South9entertainment@gmail.com.  Yes, I read them all.

Team Meeting and Beers

You always have to have your team meetings with a few accompanying beers.  I'm meeting tonight with Ricks and Josh West to talk about a few projects and the business in general.

We're starting up a new documentary project with Meek Mill, we'll be out of the country for a few weeks at the end of January on a shoot and on the music side of things I'm finishing up the music video for "Believe Me" which is going to be possibly the greatest music video I've done to date haha.  I feel like if any of my videos ever hit 1 million views it'll be this one, so I'm pretty pumped.

But there's nothing more important than your team, and you have to be extremely careful when building it.  You need people you can trust.  People willing to invest their time before any money ever comes to the table.  They're the ones that will always be there.  When success comes, people creep out of the woodwork like you wouldn't believe... and a rule of thumb is never trust them, they're out to get your money and that's 100% where it ends.