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TheBuzz Erika Engle |
Hawaii stardom seekers
find music biz a
tough note to crackGeorge del Barrio Jr. is the personification of a new oxymoron -- free record-industry consultant -- especially since he's also got his own label and production house.
The industry is rife with horror stories of predatory labels and embezzling managers living high on the hog on the backs of starving artists.
"Hawaii has so much talent, but doesn't have enough tools to go beyond the water in promotions, understanding contracts, under- standing the business of our industry. Therefore, there are a lot of people who stop," he said.
Del Barrio hopes to help Hawaii's artists get airplay, sell product and avoid common pitfalls through huimusic.com.
"I don't ask anything of them. You get there for free, you look at the site and read the articles. It's a seeing-eye dog for the record industry."
The site features stories on submitting music to radio stations and on choosing a music distributor.
He plans a series in July on music publishing. Each time the featured stories are updated, his associates on the East and West coasts receive an e-mail promoting the site.
Huimusic assesses a one-time $45 payment to artists for uploading of songs into the A&R Hook-Ups page. There, artists also can place e-mail and Web links so interested parties can contact them directly. The fee covers del Barrio's Web site costs, he said.
A&R is an industry term for artists and repertoire. An A&R executive, like Randy Jackson of "American Idol," is one with an ear for a hit and the know-how to package and market an artist.
Artists and bands participating with huimusic include B.E.T., Cecilio & Kapono and The Opihi Pickers. "This Saturday, one of our recordings was used for the Hawaii pilot that was just done here," del Barrio said.
HuiMusicTV and a radio show are in the works, but "my ultimate goal is to build a school in Hawaii like a Berklee or Julliard, but for the Pan-Pacific," del Barrio said.
So who is this guy?
"A fourth-generation composer," he said.
He composes music for TV productions and commercials. His composer-father George Sr. worked on dozens of feature films and other projects; his grandparents ran a music conservatory in Argentina and his great-grandfather was a court composer in Spain, he said.
His bio is posted at stegalamusic.com and at mejiros.com/media.
The family moved to Hawaii in the 1970s and by the '80s George Jr. went to the mainland to ply his trade.
"My life has been very good and I'm paying it forward," he said. Now 42 and living in Mililani, his composing supports the family so he can devote uncompensated hours to free consulting on the Web.
The Mountain Apple Company is one of Hawaii's largest record companies, known for its stable of prominent artists.
President Leah Bernstein was unfamiliar with huimusic, but knows the challenges of getting an artist airplay.
Gone are the days when she could walk into a radio station with a 12-inch vinyl disc, get instant airplay and solicit listener feedback. "The radio stations' testing situations are such that it's hard to get anybody to say, 'Yes, we love this new thing,' " she said.
Among other promotional activities, the company offers a five-hour chunk of Hawaiian music on mountainapplecompany.com.
"American Idol" has brought national focus to Hawaii singers such as Jasmine Trias, Camile Velasco and Jordan Segundo, and del Barrio thinks artists should push harder than ever.
"This is the time we need to ride that wave, to utilize everything we can from that exposure. People know that Hawaii has talent now," he said.
See the Columnists section for some past articles.
Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Call 529-4302, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached at: eengle@starbulletin.com