JAMMS urges young music producers to generate radio-friendly material

The Jamaica Music Society (JAMMS) is encouraging young local music producers to consider making radio edits of their productions to ensure airplay and wide distribution that will maximise revenue.

JAMMS General Manager, Evon Mullings, told stakeholder participants in a virtual forum on Wednesday that to truly benefit from their work, producers must think more broadly about the suitability of these outputs for distribution to a larger audience.

“Think international. Release music that… is radio-friendly. Go ahead and make your raw cuts and release [those on] the streets, because there is a market for that. But at the same time, do a radio-friendly version. Don't rely on the deejays (DJs) at the [radio] stations to try and do some ad-hoc editing,” he said.

Mullings highlighted regulations implemented and enforced by the Broadcasting Commission which restricts music with certain content from being played on the airwaves.

He added that the absence of radio edits for some songs can significantly impact their earning potential, despite their popularity.

“So your songs, typically, won't get played on air and you will say, 'but my song was a big hit… how come I'm not seeing the royalties?'. You won't see the level of royalties if your songs are only getting played in the streets. If you really want to be on air, which is where a lot of the royalties come from, then please do radio-friendly versions also,” Mullings said.

The JAMMS executive further urged producers to ensure that they register their music early to secure royalties.

“Don't wait until six months or one year after your release to come and register the songs. Typically, by that time, a lot of the airplay that you'd have gotten from that fresh release would have passed, and so you'd have left money on the table. You would have missed out on an opportunity to earn better. So these are some very practical guides for our producers to take heed of,” Mullings underscored.

For more information contact the Jamaica Music Society (JAMMS) by calling (876) 978-1010/(876) 369-5325, or sending an email to info@jammsonline.com.

The forum formed part of activities to mark Intellectual Property Week from April 21-28.

The events were spearheaded by the Jamaica Intellectual Property Office (JIPO) under the theme: 'IP and The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS): Building Our Common Future with Innovation and Creativity'.

The annual observance of Intellectual Property Week in Jamaica coincides with World Intellectual Property Day, which is celebrated on April 26.

- JIS News

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