AI and its effect on music creation is likely the most talked about topic of the year amongst musicians. And, while I haven’t wanted to jump on the click-bait bandwagon like so many other music-related YouTube channels have, I also don’t want to stick our collective heads in the sand.It’s early in the game but also a party to which you don’t want t…

It's been a while since we've done an "Ask Michael Anything" on TAXI TV, so that's exactly what we're going to do on today's show! Ask me anything about TAXI, engineering & production (from the mics and wires aspect), or the music licensing business, and I'll do my best to give straight ahead helpful answers.Want to know what production music libra…

Our viewers love it when we do the “A&R Hot Seat” episodes, and here’s why…“Michael, I’ve learned so much from the A&R Hot Seat episodes on TAXI TV! Can you please do them more often? My music has improved quite a bit because it’s much easier to be objective when deciding what works and what doesn’t about somebody else’s music rather than my own.” …

Bobby Borg joined me on TAXI TV a couple weeks ago and after the show ended, I realized how much more we could have covered. Specifically, I felt that we could have gone more in-depth on the subject of marketing for musicians.He’s the perfect person to talk about it because he’s the author of, Music Marketing for The DIY Musician. But, he’s much mo…

Do you believe that you’re either born with talent or you’re not? Do you believe that hit songwriters just pop out of their mother’s bellies imbued with the gift of writing great songs? I don’t!All the hit songwriters I’ve met during my career have gone to great lengths to learn the craft of songwriting. And they keep working at their craft to stay…

You can be an extremely talented musician with songs that sound like they’re destined to fly to the top of the charts or TV instrumentals that could earn a bunch of mailbox money, but there’s another “factor” that could stop key music industry executives from wanting to work with you —lacking business skills.More specifically, MUSIC business skills…

Who among us hasn't had self-doubt at one time or another? It might be so bad that it keeps you stuck in the same place—career-wise—for your entire life! Maybe in other ways, as well!If you're anything like me, meeting people who prove that you can be anything you want to be can change the outcome of your life in an instant. Kim Tibbs is one of tho…

Stephanie Reid is a super-smart music licensing executive who has a really interesting take on the Artificial Intelligence kerfuffle, as it relates to the music industry.Are you trepidatious? Have you lost sleep because you’ve spent years building your sync career, and now it looks like Robbie the Robot is going to force you into busking on street …

If you’re new-ish to the world of sync music licensing, you’re going to love hearing what Jim Thacker has to say. What he’s going to share with you could literally save you from making years of career-killing mistakes!By TAXI Independent A&R

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been disappointed when I hear about a musician who I want to check out, and they only have social media. Most don’t know how to use their socials very well, and even when they do, I don’t find everything I need to know about them.How much success have you had with your music that can be directly attributable to …

You’d be hard-pressed to find a music creator who doesn’t want to get their music in TV shows, films, or commercials. Yet, the majority of songwriters, artists, producers, and composers who want to jump into the sync side of the music industry really don’t know the “rules of the game,” where to start, or the strategies that can get you to a six-fig…

It's time to hear some great music from TAXI's members — songs and instrumentals, alike! Our Top 10 episodes are viewer favorites, so please join us tomorrow at 4 pm (PST) for the LIVE show and you'll have a shot at winning a copy of Dean Krippaehne's must-have book, Demystifying the Genre!If you want to get your music on TV, this book is indispens…

How many songs or instrumentals do you have that remain unfinished? C'mon... be honest with yourself.How much more successful could you be if you actually DID finish all the songs or instrumentals you started?Join me and my special guest, Robin Frederick, as we uncover some great ways to make sure you DO finish your songs and instrumentals when you…

TAXI's Head Screener (Craig Pilo) will join Michael to answer any and all questions during this week's LIVE episode of TAXI TV. Got questions on topics like how TAXI's A&R team approaches their job, common submission mistakes, little improvements that can make a big difference, production tips for sounding more contemporary, and more? Craig and Mic…

TAXI TV has been “on the air” for at least 13 years, and we’ve never done an episode featuring a pair of earphones. The reason is; I’ve never heard any that were impressive enough to tell you about. But now I have, and this week I’m going to share them with you!While other manufacturers have seemingly tried to improve the listening/hearing experien…

TAXI member, Matt Vander Boegh’s music plays somewhere in the world every hour of every day. His accomplishments have inspired his fellow TAXI members to quit making excuses, to get busy, and to become more productive.In 13 years, he’s amassed a staggering 25,000+ placements on over 900 TV programs, including various major sporting events, Hollywoo…

Members have suggested doing an online Holiday Party for this week’s TAXI TV, so why not?!We imagine this will be sort of like the Quarantini Happy Hours we enjoyed so much during the pandemic, except we won’t be locked down this time ;-)Will we hang out and have some fun? Yep!Will I answer questions, if asked? Sure, why not?Will we pick some of th…

I’ve been compiling a list of mistakes that can hurt, or even KILL your chances of having a successful career in the music licensing business. Some of these mistakes are made by people just starting out. Shockingly, others are made by people who I think are seasoned pros at this point in their careers!You might have heard of some of these mistakes …

Our viewers have always loved our "A&R Hot Seat" episodes! Here's why: by judging music to see if their opinions line up with TAXI's A&R staff, our members get to fine-tune their "industry ears." They LOVE how it helps them listen to their own music more critically!Members have also told me that these episodes build confidence in TAXI's A&R team wh…

If you’ve ever thought, “I just need a manager,” listen up! The manager you’re probably dreaming of—you know… you make the music, and they do all the business-y and promotional work to help you become famous… that kind of manager—probably won’t want to work with you yet, and here’s why…The big, high-powered managers work on commission, and they won…

It's time to hear some great music from TAXI's members — songs and instrumentals, alike! Our Top 10 episodes are viewer favorites, so please join us tomorrow at 4 pm (PST) for the LIVE show and you'll have a shot at winning a copy of Steve Barden's must-have book!Join us and you'll hear a range of really cool music that our A&R team has uncovered r…

In it for the long haul? The experts at Disc Makers share practical, actionable ways to triumph as an independent artist in this free "29 Tips For a Long and Successful Music Career" guide: https://bit.ly/49qvMOF------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------…

These are just some of the topics we’ll be talking about on this week’s show with Chuck Henry, a very successful Music Library CEO. Chuck was a TAXI member before he started his company, so he knows exactly what it’s like to be in your shoes! You’ll get perspectives from both sides of the coin on topics like these…- The reasons why you haven’t been…

I’ll never forget the raging enthusiasm I felt bursting forth from Marcus Cohen (aka (CaiNo) when I met him at his first TAXI Road Rally about 6 years ago. In that moment, it was obvious to me that he’d become successful.He was at the Rally with his mom and creative partner — Sherry Marcus Milano — who’s also a force of nature!It’s not an exaggerat…

Casey Hurowitz probably wouldn’t have these placements if he didn’t collaborate: 60 placements on The Young and the Restless (CBS), Chicago Fire (NBC), Salvation (CBS), The Night Shift (NBC), The Originals (CW), and Legacies (CW).Is Casey so bad that he can’t create great music on his own? No! He just knows what he’s good at, and what he’s not so g…

TAXI member Paul Croteau, has no problem saying things like they are! Is he smart, direct, and to the point? Oh yeah! Paulie doesn’t mince words. That's the reason I asked him to do a live, unfiltered, unedited interview with me and ask the tough questions that are likely on the minds of other TAXI members, and maybe even the people who’ve thought …

Very few CEOs get down in the trenches with the people they serve, but Disc Maker's CEO, Tony Van Veen, isn't one of them. He's BEEN in the trenches, and he learned a lot! He'd be the first to tell you that he's made a lot of mistakes along the way, and he's more than generous in sharing the tips and tricks he's learned from falling down, getting b…

We all know that it's WHO you know, not just what you know, right? But can you honestly say that you've done everything you can to fill your little "Black Book" with music industry contacts that are the key to a successful career?- How many music supervisors do you personally know? - How many production music library owners do you personally know? …

It's been quite a while since we've done a Top 10 episode on TAXI TV, so please join me and the enthusiastic viewers who always gather to hear some really good music coming from TAXI's members!Join us on Monday at 4 pm (PDT) and you'll hear a range of really cool music that our A&R team has uncovered recently.Win a FREE Book During the Live Broadca…

Rob Chiarelli has repeatedly been one of the most popular guests on TAXI TV, and we're thrilled to have him join us for the first time in several years. Thanks COVID ;-)Rob is a record producer, mix engineer, musician, published author, and 5x Grammy Award winner. Widely recognized as a music producer for Will Smith and Men in Black II, Chiarelli's…

Do you know what the difference is between a jingle and a Sonic Logo? I'm not entirely sure I do, so let's find out together when I have Jeanna Isham as my guest on this week's TAXI TV!We're also going to find out what Sound Marketing is, and how that's a different animal from Sonic Branding. Truth be told, I'm not sure I can tell you exactly what …

TAXI members, John Pearson and Jim Thacker, are full-time Producers/Songwriters/Composers based in Nashville, TN. How did they transition from the "record" side of the industry to the "sync" side?How did they re-orient what they do, and how they do it? How did they learn the difference between writing songs, and trying to create hits, to creating m…

Our music conference, the TAXI Road Rally (November 2nd – 5th in Los Angeles, CA), has become legendary over the last quarter of a century. People come from all over the world for the actionable information that invariably takes their music careers to the next level when they use it.And the people who have a huge hand in choosing which panels, clas…

Our viewers have always loved our "A&R Hot Seat" episodes! Here's why: by judging music to see if their opinions line up with TAXI's A&R staff, our members get to fine-tune their "industry ears." They LOVE how it helps them listen to their own music more critically!Members have also told me that these episodes build confidence in TAXI's A&R team wh…

TAXI member, Greg Carrozza was on a panel about this topic at last year's Road Rally, and he's discussed aspects of it on various episodes of TAXI TV. But, I've yet to give him the floor to do a much deeper dive about it on TAXI TV. That all changes on this week's episode!In Greg's own words, "I’d talk about what to do after you get a forward, how …

For the entire 31 years we’ve been in business, people have conjectured about how much competition there is when they submit their music to TAXI. I’m going to pull back the curtain and give you actual submission numbers on this week’s show!But wait! The submission numbers actually mean NOTHING because there IS no competition! And I’m going to tell …

Nailing the creative side of the music industry is a given, right? And the business side of the industry has become more important than ever. But, how often do you think about things like these:- Saving and investing money- Understanding investment apps- Increasing your credit score- Limiting your tax liability- Protecting yourself from identity th…

I’m very excited to have Ronan Chris Murphy join me on our first live episode in several weeks! Ronan is a huge fan favorite, both on TAXI TV and at our annual music convention, the TAXI Road Rally!Here’s his bio, if you’re not already familiar!https://ronanchrismurphy.com/bio/Side note: Ronan is an incredibly smart, well-informed, studio rat who l…

Michael is out of the office this week, but he recently recorded this interview with veteran music attorney, Ben McLane, looking at potential legal issues with music created by Artificial Intelligence. Is your music going to train a computer to create new music? Who will get paid? How will they get paid? It's the Wild West out there, and once again…

During the 31 years I've been running TAXI, I've noticed something that's critical to becoming and staying successful in the music industry! Is it great music? Yes, that's certainly a big part of the equation, but building, maintaining, and nurturing relationships could very well be equally as important in regard to becoming successful. And I'm sor…

It's been a while since we've done an "Ask Michael Anything" on TAXI TV, so that's exactly what we're going to do on this show! Ask me anything about TAXI, engineering & production (from the mics and wires aspect), or the music licensing business, and I'll do my best to give straight ahead, helpful answers.Want to know what production music librari…

For years, I've been preaching about "not putting all your eggs in one basket." My personal opinion is that you should hedge your bets by having your music in several, if not many music library catalogs. But not just ANY catalogs!Join me for this week's episode to learn more about the strategic way you might want to approach how many (and which) co…

How’d you like a consummate Instrumental Cue Composer to show you what the most common Cue structures are for TV placements? Great, I’ve got the perfect guest to lay those structures out in great detail on this week’s TAXI TV!Steve Barden is a successful, longtime TAXI member, and a truly excellent composer. He’s the author of two great books on th…

When a music supervisor or TV show editor looks at a huge playlist of possibilities, they will inevitably listen to the tracks with titles that "telegraph" what the music will sound like, first! Wouldn't you like to have your music considered first? Or, maybe I should ask, wouldn't you want to give your music an "edge" when end-users are combing th…

You’ve got a decision to make that will directly affect how successful you become in the world of Production Music: Are you going to be easy to work with, or require some hand-holding by the Production Music Libraries your music is forwarded to by TAXI?Assuming you’d prefer to be thought of as a buttoned-up professional, you REALLY don’t want to mi…

If you’re reading this, you probably own a home studio and record your own music. You also want it to sound “pro,” like your favorite artists and records, but it doesn’t! You’ve tried the latest plug-ins, outboard gear, and mixing tips from YouTube videos. You bought new monitors. You’ve added acoustic treatments to your room. And your recordings s…

I wish there was just ONE trick to making money with production music, but it's not that easy! However, there are several things you can do to increase the number of songs and instrumentals you get picked up by music libraries and ultimately used in TV shows, films, commercials, and other media. What are they?Don't miss this TAXI TV if you'd like t…

Our viewers have always loved our "A&R Hot Seat" episodes! Here's why: by judging music to see if their opinions line up with TAXI's A&R staff, our members get to fine-tune their "industry ears." They LOVE how it helps them listen to their own music more critically!Members have also told me that these episodes build confidence in TAXI's A&R team wh…

I'm very excited to have one of our clients — an awesome Music Library CEO — join us for what promises to be a great episode this week! You can ask him anything, and I'm sure he'll give you some insightful answers.I planned on doing an A&R Hot Seat/Forward-Return episode this week, but when I found out this gentleman was going to be in LA on Monday…

11 CAREER-KILLING Habits Musicians SHOULD AVOID!Before you work on developing good habits that can drive your success, there are some nasty old bad habits you need to part company with because they're holding you back.Actually, they can kill the career in the music business you've always wanted. When you hear what they are, I think you'll be noddin…