Advance
advance
-
advance -
Picture this. You’re sitting in Atlantic records and you’ve just signed your first record contract. The label representative pats you on the back and slides a check for $100,000 across the table.
You run out of the building, call an Uber, and immediately go to Supreme to buy a new outfit. On the way there you see a homeless man and decide to give him a few hundred to ease his pain. You feel on top of the world.
You’ve made it! or so you think?
To keep it simple, an advance is an upfront payment given to an artist in exchange for the master ownership of the songs they create. To be literal, the money is an “advance” of money you might receive in the future that the record label is pre-paying.
This money is used to pay for recording costs and living expenses so an artist can create music.
The artist will not receive any royalties from their music until this advance has been paid back. Know as cross-collateralization, record labels will try and recoup the advance from an artist’s additional income sources as well. Commonly known as a 360 deal, the record label can recoup the advance from merchandise sales, touring, celebrity appearances, etc.
Why does this matter?
For a lot of starving artists, receiving a huge wad of cash can make you feel like a king. In reality, this money should only be used to harness your craft and provide you with basic living expenses. This might be the only money you see for a long time.
Make it last!
