Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Edelstein.
Nick, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I got started in the Music Industry around age 13-15, performing with bands and as a soloist on guitar and keys.
One of my [extra-curricular] high school bands was very ambitious and made a studio demo recording. I loved working in the studio and knew it would become part of my career, though, at the time, I wasn’t sure how.
I began booking gigs in college while continuing to perform frequently. I got to record in some nice studios with top gear, experienced engineers, and artists who shared my ambition. I became a GRAMMY U member and attended programs with inspiring guest speakers like Phil Tan and Johnny Colt (whom I would later meet during my stint in Five Star Iris). Professional interactions like these made everything seem possible.
After a short tour, I came back to Atlanta ready to work. I started networking and attending industry events like the Atlantis Music Conference. I read a ton of business books, started writing and revising my own contracts, and learned enough HTML to build my own website and customize MySpace. I began taking my songwriting more seriously and joined BMI. I started publishing some of my sheet music arrangements and licensed some songs. I got a sense that I might have enough business acumen to eek out a living. The world felt small and attainable. iPods not iPhones.
Over the years, I played thousands of gigs with all kinds of bands and ensembles of varying levels of success and recorded whenever the chance arose either for my own studio project or for another artist. I’ve had some incredible experiences and even made it into a CMT music video and a Warner Bros. film. But ultimately, the catalyst for opening my own studio was my students. I had started teaching classmates as a senior in high school and taught an after-school program during college at the request of my piano professor. I had always loved teaching, so I began working with a local agency. As my professional and personal lives developed, my ability to teach all over the metro diminished. I rented a room at some destinations like Music Matters and Guitar Decatur until it made sense to open my own studio.
Ness Records, which I began as a small ‘vanity label’ circa 2005, is now celebrating its third anniversary in Avondale’s historic Tudor Village. Current projects this week include tracking for a demo; mixing a live concert; post-production editing; booking gigs for bands; and final preparations for Dragon Con, of course!
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Before I got my studio, I essentially worked from home and balancing personal hours with work could be difficult. Even before social media and smartphones emerged, there was always a sense of needing to be constantly active. Spending all your free time trying to get your name out there by playing jams and open mics, or hanging posters all over town. Figuring out what works and what doesn’t. Sweat equity, “paying your dues,” and the “school of hard knocks” are real.
It helped to realize the music industry is a service industry. Then I could identify the “client” (it’s not always the audience), their personality type, and how to communicate effectively. Also, identifying priorities, goals, strengths, and weaknesses, etc. and revisiting those lists often.
There are times when you question if it’s worth it. You get tested. In some ways, it never gets easier but if you love what you do then the rewarding moments outnumber the lows.
Please tell us about Ness Records.
Ness Records is a humble little music label/studio in Avondale’s historic Tudor Village. The business grew out of my own needs as an artist, bandleader, sideman-for-hire, and educator.
We offer a relaxing, creative writing-rehearsal-recording space for soloists and small groups. Our specialty is audio pre-production including [song] concept development, demo recording, and charts (custom sheet music arrangements and/or transcriptions).
We also offer post-production mixing and editing; booking agency and management for artists and cities/orgs, respectively; publishing and catalog management – we’ve even helped facilitate instrument repairs.
This week’s projects include tracking for a demo; mixing a live concert; booking talent for the next Avondale Art Walk series; and final preparations for Dragon Con!
Here in Avondale and the “greater Decatur” neighborhoods, we are probably best known for our private and group [music] lessons. We’ve had private students from age 5 to 65, teen bands, adult guitar groups, and songwriting workshops. Music Education is very important to me, so it really means a lot when a client refers us to their neighbor.
It’s also what I’m most proud of, as I believe it has the biggest impact on our community (of the services we offer).
Having taught for over fifteen years, I’ve seen first-hand the positive impact music lessons can have on young kids with low self-esteem, and on teens who were dealing with drug addiction and serious depression. As long as we have space, the door will be open to students.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
Being an early adopter can really help. If I had to start over, with the advantage of hindsight, I would have invested more time and energy into YouTube. I remember when the platform first launched. I’m not sure why I didn’t jump aboard. It was years before the iPhone, and before I had any access to editing software. I didn’t have a webcam. I think it seemed like too much of a challenge, or I had different priorities. Even today, my YouTube game is still insanely lacking. I can’t ever find the time to capture, edit, and publish a video. I’ll play a killer concert and then think, “man I wish I had that on video…” LOL, it’s just not my medium of choice. But I have plans. I got a GoPro and I’m going to use it.
Pricing:
- $30 half hour music lesson
- $15 lead sheet w/ chord symbols
- $180 concept demo package
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nessrecords.com/
- Phone: 404-433-1071
- Email: booking@nessrecords.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ness.records/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NESSrecords/
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