Rafael McDonnell from brand entertainment agency RED Entertainment (and the man behind mycokemusic) admitted that at times it can be a nightmare dealing with the music world. He mentioned a deal that Coca Cola was on the verge of securing with The Sugarbabes, after long conversations with their record label. With Coke packs all printed up and ready to go, the formalities of contract signing was all that was left to do. Unfortunately, according to Rafael, the band manager decided that the deal was not for them So Coke had all the marketing and pack collateral but with no artist in place, whilst the record label was left trying to explain themselves to the client
Fellow panellist Gary McClarnon of Sparklestreet and champion of band management, responded:
You were talking to the wrong people. Ouch!
Record labels can help smooth a Brand's path to music alliances. Yet somewhere along the line, a conversation with the band manager will need to take place. Better earlier than later...