01 June 2018
Lisa Bishop
Graduate Diploma in Management (Arts)
General Manager, Music SA
Adelaide was designated as a UNESCO City of Music in December 2015. The title is awarded to cities that have demonstrated excellence in music heritage, music-making, education, community involvement, regular high profile, and international music events. Only 31 cities worldwide have attained this status.
Standing centre stage is UniSA Alumna Lisa Bishop, industry mover, shaker and music-maker. From a start singing in bands at age 20, she now supports and amplifies the state’s vibrant music community in her capacity as General Manager of Music SA, a not-for-profit organisation.
“Our goal is to develop, support and promote original contemporary South Australian musicians, build their audiences and champion the industry. It’s demanding, but very gratifying, and I enjoy the team work involved in delivering festivals and events,” she says.
With extensive experience in the music sector and 20 years serving on the boards of arts organisations, including the Adelaide Fringe Festival, the Media Resource Centre and Vitalstatistix, it might surprise some that a leadership role in the creative industries wasn’t Lisa’s first career choice.
“With my Graduate Diploma in Arts Management from UniSA I transitioned to the non-profit sector, where I could make the most of my business skills and do something that is creative.
“Walking away from a decent salary to work in the arts just as I was starting a family was a huge risk though. The risk paid off because I find it so rewarding, plus I have an incredibly supportive husband. When I ended up as General Manager at Music SA I figured all my experience had come together in the perfect role.”
Umbrella: Winter City Sounds is just one of the exciting initiatives Lisa has launched during her tenure at Music SA. Designed to bring commercial outcomes to venues and more work for local musicians during a typically quiet time of the year, the highly successful 2017 event saw 300 live music events across 100 venues and other unusual locations.
“I’m pretty proud of the team behind Umbrella: Winter City Sounds. It’s been fun to create a festival from scratch and build its brand. Umbrella is a two week live music festival and a showcase of predominantly local musicians that transforms the greater Adelaide area into a winter wonderland of music and discovery.
With 1200 South Australians identifying their main profession as a musician (part-time or hobby musicians counting for thousands more), and around 6300 people employed in the music industry, it’s a thriving, competitive sector. Lisa encourages emerging musicians to adopt a business mindset in order to stand out from the crowd.
“Most musicians are self-managed, particularly when they are starting out. So they need to be business savvy until their songwriting and stage performance is good enough to be surrounded by a team of people who ‘run the business side’ for the artist,” she says.
Lisa revels in sharing her wisdom with aspiring musicians and arts managers looking to march to the beat of their own drum.
Here are her three key tips for people starting out in the music industry:
1. Set Yourself Up As A Business
Work out what legal structure best fits you (as a solo musician or band) and then use it to operate your business and receive tax breaks. Register an ABN (Australian Business Number) and open a bank account (not your personal one) and use it to be smart about cash flow and careful about spending. Sign a “band agreement” based on your selected business set-up. You can find one in the Australian Music Industry Network (AMIN) Legal Pack – use it to clarify issues and disputes that are commonly experienced by bands.
2. Understand Where Your Money Is Coming From
Get a handle on what your top revenue streams are – touring, publishing, merchandising etc. Make sure you are distributing your music online and on all the right platforms – iTunes, Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, Amazon, and that your music is visible on apps like Shazam (artist distribution service companies like CDBaby, Ditto, Noisehive, distrokid, Tunecore can do this for you for a fee).
However don’t rely solely on online followers – playing live helps to build your fan base, to test your original compositions in a live setting, and get genuine instantaneous feedback on your music. Eighty percent of gigs are held in pubs and clubs and Adelaide has some great live music venues that provide a career pathway from smaller crowds to larger rooms like the Grace Emily, the Hotel Metro, The Jade, Jive, the Wheatsheaf and The Gov. Hopefully this leads to supporting touring acts in bigger venues and then ultimately playing music festivals. I recommend that anyone in Adelaide in late July attends the Scouted showcase – you will get to see 15 of the best unsigned bands in Adelaide right now across five venues in the West End.
3. Network and Collaborate
Like any industry, the music industry is about who you know, not just what you know. Get engaged with your local music organisations, attend workshops and industry functions, and subscribe to their socials. Seek advice from older successful musicians and collaborate with other artists and producers to develop your song writing and stagecraft skills.
To find more about the Umbrella: Winter City Sounds festival, visit umbrellaadelaide.com.au.
