Things I have learned from “Collaborations” (so far).

Hi, I’m Kelly. I’ve done a lot of collaborating. I have done it all wrong, and gotten a few things right. It is my hope with this that I can save you from some of the wrong roads I’ve been down on. Sometimes it’s very tough to turn around on a road with a heavy load. Sometimes you even have to back up and start over. 

The first thing about Collaborating is discussing terms and money. Now, a lot of indie music folks shy away from this first step. I can tell because of reactions I get when I bring this up first thing. It has been my experience that the terms of release, distribution, and splits need to be determined off the bat. Otherwise, someone could be wasting their time. And we want to avoid that at all costs. 

“‘Collaborations’, Album by The Kintners 
that took 23 people 13 months to make.”

One of the hard things about collaborating is getting what you want out of the collab. This is why I encourage communicating as best as you can at all times. You may have wanted a guitar solo, and someone spent their whole night on the rhythm, it’s happened. It was my fault, I just said, “electric guitar.” I wasn’t specific. These things can be avoided by clear communication skills. Again, wasting time is the ultimate frustration. We want to avoid that. 

I like knowing what my job is and being called to do it. I don’t like doing things I stink at and trying to convince folks it’s a pro job. I never have been able to do it in the first place, and it’s a very awkward position to be in. If I can’t do something, I say it straight away. I really appreciate when people tell me “no,” too. It means they thought about it and really can’t or don’t want to do it. Chances are they get asked again sometime. But if they say yes and never show, I’m left holding the bag. I don’t bother returning to them. I’ve done this too, and left others holding the bag. Like I said, I have done everything wrong so you don’t have to. 

You’re partners, not friends. Some folks don’t get this. It’s wonderful to be friends, that’s all well in good. But you’re really two people who have had nothing to with each other your entire lives and have come together to build a backyard spaceship, pretty much. Sometimes you will be friends, sometimes you won’t. What matters is the spaceship making orbit. Project failure sucks. Sometimes it is because you don’t talk to friends the same way you have to talk to partners. Avoid that situation at all costs. Or else you are strapping yourself to a firecracker,  not a spaceship. 

No one wants to redo parts except me for some reason. If you anticipate redos, start bringing them up sooner rather than later. Get your partners comfortable with the idea. Don’t just hand them a do over out of the blue as a reception to their hard work. Remember, they probably like audiences too. 

Some folks won’t collab without a contract. This is not a sign to run away, it’s a sign to read a contract. The world runs on contractual negotiations. Remember we’re building a spaceship, might need a contractor or two. That’s all it is. Nothing to worry about. Most contracts I’ve run into protect me as much as them. Just read the damn thing and enjoy working with a professional.

These are some of the things I have learned in collaborating with folks. I hope you got as much a kick out of reading as I did writing it.