By now, we all know that Joe the Plumber isn't really a plumber...at least not a licensed one. And we know he'll actually be better off under Obama's tax plan than McCain's, because he doesn't make anywhere close to $250,000/year.
But did you know he's a musician? Well, not a licensed musician.
Seriously, my friend Jim Della Croce of Pathfinder Management says that Joe the Plumber can sing and that he's "A complicated guy with a very dynamic personality."
Sounds like a good match for a country singer to me... And Jim is a smart guy. He's been in the business over 25 years and has worked with dozens of acts, including The Beach Boys, Bad Company, Badfinger, Eddie Money, The Clash, Leon Redbone, Night Ranger, Pam Tillis, The Power Station, Waylon Jennings, and Vince Gill.
But is all of this enough for Joe the Plumber to have a successful music career or even a successful album?
My questions to you...
1. Will anybody care? After all, Joe the Plumber hasn't exactly done a lot to get all the attention he's receiving. Is his current fan base loyal enough to wait around (and buy) an album from him?
2. As a working musician, how do you feel about "media stars" such as Joe the Plumber who suddenly get so much attention for their music?
Anytime anyone is successful in the music business, I feel good for them, whether I like or dislike their music or their politics. Being bitter about someone else's success serves no purpose and distracts me from my goals.
Posted by: Phil Dutra | November 01, 2008 at 08:22 AM
No, nobody will care. At least not in a meaningful way that would allow Joe the Plumber to have any sort of longevity in the music business. He might put out a novelty one-off album that will be more of an embarrassment than something to be proud of.
I'm not a working musician, but Nashville trying to capitalize on guys like Joe the Plumber is precisely the type of thing that gives country music a bad name. Start small, write GREAT songs, work your ass off, build a loyal fanbase, and do not ride the media wave. After your 15 minutes of fame, your credibility and pride will be shot.
Sorry Joe, get a life.
Posted by: Taylor | November 01, 2008 at 09:12 AM
Phil - great point!
But just to be devil's advocate... Does a novelty like Joe the Plumber or William Hung take away from "real" musicians as far as the public is concerned?
Posted by: David Hooper | November 01, 2008 at 02:56 PM
Joe the Plumber’s upcoming release (or possible release) is not at all surprising.
Can anyone recall Ashley Alexandra Dupre? She is the prostitute who was involved in a scandal with New York's former Governor, Elliot Spitzer?
She too was an “aspiring musician”. She too had the “essential myspace page” that was flooded with traffic after becoming famous for her escapades.
On the heels of her notoriety there was talk of the young woman pursuing a recording contract. With thousands of daily myspace listens, news media coverage, and her name on the lips of every New Yorker, I suppose the pursuit of landing a recording deal was a no brainer.
Why not? She had the world’s attention. Isn’t getting the world’s attention what it’s all about at the end of the day for all independent musicians? Isn’t this why David is schooling us on how we can get our music into films, and video games? Isn’t this why we spend thousands of our hard earned dollars on marketing campaigns and music biz seminars?
Isn’t that what the core benefit is of offering free downloads? GAINING PUBLIC ATTENTION!! Once your name has been etched into the American conscious, and races into chat rooms, you tube blurbs, and blogs, you can capitalize on it.
Be it reality tv, talk shows, or in our case a recording contract, record companies( and even ad agencies) will flock to you. For in their minds you have an audience that may be curious as to what your product sounds like, and their looking to cash in.
Good for Joe. Will anyone care if he releases an album? Does it really matter? He got the chance. life is not about searching for guarantees it’s about taking advantage of opportunities.
Posted by: Frank Durdan | November 01, 2008 at 06:35 PM
Pepe La Plumaro, as John McCain has referred to him, has a beautiful opportunity of doing well for himself, whether he is a talented musician or not is really of no consequence. The mere fact that he is in the spotlight affords him 15 minutes of fame to capitalize on at least one of his talents which the regular Joe never gets. I say good luck Joe and make the most of it !
James (always looking for opportunities)
PS, David, thats a great info video on making it in the music business, can't wait for the next installment. Cheers Man !
Posted by: James Connolly | November 03, 2008 at 06:32 PM