12 Impressive Women Who Give Back to the Music Industry [Ariel Hyatt]
International Women’s Month is the perfect time for Cyber PR’s Ariel Hyatt to ask twelve impressive women three questions about how they support others in the music industry.
by Ariel Hyatt of Cyber PR
Happy Women’s History Month! Every year we highlight women who are breaking ground and giving back to the music industry. This year we’re highlighting twelve women who have helped to create a music industry that’s as full of community and comradery as it is vibrant with talent.
We asked each of them three questions:
How do you help artists?
What’s your music industry superpower?
What advice do you have for women in the music business?
Scroll down to read advice from industry heavyweights like Emily White, Cari Cole, and yours truly.
Emily White
How do you help artists: I host the #1 Music Business podcast globally, How to Build a Sustainable Music Career & Collect All Revenue Streams which takes artists through the entire music industry, from recording to release, while ensuring artists aren’t missing a single revenue stream along the way. The podcast is free.
What’s your music industry superpower: I think I have the ability to be both detail-oriented yet also understand the big picture and how it all fits together.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: Support and amplify for sure. But for the wider industry, it’s quite simple – hire and promote!
Angela Tyler, Muddy Paw PR
How do you help artists: I help artists find their niche and build a brand around it. When I started back in 2009 this was through my music blog Infectious Magazine, and over the years it’s grown to include endless guest blogs on sites like Soundfly, TuneCore, and Sonicbids, as well as podcast interviews, free workshops, and amazing conversations at conferences and even through email. Through my PR company, Muddy Paw PR, I’m able to take all of this a step further through strategy sessions, consulting, and press coverage.
What’s your music industry superpower: Creating lasting connections and seeing the potential in people and relationships has always been my superpower. Even though I consider myself an introvert, I thrive on community and situations where I get to be fully immersed in someone else’s genius. Over the years I’ve built a really strong network of incredible people and getting to connect those people, whether it’s two colleagues, or someone I met ten years ago and an artist I just started working with, is so rewarding. I’m always trying to create collaborations for the better.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: Have those candid conversations, divulge your “secrets” and be vulnerable. If it weren’t for the women who were mentors to me when I was first starting out sharing things like what and how they charge clients, their struggles, their biggest learning moments, etc, I would never have gotten off the ground.
Wendy Parr
How do you help artists: I empower artists as a holistic vocal and artist development coach to express their authentic identity. Using techniques to align the voice, the artist can trust their instrument and know the tools to give their best performance under all conditions, resulting in tremendous confidence! Having an instrument that works easily means the artist can focus on their actual role – taking the audience on an emotional ride. My 6 month artist development program Compass helps the artists gain clarity on Who they are, how they want to move the audience to create a magnetic congruent brand from persona, message, visual, sound to social media.
What’s your music industry superpower: My music industry superpower is empowering artists to feel safe to be vulnerable, boldly authentic and show all their weird wonderful layers!
What advice do you have for women in the music business: For women in the music business – trust yourself. Hold true to your integrity – find the team that sees who you are and champions you and your vision.
Gina Catalano, Black is the New AP Style
How do you help artists: I established Black is the New AP Style in 2016 to help share the stories of artists that may not otherwise be told. I find these stories fascinating, from the origin of an artist’s career to the creation process of a latest single or album. I hope to be a small part in their journey, helping them document what they have accomplished.
What’s your music industry super power: I try to make sure that the artist’s experience with me is unique. Not only do I want them to feel comfortable during our conversation, but I want them to feel like they are answering questions they may not have been asked before. I want their personalities to shine through as much as mine, and feel as though they are having a heart-to-heart with a friend.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: Don’t be afraid to ask for something. When I first thought of starting my own publication, I assumed no one would be interested in working with a virtually unknown writer. I stepped way outside my comfort zone and asked several former colleagues if they would consider me for interviews, events, etc. Nearly all of them said yes. Since then, every time I’ve thought, “Should I ask?” I force myself to do just that. The worst someone could do is say no, and that is nothing to be afraid of.
Bree Noble
How do you help artists: With our music podcast, Women of Substance, we spotlight up-and-coming female artists and female-fronted bands. Our show promotes their music to over 20,000 monthly listeners and we promote the shows on our socials where we have over 60K followers. Our Female Musician Academy provides a unique environment when female musicians can get training and mentoring in marketing, business and mindset and connect with other career-focused, like-minded female musicians.
What’s your music industry superpower: While one of my superpowers is advocating for women in music, my other superpower is bringing together the business and creative sides needed to be a successful and profitable artist. My ongoing focus is to eradicate the starving artist mentality. I believe musicians can and should be paid well for their unique artistic contribution to the world.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: Find your people and stick with them. Surrounding yourself with a community that knows you and understands the challenges of being a woman in music. You need support. Don’t try to go it alone. You need a safe place to bounce ideas around, learn from those a few steps ahead so you can save yourself years of trial and error. We all have blind spots, and a community of like-minded people who care about you can gently point out your blind spots and help give you clarity. There’s no shame in leaning on peers and mentors or asking for help.
Bree Noble
Music Business Coach
Molly Hudelson
How do you help artists: As a photographer, I help artists by documenting their live shows and behind-the-scenes action – and most importantly, I’m able to pick out the moments that are most important to document, that sometimes the artists themselves don’t even realize are happening.
One example: Italian rock band Furious Jane played the Whisky a Go Go back in January, and – acting as a fly on the wall – I captured some close-ups of the band just minutes before they walked on stage. Making the images black-and-white added to the moody, contemplative vibe of the moment. Photographs are much more than social media and website content; they’re a document of memories. Being a good photographer means knowing when a moment is going to be a memory.
What’s your music industry superpower: My music industry superpower is two-fold: communication and organization! I use my phone calendar and Google Docs spreadsheets to track all forms of communication – who I reached out to, how I reached out to them (email/text/DM), when the last message was, and what the status is. The music industry is built on relationships and it’s easy to fall behind on following up with people, or forget to follow through with making plans. Staying on top of that is so helpful.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: Know your worth (and add tax!). Yes, it can be helpful – crucial, even – to take on unpaid or low-paid projects to build a portfolio when starting out, and it’s wonderful to do favors for friends or to help out a good cause. But if you’re trying to make a living, set rates that reflect your experience – don’t be the cheapest on the market just to undercut the competition. At the end of the day, you’re undervaluing yourself.
Cari Cole
How do you help artists: Celebrity Vocal Coach, Artist Development Expert, and Music Business Mentor Cari Cole is reimagining how we invest in the future of music by rethinking how we value our artists. As a thought leader, Cari is helping to shift the music business paradigm back to being more artist-driven by raising the bar on the quality of independent music one artist at a time. Cari’s comprehensive program for artistic success includes vocal coaching, artist development, and music business mentoring. Her robust platform offers singer-songwriters a gateway to a professional life in music.
“I am here to inspire people to unlock their artistic brilliance and create without fear,” she professes. “I am here to inspire artists to their greatest work and step into the career of their dreams.”
What’s your music industry superpower: To see who the artist could become before they arrive. To help them achieve their vision, and become the artist of their life.
Your best nugget of advice for other women in the music business: Go where the path may lead and leave a trail. We are the ones we have been waiting for. The time is now to step into power as women in the industry and claim our rightful place in music. Envision the world you want, and believe in your ability to be that change.
Bethany Hildebrandt, Song and Fury
How I help artists: Artists are the core part of the music industry & what keeps my job going as a music journalist. I help artists by creating exposure through articles, playlists, featured pieces, social media, etc.
My music industry superpower: I think the number one superpower I have in this industry is how passionate I am about what I do. You can have the education, you can have the experience, you can even have the network, but I believe my true passion is what has gotten me this far in the industry.
Advice I have for women in the music industry: NEVER GIVE UP! It’s so cliche, but I can not stress this enough. If you believe in yourself, work hard, and surround yourself with positive people who support you, you’ll land where you want to be. Don’t look at other women/people as competition, look at them as inspiration.
Danielle Tucker, The Unstoppable Singer Summit
How do you help artists: As the force behind “The Unstoppable Singer Summit,” I offer artists a platform to connect, learn, and grow within the music industry. By hosting 30-40 industry experts annually, I facilitate an environment where singers can gain invaluable insights into both the business aspects of music and voice work. My role is to empower artists by equipping them with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate the complex music landscape, thereby enabling them to focus on what they do best—creating unforgettable music.
What’s your music industry superpower: My superpower lies in my ability to inspire and uplift fellow artists. With a deep understanding of the music industry’s challenges, I leverage my experiences to mentor singers, offering not just technical guidance but also fostering mental resilience. I possess a unique talent for making complex industry knowledge accessible and actionable, helping artists to unlock their full potential and embrace their unique voices.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: Believe in the power of your unique voice and story. The music industry can be daunting, but remember that your perspective and talent are invaluable. Surround yourself with a supportive community that uplifts and encourages you, and never underestimate the importance of mental resilience. In this journey, your authenticity and determination are your greatest assets. Stay true to yourself, and don’t be afraid to take up space in this industry.
Marni Wandener, Marni Wandner Coaching
How do you help artists: As an integrative health coach and executive coach, I work with artists and music industry professionals on everything from stress management, burnout and limiting beliefs to productivity, healthy eating and better sleep. I draw on my background of 20+ years as a music business executive and entrepreneur as well as my trainings in coaching psychology, nutrition and the Chinese Five Elements to help artists them achieve peak performance and build sustainable careers doing the work they love.
What’s your music industry superpower: Not just the knowledge of how help people tap into their own strengths to build new habits and break through behavioral patterns, but also the deep understanding of what the music industry lifestyle looks like, inside and out.
Surround yourself with people you can trust and draw support from, and who can trust and draw on support from you. Community is everything – in good times as well as challenging times.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: Surround yourself with people you can trust and draw support from, and who can trust and draw on support from you. Community is everything – in good times as well as challenging times.
Cheryl B. Engelhardt
How do you help artists: As a Grammy-nominated and certified trauma-informed coach and facilitator, I’m able to show artists not only what’s possible for them, but how to set and get big goals. That usually starts with clearing out old engrained patterns, thought narratives, and ways of working at tasks. Once there’s room for something new, we get to work at creating powerful systems to support achieving the goal. I do this through 1:1 coaching but mostly in my incredible community of career musicians, Amplify.
What’s your music industry superpower: My music industry superpower is taking tiny opportunities and turning them into massive results.
What advice do you have for women in the music business: To my fellow women in the music industry, my strongest piece of advice is to engage with a coach. Period. Stepping outside our own minds and allowing someone else to provide guidance and support (especially as women, who often carry immense burdens for others) is a profound gift. The biggest results in my career came while working with someone else.
Ariel Hyatt, Cyber PR
How do you help artists: For the past two decades, I have been serving musicians by helping them understand publicity, marketing, and earning income through books, blogs and my podcasts. I started my journey as a traditional publicist then built a booking agency and a street team company, and now we are an artist development firm creating effective and long-term actionable plans for artists called total tuneups
What’s your music industry superpower: I have been told that I am good at taking what feels overwhelming and complicated and breaking it down into useable and actionable steps.
What advice do you have for women in the music business?: Don’t try to do everything alone! Get a team, collaborate, give generously to other women especially, and stay curious.
Ariel Hyatt is the founder of Cyber PR, with over 25 years of experience empowering musicians to navigate the ever-changing landscape of the music industry. She has spoken at over 70 conferences worldwide and garnered recognition from top media outlets like Oprah and Billboard. As an author of five successful books on PR and new media, including her latest release, “The Ultimate Guide to Music Publicity,” Ariel offers practical strategies for artists to navigate the complexities of marketing and publicity.
