Band Promote... scam?

[GearHeadBassMan]

Got a message from a guy who works at "Band Promote!", telling us to email his boss with our band name and a song off our myspace that he singled out.

they said they worked with some recognizable bands and when we asked a more local band about them they said that they didn't really do anything, but that the band didn't send them anything.

anyway, anyone work with them? it sounds scammy, but you never know.

here's the message:

"
Hey guys,
Very cool songs. Especially her heart was a ghost
I am a regional scout for Mike Galaxy at Band Promote and I absolutely want him to hear you guys.
We help cool new bands with media marketing, industry exposure as well as film/tv.

Email my boss at mgalaxy@bandpromote.com and use same subject so he see’s you right away.

Best,
Ryan Fulps
BandPromote. com
323-276-1000


amazing voclas and lyrics"

seems kinda copy paste so we kinda stalled on it by confirming what we're supposed to do and we got this:

"yes sir. here is some details on us


We will help you get a label that fits your band and takes care of you. We work with Fearless Records and Tooth and Nail just some of the label’s we work with.

We will do TV/film placement, we can help you get on MTV and other big shows.

We work with some of the best print and online media. We try our best to get your band in magazines and promote you to the media. Alternative Press and Rolling Stone Magazine are some that we work with.

Broadcast, Internet and Satellite Radio is just some way we portray information. We work with some of the top radio stations such as KROQ-Los Angeles CA.

We have a lot to offer your band and we know we can help you strive for your dream.

Since its humble beginnings in the mid 90's, Band Promote has had the opportunity to work with many fantastic bands including Linkin Park, Sugarcult, Maroon 5, The Features, and more. Band Promote has helped negotiate and secure record deals for over 20 bands, and has licensed over 100 songs in Films and TV.

Ryan

P.S. Any questions hit me up. Can’t wait until you’re with band promote!"

if you've got this message than that stinks butttt if it is a scam its good for the other local dudes to see.

[Zappstorius]

Are they asking for money from you guys in exchange for promotion? I didn't see any request for that in the message you listed. If their not asking for money or rights to your music what could it hurt?

[bass_freq]

well, they have a number you can call, they also name a song in the message, most scams are mass emails with very generic info hoping people will fall for it.

if you have questions, call the number, that can help get rid of some suspicion. but there are alot of promotion companies that like to take people for a ride so just be careful, and do as much research as you can on the company

[thumpbass1]

Find out who their current clients are, and go talk to the artists they supposedly
have promoted. It's the old biblical proverb of 'knowing them by their fruits' and you can tell a rotten apple from a good one pretty easily. They're making some pretty big claims so go see if they can back them up.

[chokeslam512]

When are you guys going to Nigeria to record your new demo?

[-Kramer-]

I would say scam for one reason. He wants YOU to e-mail HIS boss with a song he picked out? Why can he not do it? Wouldn't his boss prefer to hear from him?

Just a thought, but as long as you don't sign anything it is worth checking out.

[Steve]

From the website:

However, if you would like to be considered as a Band Promote client, and want to submit your unsolicited material, send a CD, bio, and photo along with a submission fee of $20 to:


Now, what does that tell you?

[Febs]

Originally Posted by GearHeadBassMan

Email my boss at mgalaxy@bandpromote.com and use same subject so he see’s you right away.

yes sir. here is some details on us

We will help you get a label that fits your band and takes care of you. We work with Fearless Records and Tooth and Nail just some of the label’s we work with.

Regardless of whether it is a scam or not, I would be highly skeptical of anyone who claims to do "media marketing" but has such obviously deficient writing skills.

[armywalaby]

Hear hear on the post above. Most of these guys they hire as talent scouts aren't joe blow off the street. They should have been to college. Submission fee of $20? Nope. Don't do it.

[GearHeadBassMan]

ok, i figure i might send that email, i mean, cause its free and as soon as they bring up money just pass on it.

we'll see how it goes.

[jgroh]

I got something from my myspace page...I put a few songs up there that were written by me, but another person I dont know (uploaded my tracks to Kompoz.com and asked for contributors) added the vocals and guitars...I got something similar to this asking if they could promote us and they have a gig lined up if we wanted it.

I told the guy who worked on my stuff that we have a gig lol. Hes in, god knows where, I dont remember, but its no where near me! I would pass on this.

[ColdSteelRain]

So, in 10-15 years they were able to get all of 100 songs in movies or TV and 20 or so bands signed to labels. Doesn't sound like a very high success rate, even if they are legit.

[AnchorHoy]

Originally Posted by thumpbass1

Find out who their current clients are, and go talk to the artists they supposedly
have promoted

Yep

Look very carefully at how this was written

Band Promote has had the opportunity to work with many fantastic bands including Linkin Park, Sugarcult, Maroon 5, The Features, and more. Band Promote has helped negotiate and secure record deals for over 20 bands

They dropped a few fairly well-known names but didn't actually claim to have a contractual relationship with any of them:

"Worked with" is not the same thing as "worked for", and furthermore, what exactly do they mean by "helped" negotiate? Does that mean they legally represented the Artist in the negotiations, or does that mean that they were responsible for delivering the pizza to the conference room?

I can claim to have once worked with Henry Rollins, because one day both of us happened to be browsing through the stacks at a used CD store and he recommended a particular Hendrix bootleg. I've never been in the same room with the guy before or since, and I think it's pretty unlikely that he would remember me even if you showed him a picture of Yours Truly and described the encounter.....

Originally Posted by Febs

Regardless of whether it is a scam or not, I would be highly skeptical of anyone who claims to do "media marketing" but has such obviously deficient writing skills

Agree

They made some pretty basic English language mistakes in their e-mail. Febs nailed most of 'em. Here's another:

Broadcast, Internet and Satellite Radio is just some way we portray information

Add up all of the above, and it doesn't pass the sniff test

Try asking them what their specific relationship was with the labels and artists mentioned, and don't settle for "we worked with". What services were performed? What was the legal relationship between BandPromote and the artists/labels mentioned?

[armywalaby]

Why go to all that trouble to ask? This is obviously a scam. Don't respond to them.

[Jmswoboda]

this may be a really late response, but i have worked with mike galaxy so i figured i'd throw this in for anyone who might be searching for background info. while i agree, that it did sound a little suspicious when we were first contacted, and that more often than not, things like that tend to be scams, my band has had nothing but results based on his connections. my band gave him the $400 (not to get on a compilation but for his services and contacts -- you get a year for the $400). we never had to sign anything over to him, he doesn't get any percentage of anything, and we don't have to only work exclusively with him. it was a one time payment. it's been 3 months and here's what we've gotten so far...

- 2 south by southwest gigs
- distribution at all hot topics in the southwest united states
- he booked us all of our venues on a tour through california (including a show at chain reaction), and got us guarantees between $100 and $500 for each night

that's a pretty good return for only 3 months so far. the guarantees from the shows alone have more than paid back what we gave him. i'm sure that for a lot of bands, it may not be worth the money. but if you are a good, and serious band (by this i mean you are actively touring and you already have a good established reputation), mike galaxy can definitely do a lot for you. he probably won't get you signed, but he'll get your foot in a lot of doors. if anyone has any specific questions, you can e-mail me at jmswoboda@gmail.com. i'd hate to see his name get dragged through the mud by people that haven't even worked with him, so i'm more than willing to offer any information i can.

[otis_thick]

I know that when you are trying to MAKE IT it is very exciting to hear from a "PRODUCER\PROMOTER" interested in your songs.....BE WARNED...some evil doers out there who have NO TALENT have found new ways of stealing songs from the internet and passing them off as thier own! Long ago and far away.....I was approached by an upcoming Nashville singer\writer who needed songs for "HIS" catologuue and asked if I would GIVE not sell the rights in exchange for recording and song placement services...He then could take this catologue and via his publishing company get a loan for the catologue (the bank figures there could be a few money makers out of hundreds of songs) after he gets the loan with HIS publishing as collateral...he would default on the loan...keep the cash. All he would have lost was someone elses songs....that was B4 the internet where now millions of up-coming musicians are pulling thier pant down for the whole world.....BTW I did not fall for this scam but many others had....If these guys are serious they won't mind if you get get lawyers envolved

This show BUSINESS don't ever forget it!

[Richard G]

i would not pay for anything, u can do it yourself bottom line! (there's always someone willing to do something for u for money)

[Gopherbassist]

Poor use of punctuation, BAIL OUT!

[bongomania]

Originally Posted by Jmswoboda

this may be a really late response, but i have worked with mike galaxy so i figured i'd throw this in for anyone who might be searching for background info...

Here's the thing though. You just now signed up here to post this message. That means you were Googling "band promote" or "mike galaxy", and this thread showed up in the results. Who besides a paid rep for bp or mg would be Googling those terms?

[JimmyM]

Originally Posted by Jmswoboda

this may be a really late response, but i have worked with mike galaxy so i figured i'd throw this in for anyone who might be searching for background info. while i agree, that it did sound a little suspicious when we were first contacted, and that more often than not, things like that tend to be scams, my band has had nothing but results based on his connections. my band gave him the $400 (not to get on a compilation but for his services and contacts -- you get a year for the $400). we never had to sign anything over to him, he doesn't get any percentage of anything, and we don't have to only work exclusively with him. it was a one time payment. it's been 3 months and here's what we've gotten so far...

- 2 south by southwest gigs
- distribution at all hot topics in the southwest united states
- he booked us all of our venues on a tour through california (including a show at chain reaction), and got us guarantees between $100 and $500 for each night

that's a pretty good return for only 3 months so far. the guarantees from the shows alone have more than paid back what we gave him. i'm sure that for a lot of bands, it may not be worth the money. but if you are a good, and serious band (by this i mean you are actively touring and you already have a good established reputation), mike galaxy can definitely do a lot for you. he probably won't get you signed, but he'll get your foot in a lot of doors. if anyone has any specific questions, you can e-mail me at jmswoboda@gmail.com. i'd hate to see his name get dragged through the mud by people that haven't even worked with him, so i'm more than willing to offer any information i can.

a whole $100 guarantee in some of these places, you say? wow, in a 4-pc band, each member could make as much as $25!

legit booking agencies get paid by commission, not an upfront fee of $400. and they don't hock you for $20 for the privilege of sending them your music. plus i'm very creeped out by the name "mike galaxy."