Rick Braun – HuffPost 7.11.14

Mike Ragogna: What advice do you have for new artists?

Rick Braun: First of all, anyone who’s starting out in music has to realize they’re dealing with a time in the music business that is unprecedented. We’re almost back to the days of Mozart and Brahms when it took patrons of the art to develop new artists. What’s happening right now is that record companies don’t have the money to put into developing artists, not in any niche area. I would say to any up and coming new artists — especially instrumentalists — first of all you have to practice, practice, practice, it’s like the old saying, “How do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice.” You’ve got to be great. Second of all you have to be your own promoter. Not in an annoying way, but you have to be your own biggest fan. Nobody’s going to put the word out there for you. The responsibility of self-promotion is more than it ever was. It’s tough.