Forward by Derek Sivers, Founder of CD Baby

"Since the 1980s, I've read every published book about the music business.  Every single one.  And there have been some good ones.  But never before have I seen one book that sums it up so perfectly andhelpfully as Ari Herstand’s How to Make It in the New Music Business.  It’s so brilliant I feel like doing personal house calls to every musician on earth to make sure they read it. 

Now let’s clarify a term: The music business is different than the musician business.  The music business is covered by Billboard magazine, and talks about label executives moving from Warner to EMI, or this year’s top-grossing stadium tours by classic rock acts from the 1970s. You don’t care about that.  The musician business is how you make a successful living from your music.  That’s what you care about. 

Even the better music business books are usually written by consultants, executives, lawyers and journalists.  Well intentioned, but missing one crucial thing: knowing what it’s like to be you—to pour your soul into a song, the terrifying excitement of uploading it for the world to hear, the disgusting discomfort of self-promotion, the devastating disappointment of an indifferent world. 

Ah, but Ari gets it. He’s you.  He’s out there promoting his own music right now.  He’s sharing lessons he learned firsthand.  (And lucky for you, he’s keeping this book focused on you and your success, not his.) 

They say the best teacher is someone who’s just learned it themselves, because they still remember what it’s like to not know, and how to explain it in a way that gets you from here to there. 

I’ve never met Ari and I’ve never even heard his music, but I’m a superfan of what he’s done on ArisTake.com and now this book.  Because I’m a superfan of musicians getting successful, and I think this book is the best in the world right now at helping you do that."