Transparent Christian Magazine

If you are an independent Christian musician, and you take your craft seriously, Indieheaven is a great friend to have. Created by visionary Keith Mohr 11 years ago in Franklin, Tennessee, this online resource for all things Christian-Indie has established itself as a pioneer in the Christian Independent Artist Support business.

Indieheaven has continued to stay on the leading edge of the technology curve by recognizing the power of the internet to connect with their artists and deliver services long before retailers and labels attempted the same thing. The savvy and sometimes humble team of Keith Mohr (CEO/Founder), Kelly Poe, (Media Director) and Sue L. Ross, (Artist Relations Director) mother/prior manager of EVERLIFE, will tell you they are just a vehicle for the artists they support. They recently sat down with Transparent Christian Magazine to discuss their hearts, their methods, and the future of the Christian music industry.

TCM: I understand you are doing some producing lately. How did you get involved in that?

Keith: That’s actually how this all began in a way. I started doing music producing and after these songs and albums were finished, I was trying to figure out what to do with these amazing recordings and artists. I couldn’t get any attention from anyone in Nashville, so I decided to start a website to promote and sell music. At that time, about 10 years ago, we didn’t have MP3.com. Amazon was just getting started too, but at that time they weren’t selling music, so we were kind of cutting edge as far as selling music off the web. CD Baby had a presence on the mainstream side, but there was really nothing specifically targeting Christian artists or fans. CD Baby has a totally different business model, so even though we were technically doing similar things, the Christian aspect and allowing the artists to build their own profile and put together their own extensive information was unique.

TCM: What do you think is the biggest challenge facing independent Christian Artists today?
Keith: We find that many artists who are believers have difficulty with the combination of how to promote themselves and promote their faith…They struggle with that [the marketing aspect], so they downplay their music, even when it’s really, really good. We try to get them to realize that it’s OK to promote as long as they are pointing to God. You’ve got to just let your light shine and give props where props are due.

TCM: Tell me about what makes a song a Christian song.
Keith: (pauses and grins) I think an instrumental can be a Christian song! If a song relates a world view from a Christian perspective, it’s Christian. I encourage artists to write about things that interest them. A song by itself isn’t a Christian song, and a band isn’t necessarily a Christian band, they are Christians, but the industry puts the labels on that. Years ago, in the secular world, Larry Norman and Keith Green put their music on major labels and had big success. Artists like Larry and Keith were forefathers of the CCM industry as they signed with new Christian music based labels who focused on the Christian consumer. However, taking them out of the world may not have been the best move for the fledgling industry. We’re talking way back in the 60’s and early 70’s. I am sure others can speak more clearly on this subject, but from my point of view, the music changed once the target demographic changed. It became more formula driven for sales, and less about impacting secular culture with a relevant message and risk taking songs. This change of focus created a subculture and a sub-genre that has had a difficult time regaining credibility in mainstream circles. Some of the most creative, amazing music was written and produced by believers in the secular arena. I believe we are seeing a shift back to those days of old, as artists of faith desire to reach a broader audience and are looking for more than preaching to the choir, so to speak. I may also add that the quality of the music produced by believers has vastly improved, which is opening up new doors for artists of faith. For example, Switchfoot’s new song in the “Prince Caspian” movie is one of many songs produced by Christians making its way into the mainstream arena. And that is good!

TCM: You have been a student of the music business for a long time. What do you see happening in the CCM Industry?
Keith: It’s an interesting time in the music biz, for sure! Proactive artists are finding more direct ways to reach consumers without label assistance. However, labels have always provided a filter for the consumer, and introduced new artists to the market who otherwise may have never received broad based promotion and platform enhancement. And the labels still provide something for indie artists to shoot for who may have not received the memo that it is becoming very difficult for labels to sign and develop new artists. Discovery has become an important issue lately, as the numbers of artists vying for attention has reached the saturation point and people only have so much time to find artists who are indie-credible. One of our goals with Indieheaven is to provide a vehicle for serious independent artists to be discovered. Our staff continually peruses our member profiles looking for content of excellence, and then featuring this content on a Top 20 chart found on the Indieheaven website. It’s a “best of” and a great starting point for anyone looking for new music that is of quality.

Getting back to the industry, times are changing for sure, as most labels struggle to reinvent their business model. Good people are losing jobs as mainstream corporate heads cut overhead to appease shareholders. It’s sad, but it’s all part of a new time in music production, promotion, distribution and consumption. We find it is a very good time to be working with proactive independent artists. We have quite a few on Indieheaven. Personally, I am praying for my friends who work at the labels. It affects everyone who works in the music industry. And I am praying for independent artists, who realize their future and career rest in their work and faith.

TCM: I’ve heard the term “label negative.” Tell me about that?
Sue: (Smiles) We’re not label negative, we are just ARTIST positive! Most people bash labels or get ‘label negative’ because they can’t get on a label. On the other hand I have seen people get plenty of attention and subsequently picked up by a label and then get hurt. “This is what we want to do with your career”…”This is what we are promising you”, and many times, those things don’t happen. We separate ourselves from those types of promises because what you see is what you get. There’s nowhere in our literature or our marketing information where we state we’re doing everything FOR the artists. If someone joins Indieheaven and does not take advantage of our tools or doesn’t use the network, they will get nothing out of it…
Keith: I have had newspaper subscriptions that just stacked up and I didn’t read them. I also did the house alarm thing, but I never set the alarm! (laughs) However, it wasn’t the newspaper or the alarm company, I just didn’t use them, so I understand that sometimes people sign up and don’t use us… but we DO contact the artists that AREN’T using the network and ask them why.

We’ve also dabbled in artist management, but we have found that we neglect everyone else when we get focused heavily on only one artist’s career management. When an artist comes to us and they want some consulting from me or Sue, we will do that, but we don’t want to make an independent artist DE-pendant on us. Some of the less savvy people don’t take advantage of the tools. The greatest reward we get is when our artists tell us their business has changed after being a part of Indieheaven.

I’ve experienced this change myself. I signed up for a ‘network’ account on the Indieheaven website, and have received a ton of support, prayer and great suggestions from the active members there. I have connected with people that have contributed to my success. One of the topics that one of the members presented was a “If I had not joined Indieheaven”… The subsequent comments that were posted read like a string of success stories and love letters:

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My CD would most likely not be finished because of lack of funding… So many I have met through IH helped with the funding of the mastering and various aspects of the project.My CD would not have been reviewed in CCM magazine which was great exposure. Most importantly I would not be impacting as many different people with the music God has given me.

I would not have had 30 concerts since February because many of those came from people who have contacted me through IH or they were joint efforts with other IH artists.I would not have been invited by 94 FM The Fish to play at the Festival in Murfreesboro. They were scanning IH for artists and called me because they heard my tunes.

Being a part of a community has allowed me to develop a thicker skin to constructive criticism. Be built up, even when that means facing up to my own deficiencies.

Being able to call on other like-minded individuals whether it be for prayer or ideas or studio playing.

God has used IH in a mighty way to encourage and equip me and my ministry and provide opportunities for me do something that doesn’t make sense most of the time! God is good though…. ALL THE TIME!!!

Thanks Keith and IH for helping me be a better me. I will celebrate my 2 year Anniversary next week. Thanks for an awesome 2 years!

I would not have received any of the Momentum Awards that God has used in some amazing ways to bring credibility to my mission. –I would not have sold any CD’s - which led to Keith introducing me to TAG Artist Group - which lead to National Distribution.

I would not have the anchor that I feel IH provides in many ways. Too many times as an independent you feel as though you’re just floating along with no connection. IH provides that place of connection in a very real and significant way.

I would not have had the credentials to get radio play in many parts of the country.

I would not know RockinRon up at KBCU Radio in Netwon, KS.

I’ve learned not to wear my heart on my sleeve when it comes to people’s opinion of my music.I’ve learned that not all Christians are Christ-like, but that doesn’t make them any less a child of God.

I’ve learned that true support doesn’t come in monetary form, but in prayer form.

I’ve learned that God has not called me to be #1…He’s called me to just be.

After being a solo artist/booking agent/secretary/recording engineer/web designer/etc., (i.e., lone ranger) for more than half my life, it’s been so refreshing, thought provoking and challenging to see things from another perspective (or more like “700 other perspectives”) and to realize “my way doesn’t have to be everybody’s way” of doing things - booking, funding, recording, promoting, integrating family and ministry, writing, EVERYTHING!!!……

I would not have had my CD reviewed in 20th Century Guitar Mag.

I would still be in my old band wanting more and feeling frustrated. Now I feel set free!

I wouldn’t be on the radio Nation wide. Just sent a CD to France. The DJ found me on IH.

I would not be a part of one of the most user friendly, and coolest looking sites, and for that I send out a big thanks to Kelly who is constantly working on, and giving us a platform that is second to none.

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Keith Responded Simply: “We’re the vehicle.. each of you are the drivers.”

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TCM: Tell me about some services you offer that artists may not know about:
Keith: We have some unique services for the artists. They can sell their CD’s and digital songs through Indieheaven and they get 100% of their sales.
Sue: We offer some unique publicity and promotional items, such as including a postcard with every cd we mail. Each one of those postcards will have some information on some of the more popular Indieheaven artists, and also include some super talented newcomers.

Keith: We believe in the whole “Love your neighbor as yourself” concept. We provide connections too, for members that ask us for them. If they join us and never engage us than we’re simply just another site. When they join our site and they want to have a relationship we are going to get the answers for them. It’s very rare with music based websites. We can offer them counsel and wisdom from many of the 8000 indie artists that we serve on our e-mail list. When they join Indieheaven they join our inner-circle of relationships. We help you help yourself, as you help us. It’s more like an interdependent relationship. We HAVE to provide value, we are a member supported site. We provide value and service… it makes us different. The artists know they have to work the network, and work with the tools… If you go to our website, you will see that most of our artists have profiles that are filled out nicely and have music on them. On many other sites, the artists just sign up to get their names on them, but Indieheaven is like a… well a good analogy would be like a golfer joining a country club. They join a country club because it has a well maintained course with some experienced pros, to come beside you and help you hit the ball better. You build relationships at that club, and that’s where we come into play. Many of those other sites haven’t been able to figure out how to earn a living at it, so the people that are running those sites can’t get back to the artist and truly support them. This is what we do, full time, and we’re passionate about it. Our artists become part of an organization that is out there, plugged into the Music industry, actually part of the music industry. We are not necessarily part of the old CCM Industry, but part of the NEW independent industry.

TCM: Does being in Franklin, Tennessee help with this mission or does it hurt?

Keith: Well, it’s certainly harder for artists to make a living at music in this area, but for us, just by being here, we do rub shoulders with people that have tons of experience. Indelible Music Group, as an example, came to us and wanted some help putting together a cd that had the Top 20 Independent Christian Songs. This was not a “pay for play” compilation CD, and we connected our more seasoned members with Indelible, who handled the production of the project and did a great job. The music has sold very well, cracking the Top 20 of all Christian CD downloads on iTunes. We’ve also moved quite a few CDs from our Indieheaven store. Downloads are also selling briskly. We’re looking forward to the next project, a worship compilation, slated for release in fall of 08. A Rock comp will be released in early 09.

(Keith mentioned that Indelible had an expectation of the overall production quality on the Indieheaven songs [that it would be high] . They have dealt with Indieheaven artists in the past, and know they take their craft seriously. —I’ve heard the cd…Indelible made a good assumption!)

Keith Continues: We get wonderful people connecting with each other, people that are good people and don’t’ seem to mind paying for a valuable service. If you’re a serious golfer you are going to pay that membership fee to get your money’s worth. We’ll never have as many listings as social networks… however we are screening people on our site, which keeps our member numbers low so we can serve them. Also, it keeps the quality of artists higher. Going back to the golf analogy, we want to make sure our members don’t “hack up the course”. (Laughs)

TCM: How else can you help the artists?

Keith: Well, the IndieTop20 CD is being distributed by Word, and can be found in Lifeway and Family Bookstore, and that is great exposure! It’s all about being aligned with a credible and reputable organization.
Sue: If the artist is ready for distribution, we can connect them with Infinity Distribution. We also have a plethora of preferred partners that we filter first. We make sure it’s someone that cares about the artists first. We put them up on our “Resource Pages”, and the artists know and trust that we take our time and filter these service providers. As an example, the company “Stickers and More” is in our network. They are getting lots of connections, but it’s because they get what we’re doing. They don’t want to take the artist and just use THEM. We call our artists MUSICIANARIES.

Keith: Take a guy like Mitch McVicker, he’s out impacting people with his message. He’s not going to get signed with a record label like in the old days, but people can support him through a new organization we recently created called “The Christian Independent Alliance.” Mitch is a great guy, and has lots of people who love him and love what he’s doing. He can tell them to “Go to my CIA Alliance profile (http://www.cialliance.org/mitchmcvicker/) and you can support my ministry if you would like.” He was getting ready to go out on tour, and had some financial expenses that were higher than he was expecting. He finally [signed up as an Alliance Member] and he let his fans know of the situation he was in. They donated to get him started on his tour, and were blessed to be able to do it. I mean, think about it. Why not give your fans the ability to donate to you, run it through an organization that’s bigger than you, which adds lots of credibility. The deal for the artists is a higher level of service, like this tax advantage of accepting these donations, and you also receive 50 percent off of all of our events. It costs a little money up front, but you make that back right away. Jamie Thietten is another CIA Member. She sent out an e-mail blast to her fans, friends and family, and she got about 15 members that donated for her last project. She is thanking them and keeping track of their donations.

The Christian Independent Alliance is like “Indieheaven PLUS.” It’s our inner circle of committed members who we know are out there in the fields for the right reasons and need a helping hand. This concept evolved out of some requests from some of our artists. I really love our users. They tell us what they need… I’ll put a post on the site saying “What do you guys need”. And they respond, and we react. It works great.

TCM: So what have you heard lately from your users? Part of Indieheaven’s tagline is Discover the Future of Music. I know that relates to promoting your artists, but tell me about some of the new tools and avenues you are pursuing for your members?
Keith: We are currently looking at starting songwriter accounts. (Indieheaven’s Technical Guru Kelly Poe is coding a songwriter’s contest application currently.) There are thousands of songwriters out there that are writing these great songs. People in Montana are never going to get a face-to-face meeting with EMI. We’ve gone to great lengths to develop a process where a songwriter can submit several songs a month. We will screen their songs and listened to them, and if it’s great, the song will be passed up to the next level. The next level is a staff writer for EMI (he’s already committed) and he’ll screen those songs. If they get past that person, then they will get up to Brentwood Benson, Word, and Provident. They’ve committed to come and listen to the best of the best song submissions we receive.

We’re going to have a subsequent “Indieheaven Songbank” where artists can listen to new songs and see if they work for their projects. We will allow producers and industry folks to have an account, where they can see when songs are added. They can then use them for TV or movies, or whatever. We’re still working out all of the details, but it’s something we’re very excited about.

I asked the Indieheaven team to field a few more questions about being a successful Indie Artist and the future of the music business… We decided that Keith’s new favorite communication format “video blogging” was an excellent way deliver the answers. This is by no means the interview, in video blog format…It’s just a few follow up questions…So please, fight your Adult Onset ADD and go back to the beginning, read the article and then watch the video (you know who you are).

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Proverbs 16:13 states: Good leaders cultivate honest speech; they love advisers who tell them the truth. If you spend any time with Keith, Sue and Kelly you will notice how committed they are to delivering honest feedback to their members-regarding music, the mission and ultimately their business. This blatant honesty can be hard for people to take, especially artists that have created something as personal as a song. According to around 700 active members (and thousands of network folks) Indieheaven is making a big difference in these artists ability to follow their calling.

Two comments on the network succinctly encapsulate how so many people feel about Indieheaven…“I’ve only been here a short time and I’ve never felt such support. [The People here] aren’t just trying to pump me up but [are] willing to lay it out like it is and be dead honest about life, music and ministry.”

Another artists said…“I would not have received the encouragement I needed from my friends here on the network, when I felt like giving up.”

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