Book Review: ‘Don’t Forget the Business in the Music Business’

Don’t Forget the Business in the Music Business
By Antonio Ponce
Ap Jones Publishing

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Typically books focused on the topic of business tend to conjure up thoughts of boredom and disinterest. Fortunately, local author and musician Antonio Ponce recognizes this and through clever personalization, avoids this reality on Don’t Forget the Business in the Music Business.

The book is advertised as an educational/advice book, and is based on the experiences of Ponce succeeding as an independent musician. As stated in the press release, “There are a lot of talented people out there that don’t make it to the next level and are never heard. This book’s goal is to give musicians a good foundation to be ready for when opportunity knocks, but also to bring opportunity to their door.” By incorporating the personal stories and experiences of his band, Ponce is able to accomplish this more often than not, while successfully eschewing the stereotypical leanings of business-related writing.

Don’t Forget the Business is effective in fact that the language used to convey meaning isn’t distant or alienating. Both music savvy individuals and novices will be able to read, understand, and stay engaged through to the end. A particular highlight of the text is the reinvention of the term “business.” Prior to reading the book, I anticipated the content would be filled with discussions on how royalties work, the logistics of management fees, etc. but this was not the case. Ponce writes that it is essential communication and connections with people (consumers, show organizers, music label personnel, etc.) that largely determines success or failure in the music business. 

A big chunk of the book is dedicated to helping readers build relationships with people, which goes along way to promote the band and pave the way for the band’s success. By using personal stories from his time in a band, the information conveyed is given credibility. This is an incredible strength of the book.

Ponce’s decision to adopt this personalized and accessible tone produced some less positive consequences however. While the book successfully communicates the topic of relationships, when the conversation shifts to essential financial topics such as budgeting, the writing seemed quite rushed and uninformative at best. He did present some generally helpful information on the process of budgets, but it feels inadequate for a book whose main focus is to help musicians build a strong foundation to ensure their eventual success.

I’m not suggesting the book isn’t worth reading. Where Ponce fails in communicating the complexities of budgeting, he succeeds in presenting numerous feasible options involved in selling music locally, acquiring funding, booking tours and festivals, among other topics. Don’t Forget the Business in the Music Business is absolutely worth the time of any aspiring musician or music band. There are a numerous gems presented in the book which would be beneficial to anyone interested in pursuing a career in the music business.