Meet Sarah Harralson

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sarah Harralson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sarah , so great to be with you and I think a lot of folks are going to benefit from hearing your story and lessons and wisdom. Imposter Syndrome is something that we know how words to describe, but it’s something that has held people back forever and so we’re really interested to hear about your story and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

For years, I felt like an imposter as an artist and creative. I had to make a living to support myself so I was working full time on the business side of the music industry while being a singer-songwriter outside of my 9 to 5. Many of my colleagues were pursuing music full time and making a living as a creative full time and I felt like I was lucky to have a seat at the table. For so long I felt like I was living a double life: I was embarrassed to tell creatives I had to work a job in royalties and could only meet with co-writers in the evenings. I felt like a fraud at work knowing that my true passion was waiting for me outside office hours.

It took more than a leap of faith – over time, I grew my portfolio, clients, catalog, and savings to prepare myself for a life as a full time creative and entrepreneur. Nothing happened overnight. It takes practice and soul searching to realize what you should be doing in life. And I think once you figure out how to do it and have faith in your passion, you will stop feeling like an imposter in your industry.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

Besides being an artist and songwriter, I graduated from Belmont University with a degree in Music Business and have also worked in the music industry in music licensing for a performing rights organization, in artist royalties for a record label, and as a client manager for a royalty system. I know firsthand how important it is to receive a royalty check. Independents don’t always have the resources to receive the help they need for royalty registration and collection at an affordable cost. I am here to help independents grow their royalty collection in an industry where the majority of royalties are paid to major companies. I have proudly registered hundreds of songs for independent artists and publishers on BMI, ASCAP, SESAC, The MLC, SoundExchange, MusicMark, and SongTrust. I am excited to continue educating and helping creatives register their songs to collect all of the royalties they are owed.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

As a creative, I am so glad I educated myself about the business side of the music industry. It’s so important as an artist and songwriter to understand the contracts you are signing and what royalties you are owed and that has been so helpful for my own artist career as well as an entrepreneurial endeavor in my career to educate other creatives about.

It was also very beneficial for me to take production and audio engineering classes. Not only does that help a musician have more experience in the studio, but it saves me money when I can produce my own tracks and demos. I have also used these skills to do production and vocal work for other clients in my home studio.

Anyone who is early in their music journey – learn as much as you can. Whether it’s production or booking or marketing – I think it is so important for an artist do understand every side of the industry. This will not only strengthen your skillset, but it will make you valuable and help you understand what you are good at and what areas you may need help with by bringing another person into your career.

Tell us what your ideal client would be like?

If you have music that has been released but is not registered in the correct places, I offer consultations and music registration services to help clients register their songs in all of the correct platforms to earn all of the royalties you are owed. If you are pitching unreleased music for sync placements or perform live frequently, I can also help you with those registrations for royalty collection.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://indieroyalties.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/indieroyalties/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/indieroyalties