Last time on The Ten Laws of Indie Success…
…We covered The Law of Indie Success #6 Study The Industry. We uncovered how Joey Clipstar created a unique music brand by analysing the industry and owning an unrivalled position.
This week we see how Kanye West built a strong creative team to realise his vision.
As your independent music career moves forward, hold a clear vision of your end goal and surround yourself with a strategic manager, an accountant, an entertainment lawyer and any other advisors and professionals you need in your team. Businesses with strong advisory boards and management teams make smarter decisions.
A team provides valuable resources, skills, and experience to realise a vision or goal. When given the means or support, all creative aspirations can be acquired through the power of a strong team. A visionary must possess the ability to surround their vision with the people who have the answers on how to make their goal materialise. Your team is everyone around you who makes your pursuit easier in some way.
Do you have the right team?
On January 5, 2012, Kanye West tweeted his vision of creating a creative ecosystem which allows a stream of ideas to flow through it. West articulated the need for creatives to be in a room with like minds. Since its launch critics have commented on the minimalistic aesthetic consistent throughout ‘DONDA’s creative projects, which range from album artwork, set design, print, and creative consulting.
In my book, ‘We The New Me – 7 Levels of Awareness To Build Effective Teams’, I explore team dynamics and the importance of each individual understanding their role in the team while valuing the differences they have from other team members. A great team is made up of people who understand their individual power whilst complimenting one another to create synergy within the team. Each person’s motivation to achieve the end goal may differ, along with their reason for being part of the team. The important factor however is each individual’s willingness to be steered towards a common goal by a visionary decision maker.
A team can be many things including a group of friends, a squad, or even your own family unit. Speaking about his team Kanye described them as having the “highest level of communication that has happened in human existence.” He went on to convey the power his wife, Kim Kardashian, possesses. She has the most followers on Instagram, coupled with the social media presence of each of her family members, and he himself, and his entire music family.
What does each of your team members bring to the table?
“It’s not about me, it’s we.”
In a successful team, a team leader will first evaluate the mission of the team to understand what is needed to accomplish the task. Then, they will identify the strengths and weaknesses of their team members and assign roles accordingly. Lastly, they must ensure that all team members know what each other’s responsibilities are to avoid confusion and to create an effective channel of communication. Last month Kanye West unveiled the second season of the Yeezy clothing line at a live New York show that was streamed to 40 movie theatres globally. Speaking about the show he explained how the team had worked together for longer now with the addition of a few new recruits. He described the challenges and how hard it always is, taking many hours to complete. Kanye’s creative team, DONDA, which he uses for both his music and fashion projects, is made up of individuals in specialised areas including lighting, and a conceptual artist for choreography.
It is important to ensure that any team is highly motivated towards their goal. A lack of motivation in any member of a team can have a negative effect, reducing the group’s effectiveness and possibly leading to the stifling of other team member’s motivations. A strong team needs a variety of players with varied skills and talents to play their individual positions. When setting out to achieve your goal it is imperative that you have a team, a support system, and are surrounded by people of integrity and honesty.
What is the mission of your team?
During his music career Kanye West has won a total of 21 Grammy Awards, making him one of the most awarded artists of all-time. West ties with Bob Dylan for having topped the annual Pazz & Jop critic poll the most number of times ever, with four number-one albums each. West has also been included in the Time 100 list of the most influential people in the world. This has all been achieved by surrounding himself with a strong team in all his creative endeavours. In March 2014, Roc Nation announced a partnership with DONDA to manage all DONDA Music. Kanye West partnered with Adidas for the Yeezy line first collection. The initial release of the Adidas Yeezy Boosts was limited to 9000 pairs to be available only in New York City via the Adidas smartphone app; the Adidas Yeezy Boosts were sold out within 10 minutes.
Want to know which roles to fill to build the best team for your success?
Book a 30 minute consultation to discuss how your team can make an impact. Find out how to…
· Select team members
· Create a mission for your team
· Lead and motivate your team
Do you want to build a stronger team? Click here for a 30 minute consultation now!
Next time on The Ten Laws of Indie Success… The Law of Indie Success #8 Get Legal Advice
