Charisse Arrington has hit the top 10 on the Billboard charts and produced her first solo recording artist deal with MCA/Universal Records, sharing her R&B vocals with the world. She is also a custom song creator, as well as motivational speaker helping the next generation of artists find their voice – in more ways than one. Check out Charisse’s full PIVODIO profile to learn more.
You took a bus ticket and $12 dollars in your pocket to New York and made it all happen for you. Tell us about that moment when you took the plunge in making your passion into your profession.
It’s easy to look back and have the best, wise example of how I was out there and how brilliant I was. But that’s all in hindsight and I’m being funny. The truth is I just had a passion and a desire in me. I knew I had to go for it. That’s the only way I can explain it, it’s like a burning desire. And one thing I know about a burning desire is that it will bother you the rest of your life. It won’t go to sleep. It might get quiet for a moment, but just like we live it also wants to live.
All I knew is that I had a gift that I wanted to give to the world. I had a job for maybe eight months, and one day I just quit. I told them I got a record deal, which was NOT the truth… but it WAS the truth! When I quit, I told myself I had to give myself something to fall forward on, I couldn’t have something to fall back on.
When I went home, I turned the key to my door, I put my stuff down and sat on the floor and cried. So it’s not glamorous. There are a lot of peaks and valleys. But I lived to tell the tale.
There are a lot of reality checks in this industry! It’s so hard starting out. But like you said, it’s a burning passion that you just had to answer.
Yes. I already know what life could be by just going with the things of life that we might be trained up to do: get a job, work so many years, retire. There’s nothing wrong with that for people who want to do that, but that was not my desire.
Let’s be honest: the music industry has changed so much since that bus ride to NYC. More channels than ever to get your art out, but also more competition. When you advise musicians today, where do you see the opportunities? What’s different now than it used to be?
We can only go by a person’s own lens, so for me it’s always been one main thing that stays consistent, and that’s mindset. So it was “mindset” that had to be in play when I got my record deal. Because whether you believe you can or you can’t – you are right.
Now you have to do more to stand out. Back then, I had a machine behind me. So it’s more challenging to be recognized in that era – very few people had a record deal. So you had to vie for attention. Now, you have to be the person who is the team – or you have to build your team – to get in front of the right people.
Today, if you have the resources, it can be instant. You can build your audience in different ways. Back then, you had to bake! If you didn’t stick, you’re out. Today you can put out so many songs. So no matter what era or genre of dream you’re going after, it’s all about your mindset. All that matters is your vision and belief of what it is you want to do in your life.
The opportunities are different, but the human passion that we’ve had for thousands of years, that’s our engine. It’s always the same.
Yes.
For your genre, how do you find your audience today?
I believe in the saying “if you build it, they will come.” But I also believe that “if you market it, they will buy.”
I don’t know how different anything really is. The expressions of what we do can be different and unique. But what makes success is proven, like a template. Whether you’re classical, R&B, pop, rap, I think we need to understand the genre that we’re in, but then you have to market.
You yourself have to be strong in marketing, or you have to know how to get to the people with that marketing information. Whether you hire them, barter with them, whatever you have to do; if you market yourself the right way, they will buy. It’s not just about using social media, it’s about monetizing what you do.
People won’t know how great you are unless you can get that word out. To Federal Express that word out. Today we have to understand that world. It’s like Campbells soup. Why do we know [sings] “mmm mmm good?” It’s marketing. It may not be the best soup, but it’s marketing.
For my genre, it’s still that. I’m about building a tribe. I want people that get me. I’m not trying to be somebody different, whatever’s my essence is my essence. If you don’t get me, that’s ok too. Not everybody is made for me. We want to find that unique tribe of people who get us. Especially that elite group of fans that buy everything and come to all your shows.
So what channels work for you? Website? Live shows? How do you continue to build that tribe?
I’ve been on all the social media channels, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube. When the pandemic happened, I started posting all the time. I got burned out so I’m taking a break, but you need to have a strategy. You need to know how to plant your art with a purpose. So I’ve been dealing with social media, but I am hiring someone to help me with it. Because I want to do what I do that’s efficient and successful. You let somebody who you can hire or bring in as an intern to help you. To be your greatest self.
I’ve got ten fingers. I can’t just count on my thumb. I’ve got ten fingers, ten toes, two nostrils, two eyes – everything teaches us that it’s the power of two or more. So we connect with people to do more. It’s like that African proverb: “if you want to go fast, go alone; but if you want to go far, go together.” I believe in that. Everything I see shows me that. It’s always better to be two or more.
Even failure leaves clues. So we don’t stop. We keep going. We take what we can, we understand what works, and we unite those things. And those things tell a story. A story we call “success.”
Young artists need to hear that. It’s not easy. And they all have the talent, but they might not be thinking about cultivating the business side of things. Do you think that’s something that they’re missing?
It’s not called the “music music.” It’s called the “music business.” The amount of time you’re on stage, doing the business part takes three times as much. Unless you want it to be just a hobby, then that’s the lane it’ll stay in. It’s like a house – the house is the structure and that’s the business part. The art is the furniture. You need both, but you need the structure. That’s why artists struggle, because they don’t have the business side of things.
Right. Business leads to sustainability. And today, you need to run yourself like a small business. And what PIVODIO does is try to connect artists with those like yourself who’ve been there and understand the business side of things for advice.
Yes. If you don’t want to do the business side, or have someone to take those reins for you, it’ll be really challenging. It’s not just your creativity. You need to know how to marry it with business.
Many young artists ask “when can I leave my 9 to 5 to just do music?” And many musicians who are minorities may not have the means to leave their day jobs. When is the right time to take that leap?
I’m also a life coach, and I said to someone just today that our whole life is a risk. We don’t know what could have taken us out today, caused some harm or peril. We have no idea of the unseen aspects of life. We don’t know that a tree could fall on us, every single day is a risk.
So when people give me their excuse for why they can’t take a risk – and I call excuses “sophisticated lies we tell ourselves, and then try to sell to everyone else.” I learned it for myself about having excuses, so I don’t point my finger at anyone else, but what in life isn’t a risk?
Back to that can of soup. You turn that can around, it’s going to have an expiration date, a best use by date. We can’t see our own expiration date, but there’s one there sure enough! So if life is already a risk, you have to think about that.
Sometimes you only see things logically, where two plus two equals four. And that’s all you can see. But there’s always two things at work. A polarity, a duality. For me and my logical world and my intuitive world, when you’re going after your dreams you have to be in the intuitive world. So for me, everything is a risk.
Exactly. It’s a risk NOT to take the risk. It’s a risk NOT to try. You’re right, you don’t know how much time you have to actually try.
Right. You can quit your job, but you can never quit your dreams.
Quick hits for you. What song reminds you of your childhood?
“Imagine” by John Lennon.
Most romantic song of all time?
“If Only for One Night” by Luther Vandross.
What song can you listen to a thousand times in a row and never get sick of it?
“You Got a Friend” by Carole King, because it reminds me that I’m not alone in the world.
What song brings you back to an important moment in your life?
I’ll pick my own: “Down With This” which is the song that got me signed. And that took my life from stepping on the grapes to drinking the wine.
For more of Charisse Arrington, check out her Instagram (@charissearrington) and connect with her on PIVODIO for advice on your music career, vocal reviews, and more.
About the Author:
Robert Woo has been in marketing for 15+ years, creating content for tech startups in various industries. He’s also written and performed comedy for decades, with stints at Nickelodeon, NBC, HBO, and more. While he is probably the least musically inclined of the PIVODIO team, he is excited to be part of this note-worthy (pun) company. He also takes a multivitamin every day.
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