anyone had any dealings with Deuce management and promotion - music company?

[joko]

they have offered my boyfriend a deal but they want a £54 fee...so just wanted to check if they are genuine and will stick to their word etc, and see if any other bands knew them.

thanks

[mormess]

Fee for what? Check carefully, get a contract checked by a lawyer and sign if he's truly happy with it. I don't know them but managers make their money from a percentage cut of any earnings from gigs etc, so there's no reason why they should ask for a fee up front if they're good.

[factor-fiction]

I wouldn't pay- if they want him they will take him.

[joko]

thanks

its not a label or record company - its a promoter.
the package he would be paying for includes stuff like submission to hundreds of radio stations and competitions etc, assitance getting gigs, help with press pack - but also seems to say most other things are just help to do things with large discounts...such as discounted photos, websites, accommodation, clothing etc etc

the pack says that they can cancel at any time and doesnt insist on any of the offers being fulfilled - just that they can help and get him discounts if necessary

this is what made me curious - because there are links to particular companies - so i am assuming they have a deal with them...which is fine as long as they provide a good job.

ill try to copy an paste the deal here

[jno]

can he give you a testimonial from current clients?

[joko]

µ Radio plugging to over 100 radio stations worldwide ranging from Internet and Digital to FM and BBC stations

µ Featured on the Deuce Show which is broadcast weekly on over 35 radio stations worldwide with more to follow. One selection of the shows can be listened to HERE

µ Have your video considered for exposure on Indie Style TV in America which is a cable TV show also viewed online and viewed by over 2.0 million people

µ Included as a featured artist on Spain’s Heart FM which currently attracts over 14,000 English speaking listeners

µ Priority listening by music licensing company BeatPick for inclusion in films, TV shows, adverts and various other commercial productions

µ An electronic press kit designed through AirPlay Direct which will also result in you being considered as a featured artist bringing you to the attention of radio stations worldwide

µ Broadcast your gigs worldwide and also have a chance to win a trip to LA at www.whotune.com

µ 25% royalties on merchandise such as T-Shirts, Mugs, Posters, Mouse Mats and Stickers with www.izeezi.com

µ 100 FREE plays on Jango Airplay which receives over 7 million unique visitors per month and is currently the fifth largest music site in America

µ Make huge savings on tour accommodation and travel at www.travel4tours.com

µ Web hosting and web design arranged for you for discount rates of £8.99 per month with Star XYZ

[joko]

A FREE video recorded in Dublin courtesy of MUZU TV which will then be featured on the Deuce TV Channel. Examples of the videos can be found under MUZU TV Sessions at www.muzu.tv/deuce/tv Breaking news about you will also be considered for the MUZU TV homepage

µ Airplay on UK Undiscovered which is broadcast digitally and also on University radio stations throughout the UK

µ The opportunity to find musicians or advertise your own services on StudioTraxx with any material recorded using StudioTraxx considered for FREE radio exposure through Deuce

µ 25% discount off professional photo shoots by CCPHOTOART whose clients include Status Quo, Katie Melua, Joe Satriani and Slipknot to name a few

µ 10% discount off your monthly subscription with Bandit A&R Newsletter

µ Discount rates on remixing your music into dance tracks or any other style you require with Dachaigh Media and plugged to DJs and radio stations free of charge

µ Have stage outfits and image advice from designers at discount rates who’s clients include Prince, Rolling Stones, Sugababes

µ 10% discount off music video quotations with John James Fox

µ Reviews

µ Discount rates on mastering/re-mastering tracks

µ Recommended to top promoters in London and throughout the UK if we think you may be suitable for their events

µ Arrange for videos to be filmed at a price to fit your budget

µ Huge discounts at studios across the UK and USA resulting in FREE radio plugging if you record there whilst registered with Deuce

µ Priority treatment on future offers by Deuce

[joko]

so you see its a lot of discounts and possibilties and air play

its only £54 so we are sort of thinking they can do more than we can so why not?

i think there are testimonials, im going to have a proper look now, but i expect these cant be confirmed as genuine anyway

[mormess]

I can't see anything there that's worth £54. Featured artist on Spain Heart FM? Consideration? Priority Listening? No guarantees for anything there. At all. I'd stay away and do some more research on how to promote your music. Plenty of help online that you don't have to pay for. I've signed up to radio plugging services and get loads of requests for CDS from radio stations but I've had no feedback at all and they all seem to end up on eBay.

Beware ANY music services you have to pay upfront for. I have guys who put stuff on iTunes etc and take a small cut. That way they have to do something to get any money.

Really easy to go round collecting small fees - and of course they offered your boyfriend a deal, so they can get £54 from him! - and say "we'll try, give you the chance etc". They don't actually have to do anything.

And you can probably find discounts on your own. Those discounts are probably from services that have had their prices bumped up in the first place.

Sorry for my cynicism, just seen many artists being fobbed off.

[joko]

hi,

yes thats what i thought...its a lot of 'possibilties' and maybes and discounts (which could probably be matched elsewhere anyway) etc...although i do think that perhaps having a free music video shot could be worth £54...assuming they do it all and there are no other hidden charges...which i suspect there would be ...like flights accommodation etc etc

the only other benefit i can see is simply volume of submissions...time spent sending off cds, researching radio stations etc...it seems they can an will do all this...so i suppose it could be considered like paying someone an hourly wage or something to do the legwork....

[snags]

This reminds me of the Modelling Agencies who 'charge' for portfolios. If you have the right image, look, sound etc. surely any agency/promotional company would gladly eat any initial costs incurred, as they'll be confident of recouping many times over at a later date...

[funnygirl]

They are not in our 'bible' the British Music, tv and film directory.

http://www.music-directory.co.uk/

Be careful, we deal with a lot of ripped off stories.

[funnygirl]

And their address is a PO Box!!!!!!!!

[in a mo]

A deal is when a company do everything for you ,they in turn take commision,if they provide sole representation the percentage is normally higher.
How can you pove if this company are doing anything for you ,if they want you they find you work you get paid they take their cut .
Please do not post here to say that they took your money and you never heard from them again ,it would bring me to tears .
If your boyfriend is good enough and works really hard he will get his chance .
I have been in the music biz for a long time and I do not trust the PO box ploy one bit Something I learnt today is that if a company has .co.uk after the e mail address ,this does not mean it is in the UK or a uk company..
I would love to hear some of his music ,post a link on here now thats a start.

Best regards to yjou.
in a mo

[mormess]

Yeah, they won't mail any cds. They don't say they do. They stick you on a list of thousands of other artists and send that to the stations. If they even do that. And the "free" video in Dublin??? Why on earth would they make a video for free??

Don't do it!!!

[Answerprancer]

Have you considered signing a deal with a digital distribution company?
Routenote is a good bet. I assume you already have PRS (MCPS) membership.

http://routenote.com/

[mojoblitz]

We had dealings with a guy named Rob Saunders from Deuce Management recently and guess what? He offered us the EXACT same deal. We told him to get lost.

Typical industry slime who operate on the premise of a sucker being born every minute.

You have been warned though. STAY AWAY from Deuce Management.

[Finmurphy]

did you reject their offer or not? My band has also been offered this deal but we also had to get our tracks re-mastered. Did you have to do that? It will cost us £75 to do that so it seems even less worth it.

[Mel_L]

I have been using Deuce for 2 years and have found their services exceptional. They are one of the few companies in the music industry that do what they say they can do and for £54 you can't really go wrong if you compare it to what other PR companies charge.
I have received lots of radio play and I have seen my fan base increase ten fold through this. I would say put your doubts behind you and don't listen to all of the cynics that have posted comments here - Its definitely worth a punt!

[Kat-B]

I've been offered the same deal, really not sure what to do. It's so difficult to know who you can trust! I found it difficult even to take the word of the person who posted right before me, who seem so overly happy with them. (Sorry if you're genuine Mel, but you must see what I mean.) I found this thread when I googled the company, to see if i could find anyone with experience, and it seems a lot of people have been offered the exact same deal, many of them through different scouts. It makes me suspicious that when the company got back to me, it was clearly a generic e-mail, with no specific mention of my music or any of my tracks. Also, the first offer I got, (just from being on the mailing list), was 100 free plays on Jango Airplay, and I quote: ''Deuce is now offering all bands and artists on the Deuce Mailing List 100 plays on Jango FREE''. Problem is that you get that when signing up on Jango anyway, and the offer turned out to only apply for those who was not signed up with them yet! Which made the whole 'Deuce is offering' deal sound a bit hollow. Hmmm... It's a jungle out there.
Best of luck to everybody with your music!
Kat.

[DeuceMP]

I came across these postings about my company Deuce Management & Promotion purely by chance. Although you are all entitled to your opinions, I think it is only fair I should be given the opportunity to answer some of the criticisms that have been posted. I have split this into two postings so they can all fit in.

The emails I send out to bands and artists are similar. This is purely because of the large number of emails I receive from bands and artists asking me to listen to their music making it impossible for me to send personally written replies to each and everyone. However, I do only offer the Deuce Package to those bands and artists I believe are up to a high standard. If I do not think their recordings are up to scratch, I will recommend they get the tracks mastered or if they are beyond the mastering stages, I can recommend a large number of studios that will offer discounts (see http://www.deucemp.com/Studio.htm ) If I am unable to help them, I will also reply back to advise them.