Member Since: 7/12/2006
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What Is A Record Pool? What is a CD Pool?
Most people know how radio stations, magazines, or video shows can affect the presence of an artist in a market. But, one of the industry's well-kept secrets is that record pools and cd pools often have more of an initial impact than the popular musical outlets. So what is a record pool and what makes it so important?
A record pool is a organization of disc jockeys (DJs) who pay a monthly membership fee in order to attain the newest music first. Quite often before a song/artist reaches the radio stations and record stores, record pools get the product to distribute to the DJs. The DJs in turn, break the music in the streets, clubs, mix tapes, mix cds and radio. Because of their direct connection to the streets, DJs have the power to either make or break a project. As Marlo Martin, the East Coast Mixshow Manager of Arista Records attests, "record pools are very helpful in breaking records. Not every DJ can be added to record label mailing lists. Pools are an effective way for djs to get records and information and to meet fellow jocks and label reps." The difference between a hit and a flop is almost always a direct relationship based on how much the DJ likes the record.
Once the public has heard and reacted to the new song, the DJ reports back to his record pool. Good or bad, this reaction is what the labels live for. With this information, they can see on paper where in the world people feel their music. Now, they can more positively direct their attention to individual markets, making for an efficient and more cost effective campaign.
A record pool can be judged on the following criteria: number of members, where the members spin, control of a market, reporting reliability, label servicing. All of these criteria combined equal the ability to break records. Essentially, that is what a record pool's purpose is. If a pool cannot break a record efficiently and effectively, there is no need to even consider that pool for servicing.
TJ's DJs Record & CD Pool
The purpose of a record pool is to dominate its market and to break records at will. TJ's DJs Record & CD Pool uses this purpose as a mandate and a guideline from which to follow. Breaking records is not only our duty, but our responsibility.
TJ's DJs Record Pool was created by Thomas "TJ" Chapman as a result of the need to fulfill a need for new music in North Florida. TJ began humbly in 1994 with 10 DJs as a result of a business deal with an older record pool from Quincy, Florida and was serviced mostly by independents record companies.. Today, the record pool has a full time staff, servicing from almost every record label in the land, 70 DJs in the record pool and 35 DJs in the cd pool.
The DJs from TJ's DJ's Record & CD Pool have done very well not only at home, but nationally as well. They have been in musical publications like the Source, Vibe, XXL, Blaze, Technitions, Ozone and have been featured on BET's Planet Groove and Rap City to name a few. They have even traveled around the country on national tours with major labels like Columbia and Loud. Yet, after all of this national exposure, the DJs still have an intense desire to break the hits at home.
Locally, they are involved in the community by spinning at the hottest spots in town, including the Moon, Club Deep, V12, Floyd's, Chubby's, Mt. Zion, the Garden, and more. TJ's DJs also hold numerous programming positions in radio from Music Directors to Program Directors to mix shows and pirate stations. Not to mention we have DJs that move almost 15,000 mixed CD units per month independently! Plus, we have key DJs placed in Florida's favorite place to break music, the strip clubs. To put it simply, TJ's DJs has Florida and Southern Georgia on lock.
As a matter of fact, just recently some of the events that they have organized or sponsored include the TJ's DJ's Tastemakers Only, Tech.Nitions Cool-Out Conference, Picnic-In-The-Park Program each summer, Break-Down Magazine's Shootout, the Urban Music Conference, Florida A&M's Homecoming Car Show, Kappa Luau, FAMU's Corporate Village, FAMU Homecoming Concert, the Hip-Hop & Jock Charity Basketball Game, and the Florida's Invitational Stepshow to name a few.
TJ's DJs Record & CD Pool believes feedback is necessary to continue the excellent servicing that we receive. After all, our reporting and ability to break music as a pool is the sole reason why they service us in the first place. Labels like Arista, Def Jam, Columbia, SRC, Bad Boy, Cash Money, Universal, Atlantic, Interscope, Priority, Jive, VP, AV8, Roc-A-Fella, and J Records, just to name a few, entrust us with their product. The least we can do is get the real word on the streets from the DJs. That is why we require an email address of all our DJs. Email, after all, is the quickest and most efficient way to correspond.
TJ's DJs also has a CD Pool that was established to address the needs of the current trend of DJs who spin cds. With the increasing acceptance of dj equipment like the Pioneer CDJ line of cd decks, djs need to have the same music on cd that the vinyl djs have. Plus, having the music on cd gives the djs a better chance to listen to the music. Just think, new music can be listened to in the car, the home stereo and on the compuer at a djs leisure. A lot of labels and artists use the CD Pool to get music out before it even gets pressed up. We get mp3s emailed to us all the time straight from the studio.
TJ's DJs team consists of TJ Chapman (CEO), Keith Kennedy (Pool Director), and Malik Darby (Music Director), Brian Sealy (Promotions Director) and DJ Shane.. Together, the team works hard to gather all of the good music and make sure it gets broken. In addition, TJ's DJs reports to numerous industry trades, website, magazines, retail stores and radio stations to increase awareness of projects that are serviced. To this end, TJ's DJs reports to RecordPoolCharts.com, DJ Times, Behind the Scenes, UrbanTip.com, and many more. Plus, they are also listed as a core pool of the National Record Pool Coalition, a coalition dedicated to furthering the cause of breaking records. These factors and TJ's DJs diligent work are coming together to make Tallahassee, the rest of Florida, and Southern Georgia viable markets by any means necessary.
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