Bat Out of Hell: Meat Loaf on Music Biz
One of the rock and roll icons of the 1970s has some advice for those looking to start out in the music business: Write the songs, don't just sing them.
“If you want to get into the music business,” Meat Loaf told CNBC, “my advice to you is write.” Writers tend to fare better when it comes to collecting royalty payments, he intimated, providing for a steadier source of revenue.
Meat Loaf's "Bat Out of Hell" album, released in 1977, sold more than 43 million copies worldwide, making it one of the most successful albums of all time. The Grammy winner rang the opening bell Monday at the New York Stock Exchange to mark the recent release of his latest album, "Hang Cool Teddy Bear."
The new album is different from his previous work, he indicated. "I’m wearing my heart on my sleeve,” he said.
The majority of Meat Loaf’s music career took place during the 1970s. Now in an age where the music business is primarily online, Meat Loaf suggested that making money can be a little more difficult.
"I’m really working hard," he said. "The download(s), I mean you have to have hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of thousands of downloads (to turn a profit)." He also noted that tours also produce substantial revenue once interest builds up in a new release.
