 "Photo: Photo courtesy of Damian Giglio")
Damian Giglio always dreamed of being on MTV, but when it finally happened, it was a little different than he had imagined.
The singer-songwriter from Beaumont, Texas, wasn't featured in a music video, but in an episode of the network's pseudo-reality show "The Hills." Giglio has subsequently signed other contracts with the network, licensing his music to be featured on four additional programs, including "The Real World" and "Road Rules."
"It all happened through different contacts I made online," Giglio said. "I was able to get to the music supervisor of 'The Hills,' and then about a month later I got the contract."
Giglio is representative of a new trend in today's music culture, one in which artists don't have to be on a major label, or even an indie one, to get recognized and gain fans. Giglio is currently unsigned and did not realize the situation when he went about marketing his music to MTV.
"I was just excited to be able to be on the show and get heard," Giglio said. "I did some research and started noticing just how big of a trend it really is."
No longer are label A&R people the sole decision makers when it comes to scouting and discovering new artists. With Web sites like Myspace and PureVolume, fans can search through new artist listings and find music they like all on their own.
"It's both good and it's bad," Giglio said. "It means there are a lot more people competing for contracts and audiences, but it helps guys like me get out there without a record label. I can promote my stuff."
Movies and television shows have become the new "it" medium for representing new artists, as recent situations highlight. Feist rose to prominence when her song "1234" was featured in an Apple commercial, and indie darlings The Shins can thank the movie "Garden State" for their ascension to fame.
"Everybody's just trying to find ways to stay afloat," Giglio said. "Even the major labels now are just trying to get by. The music business is in turmoil, and they really don't know what to do."
Giglio cites bands like Tonic and Third Eye Blind as the main influences for his sound.
"I really developed my sound by just listening to all these bands that I liked and trying to learn from how they write," Giglio said. "But of course I have my own styles and ideas, so it works."
Giglio, a self-proclaimed MTV junkie, said that he does indeed watch the shows his songs appear on, thanks in part to his wife.
"I do watch 'The Hills.' My wife is an avid fan," he said. "In fact, had I not been watching it the night my song was featured, I wouldn't have known it was even on there."
Giglio has several gigs planned, including a benefit for a 4-year-old leukemia patient in April, and is opening for the band Vallejo in May. Although he appreciates the opportunity to be featured on television, Giglio said his ultimate goal is still to get a record deal.
"The licensing opportunities that happened are just a positive step," he said. "I still want to do it the old-fashioned way, getting the record deal and putting in the hard work."
Giglio's debut album Have You Heard? is available via iTunes and CD Baby.
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