On April 29th I attended a show at Jack's in Renton featuring LMB. The reason I went is it was supposed to be the last live music show at Jack's and it felt like the end of an era to me. I hadn't spoken to the singer anymore regarding the logo issue after her telling me to feel free to escalate it to a legal issue, I was still .. irritated about the situation but certainly wasn't feeling combative or that it was hopeless. Afterall, we were supposed to be 'friends' right? She even said so.
Things at first felt a bit.. strained. In my opinion the show started off on a very bad foot. I remember thinking that this night was going to be a trainwreck if she didn't get it together. The place at the time was not packed, maybe 25-30 people give or take, and no one yet from her posse. She was very low energy, singing way off key, voice cracking. During the 2nd or 3rd song I went to the bar to order a drink and several people standing around the bar were talking about how bad the band sucked. That pissed me off. This band does NOT suck! The guitar player is hands down one of the best in our area, the drummer is always ON (which is rare..) The bass player, while not as good as my husband.. is damn good, especially for a guitarist turned bass player, and vocally... when she's on.. she's ON, and puts many female vocalists to shame. It pissed me off that something seemed to be putting her in the off position that night because they are better than that, but we all have bad nights.
Not long after.. her posse starting rolling in. A friend of hers was celebrating a birthday. Suddenly.. like a shot of lightning.. Full energy, on key, no more screwing around. I was stunned. I had seen that happen before, but honestly had never made the connection. It was so blatant, and re-confirmed my feelings that gigs were nothing more than a big ass party to her, and it's not fun, and she doesn't want to do it if her posse isn't there. At the end of the night, we both made nice. I told her that I would supply her with a logo for the website and she had my permission to use it as long as my company mark was NOT removed. I apologized, she apologized, she offered money (I told her no, and that this wasn't about money) She agreed and while I didn't feel that it was a perfect solution, I figured it was the best one in the interest of friendship.
Pffffffft friendship. How little did I know.
![Musings of [another] LoudMouth Blonde](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtoP1bpTdawv_m3sSG9SwRSm9CNM3Glk9jkGUx6p-KFOeFSRPXwnWDPmRWNfQO9yF1FDc0StCctWgQJUbWaK6t0or82r3AQ-vy5oPiBldpm24QYME-GDd0Sf64L06JFUoL1xevL3PwciI/s1600/lmbkrys2.jpg)
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Start of the war. i.e. The first email.
Allow me to preface this with she did not receive my email totally out of the blue. My husband did drop a note weeks before I did letting her know that I was unhappy about the logo use and she should cease and desist use of it. She told him she'd deal with it when she got back from vacation.
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Singer,
Now that you are back from vacation I’d like to deal with the LMB Logo issue. The logo is my intellectual property. I custom designed it and even the gradient color used in Blonde is a custom, very specific layering of colors that I use exclusively for that logo. When I was relieved of my duties as the web designer I removed all my files. This included photos, graphics, logos, html, and flash files before I allowed the domain transfer. A few weeks later I was asked if you could use the logo on the new site. I agreed under one condition, that I be credited for the logo design anywhere it was used, that request was never honored.
At that time I took the steps to protect my work, and attained a Trademark on that art work. A couple of months ago after receiving another e-mail regarding the unsatisfactory appearance of the current LMB website I finally decided that I needed to say something in order to protect my reputation. I was assured you were “engaging a webmaster to take care of it” I’ve seen the newly improved website and don’t feel it is up to standard of my work or reputation. I’m 100% freelance and word of mouth is my best tool.
I am respectfully requesting that you cease all use of the logo. Business cards, demos, promo packs, T-shirts or any other merchandise, any and all flyers, on the website, the banner you hang behind the band, and in any e-mail, or event notification on ANY website, including the LMB Facebook page, or any club that books the band. I rescind any permission to use it on the internet, in print, or any other media.
I appreciate your understanding and cooperation. Take care.
Krys Rhodes
Cactus Creations Design.
Why I sent the email...
There are several things that led up to this email. The biggest was the random notes I received telling me how bad the website was, and asking when I was going to fix it, when was I going to add content, or (and this is my favorite) why did I let it go so bad....
The other reasons were I saw a band that was turning into it's all about ME and oh yeah those guys are just here, but really it's all about ME. Scheduling conflicts with the brother band being blown entirely out of proportion, demanding that LMB be the absolute first priority. Dropping songs from the setlists without discussion, and when asked about it, being told ITS MY BAND, ITS MY GEAR, ITS MY DECISION. Curtailing any growth of the band by refusing to book clubs outside of the singers comfort zone. If it was somewhere that her posse wouldn't travel it wasn't an option. I noticed at more than one show, that she put forth almost no effort with her performance until her friends starting showing up, which only cemented in my opinion that it was the [Singer] show and not really about the band.
The final straw for me, was being told of a gig where she showed up with LMB T-shirts, and tried to make the band members wear them. I don't know what was on the shirt, besides HER FACE.. but remember what I said about.. it's all about ME?! Someone was on a power trip and I wanted nothing to do with it anymore. I felt that it was time my work was removed from that joke of a website because I felt, and still feel that its presence on the website was only a black mark against my professional reputation.
The other reasons were I saw a band that was turning into it's all about ME and oh yeah those guys are just here, but really it's all about ME. Scheduling conflicts with the brother band being blown entirely out of proportion, demanding that LMB be the absolute first priority. Dropping songs from the setlists without discussion, and when asked about it, being told ITS MY BAND, ITS MY GEAR, ITS MY DECISION. Curtailing any growth of the band by refusing to book clubs outside of the singers comfort zone. If it was somewhere that her posse wouldn't travel it wasn't an option. I noticed at more than one show, that she put forth almost no effort with her performance until her friends starting showing up, which only cemented in my opinion that it was the [Singer] show and not really about the band.
The final straw for me, was being told of a gig where she showed up with LMB T-shirts, and tried to make the band members wear them. I don't know what was on the shirt, besides HER FACE.. but remember what I said about.. it's all about ME?! Someone was on a power trip and I wanted nothing to do with it anymore. I felt that it was time my work was removed from that joke of a website because I felt, and still feel that its presence on the website was only a black mark against my professional reputation.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Introduction
I'm generally not one to keep journals, blogs, etc. Some things in the last few months in life have left me feeling rather.. worn out, and I'm hoping to use this as a vehicle to make my side known.
In 2006 I started a website for my husband's new band, called LoudMouth Blonde. I'd been dabbling in web design for a few years, and had already done a website for another band he was in. This was my way of supporting my husband. I could be the adoring wife cheering him on at gigs, but I could do more and the website was part of that.
I created a custom logo, a fantastic website, I photographed almost every gig and spent hours editing and posting those pictures to the website, I created the band bios, promo pack, made all their flyers, maintained the schedule and website in general. We also hosted the website ourselves and paid the yearly fee for domain renewal. This was literally hundreds and hundreds of hours of work for FREE. To me it was a win-win situation. The band got a really nice professional website, that was head and shoulders above the average cover band site, I was able to support my husbands music, and my company got some free advertising.
The singer, who also considers herself the "Owner" of the band, and let me tell ya something folks.. I grew up in this business. My parents were professional musicians, and they handled every ounce of band business. There isn't an "owner" of a band. One person may be able to lay claim on the name of a band.. but even that can be up for debate, but a band is several people basically working together as freelance contractors. The hubby and me did a large majority of the work behind this band, the singer did do the booking but anything web or gear related was delegated to me and my husband.
Fast Forward to July 2009. Hubby decides to leave the band. It had been a tough year for both of us, our Dads passed away within 3 weeks of each other, work was beyond stressful, being in more than one band was stressful, and he just wasn't having fun anymore. I remember like it was yesterday our drive to what was supposed to be his last gig with the band. (He wound up playing several more because she struggled to find a new bass player). I was extremely upset, over the 3 years I'd been involved with this band I had become close to several people, including the singer and really did consider her one of my best friends. Yes, of course I was upset he was leaving the band, but it was a decision I fully supported. I was upset that night because I felt that with him leaving the band all those people who I'd become 'friends' with would no longer really give me the time of day. Hubby told me. "These people are not your friends" He was right.. they were all pretty much acquaintances that I saw at gigs. I told him that I did know that, but my concern was the singer. He told me well that's different, you two are real friends, don't worry about it. At the end of that night I talked to the singer, was very upfront about how I was feeling, and she assured me ohhh honey it's not like that at all, blah blah blah. Then I told her, and hey.. I'll still do the website and whatever else you need, I'm totally happy to do that.
Oh.. I was going to have someone else do that.
Say what? (As I felt punched in the stomach)
Just like that.. I basically got fired from my own website.
Hubby thought maybe it was because he had told her he didn't want the responsibility of hosting it anymore, and she didn't understand that her hosting it somewhere else didn't mean I couldn't continue but we never really did get a good reason. I was pissed. I went home that night and took the website down, removed all my content from the web, logos, photos, etc. If they were going to have someone else do the website, fine, but they weren't going to use my work to do it with.
A couple of weeks later I was asked if they could use the logo I'd designed on the website. I begrudgingly agreed on the condition that I was credited for it. I agreed because I was still under the impression that this singer was my friend. New website goes up, my logo is being used, and no where am I credited for it. The new website was/is a joke. No band bios, no demo songs, actually there is _nothing_ about the band. Not a general bio, even the band members aren't listed. There is a non working link for Media, that we are now 2+ years since the new site went up that has never been done. The one photo is a cropped picture of the singer, that looks very weird because the process of airbrushing the rest of the band out she looks like she's standing with her arm weirdly up in a weird position. The picture is also at least 3 years old.. if not older.
After he left the band and I was 'fired' suddenly.. I couldn't get in touch with the singer. Texts went ignored, phone calls/voicemails went ignored, emails went ignored. I had been starting to feel like she was mad at me or something. Then I saw her in Feb 2010 and it was all cupcakes and roses, all smiles and oh it's so great to see you. She'd come to a gig for the 'brother' band to loudmouth blonde, and hubby was playing with them that night. In March 2010 hubby and I split, it was for the better, and we're closer now than we were before. He moved to Germany that month, it was devastating for both of us, after being together for so long it was a big change. He dropped the singer an email, in a nutshell it was him asking her to check in on me now and then and just make sure I was ok. She never replied, and I certainly never heard from her, even though several more attempts had been made to reach her via text/email. I saw her again in April 2010 when I went to a gig, again.. all smiles, miss you, cupcakes and roses.. At that time I was preparing for major surgery that had been in the works for a few years. We talked about it that night.. The night before the surgery I was pretty scared, I called her, left a message.. she never called back, she never even dropped me an email to ask how it went or how I was. While in the hospital recovering from this surgery I did actually get an email from her, not asking how I was, but to bitch me out about something. I'd managed to get an email worm in my hotmail account, and since it was attached to my outlook it had sent out some random email to everyone on my contact list. Now, obviously this wasn't intentional, and anyone with half a brain could tell it was a nonesense/viral email. Her note to me was scolding me for sending email to all the unnamed company contacts and I know she can get in trouble for that, blah blah blah. Welllll I replied telling her.. look it was a virus, I had no control over it, and you know me better than that and know I wouldn't send email to all those people knowing it would get you in trouble, I don't appreciate the tone you took etc etc. I did get a half assed apology for that.
After a few more ignored attempts to talk to her I decided ok.. I'm putting my cards on the table. I sent her an email, reminding her of our conversation that night back in 2009, told her that I was hurt, and she had assured me our friendship wasn't based on what I could/did do for her blah blah. I knew she was busy but we were supposed to be friends. The reply I got. "Oh well don't read too much into it, everything is all about [insert un-named singer here] right now."
That's when I gave up. I saw her again Halloween 2010 at another gig I attended, again.. cupcakes and roses blah blah blah, but by that time I knew what the truth was, and knew that she was fake, had her circle of friends and I wasn't in it. I also knew that the only time me or the hubby were contacted is when she needed/wanted something.
In early 2011 after receiving another random e-mail from someone I don't know about just how bad the 'new' website was I emailed the singer and told her what parts of the site needed to be fixed, and that overall it was a poor website and with my custom graphic on it people were assuming I was to blame for the site. She told sent a curt reply stating she's engaged a new web designer and it would be fixed.
Was it fixed? of course it wasn't fixed.
April 19, 2011 - I emailed her. In the email I said I no longer wanted that graphic on the website or used by the band. That my original conditions were never met,etc.
Yep.. and that's when all hell broke loose.
In 2006 I started a website for my husband's new band, called LoudMouth Blonde. I'd been dabbling in web design for a few years, and had already done a website for another band he was in. This was my way of supporting my husband. I could be the adoring wife cheering him on at gigs, but I could do more and the website was part of that.
I created a custom logo, a fantastic website, I photographed almost every gig and spent hours editing and posting those pictures to the website, I created the band bios, promo pack, made all their flyers, maintained the schedule and website in general. We also hosted the website ourselves and paid the yearly fee for domain renewal. This was literally hundreds and hundreds of hours of work for FREE. To me it was a win-win situation. The band got a really nice professional website, that was head and shoulders above the average cover band site, I was able to support my husbands music, and my company got some free advertising.
The singer, who also considers herself the "Owner" of the band, and let me tell ya something folks.. I grew up in this business. My parents were professional musicians, and they handled every ounce of band business. There isn't an "owner" of a band. One person may be able to lay claim on the name of a band.. but even that can be up for debate, but a band is several people basically working together as freelance contractors. The hubby and me did a large majority of the work behind this band, the singer did do the booking but anything web or gear related was delegated to me and my husband.
Fast Forward to July 2009. Hubby decides to leave the band. It had been a tough year for both of us, our Dads passed away within 3 weeks of each other, work was beyond stressful, being in more than one band was stressful, and he just wasn't having fun anymore. I remember like it was yesterday our drive to what was supposed to be his last gig with the band. (He wound up playing several more because she struggled to find a new bass player). I was extremely upset, over the 3 years I'd been involved with this band I had become close to several people, including the singer and really did consider her one of my best friends. Yes, of course I was upset he was leaving the band, but it was a decision I fully supported. I was upset that night because I felt that with him leaving the band all those people who I'd become 'friends' with would no longer really give me the time of day. Hubby told me. "These people are not your friends" He was right.. they were all pretty much acquaintances that I saw at gigs. I told him that I did know that, but my concern was the singer. He told me well that's different, you two are real friends, don't worry about it. At the end of that night I talked to the singer, was very upfront about how I was feeling, and she assured me ohhh honey it's not like that at all, blah blah blah. Then I told her, and hey.. I'll still do the website and whatever else you need, I'm totally happy to do that.
Oh.. I was going to have someone else do that.
Say what? (As I felt punched in the stomach)
Just like that.. I basically got fired from my own website.
Hubby thought maybe it was because he had told her he didn't want the responsibility of hosting it anymore, and she didn't understand that her hosting it somewhere else didn't mean I couldn't continue but we never really did get a good reason. I was pissed. I went home that night and took the website down, removed all my content from the web, logos, photos, etc. If they were going to have someone else do the website, fine, but they weren't going to use my work to do it with.
A couple of weeks later I was asked if they could use the logo I'd designed on the website. I begrudgingly agreed on the condition that I was credited for it. I agreed because I was still under the impression that this singer was my friend. New website goes up, my logo is being used, and no where am I credited for it. The new website was/is a joke. No band bios, no demo songs, actually there is _nothing_ about the band. Not a general bio, even the band members aren't listed. There is a non working link for Media, that we are now 2+ years since the new site went up that has never been done. The one photo is a cropped picture of the singer, that looks very weird because the process of airbrushing the rest of the band out she looks like she's standing with her arm weirdly up in a weird position. The picture is also at least 3 years old.. if not older.
After he left the band and I was 'fired' suddenly.. I couldn't get in touch with the singer. Texts went ignored, phone calls/voicemails went ignored, emails went ignored. I had been starting to feel like she was mad at me or something. Then I saw her in Feb 2010 and it was all cupcakes and roses, all smiles and oh it's so great to see you. She'd come to a gig for the 'brother' band to loudmouth blonde, and hubby was playing with them that night. In March 2010 hubby and I split, it was for the better, and we're closer now than we were before. He moved to Germany that month, it was devastating for both of us, after being together for so long it was a big change. He dropped the singer an email, in a nutshell it was him asking her to check in on me now and then and just make sure I was ok. She never replied, and I certainly never heard from her, even though several more attempts had been made to reach her via text/email. I saw her again in April 2010 when I went to a gig, again.. all smiles, miss you, cupcakes and roses.. At that time I was preparing for major surgery that had been in the works for a few years. We talked about it that night.. The night before the surgery I was pretty scared, I called her, left a message.. she never called back, she never even dropped me an email to ask how it went or how I was. While in the hospital recovering from this surgery I did actually get an email from her, not asking how I was, but to bitch me out about something. I'd managed to get an email worm in my hotmail account, and since it was attached to my outlook it had sent out some random email to everyone on my contact list. Now, obviously this wasn't intentional, and anyone with half a brain could tell it was a nonesense/viral email. Her note to me was scolding me for sending email to all the unnamed company contacts and I know she can get in trouble for that, blah blah blah. Welllll I replied telling her.. look it was a virus, I had no control over it, and you know me better than that and know I wouldn't send email to all those people knowing it would get you in trouble, I don't appreciate the tone you took etc etc. I did get a half assed apology for that.
After a few more ignored attempts to talk to her I decided ok.. I'm putting my cards on the table. I sent her an email, reminding her of our conversation that night back in 2009, told her that I was hurt, and she had assured me our friendship wasn't based on what I could/did do for her blah blah. I knew she was busy but we were supposed to be friends. The reply I got. "Oh well don't read too much into it, everything is all about [insert un-named singer here] right now."
That's when I gave up. I saw her again Halloween 2010 at another gig I attended, again.. cupcakes and roses blah blah blah, but by that time I knew what the truth was, and knew that she was fake, had her circle of friends and I wasn't in it. I also knew that the only time me or the hubby were contacted is when she needed/wanted something.
In early 2011 after receiving another random e-mail from someone I don't know about just how bad the 'new' website was I emailed the singer and told her what parts of the site needed to be fixed, and that overall it was a poor website and with my custom graphic on it people were assuming I was to blame for the site. She told sent a curt reply stating she's engaged a new web designer and it would be fixed.
Was it fixed? of course it wasn't fixed.
April 19, 2011 - I emailed her. In the email I said I no longer wanted that graphic on the website or used by the band. That my original conditions were never met,etc.
Yep.. and that's when all hell broke loose.
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