Morris sat down and gave the group's background and how he learned that one must have "respect and love for each other." Basically, its "about everyone" he stated.
The second thing he learned was that finances needed to be out of the way. "[It] keeps focus on the group, keeps the music going." (Only if some of our young artists today would have heard him say this!) He continued to explain that the reason he felt the group was so focused on their craft was because they shared everything evenly.
Morris was questioned about change in the music and if it was important to keep up with what's on the radio. His response, "60 million people fell in love what we do." He agreed there was some pressure and second guessing himself was natural but doing what they (as in the group) do best is what truly made them who they are. If anything, he suggested to "try different things in the realm of what you're doing."
The change in the music industry itself was also a major topic. He foresees the industry being in "business" for at least another 10 to 15 years and then artists will have to find another way to make money. To further note change, he used the Grammy's as an example and how only artists were allowed to attend. It "used to be a unique club. If you weren't part of the entertainment industry, you couldn't be involved. Its not special anymore." However, he did explain why this is probably occurring because the industry needs to make money and he could understand that.
Another important piece of advice he gave was learning one's basics...meaning knowing your craft. In his case, reading and writing music, and learning instruments not pulling them up from one's laptop . He stated that its essential to know what it is that you're doing because it will be the only thing that you can fall back on and eventually "someone's going to pull the plug."
One common but often forgotten manner he gave, "always be punctual." He indicated that this is still important, but unfortunately our society has allowed people to become lazy in this manner.
In addition, as an artist he also spoke vaguely about his support team. "[You] have to respect people you hire and let them do their job." Of course every artists wants to be involved in everything that has to do with his or her career but when it comes to certain things, let others handle them.
And by having this network of support, it can even give you leverage or something you can bring to the bargaining table if a record label wants to sign you. "[You] want to have leverage" in terms of having a CD already done, a manager, and "whatever you feel you need to feel stable" because labels aren't going to want to spend money on you.
Morris' sit down was great and I was so honored to have been a part of it! And just to show you how appreciative this group is, he stayed and took pictures with everyone who wanted one despite being on a time crunch!
