Michael Jones reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
Five years ago, I was "producing" 2 or 3 songs a year. Despite the fact that I live close to Nashville, promoting & networking were impossible. I had a job, a family, & a home, all requiring my time & attention. Although I had been a TAXI member in the past, I hadn't followed any of their suggestions for generating a successful music career. I decided to change that & made plans to attend their annual Road Rally in LA that year.
Today, my music has global representation, not in a few countries but throughout Europe, Asia, Australia, the US, & Canada. My music is being placed on domestic & international television & I'm...getting...paid! I'm no longer one lone guy sitting in my basement with no idea how to move forward, but a member of an international online community of writer/producer/artists who are in daily contact with each other, offering advice, encouragement, & friendship.
Do I think TAXI is awesome?
You bet I do!
Dean Krippaehne reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI is for real. If you are a writer, producer, artist or someone who just wants to get involved in the music industry, joining and becoming active with TAXI should be first and foremost on your to-do list. Before joining TAXI I had zero songs on TV shows. Now I have my music on over 100 TV shows, a platinum record and scores of placements in other media. All because of the deals I've made, the relationships I've grown, and the knowledge I've acquired through TAXI.
Marcus Cohen reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI is the real deal. Go all in with the whole experience. If your music is ready for the big show then you will find yourself in the right playing field to get where you need to be. If you're almost there, you are in the right place to get the knowledge to hit that next level. The people you will meet will become lifelong friends and collaborators. I highly recommend TAXI (if used properly)! I have had amazing life changing successes with TAXI as the springboard. TAXI doesn't make you famous and successful. Only YOU can do that. But if you're ready to put in the work, TAXI can be your vehicle to your path.
Jodie Parrino Whipp reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
I was skeptical to join Taxi. As a singer/songwriter/producer I decided to take the plunge last year. I attended the road rally last year for the first time. THAT in itself is worth the yearly fee. I have been to other, more expensive conventions. This was my favorite, so far. The presenters at the rally are approachable and helpful. The owner, Mike Laskow is a genuine guy and works hard to give members as much information as he can about the current music industry, including his weekly TAXI TV broadcast. The information is there, if you are willing to work it !!
Kyle Kniceley reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
Taxi and Michael Laskow helped me start my career in TV production music. 6 years later I have hundreds of placements on dozens of networks and major motion picture trailer credits. It all started here!
Robbie Hancock reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
My experience with Taxi gave has given me, and many others opportunities we never dreamed of. I highly endorse them to anyone who is serious about furthering themselves in the music business.
Russell Landwehr reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI is the real deal. If it weren't for TAXI I wouldn't have been able to get my music into the "Film and TV machine", let alone having my music on many TV shows on several networks in the USA and internationally.
Spring Lovelle reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
This is a wonderful community of creative talent...Some of the nicest and most professional musicians I have ever met and worked with. TAXI offers a wonderful foundation of support and encouragement with classes, tools and excellent customer service.
Robb Spencer reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
Taxi is a masterclass in songwriting and music licensing!
Steven Kerry Bruce reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI is a company that really cares for its' members! TAXI is a company of great integrity, giving its' members countless opportunities to license original music through trusted and verified sources. Additionally, TAXI gives its members an amazing education about the music business. The education about music licensing and the music business is constant, through the daily briefs to license original music, through the ongoing TAXI forum, through the TAXI LIVE TV episodes on YouTube, and through the unparalleled annual TAXI Music Convention held in Los Angeles. I have been to three of the TAXI Music Conventions. It is outstanding! People come from all four corners of the world to attend the TAXI Music Convention! TAXI calls the four-day music convention the TAXI Road Rally. When I arrived on Thursday last year, I asked other attendees, "Where did you come from to attend this event?" The first four people I asked said... I came from Nashville... I came from Cypress (Greece)... I came from Norway... I came from London. That's a pretty good illustration as to how profound TAXI and its annual music convention are to its members!
Amanda West reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI is a family owned, friendly and very approachable company. They have been and still are my music university, alongside my fellow members who are always happy to help each other along the way. Taxi TV, the forum, and especially the Taxi Road Rally, are all as invaluable as the listing service A&R itself. If it wasn't for TAXI, I wouldn't have music in TV programmes in several countries, nor on 2 or 3 albums.
Thank you all
Kendall Hollinger reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI is an old soul in this industry. An organization that ACTUALLY CARES about the MUSIC. I won a membership in a songwriting contest about 6 Months ago & can honestly say I have gained so many useful recourses & made so many friends at the road rally. It's been such a useful tool to learn from but also to get my music out there. They are honestly just a good company of people who I am lucky enough to have come across who believed in my music. I am so grateful for TAXI! They rock!
Daniel Wilson reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
Taxi is Music Industry University, and will teach you what is necessary for you to appear on the radar in this business, and live your dream.
James Carvalho reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
wonderful and informative community .. great staff of supportive people.. without taxi i would never have had so many placements to this day.
Chris Griffin reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI has surely helped to get my Music placed in all the right places, Thank you for all you have done.
Scott Free Saraniero reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
Taxi is a community as much as anything else - and in working with Taxi people I've found them all to be informed as well as informative, generous, professional, and... nice. My experience with Taxi has always been like a breath of fresh air.
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Can't speak for [another company’s name deleted], as i have some doubts about them myself, but i can personally tell you Taxi.com most definitely is not a scam. They are not "preying" on artists at all and their listings are 100% real. Additionally a lot is being done to not only present opportunities but also educate their members about all the ins and outs of the music licensing business, music production, songwriting, etc. So, yes, artists should be really careful who to deal with or pay but don't lump every company in the same category. Taxi has been in business for 20 years and is real as can be.
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My .02 on Taxi.
I was once a member, and I know Michael Laskow (the owner) personally. One of the nicest guys you can hope to meet. Several years back when I was in L.A. to get my CD mastered, he met with me, gave me a tour of the offices, listened to my tracks, and liked what he heard enough to pick up the phone right there and then and get me a meeting with two major A&R guys.
So the service is a legitimate service, and their contacts are indeed legitimate as well.
Now, for the reason you still see many of the same ads in the magazines for Taxi. While the service is for real, it is better for certain people, depending on what they're looking to get out of it. If you're a songwriter looking to place songs or tracks, and you have no networking or connections of your own, it can be a valuable service.
If you're an artist or a band looking for a record deal, you'll probably find yourself disappointed. The reason being, the one flaw in the Taxi model is lack of follow up. If you respond to a listing and your stuff is forwarded, there is no way to follow up with the recipient to A) make sure they got it, or B) see if they've listened to it. And one thing that is huge in this business is the followup. In a lot of cases stuff will languish on a person's desk if a fire is not lit under their ass, and that's where Taxi falls short in my opinion.
Combine that with the fact that when it comes to finding and signing actual artists and bands, most A&R guys are looking to hear about the act through buzz, word of mouth, etc. In other words, they only want to sign acts that already have it going on for themselves. Which is a big reason you don't see a lot of major success stories with artists getting their deals through Taxi.
The other reason, in Taxi's defense, is that some of the acts that have gotten deals and been successful as a result of Taxi connections didn't credit Taxi with it. Sixpence None the Richer was an example.
In any case, if you're a songwriter looking for placements, it can be a good service. If you're an artist looking for a deal, you're likely better off getting out there and building a buzz on your own, and the industry will come to you. But then again, even Taxi says that's what you should probably be doing anyway.
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The best thing about TAXI is their Road Rally convention in L.A. If you pick the right person, I have found their one to one mentoring sessions (offered at the convention) to be very useful. Bring your newest recording and you can get some instant and professional feedback on what you are doing right and wrong. I was amazed by some of the very specific (and accurate) production advice I was given after a review of my work by a guy named Fett from Nashville who I met there. I got a lot more than just the (fairly short) mentoring session as I continued to speak with him afterward for a couple of days. For me, that alone was worth the trip to L.A. this last November. Some of the panels and workshops at the convention are also great (some are not). You can come away with a lot of ideas and you can meet a lot of nice people who do the same thing you do. As you might expect, the talent level of the TAXI members is all over the map. Some are really bad, have totally unrealistic fantasy expectations and are sincerely hurt by some of the blunt feedback they get from industry professionals. Other members, often with non-industry jobs and from places far away from L.A., have amazing talent and give you hope for the future of music. Its important to note that TAXI has no direct financial interest in the music of its members and just passes the material along to others, so it’s hard to measure specific success as it comes AFTER TAXI was involved.
TAXI is certainly no magic bullet and is very unlikely to make you an instant star or get you a major label deal by just submitting something to one of its listings. If that is what you expect, you will not be happy. But if you look at it as a way to get very valuable professional feedback, make contacts, get a feel for the current state of the industry, and you can make it to the convention in L.A., I think it has something important to offer. Many music industry people in the Ivory Tower really do want to reach out to the masses SOMEHOW and TAXI does give them one way to do that. It’s certainly lasted longer than I would have thought.
J. Mike Perkins
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Steve Frisch reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
Awesome "1st Rally" experience! I was there as a member to network and learn and my wife came along to "check it all out" in support. She doesn't know the first thing about making music and she enjoyed every minute as much as I did!
Incredible Quality of Content. Incredible Mentors and fellow Members. As it was described to me, "Everybody here is for you." So true.
What a great community of encouraging and supportive strangers that I can now call friends.
I've walked away with some needed validation, renewed energy, obtainable goals and creative objectives.
We are already looking forward to making the trip from Cincinnati again next year!
Sincere thanks to Michael and the entire Taxi Staff for a quality jam packed weekend!
Thank You!
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Tony Anderson reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
Taxi is a great place to get education on songwriting and instrumentals for film and tv. We've been with them now for 3 years. Learning tons and tons.
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Thorn Simon reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
This is an awesome door way to making yourself and your music better. Ohhh yeah and getting your music to the right people too. THE ROAD RALLY IS INCREDIBLE!
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Christoffer Sandberg reviewed TAXI - Independent A&R - 5
TAXI is a great way to learn the music business and to make great connections and friends! The TAXI Road Rally in LA is definitely a must! Highly recommended!