Chicago band tries recognition a different way

This is another story I did for class this past week about a local Chicago band called Your Villain My Hero. Thoughts? I will post more about the band in a bit.

Your Villain My Hero is trying to make a name for themselves: they play Lady GaGa; they just finished filming their first music video; they play gigs at clubs throughout Chicago and the Midwest. But don’t ask them when they’re going to “make it big.”

“The ratio of success to failure is astronomical,” manager Roger Jansen says. “After you get a record deal, the chance of success is [about] 3%. All bands have this inherent desire to become popular; to become famous; to have a successful profile.”

Band member Mig Mora says by certain measures, the band is successful. But they also stay grounded, and focus on their goals, he says.

“We want to play music people will dance to. I think it’s important for a band to really identify their goals. If you don’t have a plan, you might not have a plan to get it into people’s hands,” Mora says.

While the band plays cover music, Jansen sees it as opportunity to open the doors for audiences.

“I think that you have to be a great songwriter; it’s hard to write great hit songs,” Jansen says. “If you want to make money, I would suggest learning cover songs. Audiences [at first] don’t want to hear original music.”

Mora says that audiences also aren’t like they used to be; he says it takes effort to get the product out in the business.

“People don’t purchase music like they used to,” he says. “Add value to it. Give the music away. Music is our business card.”

In contrast to what most bands think, Jansen says that you need to start off unoriginal, and build a base.

“Some of the most creative artists are also the craziest ones,” Jansen says. “We’re building a brand. Radio is very political. [So] we’re not concerned about airplay. We’re building a fan base.”

A fan base that Mora says has already begun to appear.

“We’ve gotten a good start so far. The most fulfilling thing is when we’re at a show. My favorite [part] is when we play our original music, and [people] are just as interested,” Mora says.

Your Villain My Hero only recently filmed a music video for their first single, I Don’t Need a Boyfriend.

“I find artists that are fantastic are also unmanageable; there’s a sense of entitlement. Comparing us to any other cover band in Chicago is unfair to us,” he says.

It’s also unfair, Mora says, to think that music is a once a week job.

“Make sure you’re doing something every day,” he says. “We started this band back in the summer. We’ve gone through a metamorphosis. We write pop music; we want to start releasing singles; we like to throw a dance party.”