Finding her own way

[Miguel]

I've been thinking about making a post like this for a couple of months. But I started a new full-time job that comes with a 20-mile commute (reverse, fortunately) and haven't had the time. I still don't -- I woke up at 4 AM to work on a work project and need to revise it before tomorrow morning -- but I'm going to spit this out.

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I know many people are disappointed that Haley hasn't toured or put out new music. Some may even be questioning whether she's truly committed to succeeding.

I think she is. I'm going to do my best to recall some things and speculate on what Haley's perspective/plan might be.

[Note: I edited this down and it's still the longest post ever on HaleyFans. You might want to skip to the synopsis at the bottom because the post is lengthy after that point as well. Seriously, it's ridiculously long.]

Haley and Interscope probably parted ways before it was officially confirmed. I'm thinking in early October.

Per F8's site: Haley performed at Room 5 in mid-October ($10 admission) and four days later held her first StageIt (from her apt). Then in mid-November she performed at the Hotel Cafe ($12.50). Early December saw her first residency at The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas. Then a holiday StageIt show in late December. She appeared with Casey at the HOB Foundation Room in February.

There were some other dates as well. I cite these though because I think they represent something of a panicked reaction on the part of Haley. She was on her own and had to make a living.

In January we knew she was writing with Rob Kleiner and Sky. I believe in January 2013 she also visited with someone at Fox or Idol. She then went to Singapore in March 2013 for Fox International. (Tip Cup, Celebrity Fight Night and Million $ Quartet were this month too).

Sometime around here is when she recorded "Black Velvet."

April 2013 was her big international jaunt. The Camp Foster Festival and then Malaysia, Bali, X-Factor Indonesia and Jakarta for Fox International.

I think she got a nice payday from Fox International and that gave her some breathing room.

She returned and we saw her in the Idol audience because she was again visiting with someone at Fox that day. Almost immediately she was off to Santorini, Greece for the songwriting camp. By all accounts it went well.

I think at this point she may have begun seeing some royalty checks for songs from Listen Up! used for various purposes or played as piped music (many of the songs are still in currently rotation).

If she had to pay for much of the promotion around Listen Up! from her advance, this might be the first time she felt like she was truly making money from her music.

By way of contrast, she probably didn't make much at all from those dates at Room 5 or the Hotel Cafe.

In July, Haley was at the Kaua’i Music Festival Songwriter Conference as a songwriting instructor. There she interacted with relatively unknown musicians who wanted to get better at their craft. She indicated this event had been something she was unsure about but it turned out to be wonderful experience. She seemed at peace.

In August, she was "Back in the studio w the fabuloso Mike Elizondo" and "Feeling enlightened." He has filled many roles and worked in many genres. I think he may have advised her on how the industry works and cautioned her not to think of herself as just a singer.

Sometime in early summer she had dinner with the head of A&R at Warner Bros who had been at Santorini. They don't follow one another on Twitter though. In September there was another Ole songwriting camp where they were crafting songs to be pitched to Rihanna.

Alright, there have been some other performances including the StageIt with Casey and the Chicago Theatre with Mayfield, but I'm not going to recap them all.

But I will note that relatively recently Haley's friend Bonx spent a month in India songwriting and had tweeted to Haley the Billboard cover story on SIA. That story outlined how she wrote hits for big poppy stars and used the money to create the music she likes.

Haley has indicated there is new music and she is working on something funky that seems like a major project as the guy helping her spoke of a "journey" together.

When I started this, I didn't intend to go over everything in such detail.

HERE'S THE SYNOPSIS:

- Haley didn't tour in 2012 through no fault of her own
- Haley played a few small venues after being dropped with no big payday
- Haley was writing and recording throughout 2013
- Haley made some bank in 2013 from Fox International and song royalties
- Haley is growing more confident as a songwriter

NOW PUT YOURSELF IN HALEY'S SHOES

From her perspective...

In 2012, she did little. The album was mostly done by the start of the year. When it finally broke in May, she did a radio tour to promote it. She appeared on Conan, The View and 90210. She was privileged to play Lolla. Everything after that, including Carnegie, was of her own doing.

In 2013, she wrote, recorded and performed more than she did the previous year. She probably became very aware that songwriting could provide an income stream. She seemingly took advantage of some opportunities because they provided an opportunity to travel as well as some income.

But in doing so she made some connections. Cancun with Casey and Bo led to the cruise with Angela and Bo which led to the Rally with Bo...

Now some people might look at that as slacking off.
Why doesn't she hit the road for real, for gosh sakes!

Well, that costs money.

There is no label to foot the bill. Haley would have to pay the band and its travel expenses out of her own pocket.

Would that be the best course of action? Countless musicians have taken that route but few break through. She's surrounded now by a circle of musician friends in LA she no doubt respects but they remain relatively unknown to others.

Haley already has some name recognition and her distinctive voice.

So wouldn't she be better off using her limited resources to finance studio time (and her funky-ass reality project)?

I think so.

Because her resources really are limited. There's not a big budget behind the funky-ass reality project.

Now for longtime fans it's frustrating to know she has new songs but hasn't released them.

But you must keep in mind that releasing them herself is Plan B.

Fewer people are thinking of Haley now than when her album was released. She is unlikely to sell enough songs to support herself. And releasing them now would be giving away the crown jewels she bought with her own hard work.

Those songs are meant to interest a label. Because if she can get them to back one song and it becomes a hit, she'll get the support she needs to tour and promote herself.

I'll speculate and say the funky-ass reality project is a means to theme the whole album/EP. If she has to release the songs herself it might serve as a means to build buzz and wider recognition (that might attract a label).

In short, I believe Haley has been working and she's trying to be smart and leverage what she has to work with.

She's doing it all herself with the help of some friends, and possibly a bit of paid help, so it's not going to be as expedient as we all would like.