Image consultant… do you need one as a musician?

Is it time to bring in an image consultant? Or do you not need one as a musician? One thing is certain: a meal in a restaurant can taste amazing, but if the presentation isn’t appealing, it feels less appetising. The same goes for musicians and bands. Image and identity matter. It’s an extra form of expression, adds a new dimension to your band and your music, and above all, it makes you recognisable.

Interview: Image consultant Dyanne Beekman

Image consultant Dyanne Beekman. It’s been a while since she last tied a musician’s shoelaces, but without exaggeration she can say she’s worked on the vast majority of the best-known Dutch singers, vocalists and instrumentalists. In cramped dressing rooms she was there for the finishing touch, and in massive venues to see whether the overall picture made sense. She helped Marco Borsato move on from his turtleneck image and into a fitted shirt—though she feels that description is a bit too simplistic: “No, no. It’s far more subtle than that. People sometimes say: you put an ex-Greenpeace activist in a suit and suddenly they look Prime Minister-ready. It’s not that simple.” The fact remains that she successfully worked with the popular singer. Marco, once searching for himself—with a moustache and Italian-style pleated trousers—ultimately settles into who he is. Beekman is convinced: with the help of an image consultant, you discover who you are and can present your message more credibly.

The outside

No doubt about it: Dyanne Beekman (founder of the Beekman Group in Breukelen) focuses on the ‘outside’. “People judge visually. We form 80 percent of our judgement based on what we see; only then does the content come in—music, in this case. The image mustn’t distract from the message. I ask: does the image match the message, and vice versa?” A ‘quality message’ is an absolute requirement for Beekman to get involved. “What I don’t do is hang a ‘business card’ around the neck of someone entering a talent show. If someone doesn’t know themselves at all and has no idea where they want to go musically, I can’t do anything with that—then it just becomes dressing up. My role would be far too dominant. My starting point is: you’re already good, and with me, a little better.” Beekman doesn’t overestimate her role. She won’t steer an artist or band creatively in terms of content. “I listen a lot and I enjoy it, but I’m not musical. If I don’t understand it at all, I say: no, I’m not getting involved. Looking back over the past few years, I’ve said no more often than yes.”

The Beekman touch

When it comes to real talent, she’s there. “I’ve coached everyone in the Netherlands. You can name the whole list.” Marco Borsato, Ilse DeLange, Krezip, Volumia, Van Dik Hout, Kane, Junkie XL, and so on, and so on. Ideally, she makes the ‘links’ herself. Kane as a counterbalance to Van Dik Hout, Ilse DeLange versus Krezip. Beekman always taps into a different register, tailored to the individual person or group in question to avoid a one-size-fits-all approach: “No one has been able to catch me out on ‘the Beekman look’.” But there is the Beekman touch, and it differs per person. In Kane’s case: “Nothing has to match. It looks accidental and it always has something ambivalent about it. Singer Dinand Woesthoff described it beautifully. He compares me to a library he can just walk into. One time he chooses a novel and another time a thriller, depending on what he’s working on.”

Fine details

In the music industry, an image consultant tends to come into play when a band releases a new album. With that album comes a booklet with photos, a press presentation, interviews and a tour. The image consultant’s job is to streamline the visual design in all its facets, while carefully watching and listening to the band or solo artist and their music. What’s the mood of the album? Is it very different from earlier work? How do the makers communicate that mood in their personal presentation and in their presentation as a collective? It’s about translating the message into clothing, accessories and make-up—carried through into the fine details. The client might be the record label, or—if they’re big enough (i.e. have sufficient budget)—the artist themselves. Beekman and her styling teams preferably work from the person responsible for the content of the production, or the one who communicates the content most prominently. With solo artists that’s clear; with bands it’s often the lead singer. The bigger the group, the harder the styling. Beekman experienced that when working with Volumia and frontman Xander de Buisonjé. A band of nine to ten people, with the result that De Buisonjé surfaced quite solitarily. With Kane, Beekman was there from the start. “The lads were still searching for their identity.” Through changes in the band, it became clear over the years who Kane actually is. There are two men who form the foundation: singer Dinand Woesthoff and guitarist Dennis van Leeuwen. Beekman stopped working with the duo four years ago. “They don’t need me anymore. They can handle the styling very well themselves.” By the way, the image consultant thinks eight years of guidance is enough for a band or solo artist. “Then it’s good either to do it yourself or to look for someone else for a fresh perspective. But it happens that I say goodbye to people and a year later they’re back on the doorstep. Then I say: great, let’s get going again.”

New ‘flavours’

Beekman and her colleagues fly around the world in search of trends and ‘new flavours’, without wanting to burden clients with anything extravagant. The meat dress and Jean Paul Gaultier cone bra are reserved for Lady Gaga and Madonna. But the fashion entrepreneur does want the celebrities under her wing to be ‘innovative within their own style’. That’s not always easy. She stood in a dressing room with an ‘amazing’ pair of jeans and an ‘amazing’ pair of shoes. But singer Martin Buitenhuis of Van Dik Hout really wasn’t interested. Time after time she brought them out again. “And what do you think? In the end he started talking about those amazing trousers and those amazing shoes himself.” For the image consultant, it’s a challenge to get everyone in a band aligned. “Sometimes there’s someone you have to put through a full overhaul.” Still, styling doesn’t have to be a problem—especially for newer bands and groups on the verge of breaking through. Beekman warns against agreements like: let’s all wear a white shirt, or black. “And please don’t colour-coordinate the band members’ outfits like it was fashionable to do in the early 2000s. Before the gig, just agree that everyone wears what suits their own personality best. Nine times out of ten, when you all stand in front of the mirror afterwards, there’s a common thread. Stay close to yourself—don’t turn it into fancy dress.”

Private life

A great example of someone who stayed close to themselves, she says, is Junkie XL. Junkie XL had his image sorted right away. “A vintage blazer and a cap. That cap—honestly, it became a hype, everyone wanted a cap like that. And I thought: yes, that’s you. That’s what you look like, even offstage.” She feels the same about Ben Saunders. Beekman believes it shouldn’t make that much difference what a musician or vocalist looks like on stage compared to when they go to the bakery in everyday life. Except, of course, when fame is so big that they can only go out incognito. Beekman, laughing: “In that case, put on a wig.” An important tip from the image consultant: “Don’t put in your album booklet who did the styling. It’s not helpful to give others credit for how you look. It has to come from you.” Beekman knows her place: she’s supportive, she adds value. “When I’d just started—I was a 20-year-old girl—I’d hear celebrities I worked with telling the media they’d come up with it all themselves. I’d think: how awful, that’s not true! But now I see it as the best compliment. They came up with it, and I delivered it.”

Interview: Coach Image Branding & Artistic Performance Hilda Nanlohij

The most well-known bands all have it: a clear image and identity. The Rolling Stones logo is unmistakable and Mick Jagger’s behaviour is legendary. Dutch photographer Anton Corbijn had an important influence on the band’s image; various album covers and videos are his work. Kiss is another great example, but The Beatles’ hairstyles are also iconic, and their music is instantly recognisable. The Swedish metal band Sabaton write songs about major battles and dress like fearsome Viking warriors. Still, many artists can be less forward-thinking when it comes to creating bold, trendsetting looks. There’s often a “don’t stand out” mindset, and too little thought is given to image and identity. But every successful band has ‘something’ that makes them stand out above everything else—something thousands of fans flock to and identify with, in the band, the music, the philosophy and the personalities. They have a rock-solid image. Whatever your background, if you want to be successful as a band, you need to be aware that image branding is an important element on the road to that success. “You have to entertain the audience. Not only with words and melody, but visually too,” says Artistic Performance coach Hilda Nanlohij, of InnoStyle. In her view, musicians spend far too little time on it. Awareness is important and authenticity is the key word. What people see has to match who you are.

Awareness and reflection

How you can develop an image as a band or musician is the speciality of Artistic Performance coach Hilda Nanlohij. She runs her own agency where she helps musicians, actors and also companies create an image. She also coaches at the Artez conservatoire in Enschede. In her view, building an image isn’t actually that difficult. But it does require insight, awareness and ‘reflection’ of your own personality and the band’s character. “Awareness of where you are as a band, and where you want to go, is important,” explains Hilda, who has helped many a band build a stronger image. “Who are you and what do you want to achieve? Once you answer those questions, you can start building an image, which is essentially a visual perception of the band’s identity. That identity is determined by the music and the personalities of the band members—both within the band and beyond.” According to Hilda, DJs, band members and their music are always the foundation of any ‘image building’ and ‘corporate identity’. From that foundation, the Artistic Performance coach looks at the different elements that make up identity and image, and then strengthens or accentuates them. With a clear image and identity, you create expectations that attract people. “It’s about your musical style, but also your live performance. Instruments also influence image choices. An accordion doesn’t evoke the atmosphere of a rock band—unless that’s a very deliberate choice. Lyrics are also very important. They give insight into the philosophical background of your band. What do you want to say and who do you want to reach? Your view on politics, the environment or social issues. A strong image can be created from that.” A sense of social engagement—standing for something—can be a powerful image booster. “Ask yourselves as a band what you can add from the heart, but don’t be overly dramatic about it. Look for the positive rather than the negative. That’s so much stronger.”

Presence and self-image

But alongside the visual side, a band or musician also needs to think about how they want to communicate outwardly with fans and the media. “You need to ask yourself how you come across to the media and how they market you. What is my presence? It’s not always the case that how you think you come across is how others experience you. Everyone has a self-image, but sometimes it’s at odds with what outsiders see. You need to realise that, but very few musicians pay attention to it. People just go on stage thinking the audience should take them as they are. But being yourself isn’t enough—you have to be distinctive. Simple family men can transform into werewolves or soldiers on stage. You have to influence the image from the earliest possible moment, because people form an impression of you almost immediately. The band and the image should already be in place before you even step on stage.” If the image the outside world has of your band is different from what you want—and from how you see yourselves—then your image and identity need adjusting. Outside help is essentially indispensable. A band doesn’t just need a coach for the music, but for the image too. Hilda: “It’s hard to build your own image, because you don’t see yourself the way others see you. So you need an ‘image builder’. When I support a band, I always start with the people. Then I match all the band members with each other so it becomes one ‘flow’. Each band member has their own identity and image. That has to be forged into a band image, so a common thread emerges. There has to be consistency in story, colour, clothing, music and behaviour. I also look at gigs, performance, set design. Some bands choose a costume-like approach; others just wear a regular T-shirt. You can work with spectacular spotlight shows and a beautiful set, or you choose something simple. Think about it. What suits you and your image? It’s also important that everything around it doesn’t distract too much from the music.” A folk-rock band should lean mostly on music and atmosphere. A symphonic rock or metal band can come across very strongly visually. The powerful music supports that. Sabaton have a tank on stage, explosions, smoke and light shows. The spectacle gives their music an extra dimension.

Photoshoot and music video

Once it’s more or less clear what image and identity you want to communicate, you can think about other things, like a visual mark or logo. A good logo contributes to your image, as do a well-designed website and suitable merchandise. “A photoshoot with the right styling in a good location is part of that, but a great music video is also essential. For this, you need to find the right professionals who understand your image. On top of that, your choice of stages, festivals and venues can strengthen an identity.” Building an image and identity is really a form of custom work. No band or musician is the same, and it’s about that unique presence that rises above everything else and has a recognisable character of its own. So an image has to be authentic, not just a slick picture. “You don’t build an image overnight. I haven’t seen a band that has it immediately. Just as the music develops, the band’s image evolves too. Over time, everything becomes clearer. But you do need to start right away by determining what image you want to project, then build it calmly, and now and again return to the basics: ‘who are we and what do we want?’ Don’t let others push you in a direction too easily—keep your own vision.” Sometimes musicians are lucky and naturally have an image that connects straight away. Ed Sheeran is a good example, Hilda feels. But those are exceptions. Many bands have to create that image themselves, and if it’s a completely different image from how you see yourself, professional advice is almost a requirement. In the commercial world of banks and companies, people also hire an ‘image builder’ or advertising specialist. Think of well-known brand characters in UK advertising, created to embody a personality the target audience can identify with. Hilda: “We call that assimilation with the target group. Every strong image has that in it. What’s unique about Ed Sheeran is that he has it naturally. He’s at one with the audience.” The audience likes to identify with the band and the music. When that happens, image and identity building has succeeded. People will then wear a band T-shirt to identify with the band. Examples include T-shirts with the Rolling Stones and U2 logos. But people also dress like the band members or have similar hairstyles. In Hilda’s view, it all belongs to creating a strong image.

Deadly sins

Alongside building an image, there are also things that can break one down. “Don’t throw everything straight onto social media. Wait until you’ve put something good out there, because bad videos, blogs or photos can work against you. Don’t tweet too much. Let others do that for you and above all: stop constantly taking silly selfies. It irritates people and makes you look self-absorbed. That’s essentially deadly sin number one—along with arrogance. People react negatively to musicians who act like they’ve made it and portray a haughty attitude. Also, don’t do things that don’t suit you. Don’t try to be funny if you’re not. Sometimes it’s better to keep your mouth shut than to say the wrong things. But not engaging with your fans and audience at all is also a deadly sin, as is shutting yourself off or not being open.” Hilda warns that a band should avoid the audience forming a negative judgement about their image and identity. Even if it’s a deliberate choice, it backfires. For example, a singer in a skirt that’s far too short, or a singer with the wrong lock of hair, or worse: a singer who takes themselves more seriously than the audience does. “Arrogance isn’t appreciated either. So make sure you approach fans positively—before, during and after the concert. Be respectful and sincere. Too many musicians put themselves on a pedestal, making the distance between band and audience too great. You have to entertain and excite the audience. That’s not only with words, but also with eye contact. Inspire the audience. That’s also part of the image.”

Want to turn LPs into MP3s? Here’s How to Digitise Your Vinyl How to Breathe: For Vocalists & Musicians Playing Keys in a Band: What You Need to Know Vocal Damage: How Does it Happen? Setting Up the Band with a PA System? Here’s What You Need to Know The Hammond Organ: A Classic