While many artists espouse the indie credo, New York-based singer-songwriter Rachael Sage is actually living it, writing, recording and releasing her own music, touring constantly in various parts of the world, and even running her own label, MPress Records.

While Sage is currently putting the final touches on her own next album, a more immediate project is the upcoming launch of her label's second compilation CD, New Arrivals: Volume Two, which features an array of artists ranging from up-and-comers such as as Gregory Douglass amd Anne Heaton to more established artists like Melissa Ferrick and Chris Barron (Spin Doctors). And like her previous compilation, which benefitted relef efforts for Hurricane Katrina survivors, the proceeds from this latest disc will also support a worth cause: World Hunger Year..

Rachael Sage recently spoke to StarPolish's Jim Willcox about her DIY ethic, artists whose careers she's admired and tried to emulate, and the impact that the performing at Lilith Fair has had on her own career, particularly the concept of creating a musical community.

STARPOLISH: Although it's hard to believe, you started MPress Records a decade ago . Can you talk a bit about the genesis of founding the label – was it because of the difficulty getting signed, or to have more control over your own career? Was there a model you were emulating, such as Righteous Babe?

SAGE: I’m asked this question pretty often, so you’d think I’d have a more standard response – but the truth is there really wasn’t as definitive as moment as one might imagine, in terms of me starting MPress. .

Musically, I’d been making demo-masters of my songs since I was in high school, and more raw piano-vocal demos prior to that, since I was about twelve. I basically had over 1,000 songs before I went off to Stanford, and my parents had given me the ultimatum that I absolutely had to finish school before I could think about trying to work professionally in the music business. .

That said, on weekends when I was still in high school, I’d gone to some music-business seminars at The New School and through ASCAP. And I’d sought management on my own -- even though I knew my parents were dubious of the music business – so I’d taken some meetings on weekends with folks as diverse as Debbie Gibson’s manager, Doug Breitbart (who connected me with my future prodction partner of several albums, Andy Zulla, and also introduced me to my vocal teacher), and Tony Visconti, David Bowie’s producer. Mr. Visconti came to my house in CT after he heard one of my songs through the ASCAP Pop Songwriting Workshop, and he told my parents he wanted to record with me. Needless to say, when after he left they told me they still felt I was too young to navigate the business and wanted me to wait another few years, there were a lot of arguments and a lot of tears!.

But I was an obedient kid and not the type to run away from home, so I nicely explained to Mr. Visconti that I’d have to wait until after I was done with school. All of this is back-story just to show exactly how impatient I was by the time I graduated college -- ,to just “get on with it” and put out a record. I was half-finished with my first album by my senior year, and excited to get back to NYC, where Andy Zulla was still living, to complete the rest. We worked on it for several months, during which time I also started to put a band together and play at venues like CB’s Gallery, Sin-é and The Bitter End. By the time I was finished with [the album], it was no longer unusual for local artists to be “releasing” albums – basically high-level demos, just pressed to a CD instead of a cassette. And I knew that’s what I wanted to do, to just get it packaged and see how far I could go with it on my own, sending it to college radio and generally giving it to every industry contact I knew to get myself out there. .

As far as a model, absolutely Ani was an example I could clearly see, and from whom I derived much inspiration. Also Loreena McKennit, whose music I’d discovered when I studied in Ireland my sophomore year. Having spent my college years in the Bay Area, I’d actually come across a dozen or so local artists who would shrink-wrap their self-made CDs and sell them at dorm gigs or craft shows. I have always been the type of person who’s enjoyed the process of self-marketing directly to fans, and I used to make barrettes and earrings and sell them to my classmates in grade school. Eventually I made several thousand dollars taking orders and selling them to local stores in Connecticut when I was in seventh grade, so I already had that feeling of confidence from having created something people liked, and understanding the basics of supply/demand, in the arts. “If you love it and you believe it, you will find an audience.”

I knew that in my gut, and seeing Ani perform my junior year at Stanford, as well as learning through an article in Emory Magazine how the Indigo Girls had self-released their first album in Atlanta were just further examples of how the DIY approach could actually help create and sustain musical careers, under the right circumstances and with enough perserverence..

In 1996, I completed and released my debut album, Morbid Romantic , and sent it from my apartment (“MPress Records”) to every college station that appeared to play female folk-rock artists on their playlists, as reported to CMJ, and began to make follow-up calls, pretending to be my own manager (one of my best friends told me she was ok with me using her name, so I signed all my letters with her name and it seemed to help me get through to DJs and MDs more easily than if I’d just been “myself”).

A couple years later I released Smashing The Serene. That was the album I felt finally reflected who I was as a songwriter, versus trying to please anyone else or fit any kind of mainstream music mold. I was really proud of it and just excited overall by how it captured my live band, so when I connected with a new manager that year (Lisa Cohen, who worked with me for two years), we decided to send it to distributors, just to see if anyone might pick it up. Around the time Big Daddy – my current distributor – contacted us to offer us a deal, it had started charting pretty high on the CMJ charts, and soon after Ani DiFranco invited me to do some tour dates with her…so that was a huge encouragement, and absolutely helped keep me on the path of independence, verses hiring a lawyer to shop to majors or something. I just kept feeling I could do it myself, and ideally, with a team.

But that took another half decade to really build, to the point where it is now. Then again, there is also that little control-freak thing I’ve had ever since I was a little girl. Even when I was a ballerina studying at School of American Ballet, I had fantasies about writing my own ballet score, dancing the lead in it, designing the costumes, and doing the choreography. One of my idols early on was Fred Astaire, and another was Andy Warhol. I guess I’ve always been trying to emulate people who had a mastery of several arts, and who were also involved in defining a “scene,” establishing a strong aesthetic across the board..

STARPOLISH: Many artists are creatively talented, but don’t have an aptitude -- or inclination – for handling the business aspects of a music career. How do you balance these two diverse areas? Does managing your career and label take away some of the time that could be spent creatively? Do you enjoy doing both?

SAGE: Who says I balance? (laughs) I don’t know how much balance I really have in my life… I’m probably not that qualified to evaluate that (compared to some of my ex’s), but my main philosophy is “sleep when you’re dead.” I’m kind of kidding, but to an extent it’s true; I feel that managing my career and also overseeing the label are natural extensions of my creative endeavors, and if I’m just rationalizing, at the very least they permit me to have a genuinely gratifying, direct relationship with the people who actually listen to my work and help me to tour. I cherish those relationships more, I think, than if I didn’t have that constant interaction, and if I were on some huge label where I might take it for granted that someone just bought six of my records from CDbaby, or a fan cc’d me, as well as my booking agent, wanting to host a local concert. I think seeing that feedback fuels what I do in a way that is more honest to my instincts than if I were overly pressured by a larger label’s agenda. .

I am a people pleaser by nature, so I intentionally try to check myself, and make sure that I’m ultimately making the [right] choices and the music that speaks from my heart, because that’s what it all boils down to. In Judaism there is this incredible saying: “If I am not for myself, who will be for me; if I am only for myself, who will be for me; if not now, when?” In many ways, I try to let that tri-fold concept permeate my life and career as much as possible. The balance comes from the act of performing; for me, it’s the release and the reward for all the other work I do promoting and guiding the team that helps me run my label. I always try to appreciate every gig I play equally, whether it’s for 20 or 2,000 people; it’s definitely a roller-coaster, though! Thankfully I’ve always enjoyed being on one….

STARPOLISH: Let’s talk a bit about the New Arrivals series of compilation discs, which features other indie artists such as Melissa Ferrick, Anne Heaton and Chris Barron. Is the prime motivation exposure for these artists and your label? Can you talk about the reception to the first compilation, and how that has affected the second New Arrivals CD, which will come out this spring?

SAGE:  New Arrivals is a project I’ve wanted to do since shortly after I performed at Lilith Fair, which really and truly changed my entire philosophy about making music within a community. It’s ironic that being part of something so very much affiliated with mainstream, major-label artists really impacted my sense of Independence and the DIY mentality, but sometimes those qualities have more to do with an attitude, than the logistics, or the companies involved..

Sarah McLachlan and Terri McBride created something that changed everything, at least for a very long, extended moment, for female artists. They grouped major as well as local artists together on each tour stop, and gave unknown artists a chance to perform alongside musicians like The Pretenders and Sheryl Crow. I didn’t even have that great a gig the day I played, but what stuck with me the most was the integrity behind every detail, that there were little handwritten notes in the dressing-rooms to all the artists from Sarah, that they had all the artists perform together in the finale – yes, me, next to Sarah and Suzanne Vega and Sandra Bernhard – and that there were so many booths present, representing progressive political and social organizations, disseminating information to such a diverse crowd of music fans.

The whole event just completely blew me away on every level -- it had so much class, seemed so positive, and was really enjoyable for the audience. I also loved how in every single city they held a contest to determine the opener. It seemed like a pretty level playing field – and obviously showed a great deal of respect for indie music at large, opening their event up like that..

Since then, I always told myself if I were ever in a position to help create a project along those lines, that helped bring exposure to indie artists while raising funds for a worthy cause, I wanted to make a difference in those ways. It took me a while just to establish my own career enough so that a project of this nature could come together, but by the time Hurricane Katrina happened, I knew I was ready and had no choice but to take a stab at it. It was overwhelming, but thankfully I had a small staff in place who were incredibly supportive and helped me see it through..

As far as the reception of Volume One , it was very positive, and we received a lot of support from a diverse spectrum of industry folks (i.e. sponsors, from Clamor Magazine to TripleARadio.com), and we went to AAA non-commercial as well as college radio with it. Powderfinger Promotions is our official radio promoter for the project ongoing, and they do an incredible job. All of the artists received a lot of airplay, and at my own shows on tour of course we emphasize the compilation, and I find that a lot of my own supporters are eager to hear the rest of the artists on the disc, so they’ll buy one of mine and then the compilation. There’s a point as an artist when you just kind of get a little lonely and a little sick of yourself – and it has felt gratifying to just open that window up a bit, and let so much fresh new energy into our MPress eco-system..

In terms of print press, we’re actually re-releasing Vol. One alongside Vol. Two on May 1, 2007 because last year we really put out [Vol. 1] too close to the retail release date to get press. To that extent we’re playing catch-up a bit, but it was important for us to release it when we did because we were trying to raise as much money as quickly as possible for Gulf Coast Relief. We’re hoping that the release of Vol. Two will also help us continue to raise more funds for both Gulf Coast Relief as well as World Hunger Year. Fingers crossed!.

STARPOLISH: How do you choose the artists who will be represented on the CD? Is there an application process for those who might like to be considered? Are there minimum requirements of any type? Or I guess a better question is, what do you really look for?

SAGE: We select most of the artists via Sonicbids (Sonicbids.com, one of our compilation sponsors) and we open up that opportunity each summer so that everyone can apply through that platform. It's our preference for so many reasons, but mainly because it’s so much more environmentally friendly than receiving 1,000 discs at our office. Plus when we receive submissions online, we’re able to listen as a collective (roughly seven people have judged the entries the last two years, including myself, my label manager JoJo Gentry, several of our part-time staffers, as well as invited industry judges including Velour Records’ Christen Greene and producer/mixer Kevin Killen) from our various work locations..

In addition, we’ve personally invited a handful of other artists ouside the Sonicbids platform for each volume (including Jill Sobule, Melissa Ferrick, Jonah Smith and Chris Barron), but those have been the minority – less than half each compilation. So it really does better an artist's chances to submit through Sonicbids. Artists can read more at www.newarrivalscd.com..

STARPOLISH: I understand that you will be launching a tour in support of the New Arrivals CD. There’s a feeling that what you’re helping to create is along the lines of a “music collective” that provides mutual support among artists. Would that be a fair characterization of what you’re doing? Is this an offshoot of the MPress Fests?

SAGE: How you’ve just described it is exactly what we’re aiming to create – yes! For several years I was part of an artist collective called UrbanMuse, comprised of half a dozen very talented, motivated female artists. We would gather in each other’s homes every couple weeks, share new material, discuss career challenges, and just generally try to share information and support one another. Ultimately that collective fell apart because we all became so busy, but I’m still great friends with all those women and it was an extremely influential dynamic that I experienced during those years. Frankly, I might’ve burned out or just hit more “walls” along the way had I not had the support of that group of peers to help keep my spirits up and my confidence high. .

New Arrivals is less personal and more purely about the work itself, but within that framework we are all about trying to cross-pollinate artists’ fan bases, create performance opportunities at events such as CMJ and SXSW, and just generally intermingle and share energy with one another. No one in this business is an island, you simply cannot do it alone. On a selfish level, we love -- love! -- great songs and have been struck by so much amazing talent through the years, so we knew that doing this project would also increase the amount of great music that would come across our field. But we got a lot of it coming through our office all along, so... It’s definitely about mutual support, and about opening doors for each other; we all have something we can do to help support other artists we believe in, every step along the way.

I’ve always believed that, even when I was totally unknown and playing the coffeehouse at my college; I would try to have people who were working up to doing a full show, themselves, be guests in my show. A career is process evolving over many years, and all of the people who were brave or just crazy enough to open a door for me are people to whom I’m indebted, in terms of encouraging my desire to support this type of community among independent musicians. .

STARPOLISH: You donated the proceeds from the first CD to a Hurricane Katrina, and you’re donating the proceeds from the upcoming New Arrivals CD to World Hunger Year. Do you feel artists have a social responsibility to give back something to worthwhile causes or charities? How do you feel about artists using their platform to espouse personal interests or causes?.

SAGE: I can only speak for myself, really, and understand that everyone’s path and goals are unique. I obviously feel I have a social responsibility to give back to the community of both my peer musicians, as well as the larger community of my fellow human beings, in any number of ways. But with this project I’ve tried to focus on issues in the United States that hit very close to home, to which every artist on the compilation can undoubtedly relate. We all felt humbled and overwhelmed when our neighbors in the Gulf Coast suffered from the effects (and are still suffering) of Hurricane Katrina. Every one of us knew that could’ve been us, it was simply a matter of geography. We all felt connected, we wanted to know what we could do. This was just my/my team at MPress’s way of saying, “what are we best at? How can we contribute?” It was kind of a no-brainer, to that extent..

As far as World Hunger Year and Artists Against Hunger & Poverty, that falls into the same framework for us at MPress; we all know how lucky we are to not be hungry, to not suffer from extreme poverty and to be able to go about our daily lives without worrying where the next meal will come from. The way I was raised, it was ingrained into me from an early age that each person is a Universe -- that when one person suffers, the whole Universe suffers. I always wish I could do more. After 9/11, I know Joan Osborne went downtown and volunteered, on the ground… it’s vague but I read about it. I thought, “Wow, what a mensch!”

We all have that impulse, no matter how busy or overworked/overwhelmed we are. It becomes a question of what one can do, without jeopardizing one’s own health or well-being. And so far, these are two causes we felt we’d be honored to try to raise some money for, and involve some of our favorite independent musicians as well. It was hard to choose a charity for Volume Two, there were so many amazing organizations we read about and that fans and peers were suggesting. But hopefully we’ll be able to do several more volumes, and with each one we can focus on another organization which deserves to be highlighted and supported by our listeners as well as the artists. As far as World Hunger Year, I have (friend/fellow-musician) Jen Chapin to thank for referring me to their website from her own, at which point I read about what they do, and knew I wanted to try to collaborate with them..

STARPOLISH: What are your plans for MPress Records going forward – are you looking to expand the roster of artists recording on the label?

SAGE: We’re still taking each month at a time, at the moment, but yes – we are hoping to expand our roster this year, and are currently negotiating with a specific artist to that effect. We’ll see what happens! It would be an exciting, challenging adventure to be able to help release and promote another artist we genuinely believe in and want to help with their career, but it’s no small endeavor; the terms and shared goals have to be there, so if it doesn’t work out immediately, I have confidence that it will when the conditions are right. I wouldn’t want to do it “just to do it,” though. Life is too short, and it’s so much work – we have to believe in the artist 1,000% and know they are willing to work, along with us, to do everything in their power to help build their fan base and be a generous live performer, in every sense..

STARPOLISH: Your last release, The Blistering Sun, was issued almost a year ago. Are you recording new material? Are there firm plans for a release or tour?

SAGE: I am currently recording my eighth album, yes! I’ve been working on it off and on since I got back from my UK tour in December, and I’ve got 21 songs tracked. I had about two albums-worth of material, so it just kind of happened. I’m running a bit behind though as a result…so it’ll take a month or so longer to sing all the vocals and mix, and will probably come out as a double album or two separate albums in early 2008..

As far as touring, I am a touring artist, so whenever I’m not recording I’m pretty much on tour! I leave this week for Folk Alliance in Memphis, then I have a whole bunch of dates scattered between March and April while I’m alternately in the studio, and then I’ll be back on the road pretty much constantly, between May and December, except for the Jewish Holidays. Thank goodness for those, or I’d never see my hometown, or any of my family!.

STARPOLISH: You were one of the first artists who supported what we at StarPolish were trying to do with regard to empowering independent artists through education and exposure. What have been the biggest changes over the past four or five years, and how has that affected you both as an artist and an entrepreneur?

SAGE: I was? Wow, that’s great, thanks for reminding me how old I am! (Just kidding). Well it works both ways; if I supported StarPolish in any way, it’s simply because I just totally gelled with what Vivek was trying to do and was all about, from the moment we met at a Kristen Ann Carr Fund (KACF) meeting years ago. He struck me as such a visionary person, someone interested in supporting diverse artists and really empowering indie musicians to be educated, proactive and self-aware. He also such a big heart, and constantly sets an example by supporting organizations like the KACF and Musicians On Call. He is a mentor to me, though he may not realize it; we are all mentors to each other in that way, it’s what keeps me going, really, knowing brilliant people in my peer-group who aren’t afraid to take on a leadership role and wield those different levels of responsibility. .

As far as the changes in the business, I guess I saw them coming so long ago, for better or worse, that I feel like nothing has been a “shock.” I have three very close personal friends who were on major labels, had million-dollar deals, etc., and were unceremoniously dropped – and saw their dreams shattered before their projects even saw the light of day. That was almost 10 years ago, so as far as I was concerned that began my quest to never be so dependent on any other entity other than my own grassroots fanbase, that I couldn’t survive as an artist, and still tour/put out records. I put myself on a “touring treadmill” a few years later, and it wasn’t only because I wanted to build that base – though that was mostly why – but because I knew it would make me a better performer and a better singer, period. I don’t have some God-given operatic or out-of-the-womb “big-” sounding voice. My singing voice has taken a lot of time to develop, it’s close to my speaking voice in character and continues to change and become stronger, the more I play. My songwriting began very young, I was three when I wrote my first instrumental and a year or two later began adding words. Writing was always there; I wanted to be Carole King and write songs for other people. But then in my teens the actress/performer in me just took over, and I knew my songs were becoming more personal so it just made sense for me to perform them myself. .

Therefore, because I eventually came to see my future as a songwriter hinging on this very organic type of relationship with a grassroots audience, in a funny way my own trajectory as an artist has paralleled the changes in the music business. So that now it feels very natural to be doing most of my promotion online, and have such a directly relationship to my listeners. Certainly the fact that there are so many thousands of indie artists out there makes the competitition for attention and support that much stiffer, but there was always that competition even when I was clamoring for attention from managers or whomever, as a kid growing up, and wanting to get a “break” as a songwriter.

The keys seem to have remained the same: hone your craft, treat people as you want to be treated, and be a workhorse. I just don’t know of any other way to achieve one’s goals, whether now or 10 years ago. I’m sure in the ‘60s and ‘70s it was a whole other culture, and I know many artists got taken advantage of, but each generation has its challenges and ours faces the question: how do we get listeners to pay for something they can easily get for free? How do we create this value, in music, when it has become so devalued by virtue of albums only having a few good songs, and by the internet/accessibility? For me, I just think it’s about creating an experience and letting your fans be part of your process. You have to just go with the times, try to be as informed as possible, and still maintain your idealism as an artist. I do that by listening to great music, and reminding myself why I got into all this in the first place -- because I had no choice!.

And as Derek Sivers of CDBaby likes to say: “If you’re not enjoying it, STOP.” That's the best advice I ever heard! It reminds me to try to enjoy it, because I know there’s nothing else I’d rather do, ultimately, than create music and share it with people, however I can. It’s too late for me to learn to be a “normal” person (laughs). What can you do?.

STARPOLISH: With all the changes in the mainstream music business, particularly with major labels, do you feel that the landscape has changed in favor of independent artists, in terms of their ability to create financially self-sustaining careers as musicians? Are there more or fewer opprotinities?

SAGE: It really varies, depending on one’s strengths. If you only want to be a 100% “pure artist” and not have to tend to your self-management or promotion, these are very bleak times. There are so few opportunities to be “discovered” anymore without building up your own buzz and being self-empowered, business-wise. I have a friend who is undoubtedly one of the most incredible singers and musicians out there, major or otherwise (in my opinion). He is still holding on to the “dream” that the only way it’s worth pursuing music is if a major label signs him. Granted, he is a genius and rivals anyone on the charts for sheer talent and even accessibility, to an extent. But it’s just damn hard! It’s hard to get a “break” in the old-school way, occasionally showcasing, sending demos around. I wish he would just do the DIY thing for a bit, do some touring, but for him it’s still all-or-nothing, though maybe he will change, or he’ll get “discovered” and won’t have to. .

My point is, yes the landscape has changed, and yes it’s hard – it’s always been hard. But there are more ways than ever to build a real fanbase via the internet, being on tour, and just being creative and harnessing your strengths as a persona as well as a musician. I see people all over the country shlepping around, building 10,000+ fanbases and sustaining careers, with virtually no industry support. I think you have to really want it more than ever, there is very little room for ambivalence in today’s music business. .

In that sense, I think these are very music-passionate times, and an exciting era for discovering artists who are truly devoted to baring their souls through their art.