Check Out Bill Lonero’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bill Lonero.

Bill, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Music has always been in my life. I started playing guitar when I was seven years old. From that moment on, I was enamored with any and everything guitar. It consumed me. As I grew as a person and a player, I wanted to explore different styles of music than the rock music I had become so accustomed to playing.

When I turned 19, I became a professional musician. I have had the pleasure of sharing the stage/recording with Cliff Williams of AC/DC (my favorite band), Mike Mangini (Dream Theater/Steve Vai/Extreme), Stu Hamm (Joe Satriani/Steve Vai), Gigi Gonaway (Mariah Carey), Simon Kirke (Bad Company) and I was a member of the band SteelHeart for a year. I’ve released five albums and played on others as well as released a few singles. The music industry is a tough business and there are many ways to be taken advantage of by venues and other musicians. But if it weren’t for those instances, I wouldn’t be where I am today. It was through those situations that I learned a lot about the music industry, and that drove my desire to fix a lot of the problems musicians face on a daily basis.

Before I get into that though, another problem on the gear side inspired me to start a company called Straptight straplocks. I was at rehearsal one night, and I was playing, and I had on a “leading” company’s straplock and it failed. When I went to the NAMM show in Anaheim, I talked with the founder of that company and told him his straplock failed and in a heavy German accent he replied, “Impossible! Our straplocks never fail”. That interaction taught me two things: 1) never talk to your customers in such a dismissive manner. The right answer should have been, “I am very sorry to hear that. Please tell me what happened so I can make sure it never happens again”, and 2) never be so arrogant that you think you’ve designed the perfect product.

So I went home, and I designed a new straplock. One that doesn’t require tools, removal of your strap post (which, every time you remove the post, you compromise the integrity of the hole), and installs in under two seconds. When I had the prototype finished, I texted guitarist Joe Satriani and told him “I know you don’t use strap locks but I have something I think you’d like”, his response was “Bring it over”. So I went to his house with my friend Frank and Joe had three guitars laid out on his table. He said, “If you can get a straplock on these I’m sold”. I put it on each guitar, and he slapped his forehead and said, “That is the dumbest, most brilliant idea for a straplock I’ve ever seen. Why didn’t I think of that?”. He became our first endorsee. I brought the idea to my friend Rob Stephani who owned a guitar pick company called Hot Picks and we partnered up and we now sell Straptights all over the world. www.Straptight.com

Now, that brings me to M.U.S.I.C. Reform. I have played all over the United States and beyond and one thing I have noticed is a lack of accountability with venues as well as musicians. There is also no continuity from venue to venue. One venue will be fantastic with a great sound system and lights and fantastic staff, and the next night you’re playing a venue that has a plywood stage on cinderblocks and two par cans for lights. Not to mention not enough outlets on the stage for the band to plug their gear in. Then you have venues that tell you they can’t pay you, but it’s good exposure to play their venue. But you have to bring 100 people minimum on a Tuesday night. Let me set the record straight right now for all the up-and-coming musicians out there and the ones that have been playing for years….playing for “exposure” is one of the biggest lies in the industry. Period. End of story.

If I bring 100 people to a venue, those are 100 people that already know who I am. The exposure is for the venue, not the musicians. This is one of the biggest ways artists are taken advantage of. Of course, I didn’t know this when I was starting out. I was naive. But as I grew, I paid attention to the scams, of which there are many. Another scam which was started by in Los Angeles is Pay to Play. Here’s how that works: Venue gives you for instance, 100 tickets and tells you that you have to sell them. Each ticket is $10 each. So right off the bat, you owe the venue $1,000 before you have even played one note. Now, you can give those tickets away, but you will still owe them $1,000 (no getting around that). But if you give them away, most people won’t come because there is no monetary value attached to the ticket. However, if you actually want to make money on the show, you have to sell the ticket for more than $10. Whatever you sell over that is yours to keep. Sell them for $20 and you’ll make $1,000. Sounds simple but you have to remember that most venues won’t promote the show and most likely you’re playing on a Tuesday night. Good luck with that.

I’ve never considered myself an entrepreneur but everyone says I am. I have realized one of my strong suits is to find something that’s lacking and figure out a solution. Which brings me to my other venture, WaveSpinners, which I leave for Mexico tomorrow to get up and running. www.WaveSpinners.com

I have two philosophies on life and business, “I’m too dumb to think I can’t do something” and “Success can only be achieved when effort exceeds desire”, respectively.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It’s only as smooth or rough as you make it. Everything in life can pose a challenge if you let it. The secret is to realize that every obstacle you face is there to help you grow. I can look back on every single instance of my life where, in the moment, I thought it was the worst thing to ever happen but out of it came something good. Recognizing and learning from any obstacle or challenge is the first step to growing. Learning from them is the next step of success.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’m most known as a guitar player, but I have my hands in many things. My wife says I can never sit still, and she’s right. I like to create or work on something always. Once I get an idea, I am on it like wolves on deer (bad imagery, I know). I absorb everything I can to make sure I can see it through fruition.

I am currently working on a new album with guitar/piano virtuoso Tony MacAlpine, who is producing it and playing bass and keyboards on it. I am also the President of M.U.S.I.C. Reform which now has a team of 10 people all working to fix the broken live music scene on a global scale. We are currently seeking venture capital because we believe the music scene can thrive and musicians should and can earn an honest living.

I’d say what sets me apart from others is my tenacity. My drive. My punctuality. My follow-through. If I say I’m going to do something, I do it. If I can’t, I will find a way. I don’t let obstacles get in my way and I never listen to people that tell me I can’t do something other than to prove them wrong.

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
Honestly no. I don’t look to others for motivation. I am my own motivation. If I can’t motivate myself, I don’t expect anyone else to. That’s why self-help books and fitness apps are generally failures. The problem isn’t the person physically doing something, the problem is changing their mindset to get them in the gym in the first place. Most people, once they get into a gym and start working out are fine. It’s the mental battle they face to get there in the first place. If these apps and self-help books would actually realize the battle is in the mind first, they would actually help people instead of being just a money grab.

However, I did write a book called “Crazy Facts: The Most Comprehensive Book of Stuff You Never Thought You Wanted….But You Do” which is available on Amazon for any people out there that love random facts. It’s organized by category, which there are 75 and over 6,000 facts. https://www.amazon.com/Crazy-Facts-Comprehensive-Thought-Wanted/dp/B08CP93D93/ref=sr_1_4?crid=2VMTK5BKAZISS&keywords=crazy+facts+book&qid=1698695675&sprefix=crazy+facts+book%2Caps%2C150&sr=8-4

Contact Info:

• Website: www.BillLonero.com
• Instagram: www.Instagram.com/GuitaristBillLonero
• Facebook: www.Facebook.com/BillLonero
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/billlonero/
• Twitter: www.Twitter.com/LoNero
• Youtube: www.YouTube.com/LoNeroMusic
• Other: www.MusicReform.org