Wilde thing

Kim Wilde is sharper, more intelligent and more down to earth than anyone her age has a right to be. Daughter of 60s pop star Marty Wilde, she’s been thrown head first into the gullet of an indutry which has the reputation for decimating young talent, bleeding it dry and throwing it on the trash.
This self-evidently, isn’t going to happen to Kim Wilde. Her father knows every nook and cranny of the music biz. And her manager, the veteran producer Mickie Most, is not exactly an ignoramus in the field.
I suspect that even without these twin buffers against the big business jungle, Kim would be perfectly safe. She’s self willed, determined, and nobody’s fool.
Of course not all young singers having success for the first time are so lucky, and end up as shark fodder.
With this in mind, I set about asking Ms Wilde what she thought were the most important things to bear in mind when you’re setting out into the Biz. After a bit of humming and haw-ing, she came up with ten very useful pointers, some tongue-in-cheek, some totally serious, as how to survive in the music business.
We reprint Kim Wilde’s ten commandments here not only because it provides a fascinating insight into the priorities of a rising starlet, but because it might be genuinely useful to anybody who is lucky enough to find herself in the same position one day…

Ten tips on how to handle success by Kim Wilde

1. Don’t squander any money you earn. You may need it later.
2. Enjoy yourself. Whatever you do don’t let it become a hassle, because then you’re wasting your time.
3. Get a supply of sleeping tablets to help you through Monday night. (The charts are announced on Tuesday morning.)
4. When you choose your record company – if you’re lucky enough to be in a position to choose – make sure you get one that’s completely behind you. I have total faith in RAK.
5. Have a brother who’s a brilliant songwriter.
6. Try to stay what you are. What I mean by that is, don’t get sidetracked into doing what other people want you to do – think for yourself.
7. Keep your ears pinned firmly to the ground as far as what’s going on musically. Losing touch can be fatal.
8. Thinking for yourself doesn’t mean ignoring advice from people who know better than you do. Don’t ignore people you respect.
9. Be prepared to take the rough with the smooth. I spent a night by myself in a hotel the other week, and it was the loneliest experience I’ve ever had But if that’s the way it has to be, it won’t put me off.
10. Have a mother who’s a theatrical agent – like I do – and can negotiate good deal for you with a record company.
11. There’s no number 11.