Twisted Sister guitarist Jay Jay French has written a new article for Inc.com entitled How to Negotiate With Intimidating People. An excerpt is available below:

This week, I'll be in Amsterdam at the International Documentary Film Festival, attending the debut of a documentary about the first 10 years in the history of Twisted Sister.

Invariably, when we tell the story of how the band survived the 10 years in the New York and New Jersey bar scene while struggling to get a record deal, people want to hear war stories about shady club owners and how we dealt with the implied "mob scene." Yes, it is true that many of the owners, bartenders, and bouncers had names like Tony, Sal, Vinnie, Tiny, Fat Scotty, Muscles Marinara, and Spicy Potato Salad. (OK, maybe not the last two.) I can also tell you that in the very early days we were instructed to do whatever we were told. (If they tell you you're too loud, turn it down! If they say you're not playing enough Rolling Stones, add more Stones songs!)  

So when it came time to negotiate for more money, I had to figure out how to do that without fear of winding up at the bottom of a bay. I realized that demanding more money probably wouldn't go over well, so I decided to take a much more methodical approach.

Bringing Brains to a Gunfight

First, I started hanging out with the club owners. I'd tell them jokes and, at the end of the night (assuming everybody was in a good mood), I'd ask how many people came to see our show. The answers I got usually weren't very accurate. I was able to size up a room pretty well and the numbers they gave me were often low. They never wanted the bands to know how well they were doing.

Click here for the complete article.

Check out a trailer for We Are Twisted Fucking Sister!