My name is Sheldon Aden, I used to have it as Sheldon Atlas and am going by Atlas at the moment. But I am working on a magic special and I was wondering how I should go about choosing the perfect stage name.
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Stage Name
- Thread starter Sheldon Atlas
- Start date
There is one way to find a perfect stage name.
David Copperfield would not be a good stage name but David did so well that he made it good. a kid doing birthday parties under the name david Copperfield would be laughed at.
My Name is Ibrahim and I chose the stage name Ibi Mania because it suits my comedy work as well as my mentalism acts.
Point is you can have different reasons to look for a stage name like sounding unique, sounding cool, sounding easy to remember etc. If you could list your reason(s), it would be easier to help and make suggestions.
David Copperfield would not be a good stage name but David did so well that he made it good. a kid doing birthday parties under the name david Copperfield would be laughed at.
My Name is Ibrahim and I chose the stage name Ibi Mania because it suits my comedy work as well as my mentalism acts.
Point is you can have different reasons to look for a stage name like sounding unique, sounding cool, sounding easy to remember etc. If you could list your reason(s), it would be easier to help and make suggestions.
Well I want a stage name because I want to be unique and easy to remember. I don't want something hard so people don't go "oh and that magician...whats his name?" I am close to turning pro and I want a name that would be recognizable to me. something unique for me.
Actually, your real name is perfect. Too, if you do take a "stage name" you will need to take out a DBA (Doing Business As) which will cost you about $250.00 to make the name/business legal. I point this out because this is the legal way of doing such a thing unless you go through the courts to legally change your identity. . . trust me, creating a business name is the better course.
Your real name actually has a decent ring to it, it flows and can be accented it you really wanted to, so that it sounds more exotic.
Your real name actually has a decent ring to it, it flows and can be accented it you really wanted to, so that it sounds more exotic.
I wouldn't say you need to take out a DBA until you're making enough money to report on your taxes. That's about the time you'll have to start putting through paperwork to make yourself a business; until you're filing it as a source of income, there's not usually a reason to establish a legal identity for your business.
So would I have to do a DBA even if I am not making it a buisness. like if I was just using it as a name not the name of my buisness
You can get away with using a name for a while without the DBA but if you start working regularly under that name and getting paid, you will legally need to make that change and become a company by said name. This is how most performers protect themselves, actually going to the level of creating a corporation in case of any kind of legal action that could be taken against them. Trust me, accidents happen and in this sue happy culture we live in, it's best to be protected or you could lose everything.
@Samuel - A DBA would be ideal because people/venues that hire you could write checks to you under both your stage name or your legal name and when it comes time for taxes, you can work with both. It will just make conducting a legal business a lot easier.
Naming is definitely an important part of establishing a brand, especially in the magic world. It could take years of exploring different ideas until you settle on something that you want to stick with long term. As Ibimania pointed out, David Copperfield, for example, was objectively challenging to market because of the length, the opportunities to misspell it, and the fact that it was originally a wildly popular book from 1850 written over 100 years before (our) David Copperfield was born. But against the odds, he made the name work for him.
Another great example of a creative stage name is Justin Kredible. It's a common brand idea for anyone with that name (Justin Time, Justin Case, Justin Space, etc), but it worked perfectly for his demographic when he started. It's catchy, creative, and kool. Even in his case though, he eventually changed his brand back to his real name, Justin Willman. In the end, some could argue that there is no right or wrong way to name brand. Using your real name, like Luis does, will make life a lot easier. But, if you have a overly common name (John Smith), or you think you would be better off with a pseudonym, then be careful and take your time before committing to it. I know from personal experience that using a cheeky/funny name for your brand can get old really fast. I'm a designer by profession, and for the first 3 or 4 years, I went under the username "krazytim." I was 14 or 15 when I thought of it, so I didn't have the foresight to realize how unprofessional that was. I have used my real name ever since and still wish I started off with it.
Louis CK's real name is Louis Szekely.
Tom Cruise's real name is Thomas Mapother IV.
Olivia Wilde's name name is Olivia Jane Cockburn.
Clearly, we don't have the luxury of choosing our own names when we are born.
A list of 55 examples: http://thoughtcatalog.com/nico-lang/2013/08/55-celebrities-whose-real-names-will-surprise-you/
Another excellent resource/podcast on naming: http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/title-tk/
I wish you the best of luck picking a brand/stage name, and of course, with the magic special!
Naming is definitely an important part of establishing a brand, especially in the magic world. It could take years of exploring different ideas until you settle on something that you want to stick with long term. As Ibimania pointed out, David Copperfield, for example, was objectively challenging to market because of the length, the opportunities to misspell it, and the fact that it was originally a wildly popular book from 1850 written over 100 years before (our) David Copperfield was born. But against the odds, he made the name work for him.
Another great example of a creative stage name is Justin Kredible. It's a common brand idea for anyone with that name (Justin Time, Justin Case, Justin Space, etc), but it worked perfectly for his demographic when he started. It's catchy, creative, and kool. Even in his case though, he eventually changed his brand back to his real name, Justin Willman. In the end, some could argue that there is no right or wrong way to name brand. Using your real name, like Luis does, will make life a lot easier. But, if you have a overly common name (John Smith), or you think you would be better off with a pseudonym, then be careful and take your time before committing to it. I know from personal experience that using a cheeky/funny name for your brand can get old really fast. I'm a designer by profession, and for the first 3 or 4 years, I went under the username "krazytim." I was 14 or 15 when I thought of it, so I didn't have the foresight to realize how unprofessional that was. I have used my real name ever since and still wish I started off with it.
Louis CK's real name is Louis Szekely.
Tom Cruise's real name is Thomas Mapother IV.
Olivia Wilde's name name is Olivia Jane Cockburn.
Clearly, we don't have the luxury of choosing our own names when we are born.
A list of 55 examples: http://thoughtcatalog.com/nico-lang/2013/08/55-celebrities-whose-real-names-will-surprise-you/
Another excellent resource/podcast on naming: http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/title-tk/
I wish you the best of luck picking a brand/stage name, and of course, with the magic special!
@Samuel - A DBA would be ideal because people/venues that hire you could write checks to you under both your stage name or your legal name and when it comes time for taxes, you can work with both. It will just make conducting a legal business a lot easier.
Naming is definitely an important part of establishing a brand, especially in the magic world. It could take years of exploring different ideas until you settle on something that you want to stick with long term. As Ibimania pointed out, David Copperfield, for example, was objectively challenging to market because of the length, the opportunities to misspell it, and the fact that it was originally a wildly popular book from 1850 written over 100 years before (our) David Copperfield was born. But against the odds, he made the name work for him.
Another great example of a creative stage name is Justin Kredible. It's a common brand idea for anyone with that name (Justin Time, Justin Case, Justin Space, etc), but it worked perfectly for his demographic when he started. It's catchy, creative, and kool. Even in his case though, he eventually changed his brand back to his real name, Justin Willman. In the end, some could argue that there is no right or wrong way to name brand. Using your real name, like Luis does, will make life a lot easier. But, if you have a overly common name (John Smith), or you think you would be better off with a pseudonym, then be careful and take your time before committing to it. I know from personal experience that using a cheeky/funny name for your brand can get old really fast. I'm a designer by profession, and for the first 3 or 4 years, I went under the username "krazytim." I was 14 or 15 when I thought of it, so I didn't have the foresight to realize how unprofessional that was. I have used my real name ever since and still wish I started off with it.
Louis CK's real name is Louis Szekely.
Tom Cruise's real name is Thomas Mapother IV.
Olivia Wilde's name name is Olivia Jane Cockburn.
Clearly, we don't have the luxury of choosing our own names when we are born.
A list of 55 examples: http://thoughtcatalog.com/nico-lang/2013/08/55-celebrities-whose-real-names-will-surprise-you/
Another excellent resource/podcast on naming: http://99percentinvisible.org/episode/title-tk/
I wish you the best of luck picking a brand/stage name, and of course, with the magic special!
Thanks timsilva
Yeah I would use my real name but I took the name Sheldon Atlas after I saw the now you see me movie. I took J. Daniel Atlas's last name and since then it's kind of stuck, People have started calling me Sheldon Atlas or just Atlas. and I think because allot of people know me by that name, but maybe my real name is better to use.
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