Whether you’re a solo singer-songwriter or a musician in a band, writing and playing good original songs is unfortunately not enough. Clearly the primary aspect of a musician’s work is making good music, but what follows the writing phase, such as recording your demos and promoting your music, is just as essential.
Globally, there are millions of aspiring songwriters and musicians and quite a number of these will probably be amazing. For this reason, it is really important to stand out from the crowd and get noticed.
Record Good Demos
In general, record labels don’t love totally acoustic demos anymore; they may be fine if you’re specifically an acoustic singer-songwriter, but they still need to be produced well and aim for a specific sound. Especially when working with bands or perhaps electronic songwriters, sound is everything.
Technology has come a long way, so recording good demos today is now a reality. Creating your own home recording studio can be a good investment to record and mix your own demos.
In any case, consider working with a producer to help you clearly define your artistic identity and musical goals, creating a unique sound to really help you stand out from the crowd. An interesting option could be to release both studio and acoustic versions of your songs.
Create a Press Release
If you are releasing an album, an effective, well-written press release is a definitive help in getting some attention. You can write your own press release by using a template to help you work with a press agency, which can also help you get interviews and radio coverage.
Ask For Honest Opinions
Your family, friends and fanbase can be a good source of honest feedback on your music and can help you identify strengths and weaknesses. You can even create surveys to reach a wider audience. Recently, surveys have emerged as one of the most significant and commonly used market research tools, and musicians can use them to their advantage as well. As a musician, you are not only making art but also marketing a product/service so it’s important to know what the market prefers.
Use the Internet
The internet is an incredibly powerful tool which can get your music heard by literally millions of people. Many people every day are searching for new music; YouTube today reaches billions of monthly views and opening a YouTube channel to showcase your live and studio performances can help you connect with fans all over the world and really boost your music career. Social media channels, such as Instagram and Facebook, can also be very useful as they show your fans what you’re working on through photos and posts.
Streaming and selling your music online on platforms such as Spotify, iTunes or SoundCloud, can also help you consolidate your presence as a musician on the internet and get your music across to different audiences.
Be Consistent and Determined
Success does not happen overnight. For some, it may even never happen. However, if you’re hoping to become a full-time musician, you have to start acting like one. Realise that if you’re serious about making music you have to treat it like you would any other job, not a hobby. If possible, consider quitting your day job to really give yourself as much time as possible to work on your music. You need time to update social media, record videos, prepare for concerts and many other activities, and you need to be consistent in all of them. Aim to post every day and publish at least one video a week. Taking this kind of risk may pay off and give you the career you always wanted.
Courtesy of Sally Collins
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