Music, Marketing, Me

Music is one of the few things that comes quite naturally for me; I don’t know why I love it, but every day I wake up and know that I am excited to keep writing, recording and singing. It’s been that way for a while now. I spent most of my gangly, awkward childhood listening to my father’s old Led Zeppelin CDs, stumbling through piano lessons, and waiting until my family left the house so that I could practice shout-singing My Chemical Romance songs. Though my tastes have changed, music has always been at the center of my life.

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9 Things You Can't Ignore If You Want To Record A High-Quality Demo

This article originally appeared on the Sonicbids blog. 

A demo is the musical equivalent of the sketch a painter makes before he or she lays paint to canvas. It’s meant to be fast, lightweight, and easy to pull off – a way to quickly and cheaply capture your sound and represent as well as you can to your fans, labels, distributors, or basically anyone you hope to take you seriously as a band or musician.

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How To Successfully Promote Your Music

Before Facebook and the era of social media, it was estimated that the average person was exposed to some 2000 ads every day - billboards, television commercials, signs in grocery stores and storefronts, etc, etc.

Since then, that number has probably doubled. This makes promotion very tricky. How do you successfully promote your music when there is so much competition? Below are 6 things you must do to stand out in a sea of clutter, make a dent with your music, and continue to grow your fanbase.

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5 Steps To Creating An Effective Music Marketing Plan

This post was written by Jon Ostrow and originally appeared on the Bandzoogle Blog.

Whether you’re a brand new musician establishing yourself online for the first time, or an already established band with a dedicated fan base, there is one thing that love it or hate it, all musicians will have to do. That, my friends, is marketing your music.

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DIY Musicians: Trying To Do Everything Is Hurting Your Chances of Success

This article originally appeared on the Sonicbids Blog

Pretty much every indie musician I’ve talked to has two big problems: there’s just too much to do, and despite putting a lot of time and effort into their career, they feel stagnant, like they’re not making any progress.

In this article, we’re going to solve these two problems with one stone. If you want to go further, I have a time management and productivity ebook as well as a goal-setting ebook that you can download for free to keep the momentum going in your music career.

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Frugality On DIY Tour: Some Simple Suggestions

A DIY tour is expensive. There are ways to be successful, but for a band just starting out, I would recommend trying to spend as little money as possible. Here are some suggestions on how you can do that.

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9 Reasonable Guidelines To Think About Before Promoting Your Music Through Websites

There are so many websites for musicians. Sometimes they look similar with each other. With so many choices, people are getting puzzled of so many music sites to look at. Of course websites like Soundcloud or Bandcamp are great, but what so many young talented musicians missed is why they should sign up for that kind of sites. *It’s not just because other people do it, then you should do it too. We know that music websites is only a tool for musicians.* But musicians are not tools. Every musician should think about how they will promote their music, what is their artwork gonna be and other things apart from the music itself.

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The Internet Killed The Record Deal: Launch Your Album On Your Own

Saying you need a record deal to launch an album these days is like saying you need a desktop computer to visit the Internet. Twenty years ago people would not have believed that you could have every song in the world in the palm of your hand or on your television, but here we are. Now it just takes a mic, a bathtub, a computer and few clicks to launch your record and make it accessible to people all over the world. But it’s also just as easy for your music to get lost in the shuffle and disappear into obscurity. The following tips are your best shot at making it in this ever-evolving music game and getting the airwaves bumping with your heartbeat.

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5 Essential Tips To Make Your First DIY Tour A Success

This article originally appeared on the Sonicbids Blog

Your band’s first tour can be your first step up the ladder to success, but if it’s not done properly, it can end up wasting a lot of time and a lot of money. Always take care in planning your tour, whether it’s your first one ever or just another month on the road. To make sure it’s a success, check out these five essential tour planning tips. 

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Why The Live Show Experience Is So Important In Laying Down The Proper Foundation For The Independent Artist

Setting the proper foundation for your career in any business is very crucial in setting yourself up for success.  When it comes to building your career as an independent artist building and setting the proper foundation is equally important. There are so many things that you  should make sure is in order to make sure that this is properly executed.   

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How To Become A Successful Performing Artist In The New Millennium – Part One

“The great thing about rock and roll is that someone like me can be a star.” – Elton John

It shouldn’t be news to anyone in the music business today that the smart (and maybe the only) money is in live performance, merchandising (which is kind of tied into live performance) and publishing (and all of its Constitutionally-guaranteed income streams). The bottom line: If you want to make a living these days on the artist side of the music business, you need to write and publish your own songs and perform them from the stage in an entertaining manner. Here’s a step-by-step list of how you might go about doing that – starting with the live performance side. (Note: There are probably a couple hundred other ways to accomplish this – but the odds are better this way. You’ll see why.)

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How To Target Radio Stations That Will Actually Play Your Music

This article originally appeared on the Sonicbids blog

If you’ve been following the Sonicbids blog, you already know the three things you need to be “radio ready.” But after you’ve met those prerequisites, how do you determine which stations or music programs you should submit your music to for airplay consideration?

Radio stations come in a few specific types, and it’s not only AM/FM and internet. Here’s the breakdown.

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4 Ways To Battle The Stress Of Managing Your Own Music Career

This article originally appeared on the Sonicbids blog

We’ve said it a thousand times: being an independent musician isn’t easy. Part of the difficulty in that effort is managing the stress it brings. When you’re overwhelmed, achieving your goals can seem impossible. Minimizing the pressure is paramount.

The four points outlined here are pretty basic, but the effects of wholeheartedly incorporating them can be tremendous. If you often find yourself stressed about your career, try them out, and let us know how things go in the comments section.

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8 Ways To Get People To Share Your Song

Does promotion often feel like pulling teeth?

Has it been hard for you to get people to share your music?

If so, continue reading. We’re about to clear things up for you.

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