How to Work With Music Industry Contacts

It’s no secret that often in the world music, it’s more about “who you know” than what you know. The industry generally favors pre-existing relationships, whether you are looking for a venue, a sponsor, a review on your new album, or a slot at SXSW. Like it or not, networking can make or break an act.

Focus on taking a few steps closer to your goal by working on your contacts a few minutes each day. Here are some of my favorite tips on networking:

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FAILURE VS.SUCCESS - Your Music Career

Get used to the word “no”. You’re going to hear it a lot. But all it takes is a “YES” or two and you’ll be on your way. Don’t be afraid to ask for help either. You may find a patron saint out there who would love to be a hero. It happens more than you’d think. You will run into disappointment. That’s a fact. But, don’t let that deter you. Remember, you can only measure your success by comparing it to your failures. Some of the biggest names in music failed miserably before they succeeded.

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6 Things You Can Do With $100 That Will Change Your Music Career

Money. Let’s face it: most artists aren’t very good with it. Most of us don’t have much to invest into our music career (relatively speaking), and when we do, we tend to throw it at some random opportunities without a larger strategy in mind.

Take, for instance, submission fees to music festivals. Each year, thousands of artists spend over $100 in application fees or subscription costs to EPK sites, in hopes of getting a show at SXSW, CMJ, Bumbershoot, or other large festivals. Personally, I think festivals are overrated in terms of importance for your career, but if you really want to get in, try reading this guide: How to Get Into SXSW.

You can easily spend $100 on strings, picks, or sticks. You could even buy a cheap electric guitar. Or, if you were riding in my tour bus, $100 almost covers the gas from Portland, OR to Seattle, WA.

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Mastering Engineers-Do I really need one?

What is mastering? and how can a mastering engineer help my track/Album? Some insiders tips and information

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Finding the Right Headphones for Your Music Habit

If you’re like me and really care about hearing beats in an optimal way, it’s best to shop around for quality headphones. After all, the average person spends 20 to 40 hours a week listening to music. Why not enjoy an amazing sound experience?

Rather than simply using the headphones that came along with your iPod or MP3 player, consider the following when upgrading your audio.

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Need help winning Joe Bonamassa's Blues Masters Competition

Hello my name is Hollaman Lindsay and I am asking all of you to see if you can possibly aid me in my attempt to win Joe Bonamassa’s Blues Masters Competition. The first round for this contest is based off of viral popularity and how many views and shares your audition video gets, now I aint sayin that I cant generate that many views and shares because I dont have the talent, Its just that I live in Hiram Georgia and we got more stock in rakes then we do computers so its hard for me to find many people around me to support it. So I am inquiring you to see if you can help me get my name out there and get my audition video views and shares because if I can get past this first round and make it to guitar duals I think I got it made in the shade.

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The Forgotten Art Of Saying Hello, Spam In Today's Music Industry

Has the simple act of saying hello been forgotten in the frantic act of getting from here to there in the music industry? Often, it’s the musicians who get a bad rap for spamming…sending unsolicited mp3’s and so forth. But the problem is industry wide. Everyone wants something, but very few of us are actually communicating with one another….even to get what we want, which is ironic.

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Do Not Give Away Music

Why you should never give away your music.

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ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS BE THE BEST IN THE WORLD

I want to begin this week’s topic by explaining how I come up with it. Earlier this week I was working on optimizing our blog with Google. It turns out that getting your blog to show up in search results is not an easy task, but over time it gets easier if the content is good and people talk about it. While doing research on search engine optimization, I started to think about being in that number 1 spot on Google and what that must mean for those businesses, sites, and organizations that have that spot at the top of the page. I had to know how certain sites get it so I looked into it.

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Ditching the Record Label Approach: Alternative Ways to Be Successful in the Music Industry

Aspiring music artists have a plethora of opportunities to be “discovered” in today’s YouTube-driven industry. Previously, an artist had to be discovered and signed to a record label to gain access to the music market. Even after signing a record deal, artists were left at the mercy of the traditional media to become noticed, which was prohibitively expensive.

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Why 'Name Your Price, No Minimum' Is Better Than A 'Free Download'

Yesterday, Bandcamp launched their brilliant Fan Accounts. I wrote a large amount of words on it already (Thank You Bandcamp. And Damn You.), but one point I didn’t make in the previous post —as that post was long enough– is a rather important one for anyone releasing music on Bandcamp:

If you want people to download a release for FREE, don’t do it as a straight up ‘free download’, but rather set it as a ‘name your price’ with a $0 minimum.

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Top 10 Reasons Your Efforts to Find a Band via Craigslist are Failing

I’m going to vent a little, and in the process give you a few laughs.

If you’re a musician looking to join a band,  and you’ve been trying & trying, responding to tons of ads, or running ads of your own, yet you just can’t seem to get into a band, you might pick up some tips here.

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Why Most Indie Music Groups and Labels Fail (Part 2)

This is part 2 of a 2 part article I wrote strictly based on my professional experience producing and engineering and managing artists. Since 2006, I’ve been involved as a key member in several music groups, labels, and production teams that despite all their potential to achieve greatness, fail and fall apart, often at critical moments.

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5 Tips Toward Making XXL’s Freshmen Class

Consistency: As with any goal that you set, you have to be consistent and continually take action. Each XXL freshman has been consistent in their efforts. Big K.R.I.T first started generating a MySpace buzz in 2005, releasing his first mixtape at 18. Curren$y started off as one of the 504 Boyz on Master P’s No Limit Records, he later signed with Young Money where he released the track “Where Da the Cash At”. After pushbacks, he left and took control of his career. He released the popular mixtapes: Independence Day and Higher than 30,000 Feet, generating a buzz that landed him in the 2009 freshmen class.

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