Since you are reading this article, you are likely thinking of pursuing your music career.
However, you don’t where to start. If music is your hobby and you want to make a career out of it, you
are at the right place. In this article, we are going to cover every major piece and the important steps
that you’ll need to take when building a foundation for your music career as an artist. Even if you only
want to sign with a record label, you still need to apply the steps that we are going to discuss. However,
keep in mind that technology has advanced so rapidly that you don’t have to depend on a record label
to build and advance your career in music. You can do everything alone in the comfort of your home .
Signing to a label has a lot of advantages such as connecting with important people in the
industry, getting the resources you need, and working with experts to help you focus on your creativity.
However, all these come at a cost such as a label owning your music. On the other hand, if you choose
to pursue music as an independent, you’ll have to put in a lot of time and energy to get the results that
you want. Not only will you be responsible for your artistic side but also the business side. While it can
be overwhelming at first, this article will serve as a roadmap to help you achieve your career goals.
1. Find a way to make a living
You’ve probably heard a lot of stories about successful musicians who dropped everything and
moved to a bigger town or city to build their careers. Unfortunately, most of these stories are fantasies.
In the real world, you should never consider dropping everything and trying to make money out of music
unless you are financially stable or have a rich uncle. This especially applies if you are in college. You
should not drop out of college to pursue your music career.
Since you have to contribute to tuition and accommodation fees, you need to find a part-time
job that will help you stay afloat as you pursue your music career. If you have already graduated, you
should consider getting a day job since you have bills to pay and other responsibilities. You can work
during the day and practice or perform in the evening. Everyone has a unique journey in the music
industry. You need to work with what you have to get what you want. Becoming a full-time musician is a
gradual process. Therefore, ensure that you find ways to sustain yourself.
2. Focus on improving your craft
While this sounds easy, it can be a challenge especially if you are a college student. In college,
you have to attend classes, work on assignments, revise for exams, participate in extracurricular
activities and socialize with friends. All these activities demand a lot of time and energy. Apart from that,
you have to keep making music consistently to build your business and start generating revenue. If all
these activities are overwhelming, you should consider working with assignmenthelper.com.au to find
time to focus more on your business.
Don’t fall into the trap of believing that your talent is enough to take you to the top. Talent is an
important component of music. However, if you don’t put the time and energy into enhancing your
creativity and making new songs, you won’t go far. Apart from creating good music, you need to focus on promoting it. You should prioritize creating quality music and using the right channels to market your
work. Avoid complacency. Focus on developing and improving your skills and talents. Whether it’s
producing, singing, or rapping, keep learning and practicing. In the end, your efforts will pay off in
spades.
3. Set clear goals and come up with a solid plan
You need to have an idea of where you want to be and how to get there. If you don’t know what
you want, it can be difficult to make progress. You need to conduct extensive research and converse
with people in the industry. Setting goals and coming up with a solid plan will help you avoid wasting
time.
Some people want to become musicians to get roles in movies or land commercial deals. While
others want to tour the world and perform as independent artists. We all have different goals. It can
take time to figure out what you want. But once you have a goal in mind, you need to come up with a
plan that will enable you to get to where you want.
4. Treat your career like a business
Let’s face it. Starting a music career is like starting a business. Part of developing the artist in you
is learning how to operate your business to earn a sustainable living from your passion. Think of music
as the product that you offer to your customers. You have to build a brand and operate like a CEO. There
are a lot of music business models that you can find on the internet and implement. To build a great
business, you need to:
* Come up with a marketing strategy
* Identify your target market
* Understand branding and apply the concepts
* Create a marketing budget
* Hire an accountant to file your taxes and handle other important financial aspects
* Protect your products (music)
* Find a great team
* Hire a lawyer to help you with contracts
Even if you’ll pay others to handle key areas of your business such as accounting and marketing,
you need to educate yourself in these areas to become a better business manager. While some aspects
of business are boring, educating yourself and staying informed will help you make the right career
decisions.
You also need a good team even if you can handle every aspect of your business. You cannot be
great at everything. Delegating assignments to essay writing service will not only help you build a bigger
business but also save you a lot of time and energy. As the popular saying goes, two heads are better
than one.
5. Networking is key
Like any other industry, the people you know in the music industry can transform your life. As
the popular saying goes, your network is your net worth. One of your main goals should be to develop
relationships in the music scene to get more opportunities and build your business. You can network in
your school, neighborhood, or city by meeting with local artists and individuals who are involved in music. Thanks to rapid technological advancement, you can easily network online. The internet is not
just a place to find your target market.
Instead of uploading music and spamming your audience to listen to it, you should consider
finding a relevant online community that supports artists. This will enable you to meet other artists and
collaborate with them to build your career. By networking, you’ll not only build relationships but also
find competent people to work with. You’ll need a team to help you achieve your goals easily.
6. Establish your presence online
There is a big difference between making music as a profession and as a hobby. How you
present your business plays an important role in how people perceive you. If you come off as an
amateur, people will think of you as someone unworthy of attention. That is why having high-quality
visual components are essential in establishing a strong online presence.
Photos: You need to find an experienced photographer to help you get quality photos that you
can use for your website, bio, and social media channels. If you are fortunate, you might find a
friend who is into photography. Communicate with them about your expectations in advance to
avoid inconveniences.
Graphics: Another important area is graphics. When you start your career, you might not have
enough money to hire an experienced graphics designer. You can do all the work yourself. All
you have to do is use the right apps such as Adobe Photoshop and Canva.
Website: Apart from setting up your social media and optimizing it, you need to invest in a
professional website. You should consider using WordPress or Squarespace. I prefer WordPress
because learning how to use it is simple and you can customize it to fit the needs of your
business. Apart from that, it’s easy to optimize and maintain.
7. Know yourself to establish a solid brand
To establish a brand and distinguish yourself from the crowd, you need to know yourself. This is
a difficult process for most people. However, you can know yourself easily by finding out what you are
not. Knowing this will help you find the right audience and promote your business. Always keep in mind
that your music is not meant for everyone. There are a lot of branding books online that you can read
whenever you want.
Conclusion
These are the seven essential components of a successful musical career. The best part about
the points we’ve covered is they can help you even if you are in college. Which suggestions have you
ever tried to apply in your life? And which ones are you going to start implementing today? Let us know
in the comments section.