Innovate or Perish
[RANT] I am sick and tired of reading articles and blogposts that scream out “… doomsday – the sky is falling, the music industry is dead – it was killed by the internet. Blah, blah, frikkin’ blah!” Enough already! It’s just so much crap! The music industry isn’t dead. IT’S CHANGED! What’s dead are the […]
How to Prepare for a Successful Crowd Funding Campaign, an Interview with Ariel Hyatt
In today’s DIY Music Business, many artists are looking to crowd funding to replace the financing that a record deal used to provide. But the success rates of crowd funding efforts in the music industry are not all Amanda F. Palmer stories. It’s not the get rich quick solution to your financial woes. Luckily for […]
The Marketing Cycle with Music Marketing Expert Bobby Borg
In the old paradigm of the Music Business, the Record Company took care of the marketing and the Artist took care of the music. Those days are dead and gone – It’s a DIY Music Business. So what do you need to know in order to handle marketing your music? In this class taught by […]
WordPress Websites for Musicians – An Interview with Middle Tennessee Music
I’ve been saying it for years, MySpace, Facebook, ReverbNation – I don’t care – If you are (or want to be) a Professional Musician or financially sustainable Band: YOU MUST HAVE YOUR OWN WEBSITE! Thanks to platforms like WordPress, building your own website or hiring someone to build it for you no longer has to […]
Marketing 101
Marketing is fundamental to your success. If you’re out to make a prosperous living doing what you love, it just won’t happen without marketing. Yet few artists spend much time learning this foundational set of skills.
Music Licensing with Sarah Gavigan – An Insider’s Guide to Getting Your Music Placed in Films, TV Shows and Ads
In these times of Music Industry upheaval and uncertainty, Music Licensing is one of the few areas of the industry that offers clear income potential to the entrepreneurial artist. I’m thrilled to have Sarah Gavigan as a guest this month, to give us an insider’s look into the Music Licensing business. In this class […]
Venues and Artists – A Complex Relationship
Last week, an interesting conversation erupted on a music list-serve that I participate in. I think there is much to be learned from this both by the Venue Owners/Bookers and the Performing Artists who depend on those bookers for their gigs. I have removed all of the names/locations because the real issues here are applicable across locations, genre and venue size. If you are a performing artist looking to book gigs – I strongly recommend you read on – don’t make these mistakes yourself! And if you are a venue owner or booker – you may also find this informative.
Top 5 Twitter Mistakes
I’ve been using Twitter for just over a year, now. And I admit it, I’m hooked. Twitter represents an unprecedented opportunity for connecting with your fans, creating new fans and promoting your music or business for little or no money. But I see a lot of people making the same mistakes over and over. And it’s such simple stuff to fix. Here are the top 5 Mistakes and how to fix them:
Marketing for Musicians
This is a post I put up on the FAR-West list-serve (Folk Alliance Region-West). It got a fair bit of reaction and so I thought I’d share it with you. Warning – a bit of a rant here… And I expect I’ll be flamed, but that’s just fine with me, because one of my jobs […]
2 Lessons from American Idol – Top 12
The format of American Idol requires artists to create cover versions of other people’s music. This is only slightly artificial as many independent artists perform songs written by someone else. And so, the ability to take a song written by someone else and make it your own is a critical skill for your success in the music industry.