Recently there was a less than well known musician online complaining about how he can’t make a living and no one cares about his music and blaming it on online sharing of music. It is a very bad idea to be seen as negative by your own fans in the first place but it’s also very unlikely that people sharing your music would be having a detrimental effect on your sales if no one has even heard of you. People only share the music they like, if your music is being shared you’ll notice it having other effects like more people coming to gigs, watching your videos and getting more press.
Now is a great time to be a musician because while it’s harder to become a major act you can at least build a small audience online that will support your music. Through word of mouth you can continue to grow your audience, one person at a time. It won’t happen quickly but at least you have more of a chance than when you had to go to record labels before you could even start to distribute your music. In the old music business only a chosen few had the chance to record and make albums but now we are moving to a time when lots of people have a small audience. Here are a few more reasons why now is the best time to be a musician:
Creative freedom – The only people you need worry about are the fans and you no longer need the approval of labels before you can get your music heard. Now the only limit is your musical imagination, you are free to create new music without label pressures.
You have a greater chance of getting paid – The more middle people you remove between you and the fans the more chance you have of getting paid. A typical label royalty is 10-15% (even on a good deal) but with sites like Bandcamp you can keep 85% (minus Paypal fees). So at least you have a chance to get paid. Many record label deals never recoup as recording, marketing and production fees are never repaid and bands never see a penny in royalties. Now you can sell 100 copies of your album and make more than you would if you had sold thousands, you can always reinvest the money in marketing and PR to grow your audience and you can see where every penny is being spent.
Fans can discover and share your music through torrents and social media – as Martin Atkins (former PIL drummer) said “It’s not a problem if 20,000 people ‘illegally’ download your music. It’s a problem if they don’t.”. The hard bit is breaking though the static and getting people to listen, fans posting your music through their social media channels and torrents means you can grow your audience through word of mouth. When you have an audience you can make a living by playing live and selling high value items such as box sets and limited edition items.
Supportive sites for musicians – You can list your gigs on Live Unsigned, post your videos on Youtube, research anything you need to learn on Google and stream your gigs on UStream. These resources are there, you just need to work out how to use them in a way that is best for your band. Each band will do things differently and some sites work better for some bands than others. For example OK Go make amazing videos so their logical focal point is Youtube, but this won’t work for everyone. Play to your strengths as a band. So if you are a great live act make sure you post your gigs on Live Unsigned and then make videos of your performances. Experiment and see what works best for you.
Blogs and podcasts – Bloggers and podcasters are often looking to break new and exciting acts and can through word of mouth really help to build your audience. It is often difficult to get the most popular music blog to write about your band so start small with less popular blogs. There is more information on building a following through blogs here.
Cheap technology – Studio time used to be very expensive but now you can make an album on your computer or even your phone if you know what you are doing. You can design the CD artwork at home on your laptop, burn your own CDs and sell your music online digitally. Technology has liberated musicians, now the only thing holding you back is the technical skills which you can learn or pay for professional help with, but at least you have the choice now. It’s getting easier all the time.
Access to the industry – The days when artists had to go to labels and beg to get signed are long gone. Now artists can build an online audience to the point where labels can find them. If you lived in the middle of nowhere 20 years ago it was very difficult to build a following but now wherever you are if you work hard enough and have great music you can build an audience.
The only problem is that everyone has access to the same tools and only those who are truly great musicians with an amazing live act who work incredibly hard will make it. A lucky break like a film soundtrack can make all the difference but you still need to be able to back it up with quality music and a strong work ethic. The challenge is to break through the static by being truly exceptional and whether you’re The Damned, Iron Maiden or Lady Gaga only the strongest, most hard working and remarkable acts will survive.
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Tags: Bandcamp, creative freedom, DIY Musicians, Live Unsigned, record deals, Recording sessions, Top Tips, Ustream
