Music Promotion
Sep
19
Do You Get Nervous Before…
…You perform in front of a crowd? Do you get nervous before speaking publicly? I wanted to write this post in hopes to help lots of people when they are performing. One of the main reasons behind this blog is to help musicians but I would really appreciate a response from anybody who regularly faces an audience. If the musicians would chime in too and comment with your advice I know it would be helpful to a tremendous amount of people in the future. The more people who comment about their nervous stories the better!
The idea is to get all of you to write a comment explaining what you do to get over the butterflies when performing in front of a crowd. If you don’t get them anymore then maybe tell us what worked for you. I will keep this post up forever for people to read your comments and use them to help ease the nervous energy before performing in front of a live audience. As long as the Internet doesn’t permanently go away your comments will still be helping people twenty and thirty years from now. I personally have never been able to get over it. I feel sick to my stomach anytime and every time I’m going to play or perform for any amount of people.
Please don’t read this and not respond. Your participation is what will hopefully make this post helpful to so many people. Do you get nervous before a show? What do you do to help it? Please add your comment now.
Wolfgang’s Vault – The world’s greatest selection of music memorabilia and live concert recordings
Sep
18
Why Be An Independent Musician?
Because nobody else is going to care as much as you do. That’s why! The better question is why would you not want to be an independent musician? This company gets a cut. That publisher gets a cut. Oh, and we can’t forget about so and so. They get a cut too! I mean you’re the one with all the talent. Why pay all those different corporations so much of your money.There are so many ripoff artist in the music business it’s not even funny. Pay us $1,500.00 for this and give us $700.00 for that.
The sweet thing about being an independent musician is that if your sound is good enough and you really use the Internet in it’s proper format you get to boot all those people out of your game. You produce your own singles and your albums. You sell your singles and your albums and you market yourself and your singles and albums. Am I missing something here or what? With today’s technology and a small bit of marketing know how, which by the way I teach you on this blog, you can really do everything the big boys get paid by you to do. You can become a serious money making independent musician.
I know some of you have it in your head that you don’t want to be bothered with the business end of it. You just want to perform, right? This is the wrong attitude to have. If you truly love being a musician you must also know that nobody will push your music as hard as you will. Nobody will be able to talk about your music with as much excitement as you will. You could realistically generate millions of fans just on the Internet alone if your music has what the fans want. Target your audience and go after them! So that’s my rant on “Why be an independent musician.”
If you need some help with anything just let me know via the contact form. Don’t forget to visit our website and add your band’s website to the free musician’s directory. This will help to optimize your site and get you a bunch more visitors.
Here’s a fairly new independent music distribution company who’s been really picking up steam lately. Check out what they do!
Sep
17
The Art of Producing Music!
Music Production is defined by Wikipedia as an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the mental processes that support musical behaviors, including perception, comprehension, memory, attention, and performance.
I tend to agree with this definition. The art of producing music is such an art that very few people are capable of actually doing it. Lots of people can play an instrument well or sing delightfully but very few people in relation to the world population can harness the thought process and effects of music so well as to actually arrange it in such a way that you’re able to feel it when you listen to it. In my eyes this is what a music producer truly does. I am not one of them. I’ve never been able to tame,control or harness the music. It just comes and goes for me. But a real producer has that ability.
Much has been studied about the effects of music on audiences over the years. Some scholars say that music production is a learned value that with proper application of the mind and practice can be taught. Others say that some are born to hear music in such a way that they can play darn near any instrument and arrange all day long without using much effort.
Most of the biggest bands in the world employ music producers because of just those reasons. Unfortunately for some of the producers it works the other way as well. There are those that know how to hear and arrange music but can’t grasp playing an instrument. They love the idea of it but just can’t do it. These people will then spend may hours dedicated to honing their skill which they can control and become music producers.
In the end I think our mind is capable of doing just about anything as long as you tell it what to do and guide it on a regular basis. If you tell yourself enough times with conviction that you are going to be a Rock Star eventually you will become a Rock Star!
Are you interested in the art of producing music?
Thought about becoming a producer?
You might like the items below.
Best Wishes!
Music Production: A Manual for Producers, Composers, Arrangers, and Students
Sep
15
Complacency Kills Personal Growth
Dictionary.com defines complacency as – a feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of some potential danger, defect or the like; self-satisfaction or smug satisfaction with an existing situation, condition, etc.
These words ring so true to me and if you bare with me I’ll explain why. First I believe it’s time I formerly introduce myself to everybody. Hopefully there are questions about who I am. If I’m really lucky some of you have seen my name on plenty of the articles on this website and maybe in some of the niche categories, ezines, forums and blogs as well as some of the article directories out there such as eHow.com, Ezine Articles, ArticleBase.com and GoArticles.com. It’s important for me to keep my name visible. At first I wasn’t sure about plastering it all over the website and the Internet but now I am glad I did. I’ve decided to be proud of what I’m up to these days!
It’s been about a year now since the early inception of Modern Day Peasants. I started this website and blog with the intentions of helping musicians and anybody else who wants to learn how to get a leg up in this world. I firmly stand by that! For the most part we are all Peasants living in a modern day world. Music is something that really makes life a better place for me and many others. I love to play and record and have for years but unfortunately I’m a better writer than I am a singer. I have great admiration for musicians because of their struggles and hardships they must endure on their journey in getting paid to do what it is they love.
It shouldn’t be any secret that I do this for the advertising money as well. I mean that’s why you start a website right? I guess it could be because you have something you want to tell the world but that’s getting off the point a bit. For me it’s about sharing valuable information I’ve obtained over the last few years with everybody I can so they may better themselves. The money is good too. This is what I enjoy doing!
You see, I spent 16 years of my life working my butt off trying to get up the corporate ladder as a consultant in the service and repair end of an automobile dealership. It was a decent business to be in. I met lots of people and good friends. The problem was that it got to a point to where it became stagnant to me. The business pays you pretty well and kind of pulls you in and makes you complacent.
This brings me to the reason behind the title of this particular post. I had many mentors in the car business along the way but the one who influenced me the most was a good friend and the owner of the dealership I worked for at the time. We started working together in the beginning of my “career” in the auto world. He was my big boss and very young to own a car dealership. At that time Brian was 38 years old and making over half a million dollars a year and enjoyed everyday of his life not just because of the money he made but because he truly liked helping people acquire transportation and working with a variety of different people. I was about 21 at the time. He loved his business very much and I had never seen anybody so excited about what they do. He was though! The very first meeting we ever had he told me to never ever become complacent in life. It kills personal growth he said. I nodded in agreement.
For some reason Brian and I hit it off early on and he tought me many things over the years about loving what you do and getting rewarded for it. He was so successful because he truly loved that business. I did not, however, love the car business. I just happened to be good at mimicking my friend and acting like I enjoyed it. In the real world I was more introverted unless I was around a customer because I wasn’t truly happy being there. If a customer was with me I would put on the outgoing happy social act. I got stuck! I was complacent in that business for years simply because the money was decent.
Later I discovered my personal complacency cost me so much more because I could have been gaining my own personal growth and tapping my thirst for inside knowledge about the Internet much earlier in my life than when I did. With proper training and a little bit of foresight the Internet can make anybody’s dream a reality simply because it is so vast. I find it fascinating and intoxicating. It’s also much easier for me to relate with people in general on the web. I suspect because there are more of you like me out there. I guess getting back to current times hindsight really is 20/20.
The point is I’m in my late 30′s now and about three years ago I finally heard what my friend Brian had warned me about so many years before. I had allowed complacency to kill my personal growth and decided I was going to make the necessary changes to better my quality of life. I left that business and self studied my way to a newer happier life.
I dove deep into the realms of Internet Marketing for three years straight and it has brought me here. Better late than never. Don’t let complacency kill your personal growth too! If you aren’t happy with the life you currently own and the direction it’s heading. Make a change! If you need some help along the way and you find those changes leading you toward the wonderful and diverse world of Internet Marketing and web based businesses with some added music to boot this site can help you greatly. If you ever have direct questions I will always be happy to help.
Here’s to our continued success!
Sep
04
Marketing Your Music To The Masses!
This post may seem a little redundant to some of my professional musician friends out there but for others it may really help you get on your way.
There are many different things you can and should be doing to market you or your band’s music to the masses in the world. If you’re serious about your music and I am assuming you are then you need to take the necessary steps to prove it and let the world know as well. I have listed a few of the best ways below.
Branding Your Name
One of the most important things you can do is let everybody know who you are. Get T-shirts, buttons, flags, pens, hats and any other marketing devices you can think of made to distribute at your live shows. It’s great if you can sell them but if you can afford to then give them away. It will pay you back in huge sums later on just by the free advertising alone.
Distribute Your Demo
If you don’t currently have a demo you need to get one cut fast. Make sure it’s done as professional as possible. You don’t want your fans to hear hurried sloppy work. Regardless if it’s MP3, MP4 or on CD it needs to be of excellent quality. I would strongly recommend putting only your best song or few songs forward. These are the ones that people will remember. Make sure it’s your strongest song 1st followed by the next strongest and so on. Once you have them together and ready to go then start distributing your demo to anybody who will listen. I would also recommend using local radio and Internet stations that except unsigned Indie music. There are many of them out there. Send it to a radio station in every state in the country if possible and maybe even some overseas. Not all of them will play it but you are increasing your odds by sending to as many as possible.
Practice and Play Out Often
Live concerts are the absolute best for promoting your music. Have killer shows and get your audience involved. Play as many local clubs and venues as you can. If possible get out on the road also. Travel to different states and cities if your schedule and budget allows it. Just remember that word of mouth is the best or worst advertising you can get so make sure you stay practiced. You want to always give the audience the best show of their lives.
Secure and Keep an Up To Date Press Kit
This will include your demo, artist or band photos, press clippings, venue list, contact info, artist or band bio and things of that nature. Keep it all together and professionally done and organized. You never know who is paying attention! You may stumble across a record producer, talent scout or record label at any point in time.
Start and Promote a Website
If you don’t already have a website then start one today. With the amount of people browsing the Internet for new music these days this is absolutely essential in your quest for marketing to the masses. There are many different web hosting companies out there that will allow you to set up a website for free. It can get a bit technical and time consuming to do this but if you have the experience and the know how do it yourself. If not then hire somebody to do it for you. It will pay huge dividends in the end. Your fans must be able to find you on the net. Once the website is up and running make sure it is optimized for search engines so it draws as much free traffic as possible. Then plaster your website everywhere you go and on your t-shirts, buttons and all other marketing devices.
Get a Free Optimized Link at Modern Day Peasants.
Our site recently added a free optimized link to artist and band websites all over the world. Search engine optimization involves having as many links pointing to your website as possible. If you already have your website set up you can get a link pointing towards it for free here. Your website will enjoy highly optimized website traffic for life at no cost to you!
Do all these things properly and you will definitley be marketing your music to the masses. With a little luck and a little talent on your part you and your band will be well on the way to stardom.
Best wishes!
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Aug
12
Promote Your Band or Solo Artist Website? Submit Today!
Want more publicity for your band or solo artist website? Modern Day Peasants recently completed a new World Wide “Musicians Directory” with access from our home page. The page is now active. If you have any amount of experience marketing your music then you know how important it is to get your music and your website in front of as many fans and listeners as is humanly possible. Hopefully you have been reading some of my articles and you also understand the importance of search engine optimization. When a website is properly optimized it will bring a tremendous amount of new traffic to that website.
If you want to learn how to drive tons of traffic to your band’s website you should consider surfing a bit through this site where you’ll find loads of traffic driving techniques to use. The idea is to have as many locations as possible pointing to your website. It would also be wise to add your band’s link to the new Musician’s Directory. I continuously strive to keep our site highly optimized to bring in new traffic which will result in more traffic to your band’s site as well. We are currently getting a little over 10,000 visitors per month and the site is growing at a rapid pace.
I was originally planning on charging a fee for the link but have since decided that in fairness to my struggling and even some not so struggling musician friends out there that this is not the right thing to do. The idea of Peasants is to help musicians. Your links will be free of charge. The music business is tough enough as it is. So please fill out the form below and be patient with me on your submissions. Depending on how many we get will determine on how fast I get them posted in the Musician’s Directory. Free is a very inexpensive way to effectively promote your music. Once your website is listed in the directory it will remain there for life or until you instruct me to do otherwise. Your website’s link will enjoy highly optimized traffic forever.
Best To You!
Learn More About Search Engine Optimization Here!
See the sign up form below to reserve your link now!
Privacy policy: We are deeply committed to protecting your privacy. Your information will never be sold or shared with any other party. You agree to receive emails from time to time regarding your account.
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Aug
06
Make Money Between Gigs Writing Articles Online!
I’m just guessing but I bet some of you musicians if not all of you have some pretty good writing skills. If you’re coming up short between gigs you should consider writing some articles online. There are people out there making as much as $1,000.00 a month doing this on the side. Some make much more than that. The average seems to be about $200.00 a month but that doesn’t mean you can’t step it up a little bit. Just don’t party so much at the previous night’s gig. If you write a little more than the average Joe you should easily be able to earn $300.00 to $500.00 a month. That’s a car payment and maybe more! The beautiful thing about it is you don’t have to be a musician to write although lots of musicians are pretty good at it. Maybe you’re a teacher or a daycare provider. What ever you do for a living, we just wanted to let you know that you can make a little to a lot of extra cash on the side just by sitting down at your home computer and writing articles. One of the most popular that comes to mind is eHow. With eHow you would write articles about how to do something. I’m going to give you a link to their website at the bottom of the page. You can check them out and see what you think. It certainly can’t hurt to make a little more money every month. If you have a PayPal account they will deposit your earnings directly to your account every month. If you don’t have a PayPal account you will need to set one up. Who doesn’t have a PayPal account anyway?
Ok… so the point here is to make some extra money and this is just one more way to do it. As previously stated there are many websites around that are willing to pay you to write for them. I chose to talk about eHow because of their reputation.
Go make some money today!
eHow – How to do just about everything
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Jul
29
How To Get Your Music Heard On A Small Budget
When speaking of getting your music out there and you aren’t independently wealthy, to put it bluntly, you do whatever you have to do! Get your music in front of anybody you possibly can. This includes doing current shows for local fans to help spread the word, cutting a single on CD for submission to local radio markets, building and marketing a look for you as an artist or your band , and networking on the computer and anywhere else that the law will allow.
It will take all of the efforts above and then some. Make sure you have quite a bit of stamina and a “I’m going all the way no matter what” attitude. If you want something bad enough there will be nothing big enough to stop you from getting it.
Regardless if you’re trying to become a Super Star or just want to sell a few songs to some movie or television producers, start today by sitting down and planning out a budget. It will take a little money but you know what they always say, “It takes money to make money”. This is a very true statement. Unless you happen to be the friend of a music producer’s son or something along those lines it doesn’t matter if you can sing like Madonna or play the guitar like Eric Clapton, you don’t get in that easy. It will involve some dedication and work but in the end it will be worth it won’t it.
If you have some songs put together and haven’t cut them on CD then do so. Record them to mp3 and whatever other latest music transfer files are available. Why is this important? You need to have a means to display your music to the world easily and quickly! Go to some of the online music submission facilities and start putting your mp3′s out there for them to hear. Get an EPK (Electronic Press Kit) fast. This is a promotional tool used for online promotion. You can pay a professional promoter to set one up for you or you can build one yourself and save money if you are tech savvy. It includes photos, history, a few current songs, listed website for you or your band, any news releases or articles written about you, booked events, labels if you have one, etc. The EPK should be stored on your computer so you can send it out immediately if you need to.
Before you place recorded songs on your EPK, make sure they are of good quality. Think of your EPK as the “modern day demo”. When the person at the other end listening to your music hits “play” then it better be of good quality or they won’t be listening very long. Think about it….how long do you want to listen to a song that has garble and feedback and other noises in it. I’ll bet not very long! So if this means you have to go and get your songs professionally recorded then do so if you can afford it. You could also record your music on your own with a good multi track recorder and burn the songs straight to CD or mp3 by yourself. This will be a less expensive way to go but you will need to learn how to operate your multi track unit well.
Again, once you have your music (the most satisfying to you) on CD and mp3 format start sending it out via the Internet. You can use venue’s such as Sonicbids, Taxi, Myspace, Ourstage, etc. There are plenty of them online just make sure that you do your research before dealing with any company. Also make sure your music is copyrighted before you present it to the whole world. You never know, you just might have some stuff that is so good that people may try to steal it.
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