Don’t wait for the big dreams; WORK for the small victories. I wanted to share a few thoughts I had while in Spain during CD Baby’s DIY Musician Conference EU. These thoughts might be common sense, but I think they’re also easy to forget if we get stuck inside our own heads, the stresses of …
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Podcasting as music promotion — including a how-to checklist. Last NAMM, I attended an inspiring talk by Kevin Breuner, the VP of marketing for CD Baby. He talked about successful release strategies in a streaming world for us independent musicians. That talk gave me the confidence I needed to finally implement a CD-release plan I …
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Paid ads aren’t that bad. If you’ve ever released songs into the universe, you know it’s more than just the music. With so much content out there today, the if-you-build-it-they-will-come mentality won’t get anyone too far, unless “they” know where to find “it” (“it” being your music). Truth is, although every band starts their music …
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Musical collaboration is about much more than cross-promoting … but any extra attention is a nice benefit. For me though, there’s a difference between teaming up with another artist primarily because it will open up a new demographic, and doing it because it’s an adventure, a means of expression, a way of exercising your creative …
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Some audio is not eligible for monetization via Content ID on YouTube. What is Content ID? In short: Content ID — as it pertains to most musicians and labels — is YouTube’s method of taking a “sonic fingerprint” of your music, scanning all the videos across its platform, identifying your songs wherever they appear (even …
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The age limit for copyright. Is there an age requirement to copyright something in the USA? No, there is no age requirement. But, there is a classic American Dilemma here: copyrights are governed by Federal law, while most copyright transactions are really governed by State law — and State law can have all sorts of …
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How Eleanor Dubinsky spans genres, crosses borders, and communicates it all through video(s). Eleanor Dubinsky didn’t start creating her new album Soft Spot of My Heart with a particular genre in mind. Why would she? Her recordings thus far have deftly defied easy categorization, due not only to the deeply varied international influences she draws …
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Tax advice for DIY musicians. As an independent musician in the United States you’ve probably asked yourself the following questions about filing your taxes: What royalties should I claim as income on my taxes? Is my musical pursuit a “business” or “hobby” in the eyes of the IRS? What expenses can I deduct? How do …
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Making the most of the tools and data provided in Pandora’s Artist Marketing Platform and Next Big Sound. I’ve mentioned before how cool I think Pandora AMP is, particularly the Artist Audio Messages tool. The video above is a Pandora webinar that talks about how you can use AMP to support: Single Releases Album Releases …
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Making a living as a musician on Facebook Live. Country singer-songwriter Dawn Beyer earned over $100,000 in 2017 by playing her original music on Facebook Live — with nothing more than a guitar, an iPhone, and a great voice. We first heard about Dawn Beyer during Rick Barker’s session at the DIY Musician Conference last summer, …
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