Women are constantly rewriting what it means to succeed in the music industry — on their own terms. The music industry is filled with powerful women, from artists releasing record breaking singles and breaking ground in songwriting and production, to shattering the glass ceiling in the boardroom.
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Valentine’s Day is fast approaching, and it’s as good a time as any to be on the lookout for red flags.
However, we’re not focusing on red flags in a romantic partner. Instead, let’s focus on what traits to look for — and perhaps avoid — in a musical or business collaborator.
I took to the Muze blog to share some of my favorite bandmate red flags. However, these can also apply to just about any professional relationship. Dive in, and let me know if I missed anything!
As an independent artist, the task of running a business is not easy. The challenges of staying ahead of the competition, keeping up with industry trends, and growing your fanbase can be daunting. But with the right resources and a little bit of dedication, it is possible to make your music business successful.
Whether you are a rising artist, or someone who has been in the game for a while, understanding taxes and business ownership is key to success. This article will help you make sense of the different tax strategies that apply to music artists, as well as strategies for structuring your business and minimizing your tax liabilities.
My name is Sacha Walton, and I help independent music artists operate as business owners to better navigate the business of the music industry with ease. It is my belief that “An Educated Artist Creates Leverage,” which is a quote from my book, Beyond The Music: A Music Artist Entrepreneurship Guide.
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We kick off our Wednesday Wisdom series with Jeannie Jones. Jeannie is an award-winning journalist, media personality, actress, producer, director and brand architect. Jeannie’s Los Angeles-based multimedia firm, Ready Set Impact, specializes in music, film, and radio production; publishing; social media marketing, branding, and casting.
Jeannie is no stranger to the live music scene, and she dropped by here today to offer some insights on how you can book more shows, more often.
Booking a gig is always an exciting moment. The anticipation of an upcoming live performance is a huge motivator to finish songs and prepare to perform. There’s nothing more exhilarating than the in-the-moment feeling of playing live music.
Now that venues are reopened after being paralyzed by the 2020 pandemic, promoters and managers are eager to work with talent that’s prepared to perform. That’s why you need a plan to book your next (or first) gig. After all, it’s your chance to be heard by fresh ears in a live environment.
Let’s look at a handful of tactics you can employ to book a gig, get on a great bill, and get invited back.
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My “Navigating the Creative Journey” series (which I’m officially titling for the first time, right now) continues at the Muze blog with an acknowledgement of something that all must face and address.
FEAR.
This idea was actually inspired in part by some of our previous work here at Muze. Back in January, my colleague Luke wrote an insightful piece – which included personal examples – about the fears that hold musicians back from performing their craft, and wrapped it up with a beautiful resolution that encourages aspiring and emerging artists to douse their apprehension by enjoying the creative process itself.
Now that 2022 is winding into its final stages, I thought now would be a good time to re-visit the topic of fear. Specifically, I’m interested in diving into the specific, existential fears creatives may encounter when stepping out into the professional wilderness, and ways that we can navigate through them.
If you find yourself held back by overarching fears, my hope is that this piece provides you with the antidote to overcome – or at least, manage – your fears.
Over the past several weeks, we’ve generously acknowledged the up and down nature of the creative journey. There will be triumphant highs alongside disheartening lows and, as we well know, the key to enduring is to ride the waves, stay level-headed and focused, and keep pushing forward with patience and persistence.
Today, I’m here to throw another variable into the equation: the notion of control.
Along your journey, you are virtually guaranteed to encounter circumstances beyond your control, and they just might throw a wrench into your plan.
Even despite our best efforts and wishes, the fact is that countless factors exist outside of our own influence, and some of them can lead to disappointment. However, the more we focus on that disappointment, the more powerful it becomes.
What’s an emerging musician to do, then? Simple.
Control your controllables.
No matter what the world throws your way, you still have an opportunity every day to re-center and focus on what is within your own individual sphere of influence. As you’ll see in this article, the list of your controllables is not especially long. Nonetheless, it’s important to know where to direct your attention when everything around you seems to be going haywire.
What are these “controllables,” you ask?
If you’ve been reading along at the Muze blog over the past several weeks, you may be noticing a pattern: we’ve been talking a lot about the creative process, and how success in the music industry is not a destination, but a journey.
We’ve covered ways to find joy in the process itself, and we’ve shared tips on how to keep yourself functioning at an optimal level as you move, step by step, toward greater artistic fulfillment. These ideas are great to keep in mind, no matter where you are on your road to success.
For many of us – especially those starting out – continuing down that road and keeping all aspects of our lives in balance can feel easier said than done. This is compounded by the fact that the vast majority of us who embark on a creative path do so without industry connections, and with finite resources (i.e. the cash necessary to feed the beast) to help us along the way. At one point or another, most of us will be employed outside of our passions in order to keep them going.
Although it can feel daunting to get up and go to a job – especially one you don’t like – when you’d rather be working on your vision, the good news is that there are still many positives to take forward from this leg of the journey. In fact, your seemingly unrelated “day job” might hold the keys to your success down the road.
Hey, while you’re here: did you know that Underground Music Collective is a fiscally-sponsored project of The Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville? That means you have the opportunity to make a charitable donation to UMC, which is tax-deductible to the fullest extent permitted by law. Click here and help us Keep the Music Playing!
Anyway, onto the article…
Between me and our friends at Music on the Move Studios, we’ve learned countless lessons about how to navigate the music industry over the years.
To wrap up our collaborative How to Get Involved in Your Local Music Scene series over at Music on the Move, Erin McLendon, Caitie Thompson, and I share what our journeys have taught us — about relationship building, finding opportunities, and creating a community.
This is a fun piece, and we invite you to share your lessons with us in the comments below!
Every musician has a story to tell, and the opportunity to communicate that story to the masses in the digital age. There are countless media outlets – from independent blogs and podcasts, all the way up to nationally- and globally-recognized publications – that could serve as a launching pad to build awareness for your artistry. Even so, most artists – especially those toward the beginning of their creative journeys – don’t know where to begin.
That’s where I come in! As the founder of UMC and the architect of our Perfect Your Pitch course, I have received thousands upon thousands of music submissions over the years. With that, I have teamed up with Music on the Move Studios, compiling my near-decade of experience as an independent media creator to offer you some tips on how to make sure your pitch stands out above the rest.
A couple weeks back, we examined the idea (i.e.; the absolute myth) of overnight success. Despite all superficial appearances, the sudden media darlings that we encounter in the world of entertainment have put in years – perhaps even decades – of work to have that one moment that, in the public’s purview, puts them on the map.
In case you haven’t read that piece (and would like a partial spoiler), we established that success is not a destination, but a journey; a continuous process marked by incremental steps that serve to bring us to a better version of our creative visions, every single time. We covered the ways to improve your mindset and your circle, so that you can find the inspiration to keep going – even when the going gets tough.
Those tactics are only a piece of the puzzle. The fact is that our creative journey is powered by the human being behind it, and that human being has undeniable physical, emotional, and spiritual needs that must not be ignored. Making sure these needs are met makes it more likely that we will be able to function at an optimal human level, making it just a tad easier to show up for our lofty goals and aspirations.
If we don’t show up for those needs? We’re only making our own journeys more difficult.
With that, let’s dive into some wellness practices that will help you maximize your human performance, while making your creative output a little more robust!