Guest Blog: How to Stand Out

How To Stand Out: A Guide to Getting Discovered as a Musician

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When you’re a musician, there’s nothing more fulfilling than seeing your hard work come to life on stage, in a recording, or on screen. It’s easy to get lost in the shuffle of a saturated industry, but there are tips and tricks that can get you discovered. Here are some of the many music fields to consider, designing a brand identity, getting email subscribers, and more. Let’s get you on track to making a name for yourself!

Choose A Field

The first step to getting discovered is to understand the different fields in which you can build a music career. Some of the most common include:

• Performing live

• Recording and releasing music

• Composing for film and television

• Working in music education

• Collaborative songwriting

Once you’ve identified the right field for you, take time to research and understand the industry trends and adjust your goals accordingly.

Write A Business Plan

It’s essential to approach your music career as a business if you want to build a name for yourself. Writing a business plan will help you define your goals, target audience, and budget. It will also help you identify potential challenges and come up with strategies to overcome them. You can find numerous templates and resources online to go to through the process of creating your business plan. Or, you can reach out to a music business coach or consultant for guidance.

Create A Brand Identity

With a firm business plan in place, you need to create a brand identity that reflects your style and goals. This includes developing a logo, choosing a color palette, building a website, and maintaining a consistent social media presence. Your brand identity should be professional, visually appealing, and consistent across all platforms. Be sure to focus on the quality and relevance of your content rather than the number of followers or likes you have. Designing a logo for your music business is crucial to building your brand and establishing a visual identity for your company. Consider the colors you choose, as they can have a significant impact on how your brand is perceived. Color tones like blue and green are often associated with calmness, security, and reliability, making them an excellent choice for conveying stability or professionalism. Warm colors, such as red and orange, are connected with energy, excitement, and passion. Factor in your musical style(s) when considering colors. Selecting the appropriate colors and creating a well-designed logo will help your music business stand out from the competition and establish a strong visual identity that customers will remember!

Use Social Media Strategically

Social media is a powerful tool for getting discovered in the music industry. But it’s essential to use it strategically to reach your target audience and engage with them authentically. Choose the right platforms based on your goals and target audience, and create and share high-quality content regularly. You’ll also need to interact with your followers while using hashtags and analytics to measure your performance. The key is to be consistent, authentic, and creative at every step.

Build An Email List

Email marketing is another effective way to build a name for yourself. The ultimate goal is to build an email list of fans and followers who have given you permission to contact them. You can use your list to promote your music, tour dates, merchandise sales, and more. Remember to provide value to your subscribers by offering exclusive content, giveaways, and discounts. You can also use email marketing tools like Constant Contact or Mailchimp to automate and personalize your campaigns.

Wrapping Up

It’s challenging to get discovered as a musician, but putting in enough hard work, dedication, and strategy can drastically improve your chances of success. Implementing tips like writing a business plan and creating a brand identity will help you set the stage for a blossoming career that flourishes long-term. Just don’t forget to stay true to your authentic self, and focus on creating quality content that resonates with your target audience.

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Big thanks to Charles Carpenter of Healing Sounds for this great guest blog!

Guest Blog: Musical Tips To Help Your Child

Utilize These Musical Tips To Help Your Child Practice Self-Care

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Self-care can be hard to come by these days, especially for young people. The pressures of social media, school, and their peers can be overwhelming at times and can keep kids from being able to relax, recharge, and let go of stress or anxiety, yet being able to do so is an important part of maintaining their mental health. One easy thing you can do to help your child practice self-care is to help them get involved in a musical hobby. Playing an instrument, singing, and even writing music are all great ways to help a young person boost their self-esteem while resetting for the coming week. Today, we offers some ways music can be a source of self-care for the child in your life.

Make Some Changes

In many families, when one person is stressed, everyone in the household feels the effects. If your job is creating negative feelings that you bring home at the end of the day, this can trickle down to your child and take a toll on their mental health or their ability to practice self-care. The good news is, you can make some changes at work that will help you feel better throughout the day, such as staying on top of your health by drinking lots of water and eating protein-packed snacks to keep your energy up.

 You can also make sure your attitude toward your own abilities isn’t holding you back; perfectionism can leave you feeling overwhelmed or stressed, and your child may apply that same attitude toward their music skills. A healthy blend of optimism, affirmation, and realism help maintain motivation and ensure a positive experience for everyone involved.

Get Involved

Another great way to be a positive role model in your child’s life is to get involved with their musical interests. You might sign up for a class alongside them and learn to play the same instrument, or help them practice each day. When a parent shows interest in their child’s hobby, it can help boost their enthusiasm and keep them motivated. Not only that, it will allow you and your child to spend more quality time together, which will have a healthy effect on their confidence.

Encourage Reflection

Aside from raising self-esteem, playing music has many advantages for young people, from helping to boost their math and social skills to allowing them to express themselves emotionally. Encourage your child to utilize their music time wisely by using it to create “quiet” time for themselves, or time to reflect, focus on their breathing, or even meditate. Kids of all ages can benefit from having this time, and by connecting it to their music, they’ll associate positive feelings with their hobby. Have your child practice meditating at night before going to sleep; once they get the hang of it, they’ll be able to use it anytime, anywhere, in order to calm down and reset after a long day.

 Therapy is another option worth considering – especially once you debunk the notion that seeking professional help is a bad thing. Also, these days, professional help can be sought online from the safety and privacy of the home. In terms of how much you should expect to pay, you can get a weekly session for $149 or a single session for $169.

Allow Them to Get Creative

Once your child is familiar with their instrument and is comfortable expressing themselves, encourage them to get creative and write their own music or lyrics. Provide a journal or music sheets so they’ll have the tools they need. People of all ages can benefit from writing, and this is a form of self-care that most kids will see as fun. You can also provide other types of creative toys and tools, such as building blocks or art supplies. Sometimes, branching out into other areas can awaken inspiration.

 Helping your child get involved in music is a wonderful way to teach them how to handle stress and manage their emotions. Make sure you get their input when it comes to choosing an instrument; after all, it should be a hobby they enjoy rather than a chore.

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Big thanks to Charles Carpenter of Healing Sounds for this great guest blog!

Guest Blog: Art and Music Therapy

Art and Music Therapy: The Many Benefits for Recovering From Stressful Times

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Art and music therapy have been utilized for decades when it comes to helping people learn to recover from stressful times. Because these therapies allow an individual to practice mindfulness and focus on the present, they reduce stress and fear concerning the past or future. They also provide an opportunity to release negative emotions and are another way to communicate, making them the perfect way to promote healing for someone who is in addiction recovery, notes Psychology Today.

When recovering from stressful life events, it’s important to find healthy ways to cope with anxiety and release negative energy. This is especially true for stress in the workplace, which often arises when you have a confrontation with your boss or coworkers or have to deal with layoffs, among other things. Many individuals who are in recovery have found that it can be difficult to focus on their personal needs after a period of substance abuse; they are often bombarded with painful emotions and have forgotten how to cope without the aid of drugs or alcohol. Art and music can be just the solution for people who are struggling with how to cope.

Keep reading for some tips on how to get started and why these types of therapies are so beneficial.

Try a Few Different Things

Some people find it difficult to get involved in a creative pursuit because they have never attempted to paint, sing or play an instrument, and believe that they have no talent for it. Talent is the result of hard work, however, and with time and patience, you can get to where you want to be. Try a few different activities to find out which ones you like best, and remember to stay patient with yourself. If drawing doesn’t interest you, try learning to play an instrument or using a different medium (switching from charcoal to colored pencils, for instance). Sometimes, even a change of scenery can make a difference when it comes to being creative.

Get Messy

Creating a workspace for yourself will not only give you the tools you need to succeed in your new form of therapy, but it will also help you focus because you won’t be worried about outside distractions. Carving out an area for you to enjoy your favorite activity could be as intricate as refinishing the attic to create an art studio, or as simple as laying down a tarp or old plastic tablecloth to prevent paint spills; either will enable you to dive into your artistic pursuits.

Dedicating an aesthetically pleasing space to your artistic endeavors has the added benefit of increasing your home’s resale value, should you one day choose to put your house on the market. Create a flexible space and put a new coat of paint on the walls, and watch it pay off come appraisal time.

Learn to Channel Your Emotions

Art and music are both emotional in the sense that they can convey a particular feeling in a way that words simply can’t. Using these mediums to channel your own emotions can help reduce stress, relieve anger or feelings of guilt, and allow you to focus on moving forward during your recovery. Think of everything you draw or paint as an outlet; learn to push those emotions into the song you sing or play on the guitar. This is a healthy way to feel relief from those feelings, according to Medium.com.

Find a New Purpose

Getting involved with a new creative hobby can help you find a new purpose and give renewed meaning to your life. It can even help you find a new career. With practice and dedication, you can make this creative pursuit a focal point during recovery and boost your self-esteem.

Art and music therapy have helped millions of people work through difficult times in their lives, allowing them to overcome everything from addiction to depression. With some hard work and motivation, these creative pursuits can do the same for you.

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Big thanks to Charles Carpenter of Healing Sounds for this great guest blog!

Guest Blog: How to Earn Money as a Musician During the Pandemic

How to Earn Money as a Musician During the Pandemic

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Among all the economic sectors hit by the pandemic, the live music industry faced some of the biggest challenges. Social distancing restrictions have put live shows on hold for over a year, and musicians everywhere are reeling from the blow to their income. Thankfully, technology provides another avenue for musicians to make money while social distancing. The ideas below will help you diversify your income and pay the bills until touring can start back up again.

Launch Your Own Music Business

Becoming an entrepreneur in the music industry is a fantastic way to take control of your earning potential. As Recording Connection explains, there are many different ways to generate revenue in the music world. You could offer services in production, audio engineering, music licensing, publishing, film scoring, sound design, and more. You could even launch an e-commerce store and sell your own merch!

Establishing the groundwork for a successful business starts with certain legal technicalities, so don’t overlook this important — albeit boring — first step. For example, you will need to decide how to structure your business and register with your state. You should also consider securing an Employer Identification Number (EIN) so you can hire employees, open a business bank account, and establish your business as a separate legal entity. The easiest way to do this is to apply for EIN online.

Host a Live Music Event from Home

Not keen on starting a business? If you’re just looking for ways to continue performing during the pandemic, you have several options. For example, many musicians have shifted to live streaming their performances online. You can host at-home concerts on YouTube, Twitch, and social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. You could even organize a live concert in virtual reality! Just make sure you pay special attention to acoustics and microphone placement so you can optimize the sound quality for your online audience.

Plan a Socially Distant Performance

Depending on where you live, you may even be able to perform to live audiences in person, as long as you take special precautions to keep everyone safe. You could organize a drive-in concert and broadcast your music through car radios or plan an outdoor event and sell a limited number of tickets so everyone can maintain a safe distance. People are also looking to hire musicians to perform personal birthday concerts for friends and family from your driveway!

Start a Patreon

DIY Musician suggests starting a Patreon page as another potential way to generate income right now. Patreon, a subscription-based membership platform that enables creators to earn money directly from fans, has become more popular than ever during COVID-19. This works best for musicians who already have a loyal fan base and a means to reach out to these people, such as a popular social media page or a thriving YouTube channel.

Offer Virtual Music Lessons

If you’re still an up-and-coming musician, offering virtual music lessons could be a great way to earn money from home while you establish yourself as an artist. You don't need a formal music education to do this, though it certainly won't hurt. You could build your own website, produce lessons for YouTube, or host private lessons over Zoom. Online learning platforms like Skillshare and Udemy will enable you to create and online courses. You could work one-on-one or teach a class — it’s all up to you!

To say the pandemic has been hard on musicians is an understatement. While you may have had to put your shows on hold, the pandemic is a great opportunity to pursue other creative gigs and diversify your income. Use this time to grow your brand, connect with your fans online, and build your music career into something bigger than yourself!

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Big thanks to Charles Carpenter of Healing Sounds for this great guest blog!

Guest Blog: How Apps Can Help You Learn To Play A Musical Instrument

How Apps Can Help You Learn To Play A Musical Instrument

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Learning how to play a musical instrument can be fun at any age. Even if you don't have the time or money for in-person music lessons, you can learn a musical instrument at home with the help of your smartphone. These days, there are hundreds of instrument learning apps and online tutorials that allow you to easily practice at home and hone your musical talents.

The Benefits of Knowing a Musical Instrument

Playing an instrument isn't just about enjoying music. According to Psychology Today, it’s also good for brain health. For both children and adults, learning to play an instrument stimulates brain function, improves memory, and boosts reasoning skills. Practicing instruments can also increase patience, discipline, and creativity while relieving stress.

Let's take a look at some apps and other resources for learning to play an instrument.

Best Apps for Musical Instruction

Yousician

With Yousician, you can learn how to play guitar, piano, bass, ukulele, or even sing. This app is like having your own personal music tutor right on your smartphone. Yousician listens to you play, then offers instant feedback about your musical timing as well as your accuracy. Each lesson features step-by-step video guides to play incredible songs suited to your level. This app offers lessons, challenges, and gameplay to make learning an instrument a whole lot of fun. Start with a free trial and upgrade to a premium subscription for even more features.

Chord!

If you are interested in advancing your guitar skills, Chord! is the answer. This music app has an amazing chord fingering engine, based on your preferred number of fingers, chords, and other details. You can write, import, and share songs, and do so much more with this easy-to-use app on iPhone or Android. It also works with banjos, basses, mandolins, and ukuleles.

Tunable

For something a bit different, try the Tunable app with its very easy to use interface. This app features a simple visual metronome that helps you stay on tempo. You can adjust the tempo, beats per measure, and subdivision. It also has a tone and chord generator to improve your musical ear, as well as a chromatic tuner to help you play or sing with a steady, consistent pitch. These visual tools are suited for wind and string instruments, as well as voice.

Online Tutorials for Learning an Instrument

In addition to apps, you can also enhance your instrument learning with the use of online video tutorials. Here are just a few favorites:

●      Drums: BoomBoomTV

●      Guitar: GuitarLessons

●      Piano: PianoLessons

●      Violin: Violinspiration

In order to use and enjoy any of these apps, you want to arm yourself with a smartphone that has the capacity to handle all the apps you desire, as well as the battery life you need to practice your instrument. If you’re in the market for an upgrade, the all-new iPhone 11 is a wonderful option with its high-performance A13 Bionic chip, amazing extended battery life, super retina XDR display, and spatial audio that simulates surround sound — which could come in particularly handy with your new hobby!

If you aren't an iPhone fan, several of the latest Android phones have the capacity and the battery life you need to run your apps, including the Samsung Galaxy S10+. On top of that, Android Central notes it sports a stellar display and top-notch camera system, which is great for sharing pics of your progress with friends and family.

Playing music can be enjoyable for kids and adults of all ages, and the benefits support your overall wellness. Even if you can’t find time for face-to-face lessons, with the help of your smartphone, you can learn and practice an instrument regularly and improve your musical skills by leaps and bounds. Make sure you have the resources and tools you need, and you’ll enjoy a richer, fuller life, thanks to your new hobby.

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Big thanks to Charles Carpenter of Healing Sounds for this great guest blog!

Guest Blog: The Benefits of Art and Music Therapy for Individuals in Recovery

The Benefits of Art and Music Therapy for Individuals in Recovery

Photo Credit: Daddy_E_Photography via Pixabay

For many years now, art and music have played a big part in the recovery of individuals who have battled things like depression, substance abuse, and PTSD. Waking up the creative side of the brain can have so many positive effects on a person’s life that music and art have been incorporated into therapies for these issues and many others. Not only can it help with expressing emotions, it can help a person become more social--effectively battling loneliness--and boost self-confidence, which is essential in overcoming many hurdles.

There are many ways to utilize art and music for the best benefits, so it’s important to find the one that works best for you. Many people who have told themselves for years that they “just aren’t creative” have found that they actually do have a hidden talent, or a passion for a form of creativity that they hadn’t previously explored. Do a little research first and explore the various ways creativity can help you overcome the things that are holding you back during recovery.

Here are a few tips on how to get started.

Learn to play an instrument
Learning to play an instrument can help you express yourself in a positive way while boosting your self-esteem, something that is so important when you are in recovery. Nowadays, it’s so easy to learn something new; there are tutorials and informative articles all over the internet, so do a bit of research to figure out what you might like to play. Woodwinds are very popular because they offer such a huge variety of sound, so you may want to start there. The saxophone and clarinet are wonderful instruments that can be adapted for many different musical styles. If woodwinds aren’t your thing, consider trying the trumpet; check out some reviews of the best trumpets on the market before you pick one up.

Help your body recover
In substance abuse recovery, it’s important to make sure that both your mind and body are taken care of. Art and music can help with both of those, and, in fact, are often employed in therapies for seniors who are in treatment for Alzheimer’s disease for that reason. Activities such as painting or playing an instrument are wonderful for gaining strength and control in the muscles, and they can both help reduce stress and lower blood pressure. Helping your body heal is a major part of recovery, and pursuing creative activities is a great way to start.

Get social
Not everyone is born knowing how to paint a masterpiece, so most of us need to learn at least the basics of art or music before creating our own. Taking a class will help you get social and make new connections, an essential part of recovery. You may feel reluctant to meet new people or talk about your past, but with creative endeavors, you don’t have to. Sharing your passion for painting or playing guitar is a way to bond with others and will help battle loneliness.

Boost your self-esteem
Turning to a creative pursuit during recovery will help boost your self-esteem in ways you might never have thought of. Learning what you’re good at and finding a passion for something new will allow you to form new friendships, take ownership of your actions, express both negative and positive emotions, and give you something to look forward to. In using art or music, you will be raising your self-esteem and self-confidence every day.

Creative activities don’t have to be limited to the visual arts or the musical; you can think outside the box and unite them, or pair music with another expression, such as dancing. Finding ways to express yourself can help you get through even the darkest of days during recovery and will allow you to live the life you want to live.

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Big thanks to life and career coach Julie Morris for this great guest blog!

Guest Blog: 8 Ways to Make a Skill Stick

8 Ways to Make a Skill Stick

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Learning a new skill, whether for fun or career advancement, takes some discipline. Thankfully, there are tons of practical skills and talents that you can learn. You might start off with a jet pack of motivation, but it might dwindle as weeks go by and new challenges are encountered. Here’s a few tips and tricks on how to learn a new skill and make it stick.

1. Set SMART goals
You might have heard of a SMART goal: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time-bound. This is a great way to start off new skills: setting smaller goals that are easy to achieve. Learning a new skill isn't easy. It's OK to start with small, achievable goals, and in fact, that's what will help you build the confidence to keep going. As you set smaller goals using the SMART template, remember to make distinctions between tasks and projects.

2. Set yourself up for success
Make your goals super easy to achieve. Let’s say you’re learning the guitar. Sometimes, taking it out of the case can be more effort than it’s worth. To solve this problem, you would buy a guitar stand and have your guitar on display so you remember to practice. Or, if you have a goal to exercise after work more often, store some workout clothes at your job that make it more convenient for you to hit the gym when you’re done in the office.

3. Control distractions
Part of finding the dedication to learn a new skill requires you to identify things that derail your focus and dealing with them. According to Lifehacker, changing your environment can help you reduce distraction and prevent bad practice habits that adversely affect your accomplishment of your goal. This can mean avoiding specific areas, or maybe cleaning your house so you can focus more easily.

4. Vary the way you do a task
Research has shown that subtly changing the way that you practice or perform a new skill, especially motor skills like learning a new instrument, causes your brain to reorganize information and improve your ability to learn something new. If you’re repeating the same musical sequences or language phrases, vary slightly when you practice so your brain starts getting into a new habit.

5. Tell a friend to keep you accountable
A friend can either learn with you or follow up with you. If necessary, make some ludicrous promise to them that you must fulfill if you don’t achieve your goal. This might mean giving your friend $100, or donating to a cause instead.

6. Reward yourself
This one is part of most attempts to learn a new skill, but finding the right kind of incentive is what’s really important. There are some rewards you can receive when you achieve a goal or learn a new skill, and there are others that you can use to reinforce successful actions or behavior. Find out what works for you, and don’t reward yourself until you’ve checked off your task.

7. Take a break after a focused session
According to the New York Times, taking a short break after you perform a focused session of work helps switch your brain into a mode where the information can be processed and new neural connections can be made.

8. Find a mentor
For many of the skills or talents that you want to learn, it’s likely that you can find someone who has already accomplished what you want to do. Talk with someone about the steps they took to accomplish the same goal. This gives you a good blueprint for how you will succeed.

Accomplishing really small goals in the beginning can help you get a good idea for how you can succeed in learning a new skill. Focus on just learning a little bit each day instead of trying to learn everything. You’ll find confidence as you continue to accomplish more goals.

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Big thanks to life and career coach Julie Morris for this great guest blog!