Those who say that there are no shortcuts to success either lack career know-how or are simply lying.
Of course there is a shortcut to everything and that includes your music career. Instead of focusing on talent alone, think of how you can achieve big leaps in your career so that it won’t take you decades- but only a year or two- before you have a full-time career as a musician.
Given that you have really good god-given talent, here are some shortcuts to speed up your success in music:
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Create Collaborative Content
If you’ve been doing the same things for a long time and nothing is happening, it’s probably time to try new things. Don’t be scared to “waste time” by experimenting.
The real time-waster is doing the same thing without much result. Work with other musicians, friends, peers, or professionals on a new song, event, video…whatever you can think of as long as it’s in line with your musical goals and brand.
The good thing about collaboration is that, given the right conditions and people, you’ll achieve bigger things with lesser effort. Who knows, it could push your music career to new heights.
Befriend the Right People
Don’t just network, network right.
It doesn’t mean that you won’t make friends with people who won’t help improve your career, it means you should focus on the right people. Make sure you market right to establish a good connection.
Here are some networking tips for artists who hate networking.
Release Music Creatively
Who says you should just make CDs and digital downloads like the rest of them?
There are so many ways to get creative with releasing, distributing and marketing your music. Here are some of them.
Create Share-worthy Music Videos
Many musicians get the attention they want for their music by creating really impressive music videos.
One great way of doing this is by collaborating on your fans to create your music video like what Graham Coxon did for What’ll It Take. He invited his fans to dance on camera. 85 of them from 22 countries sent him footage.
The result is a really impressive, share-worthy, one of a kind music video.
Instead of waiting for the phone to ring, call
In other words, be proactive. Do not trust on “fate” and “destiny” and the power of the Universe too much.
Go make that call, go send that e-mail, go meet that person. And of course, don’t stop there. Be persistent, too. Proactive and persistent and sooo good.
Make a list of venues and ask them if they have room for an ultra talented band like yours. Make a list of bloggers that can review your single. And so on and so forth.
There are just five of the many shortcuts for a successful music career. What other shortcuts can you think of?
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James Hill is a veteran of the music industry. He first worked at Warner Reprise Records then later joined Interscope/ Geffen Records where he managed producers and songwriters and got his first platinum record for Keyshia Cole’s The Way It Is. He is now helping indie artists with branding and manufacturing through his company Unified Manufacturing, a CD/DVD, custom vinyl records and merch company in LA.
