I was talking to a fellow today from New York City, who has been going through a very familiar situation to anyone who does music.
WHAT IS THE POINT?
I mean, we have to be realistic in all of this. We're in a world of DREAMS. Every writer, musician, producer, artist, manager. promoter, you name it, are just really MAKING STUFF UP. And being able to MONETIZE that is becoming harder and harder every single day. Here are some things to keep in mind:
THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 30-60 MILLION artists, writers, (creators) on the Internet.
100,000 songs are uploaded AN HOUR to the Internet.
There are approx. 1 BILLION songs a MONTH uploaded.
The vast majority of music is FREE! Most artists will never get a significant amount of listens, views, or PAID for what they do.
FACTS KIND OF SUCK!!!
So WHAT IS THE POINT?
This is what my new friend from New York was asking. He has been a musician most of his life, and has been facing the realities of life, that it is VERY DIFFICULT to make money in this day and age of FREE MUSIC.
Well there are different reasons to write. Most have nothing to do with MONEY.
There is LEGACY WRITING. Writing for friends, relatives, significant others, children, to leave something behind that you actually did.
There is THERAPY WRITING. Most of us have gone through hard times. Sometimes it seems like ALL WE GO THROUGH. So being able to get our thoughts on paper and then into musical interpretation can help us through a variety of struggles and challenges.
There is NICHE MARKETING. You might find yourself or other artists creating their own niche in music and the culture. It might not take you to the top of the charts, but it beats having a song sitting on your computer doing nothing.
There is CATALOG WRITING. To build your skills, your overall musical awareness.
To make yourself attractive to other people to work with. It often is about the NEXT SONG you write.
CONTESTS, and other activities.
SOCIAL AWARENESS.
Just to have a great hobby!
Money might factor into some or all of these. But you have to do something VERY WELL FIRST.
Imagine this scenario.
You are a pretty decent songwriter living in a major metropolitan area. You are no longer the writer/artist willing to get out there on the road. You'd like to get your songs "out there" and pitch them to some major artists. What do you do?
You can make a ton of trips beating the pavement, or hire a song plugger, pay a lot of money for recordings, and basically find out that most artists write their own music, have no incentive or inclination to even LISTEN to anyone else trying to "put words in their mouths."
So is that wise?
OR
You hang around and get to know some artists and other writers. That leads to a few relationships with some younger, fresher faces. That leads to some much better, more directed songs with these artists. The artists love them, and put them on CD's, their websites, their social media. THAT leads to attention from audiences and independent or even major record labels, publishers or producers. Most importantly, the AUDIENCES get to know the artist AND your song.
You just opened some doors and UPPED THE LEVEL OF YOUR ODDS.
See the point?
If you are going to write anyway, write with someone who can help you extend your reach.
If you are going to pay for recordings, have someone who can make better use of those recordings.
REPEAT THE PROCESS.
Will it make you rich and a household name?
I doubt it. But it will get you OUT OF YOUR OWN WAY.
AND THAT IS THE FIRST STEP.
MAB