Posted: Jun 5, 2017

Category: Copyright

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**Guest post written by Clay Mills, hit songwriter, producer, performer, and founder of SongTown.com.

 

"For years I have heard the phrase “Poor Man’s Copyright” thrown around in songwriting circles. The term is often brought up as a cheap alternative to an official $35 copyright from the US Copyright Office...BUT..."

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Posted: May 30, 2017

Category: Recording

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**Guest post written by Ben Jacklin.

 

"For any touring outfit, life on the road can be fun, but can also mean a lot of fast food, cramming in the back of vans and plenty of spare time. For musicians, this can present an opportunity to write, practice and even record songs whilst making your way from one show to another. We’ve put together some top tips for putting together your next demo whilst you’re touring, the perfect way to fill the hours from one city to another and at a time when many bands and artists can be at their most creative."

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Posted: May 22, 2017

Category: Licensing

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**Guest post written by Donna Kay of Donna Kay & The Carousers.

 

"After the time and expense of recording, mixing, designing the cover artwork, and launching the CD, I had two tasks: Copyright the CD, and obtain the licenses to release (for sale) and perform our version of “Minor Swing”...I had to obtain two permissions to use the song: One from the owner of the publishing rights, and after submitting their permission in writing, the Easy Song standard licensing fee to record and perform our version of the song. This took a full month of digging, e-mailing, getting responses and finally finding two brothers in NYC who run a publishing company and own the rights the song."

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Posted: May 15, 2017

Category: Online Presence

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**Guest post written by Melanie Kealey of Bandzoogle.

 

"...when someone gets to your band’s page, you want to be sure to grab their attention right away...You want to make sure they find the most important information. Their eyes will gravitate towards text and a button. With this in mind, make it count by adding a call-to-action."

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Posted: May 8, 2017

Category: Social Media

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**Guest post by Paul Doffing, (Indie musician, and marketer at BlitzMetrics).

 

"Making a living as a performer, band, or songwriter relies on one major factor: finding your audience. Today a great bulk of “audience finding” happens online, amidst the rapidly evolving mechanics of social media. Whether you regard the pervasiveness of social media as a positive or a negative thing, social media is a tool that you can utilize to get heard. In this post I’ll explain how to get the most out of Facebook, but first, a little history."

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Posted: May 1, 2017

Category: Tips & Tricks

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**Guest post by Vinnie Hines of Artist Collective.

 

"Working remotely isn’t for everyone...So know yourself and realize that these methods don’t work for everyone. However, I thrive on the chaos. I accept the challenge daily of having my cake and literally eating it, too...To optimize your experience, experiment with the following tips and tricks..."

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Posted: Apr 24, 2017

Category: Lodging

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**Guest post written by Matt Bacon, originally featured on IndependentMusicPromotions.com.

 

"There is an art to finding a place to sleep with your band for the night...The struggle is real, every day you need to make a new friend and charm someone enough to let you into their lives even just for a night...The point being: Finding places to stay is a key skill to learn on tour. Here’s what my time on the road has taught me about it..."

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Posted: Apr 17, 2017

Category: Sponsorship

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**Guest post written by Corey Koehler, an indie singer-songwriter from Minnesota, as featured in his blog MusicGoat.com.

 

"You heard right: Music sponsorships and endorsements are real and there are a ton of companies that sponsor musicians. But there’s one small problem. Small indie musicians, like you and I, do not have audiences big enough for them to sponsor us..."

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Posted: Apr 10, 2017

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post written by Debbie Stanley, a professional organizer, South By Southwest 2017 speaker, and owner of the consulting practice Thoughts In Order. This post is an excerpt from her book The Organized Musician.

 

"Being organized isn’t just about having a tidy closet, being on time, or keeping up with email. The consequences of disorganization can be severe for indie musicians, including damage to or even destruction of your relationships, and, by extension, your career...Of all the habits that either build or erode relationship equity, a surprising number are related to organization. Let’s look at some habits that are likely to undermine your relationships..."

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Posted: Apr 3, 2017

Category: Touring

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**Guest post written by Corina Corina, NYC based Singer, Songwriter, Blogger.

 

"I have a love/hate relationship with touring. For all the incredible memories I have from years on the road, it was also stressful, exhausting and emotionally taxing. I've read hundreds of DIY music blogs about touring that emphasize the importance of self care but only begin to scratch the surface...Here are a few things I’ve learned in between downward facing dog and gas station coffee..."

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Posted: Mar 27, 2017

Category: Promotion

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**Guest post written by Carlos Castillo of Schwilly Family Musicians - music marketing strategist, web designer, live performance recordist, international road-tripper, lap steel player, and Captain of the Schwilly Family.

 

"A lot of music biz teachers will tell you that you should commit time to releasing cover songs on YouTube because you’ll get all kinds of organic growth and attention. This is a proven strategy that has been working for several years. But, especially now that so many musicians are applying it, I’m not sure it’s all that it’s cracked up to be anymore. And it’s not as simple as picking songs you like and recording your own versions..."

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Posted: Mar 20, 2017

Category: Promotion

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**Guest post written by Bobby Borg, originally from Music Marketing for the DIY Musician.

 

"Great interviews don’t happen by accident. Both parties, the interviewer and the interviewee, need to do a great deal of preliminary research. In fact, preparing your complete interview in writing before the interview can serve as helpful research for the busy interviewer and provide additional content that can be posted on your artist websites..."

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Posted: Mar 13, 2017

Category: Online Presence

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**Guest post written by Wes of Bandzoogle.com.

 

"SEO is one of those mysterious and challenging topics for musicians who want to use search engines to promote their music, and who understand how powerful it can be. If SEO matters to you, but you're not sure where to start or how to do it: we have something great to give you..."

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Posted: Mar 6, 2017

Category: Facebook

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**Guest post written by Josh Klemons, digital storyteller and strategist of Reverbal Communications.

 

"If you spend time on social media, you’re probably familiar with Facebook Live, a relatively new Facebook tool that allows you to broadcast live—in real time—directly to your audience...Facebook, at least for the time being, is extremely committed to this tool and is offering all implementers a powerful free gift for using it: guaranteed exposure and engagement! Here are 5 ways to use Facebook Live to greatly expand your band’s reach..." 

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Posted: Feb 27, 2017

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post written by Nicholas Rubright of Dozmia.

 

"Releasing music requires a huge amount of work, which makes it easy to miss something important. In addition to promoting your new release – sending it to radio stations, getting bloggers to write about it – there are some important things to take care of on the administrative side. Here’s a checklist of all the boring things you should take care of when releasing new music..."

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Posted: Feb 21, 2017

Category: Marketing

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**Guest post by Garrison Snell of Crosshair.

 

"Placement on playlists is the digital equivalent of radio placement, except that playlists aren't limited by geographical location AND they can be used to work your song into bigger playlists...Influencer marketing (placing stuff with influential digital celebs) is still the most organic form of promotion and word of mouth..."

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Posted: Feb 13, 2017

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post by Vinnie Hines of Artist Collective.

 

"There’s a place where that musical dream can still become a reality. The beautiful part of it is that it’s a rapidly growing industry based completely around good times, scenic views and constant entertainment. It’s the cruise ship entertainment industry, and this is how you “get in"..."

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Posted: Feb 6, 2017

Category: Social Media

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**Guest post by Doug Beney, lead editor of MIDI Lifestyle.

 

"You've been improving your skills for months, spending countless hours slaving over your DAW, perfecting every slight detail in your mix. Finally happy with your track, you publish it on Soundcloud, sit back, and.....Crickets...What I hope to provide you with today are some quick, practical improvements you can make in how you promote your music that will actually get you results..."

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Posted: Jan 30, 2017

Category: Recording

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**Guest post by Dane Myers, CEO of Custom Tracks, a virtual recording studio that offers low-cost session musicians and studios to artists around the world.

 

"Whether you're just getting started or you're a seasoned studio vet returning to make your next production, figuring out what a new album costs can be tricky. Here are some things to make the picture a bit clearer..."

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Posted: Jan 23, 2017

Category: Live Performance

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**Guest post by Niki Walker, lead videographer of NPR's Tiny Desk series. Originally posted on NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Contest Tumblr.

 

"The Tiny Desk is essentially the opposite of a concert venue or a music video. There’s nothing to hide behind except a real, tiny desk, in a real, very-active office. In some ways, our look is easy to replicate, because it’s all about the music...A lot of people film their Tiny Desk Contest entries on their own, so we thought we’d share a few things we’ve learned by filming almost 600 of these things..."

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Posted: Jan 17, 2017

Category: Marketing

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**Guest post written by Nicholas Rubright of Dozmia.

 

This is the last part of "50 Ways to Promote Your Music and Grow Your Fanbase".

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Posted: Jan 9, 2017

Category: Marketing

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**Guest post written by Nicholas Rubright of Dozmia.

 

This is a continuation of last week's post "50 Ways to Promote Your Music and Grow Your Fanbase - Part 1".

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Posted: Jan 3, 2017

Category: Marketing

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**Guest post written by Nicholas Rubright of Dozmia.

 

"Succeeding in the music industry is hard work. You're competing with literally millions of people crawling their way to the top. However, most of these people don't know how to effectively market themselves or their music...Instead, set yourself apart from the crowd by learning all you can about different music marketing tactics, and treating your music career as a business. Here's a list of 50 music marketing strategies to get you started..."

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Posted: Dec 19, 2016

Category: Social Media

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**Guest post written by Ari Herstand, the author of How To Make It in the New Music Business. It originally appeared on Ari's Take.

 

"I get it. It’s so annoying every time a new social site pops up or updates their platform and then you have to completely relearn it (or start to lean in). The DIY world was a hell of a lot simpler when there was just one social network that mattered: Myspace. But those years are behind us. Let me help you make some sense of this all before we dig into it..."

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Posted: Dec 12, 2016

Category: Show Booking

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**Guest post written by Louise Dodgson, Editor at The Unsigned Guide.

 

"Working with a booking agent is a topic we’re often asked about by artists and bands who wonder whether they should still undertake all gig bookings themselves or acquire the services of an agent who can bag those lusted-after festival slots and tour supports. Do I need an agent? At what stage should we approach one? Will a booking agency even work with an unsigned or emerging band? If you’ve ever wondered about any of the above, this blog is for you!"

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