10 Tips to Get Noticed As A Musician
So you want to be a famous musician? You might achieve that if you’re lucky, but you can’t manage anything if you don’t learn how to get noticed. Not everyone can have the right connections to make it big in the industry with minimal effort. For as many Glastonbury or Coachella headliners, thousands of others never got a sniff because they didn’t know how to balance their talent with their marketing.
Getting noticed isn’t easy, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. If you’re serious about becoming famous (or at least renowned), here are ten crucial tips.
Play Live As Much As Possible
Playing live is an experience and a great way to get your name out there no matter where you are on the line-up. The more you play live, the more people will learn about you. It’s a rite of passage all musicians need to experience as it helps you become more comfortable performing in front of an audience but also allows you to promote yourself. Your performance should also be good, though, so make sure you tune your guitar, get the rhythm tight, and invest in equipment that can take your performance to the next level. Quality mics, speakers, and a MIDI foot controller are all excellent ways to put on the best live performance.
Get Your Music Online
However, you can’t play live all the time or even play venues on the other side of the country as easily as you’d like. So, how can you reach different audiences? Getting your music online is the obvious solution, so use platforms like Spotify or Bandcamp to host your music. You should also highlight similar bands and write an engaging band bio to help people learn more about you. If you want to push yourself further, services like Spotify StreamsBoost can help you reach more ears to ensure everyone hears about you and your band.
Market Yourself Like Never Before
Being a musician is a lot like running a business (only much cooler). Just like companies should market themselves, musicians need to market themselves, too. The good news is that most people love music, so you can usually attract more ears simply by existing. Use your social media accounts and local businesses to promote upcoming shows or albums and make sure you put on the performance of a lifetime every time.
Attend Other Gigs
You can also get noticed by attending other gigs and networking with the bands or attendees. However, you need to walk the fine line between networking and being that guy who only talks about their band around others. Instead, use this as an opportunity to learn more about how to perform from more experienced bands. Get involved in the scene and speak to people. You might also be able to chat with the band’s manager or venue owner to see if they have any tips or offers for you to get involved.
Learn The Other Side Of the Industry
Learning music production can hugely benefit your career even if you don’t go into it full-time. Here, you can learn more about the other side of the booth which will help you become a better writer and performer. You can take courses or learn from experts who are typically more than happy to explain why they have mixed things a certain way. Furthermore, you can eventually get to a point where you might be confident enough to produce your music yourself or help others.
Connect With Your Fans
Like any creator, online engagement is essential for boosting your profile. If your fans love you, you’re more likely to build a following. They will go to war for you. They will share and stream your music as their lives depend on it. They will do everything they can to make you a success. This approach is especially important when you’re a smaller act, as it can create a lasting bond between you and your fans.
Connect With the Media
Similarly, connecting with the media is a great way to improve your prospects and help you get noticed. If the media like you, there is a bigger chance they will dedicate column inches (or rather, web page space) to your band. If you’re lucky, you may even be included in one of those Best New Acts lists that should increase awareness about your music.
Do Something Different
It feels like there are a lot of musicians and acts doing the same thing. While these formulas work, they could also become a little monotonous and it can make the industry complacent. So, doing something unique helps you stand out and demands that people take notice. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, but you can consider how you will convince people to listen to your music over other people. Many unique acts have drawn praise through chaotic shows or discussing things that the mainstream performers ignore, so ask yourself whether this is something you could do, too.
Collaborate
Collaborations are a fantastic way to expand your network and get your name out there, especially if you’re still grinding away trying to get your big break. Of course, you won’t be able to just message Taylor Swift and ask her to feature on her next album. Instead, think a little smaller. Work with local acts to host events and put out a charity single to introduce you to a new audience.
Make Music Videos
A music video can help you increase your chances of getting noticed and help you build a huge following. But it can’t just be any type of music video. It needs to be something worth watching, especially in an era where attention spans seem to be getting smaller. Take inspiration from OK Go’s music videos and consider how their profile increased whenever a new one dropped. You may not have the tools to match this ambition, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still impress.
Noticed
Even with these tips, there’s no guarantee you’ll get noticed. However, the same applies if you don’t push yourself to get noticed, so you may as well put in the work anyway. You never know, you could be working on tracks with some of the most famous artists or headlining a festival in a few years if everything falls neatly into place.
