From Musician To Artist
79 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 months ago -For musician's who want to have a real go at doing music full time, without a label, or a big budget. A practical guide to becoming a successful independent artist. Covering; Your artist branding, playing live, songwriting, recording, and the promotion of your music. Weekly episodes to inspire and encourage independent artists.
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Making Sure Your Music Survives Lockdown!
August 04, 2021 21:00 - 25 minutes - 17.8 MBLockdowns are extremely tough on the music artist. When venues close down, love music is the first thing to go! It seems like an uncertain road back to the regular, dependable gig.. So what can we do to make sure our music survives the lockdown? How can we lock down proof our music, and keep walking forwards when the world around us stops? Thats what I'm chatting about in this episode. This is taken from a live stream I hosted last week in the middle of a lockdown we had here, and it's a go...
Should I Be Making Music Videos? The Different Types of Music Videos
July 28, 2021 21:00 - 17 minutes - 11.7 MBMusic videos are a great way to grow your audience. Video is such an engaging form of media, and it's set up to work across pretty much all of the social platforms. It's much, much easier to get someone to watch your video, then to go across to Spotify and listen to your music. I've been getting into video a lot lately, and I really believe in it's power to grow your music and your fan base. So I wanted to unpack a little bit about them, and cover some of the different types you could consi...
3 Common Songwriting Mistakes, & How To Avoid Them
July 21, 2021 21:00 - 14 minutes - 10.1 MBI'm privileged to be able to work with a ton of great songwriters, and work on a lot of great songs here in the studio. This has helped me to see what makes a great song, and what takes away from a great song. While it's difficult to simply teach, 'how to write a good song' or 'how to write a hit song'. I can teach about a few common songwriting mistakes I see, and talk about how you can avoid them in your songwriting. This will be a big step towards writing more professional sounding song....
A Better Way To Reply To Comments
July 14, 2021 22:00 - 14 minutes - 9.9 MBDon’t stop ‘being’ thankful, but we need to shift our responses from simply being ‘thank you’ I’m talking about reply to comments on your social posts (Facebook, instagram, or YouTube comments). Somebody writes in a tells you how much they love your new song, the easiest response is ‘thank you so much’. What we don’t realise is that this is killing the conversation! It’s not giving us a chance to grow that relationship and build connection with an appreciative audience, nor is it allowing Fa...
Getting Your Music On Spotify, A Step By Step Guide
July 07, 2021 22:00 - 31 minutes - 21.8 MBA question I get asked all the time is 'how do I get my music on Spotify' or 'can you help me get my music on to Spotify' So in this video I do exactly that. I explain the entire process, and share my screen as upload a song to Spotify and Apple Music. The process seems daunting because it's different to everywhere else we upload, Instagram or YouTube we just upload our music or video and we're in control. For Spotify we're having to pay an aggregator (a digital distributor) to do that for ...
Artist Wins! Using Instagram to Promote Your Music w/ James Sutherland
June 30, 2021 21:00 - 18 minutes - 12.8 MBThis week I chat with local artist James Sutherland about using Instagram as a music artist promotion tool. We also have a dive into his latest single and chat about his song writing process, his studio experience, and take a look at the production of his latest single. I wanted to highlight James in this 'Artist Wins series because he just has such a good attitude around being an independent artist. He's willing to put in the work, he has realistic goals, and he's super proactive in his a...
Explaining My Recording Process - From Pre Production To Mastering
June 23, 2021 21:00 - 29 minutes - 20.1 MBI explain my full recording process! From preproduction through tracking / recording, editing, mixing and mastering. What is the engineer / producer doing? And what can you (the artist) expect during the recording process. Every studio will probably approach this slightly differently, this is a detailed unpacking of how I approach recording so that you can get a clearer picture of what happening behind closed doors. I've learned through years of working with artists that when this recording...
Dolby Atmos, How Does It Work? How Will It Effect The Music Industry? (Apple Music, Spatial Audio)
June 16, 2021 21:00 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBApple Music have rolled out spatial audio (dolby atmos) to their playback systems. How does dolby atmos work? How does it deliver a spatial sound to headphones? In this episode I explain how it all works, and look into the potential impact this could bring to the music industry for independent artists I've been really enjoying the immersive experience from spatial audio through my Nuraphones, and I'm sure you will as well. Is it the game changer though? Will this supersede the traditional s...
Writing A Good Artist Bio - 1st Vs 3rd Person
June 09, 2021 21:00 - 15 minutes - 10.9 MBHow do I write my artist bio? Probably a question you've asked yourself right? Well how do you go about writing a good artist bio? Where do we need our music bio? Instagram, Spotify, Youtube, EPK.. It's almost everywhere. I notice a lot of artists find it easier to write in the the 3rd person, because it's difficult to talk yourself up all the time. While there are good benefits for this, in this episode I chat about the best places to use third person, and why it might be more beneficial t...
Getting Better Gigs! The Progression of Your Live Show
June 02, 2021 21:00 - 21 minutes - 15 MBWhat's the next stage for your live show? What is a better gig for you? We're all trying to get better gigs, get bigger gigs, or move to the next level with our live performances. In this episode I have a look at the progression of the live performance. It starts with you picking up and instrument for the first time, and goes all the way through to that stadium tour. This episode is helpful to vision where you want to go as an artist, and to see what the different stages of a live performan...
Recording at Home VS in the Studio! Why You Should Be Doing Both
May 26, 2021 21:00 - 16 minutes - 11.5 MBShould I record at home? Or should I be hitting up a pro studio? For a lot of us this is one of those burning questions. We hear of a lot of artists getting great sounding recordings from home, we know the gear is relatively cheap, and it's fun! I am certainly not against home studios, and recording from home, I think there is absolutely an opportunity for that! and sometimes it makes good sense to record from home! I also know the benefits of studio recording and what that can bring to you...
9 Ways To Earn Money From Your Music
May 19, 2021 21:00 - 22 minutes - 15.2 MBGetting paid for your music can be difficult! I have a bunch of ideas that might help you earn some income from your music. Some different ways you can release your music, or promote your music in a way your true fans will WANT to pay for! It's almost less about your music, and more about the experience you can offer with your music. It's actually almost all about giving/selling your fans an experience. These include; Recorded music, streamed or physical, Playing live shows (Big or intimate...
Your Audience Is The KEY! Creating A Music Experience FOR Your Fans
May 12, 2021 22:00 - 13 minutes - 9.29 MBTake your songwriting to the next level! Grab my free songwriting guide here! https://www.dottedeight.com/artist What do your fans want? They want an experience with your music, they want to be able to feel something when they listen to your music. Perhaps they don't know that yet, but it's actually the feeling and connection we have with music that draws us in, and more importantly, keeps us wanting more. In this episode I have a look at the creation cycle, step 1; we're inspired, step; ...
Setting Yourself Up As A Music Artist - Business & Music
May 05, 2021 22:00 - 10 minutes - 6.99 MBHow can we do business as a music artist? how can we make music our business? and can we do it my keeping our music as art, and not let business ruin that. Business is a mind set, in this episode I chat about approaching your music career like a business, in that you want to serve and value your customers, in our case, our audience or fanbase. If we can see our music as a valuable experience that will bring value to our audience, we will see our fan base begin to grow and more importantly.....
Spotify Vs Youtube Videos, Which Will Help You Grow Your Audience?
April 28, 2021 23:00 - 36 minutes - 25.3 MBI love both YouTube and Spotify! I think they are both excellent content platforms. I wanted to do a comparison discussing some of the pros and cons around growing your audience on these platforms. Both Spotify or Youtube are great for having long lasting reach for your music, but both of them are a slow burn, requiring patience and planning when building them up. In this episode I chat about 3 main aspects of YouTube Vs Spotify; 1. Engagement Level 2. Available Content 3. Search ability I ...
Adding Production Elements To Your Songwriting
April 21, 2021 20:00 - 13 minutes - 9.12 MBAdding production elements to our songs can be a bit scary, where do we start? How do we learn these production tips? I think it’s helpful to be thinking about production during the songwriting phase. If we can write our songs with production in mind, we can be more confident in finishing songs! Because we know that production will help it sound complete! In this episode I chat about the importance of production, and that it’s a great way to tell the story of our music. I unpack a few of the...
Adding Parts To Your Songwriting So It Sounds PRO!
April 14, 2021 22:00 - 18 minutes - 12.6 MBAdding extra parts to our songs can bring them to life, and give that element of depth and width that we’re used to hearing in our favourite songs. Free Songwriting Guide - https://www.dottedeight.com/artist Songwriting in the box episode - https://youtu.be/_wTYOrst9pc In this episode I chat about how and where we should be adding these parts. It’s all about writing a musical story, so that without focusing on the lyrics, our audience can still follow and connect with the journey of our s...
How to Write Lyrics & Harmony Into Our Songwriting, To Follow Our Story
April 11, 2021 23:00 - 18 minutes - 12.8 MBContinuing our songwriting series, we’re taking a look at Lyrics & Harmony. We’ve been talking about songwriting inside the box, and to a set of guidelines that make sure we’re finishing our songs and connecting with our audience. Make sure you download my free song writing guide, which follows along with this series, and sets up a songwriting template that you can work within. Download link here - https://www.dottedeight.com/artist If you missed the first episode unpacking songwriting ins...
How To Write Melody & Rhythm To Tell Effective Story, Songwriting Series 2/4
April 04, 2021 20:00 - 16 minutes - 11.3 MBIn this episode I’m unpacking how we write story into our melody and rhythm. Download Link - https://www.dottedeight.com/artist Writing 'Inside the box' episode - https://youtu.be/_wTYOrst9pc This is the second part of a four part series on songwriting. In the previous episode I looked at an approach to songwriting ‘inside the box’ so that we can make sure our songs effectively carry our story and connect with the listener. The melody is our tune, it’s the part that usually get’s stuck i...
Songwriting, How To Write With An Easier And More Effective Approach
March 28, 2021 19:00 - 23 minutes - 16 MBThis episode unpacks an approach to songwriting that makes the whole process easier. It’s about setting up some guidelines around songwriting that ensures our songs connect with our audience by carrying our story effectively. Songwriting Guide - https://www.dottedeight.com/artist We understand the concept of thinking outside the box. This means coming up with something new right? When we think about creativity and songwriting with this approach, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves. It c...
Grow A Real Fanbase For Your Music, Likes & Follows Are Just The Start
March 21, 2021 19:00 - 19 minutes - 13.2 MBSomehow Facebook likes, and Instagram follows have become the measure of success for music artists. But what is this actually doing for pushing our music brand forward? Building real fans, or paying for our music expenses. In this episode I break down the numbers a bit, and look at what return on investment likes and follows actually bring. I look at the need for creating an inner circle that would actually nurture relationships that leads us towards being able to sell experiences with our ...
Convert Live Fans Into Digital Followers! By Using Artist QR Codes
March 14, 2021 19:00 - 19 minutes - 13.3 MBWe’re great at growing our online audience, putting up socials posts that drive traffic towards our new single or upcoming show. But how good are we at making sure our live audiences are following us on Instagram? Subscribing to our YouTube channel? Or engaging with us online. My Linktree - https://linktr.ee/Dottedeightstudio Create your own free Link tree - https://linktr.ee I think the best way to make sure our live audience follows us digitally is by using a QR code. The QR code has be...
Promoting My Music As An Independent Artist! The Why, What & How
March 07, 2021 19:00 - 20 minutes - 13.9 MBHow do I promote my music? Or Whats the best way to promote my music online? These are questions we are trying to find answers to all the time. In this video I break down promoting out music, I look at the Why, The What, and the How. Whether being part of your own marketing department is something you signed up for or not. Its something we have to develop and get better at as an independent assist Why - Because no body else is going to do it for you. If you want to increase your fanbase an...
When Should I RECORD My Music? How Do I Know If Music Is Ready?
February 28, 2021 19:00 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBObviously I need to record my music, but it’s expensive, and my songs are nowhere near being ready to record. What if it wasn’t as far away as you thought it was? What if you could record your music and allow your audience to expand beyond the people in the same room as you? That way you’d appear like a real artist because you are an actual real artist! Recording your music, Lets talk about it For enquires about how we could work together on your music head to my website https://www.dottede...
How To Write Songs That Engage Your Audience [Ep.5]
February 21, 2021 19:00 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBIt’s our songs that make an artist, it’s that expression that connects an audience through a range of emotions, and gives them something to hold and own. Let’s talk about effective songwriting as a music artist. In this episode I unpack songwriting as stage 3 of the music artist life cycle. We’ve already had a look at branding and vision, and playing our music live, the next stage of our music journey is songwriting. I look into why songwriting is so important for the music artists, and h...
UNLEASHING Your Inner Artist - The Music Artist Lifecycle - STAGE 2 [Ep. 4]
February 14, 2021 19:00 - 14 minutes - 10.1 MBPlaying music, it’s stage 2 of the artist lifecycle, and it plays a massive role in developing you, and unleashing your inner artist, why? because it grows both your audience, and your ability.So what does this mean for you trying to make music your living? Let’s talk about it. To get anything started, you have take action, you have to get the ball rolling. To be a successful music artist you have to start playing your music. If you’re new this could mean finding some muso’s and having a ja...
Music Artist Branding - Ask Yourself These Simple Questions [Ep. 3]
February 06, 2021 07:00 - 22 minutes - 15.3 MBBrand is who you are, and it’s presenting that clearly for your audience, so they know what to expect and what they will feel when they engage with your music. You take the guess work out for your audience, and this means you grow, and they expand. In this episode I unpack branding for you or your band as artist’s. Branding seems like a business term, and we like to keep business seperate from art right? Perhaps treating our music more like a business will help us to grow. I look at your i...
The 5 Stages A Music Artist MUST Go Through - The Life Cycle of a Music Artist [Ep. 2]
February 06, 2021 02:00 - 19 minutes - 13.6 MBThere seems to be a big gap between me writing music, and me growing an audience that can hear, and connect with that music. So what do I do to bridge this gap? And make a better go of my music? This episode looks at the life cycle of a music artist, The 5 essential stages every artists must go through if they want a successful music career with a growing fanbase. I go into detail about what is involved in each of this stages, with the plan to expand on each of these categories for their o...
From MUSICIAN to ARTIST! - A Guide To Making Music Your Living [Ep. 1]
February 04, 2021 03:00 - 11 minutes - 7.94 MBWe want to do music for a living, but we seem to be constantly having this internal battle between ‘Yes! I can do this!’ And ‘you know what? I just need to get a real job’. This episode unpacks the podcast series and what I’ll be discussing. I share why I’m passionate about helping artists achieve their musical desires, and where it all started for me. The first series I’ll be looking at is the ‘life cycle of a music artist’ Vision & Branding Playing your music, getting gigs Songwrit...