How Do You Make It As a Musician?

There are some jobs that’ll always belong on the “world’s coolest professions” list. You can find music record label jobs in London at Jooble. There, you will, of course, find “musicians”. If you’ve ever picked up an instrument, or you just happen to love music, then you’ll know just how amazing it would be to have a crowd of thousands singing along to your songs. Of course, the probability of that happening is low, there’s no denying that. But is it impossible? Of course not, because nothing is impossible. In this blog, we’re going to look at some useful tips that will push you in the right direction. We’re not going to say that you’ll for sure make it because that would be wrong, but these are the steps that other people have followed. So you never know!

Technical Ability

You won’t get very far as a musician if you don’t have the technical ability. All the musicians you know will be highly proficient. They’ll be able to play various types of music; it’s just they choose to play their kind. You might find the idea of learning how to read music and how to compose songs a little bit boring when all you really want to do is get out there and play, but it’s important. If you don’t know those things, then you’ll be more likely to stumble at some stage (unless, of course, you have an outstanding ear for music — they’re the only musicians that can get away without reading music!). 

Find Your Sound

There are many technically sound musicians who never made it anywhere close to making it as a musician. Indeed, there are some people that can play any song on their instrument — yet they don’t make it. Why? Because they didn’t find their sound. Music is a creative act, and if you’re unable to transfer your technical skills into creativity, then there’ll only be so far that you can go. It’s a bit like knowing the rules of grammar — that doesn’t mean that you’ll become a brilliant writer. Creativity is something that you have to nurture; it is a well that you must fill up. Work on it!

In the Mix 

If you look into the history of virtually any musician you’d care to name, you’ll find that they’ve got a lot of history behind them. They didn’t just end up at the top — they got there after many years of hard work. And nearly all the journeys begin locally. If you live in anything but the smallest town, there’ll be a local music scene. So don’t get involved! There, you’ll meet with other people, play gigs, and learn a lot. It won’t always be fun or perfect, but it’s not supposed to be. It’s just something that you’re supposed to go through. Who knows, you might just meet someone who can open some doors for you.

Growing With Social Media 

In the olden days, you’d have to play your music locally and then gradually move further away. Eventually, you might play in front of enough people, whereby you have something resembling a fanbase. But in this day and age, you can reach an extremely large audience just by utilising the power of social media. You can use social media platforms to host your videos of original songs and, if you know how to go live on tiktok, even host live concerts. This means that you don’t have to just win over fans on one night when you’re playing in front of them — if you have social media accounts, they can listen along whenever they like. Plus, if you’re posting regularly, then you’ll never be too far from their minds. 

Consistent Output

You’ll make it if you’re honing your craft and getting better all the time. And you can only do that by having a consistent output. Keep on making music, and you’ll get better — it’s that simple. 

Finding Belief

Finally, let’s think about finding confidence. The people that make it are the ones who are truly committed to their success. If you have too many escape routes available to you, then it’s unlikely that you’ll go through the struggle when it arrives. You might just jump ship! But if you’re going to be successful, then you’ll need to face a little bit of discomfort. Of course, there may come a point when it’s smarter to pack up the dream of becoming a successful musician — and perhaps better to take a sidestep (such as, say, becoming a producer). But that’s not going to be when you’re taking the first steps of the journey!

About the author

There’s a lot of music out there - good music. At Essentially Pop our remit is that we cover music that deserves to be heard, with a particular focus on independent artists. That doesn't mean we won't cover your old favourites - rather we hope to give you some new favourites as well.

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