One thing that I get asked all the time is how to ‘make it’ in the music industry.  It’s a good question, to an extent, because anyone who wants to get in on the music biz needs to know where to start.  However, I find it interesting that most people look at this topic through a cloudy, mystical lens – as if getting in the music industry is different than any other industry.  They make it out to be harder than it is, more difficult than it should be, and most often they think that it’s too hard to achieve success in the entertainment industry.

If you look at the music industry like any other business you’ll see that it’s not that hard.  It is as complex and intricate as any other form of business, but once you narrow your scope down a little bit it’s not so bad.  Lets look at another business model, like opening a store.  If you ask me, “How do I open a store?” I’d ask you some questions like:

1)  What kind of store is it?  Groceries, clothes, plumbing equipment?  Defining what type of business it’s gonna be will dictate the answers the following questions:

2)  Who are you going to market your store to?  Who is your clientele?

3)  Location?  Opening a store like Target next door to a Target will be difficult.

4)  Where will you get your products from?  Do you need to partner with anyone, join unions, or attain special licenses?

5)  How are you going to promote your business?

6)  Most important – How can you use the internet to expand your business?

If you were to apply these questions to ANY business model you’d be able to answer them right away; from stores to web design, graphic art, construction…  You name it.

NOTE, that all of these professions are for people who are seeking self-employment, or starting their own business.  As a musician (or anyone in the entertainment industry) YOU are your boss.  You control what gigs you take, which ones you turn down, how you want your image to appear, etc.  And establishing those will help you make a decision about what you want to do.

Let’s apply these questions to musicians now:

1)  What kind of gig do you want?  Studio player, songwriter, touring musician, entertainment lawyer, manager, promoter, club owner, studio engineer, producer, teacher, worship leader…?  Defining your business preference will dictate the answers to the following questions:

2)  Who are you going to market yourself to?  An audience, an age group, a particular region, a record label, show promoters, or studio cats?  Your clientele is either the people who will hire you or the people who are going to buy your product.  Define who they are and you’ll be able to find them!

3)  Location?  Are you doing film?  Move to LA.  Theatre?  New York, Vegas, or cruise ships.  Studio?  Nashville is great, I hear.  Not enough action in the suburbs?  Move to the city.  You get the idea.

4)  Where will you get your work from?  If you’re an artist you need an audience to play to.  If you’re a sideman you need a band to join.  If you’re an indie label you need talent and a scene.

5)  How are you going to promote your business?  Unless you’re somebody, no one is gonna do this for you.  Sell tickets, email blasts, promo sales, free songs or videos…  Go do it!

6)  The internet – Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, iTunes, blogs; there’s plenty of outlets for this stuff.

So, if you told me you were going to open a store, but didn’t know the answers to those 6 questions, I’d tell you that you shouldn’t open a store yet.  If you are a musician and cannot answer those same questions, then you’re not ready to jump in.  Please note that you can always choose more than one profession in this industry as well, and many of us do this so that we can get more gigs.  Take some time to figure these questions out, discover your passions, peruse them, and I guarantee you’ll be on your way to a happy career in music (however, whether or not you are successful, is entirely up to you).