Sonic Synergy
by Aneesh Chengappa
MUSIC PRODUCER
Music production has been a form a expression for me since childhood. I was captivated by the endless possibilities of making music in Digital Work Station, and how it almost felt like playing a vidoe game. It was both fun and challenging to make ideas, and when you finally came up with a great one, then sense of reward felt similar to winning a game or arguable even more gratifying. However, making a successful career out of this profession can be quite challenging and often takes years of practice, dedication, and perseverance.
In this part of the blog, I will delve into what it takes to become a succcesful music producer. I had the privilege of chatting with two of the music industry's pioneering and emerging artists - Nick Lubberson better known as Moods, and Nicolas Dupuis popularly known as Anomalie.
Through my conversation with them and extensive research via articles, books and videos, I was able to understand the various aspects of this profession that need to be practiced, and how to build a career while staying creative, which are as follows:
This is one of the most important aspects of this profession, hence I decided to start with this topic. In today's world, anyone can download a software and start producing music straight from their bedroom. Heck, that's exactly how I started off. And it's inevitable for a musician to get influenced by the artists they love listening to, or those who inspire them to start producing. Being unique is probably the most challenging aspect of being a musician, as it is a complex and enigmatic space, which takes a lot of practice, patience and awareness.
Here are snippets from my conversation with Moods and Anomalie, where they talk about the challenges of being influenced by the music they love and how they try to deal with it:
"You become unique in music by making what you wanna hear. Only you want to hear exactly what you want to hear.
Make music for you!"
- Fox Stevenson
This quote from Fox Stevenson might sound a little confusing, but what he's essentially to convey is, that you're already very selective about the kind of music you like to hear, so your taste in music is already unique. You just need to tap into the aspects of those compositionsyou most darn to, using them as inspiration to start understanding your own unique preferences for sounds, melodies, chords, effects, and so on.
Let's explore how a music producer can push themselves into the unknown to find out how to achieve being distinctive and creative. Exploration in music can involve experimenting with new gear, exploring new genres, designing your own sounds, using unusual techniques, live improvisation, collaboration and so on.
You might ask, what about music theory ? Although some musicians will argue that music theory can sometimes lead to being narrow-minded, and creates a sub-conscious boundary for creativity. Music theory can lend a massive helping hand to composition. It enables you to compose and arrange melodies, chords and rhythms, to make something harmonically cohesive. It even helps you convey a desired emotion, and create a story that is structured well. There is still a lot of room for exploration within the boundaries of music theory, as demostrated by Jacob Collier in the video below:
"You can't cross the sea merely by standing and staring at the water."
- Rabindranath Tagore
This quote by Radbindranth Tagore is more philosophical, but it links directly to why exploration is so important. If you don't take risks and step out of your comfort zone, you won't know the apex of your potential as a musician., Exploration is something which must be embraced by a music producer in order grow and be innovative.
Working together can be daunting for some and exciting for others. In the space of music production, collaboration is inevitable, and makes you develop your soft skills. Some of the best ideas or projects become successful only because people come together and pool their unique inputs. Here's a video of FKJ, sharing his insights on the unexpected yet beautiful aspect of collaborating with other artists:
Note: In case the clip doesn't play from the right time, the timestamp is - 3:18 to 3:55
In Eric Beall's book 'Making Music Make Money', there's an entire section dedicated to the art of collaboration. Here are a few highlights of the chapter:
-
Musicians can compliment each other based on their strengths and weaknesses, in situations where one musician may have limitations, the other can step in to fill the gap, and vice versa.
-
Having similar taste yet different influences, can spark creativity and push musicians out of their comfort zone.
-
Being aware of who to collaborate with based on personal compatibility.
-
The use of collaboration as a business or marketing strategy, can potentially be fruitful for both artists and increase their reach.
Here's a clip of my conversation with Moods, where he expresses his thought process on collaboration and working with a band for his album - Music Runied My Life:
Being authentic, explorative and collaborative are some of the core features of being a music producer. But the question remains: how can one harness these aspects not only to make music, but to build a sustainable and profitable career? The subseqeunt sections offer a comprehensive insight for music producers who want to turn this passion into a profession.
People's perception of you, plays a major role in building a engaging and loyal audience for your music. Musicians can often get lost in thinking that their music will speak for them, while this may be true to a certain degree, in the current landscape of getting people's attention, simply putting releasing song after song with a simple - "check out my lastest track", is not remotely enough. The rise of social media platforms such as Instagram, Youtube, Tiktok, and so on, is a great place for musicians to increase their reach, but the competition is fierce.
This is a very extensive and complicated topic, and would require a blog of its own to cover all the bases. But here's a concise summary of some important factors to consider when trying to establish a strong brand identity as a music producer:
Logo
Simple
Memorable
Professional
Identity
Consistency
Persistence
Recall Trigger
Algorhythm optimization
Growth
Visibility
Aesthetic
Color palette
Visuals
Themes
Style
Audience
Target Audience
Engagement
Feedback
Culture
Increase Reach
Story telling
Biography
Track story
Behind the scenes
Vision
Authencitiy
Emotional connection
Network
Collaboration
Diversity
Opportunity
Outsourcing
Trends
Popular genres
Revelance
Flexibility
Pop Culture
Market Value
Social Media
Content creation
Promotion
Activity
Advertisement
Personalization
While branding is an effective way to get people's attention, the next step is to find ways to monetize that interest and convert it into tangible revenue.
B
Music production has been a form a expression for me since childhood. I was captivated by the endless possibilities of making music in Digital Audio Workstation, and how it almost felt like playing a video game. It was both fun and challenging to make ideas, and when you finally came up with a great one, then sense of reward felt similar to winning a game or arguable even more gratifying. However, making a successful career out of this profession can be quite challenging and often takes years of practice, dedication, and perseverance.
In this part of the blog, I will delve into what it takes to become a succcesful music producer. I had the privilege of chatting with two of the music industry's pioneering and emerging artists - Nick Lubberson, better known as Moods, and Nicolas Dupuis, popularly known as Anomalie.
Through my conversation with them and extensive research via articles, books and videos, I was able to understand the various aspects of this profession that need to be practiced, and how to build a career while staying creative, which are as follows:
This is one of the most important aspects of this profession, hence I decided to start with this topic. In today's world, anyone can download a software and start producing music straight from their bedroom. Heck, that's exactly how I started off. And it's inevitable for a musician to get influenced by the artists they love listening to, or those who inspired them to start producing. Being unique is probably the most challenging aspect of being a musician, as it is a complex and enigmatic space, which takes a lot of practice, patience and awareness.
Here are snippets from my conversation with Moods and Anomalie, where they talk about the challenges of being influenced by the music they love and how they try to deal with it:
"You become unique in music by making what you wanna hear. Only you want to hear exactly what you want to hear.
Make music for you!"
This quote from Fox Stevenson might sound a little confusing, but what he's essentially trying to convey is, that you're already very selective about the kind of music you like to hear, so your taste in music is already unique. You just need to tap into the aspects of those compositions that you are most drawn towards, and use them as inspiration to start understanding your own unique preferences for sounds, melodies, chords, effects, and so on.
Let's explore how a music producer can push themselves into the unknown to find out how to achieve being distinctive and creative. Exploration in music can involve experimenting with new gear, exploring new genres, designing your own sounds, using unusual techniques, live improvisation, collaboration and so on.
You might ask, what about music theory? Although some musicians will argue that music theory can sometimes lead to being narrow-minded, and creates a sub-conscious boundary for creativity. Music theory can lend a massive helping hand to composition. It enables you to compose and arrange melodies, chords and rhythms, to make something harmonically cohesive. It even helps you convey a desired emotion, and create a story that is structured well. There is still a lot of room for exploration within the boundaries of music theory, as demonstrated by Jacob Collier in the video below:
This quote by Radbindranth Tagore is more philosophical, but it links directly to why exploration is so important. If you don't take risks and step out of your comfort zone, you won't know the apex of your potential as a musician. Exploration is something which must be embraced by a music producer in order grow and be innovative.
Working together can be daunting for some and exciting for others. In the space of music production, collaboration is inevitable, and helps you develop your soft skills. Some of the best ideas or projects become successful only because people come together and pool their unique inputs. Here's a video of FKJ, sharing his insights on the unexpected yet beautiful aspect of collaborating with other artists:
Note: In case the clip doesn't play from the right time, the timestamp is - 3:18 to 3:55
In Eric Beall's book 'Making Music Make Money', there's an entire section dedicated to the art of collaboration. Here are a few highlights of the chapter:
-
Musicians can complement each other based on their strengths and weaknesses, in situations where one musician may have limitations, the other can step in to fill the gap, and vice versa.
-
Having similar taste yet different influences, can spark creativity and push musicians out of their comfort zone.
-
Being aware of who to collaborate with based on personal compatibility.
-
The use of collaboration as a business or marketing strategy can potentially be fruitful for both artists and increase their reach.
Here's a clip of my conversation with Moods, where he expresses his thought process on collaboration and working with a band for his album - Music Ruined My Life:
Being authentic, explorative and collaborative are some of the core features of being a music producer. But the question remains: how can one harness these aspects not only to make music, but to build a sustainable and profitable career? The subsequent sections offer a comprehensive insight for music producers who want to turn this passion into a profession.
People's perception of you, plays a major role in building a engaging and loyal audience for your music. Musicians can often get lost in thinking that their music will speak for them, while this may be true to a certain degree, in the current landscape of getting people's attention, simply putting releasing song after song with a simple - "check out my latest track", is not remotely enough. The rise of social media platforms such as Instagram, Youtube, Tiktok, and so on, is a great place for musicians to increase their reach, but the competition is fierce.
This topic would require a blog of its own to cover all the bases. But here's a concise summary of some important factors to consider when trying to establish a strong brand identity as a music producer (Hover):
Logo
Simple
Memorable
Professional
Identity
Consistency
Persistence
Recall Trigger
Algorhythm optimization
Growth
Visibility
Aesthetic
Color palette
Visuals
Themes
Style
Audience
Target Audience
Engagement
Feedback
Culture
Increase Reach
Story telling
Biography
Track story
Behind the scenes
Vision
Authencitiy
Emotional connection
Network
Collaboration
Diversity
Opportunity
Outsourcing
Trends
Popular genres
Revelance
Flexibility
Pop Culture
Market Value
Social Media
Content creation
Promotion
Activity
Advertisement
Personalization
Website
While branding is an effective way to get people's attention, the next step is to find ways to monetize that interest and convert it into tangible revenue.
In this section, we will explore the different ways in which music producers can utilize their skills to make money. You might be wondering why I haven't mentioned record labels; that is because this blog is more inclined towards independent music producers. Essentially, record labels can offload tasks from producers, such as branding, marketing, and distribution. Through my research on this topic, I was able to identify the following ways strategies for monetizing in current state of the industry:
Distribution & Royalties
When it comes to distribution, there are plenty of options to pick from, such as Distrokid, CD Baby, Amuse, the list goes on. Choosing the best option for you involves finding a service with which you feel most comfortable, considering factors like the user interface, promotional benefits, analytical data, customer support, commission fees, and pricing. Once you've done that, the next step is understanding royalties.
Here's a quick summary of the 3 main types of royalties (Hover):
Mechnical
These are royalties earned from the reproduction and distribution of music. Originally associated with physical formats like CDs & Vinyls, which now includes streaming royalties from platforms such as spotify, apple music, etc.
Performance
These are royalties earned from live performances, radio, television broadcast. This includes a certain percentage of streaming as well, and usually involves signing up with a PRO like BMI, ASCAP, GEMA, etc.
Synchronisation
These are royalties earned from the synchronization of music to visual media. This includes films, TV shows, commericials, video games and online videos. This usually involves signing a licensing contract with an entity.
Resources
Musicians spend years practicing their craft, learning new techniques and designing sounds. So other than making revenue from your music directly, you can also sell the technical aspects of it. This includes the following:
Sample Packs
Preset Packs
MIDI Packs
Mixing Services
Project Files
Ghost Production
There are plenty of resources online which can guide you on how to make, or how to use these techniques, so I will not dive into that in this blog.
Education
Teaching is not only about giving back to the community and inspiring other to start producing; it can also be a good source of income. Online video tutorials have become a very popular way of building an audience and making money. If you need some inspiration on how to make these tutorials, here are a few channels that can get you started:
Alternatively, you can make custom courses for services like Skillshare, Masterclass, Udemy and so on, or teach private lessons to aspiring music producers.
Streaming and Patreon are also a growing space for subscription-based revenue, and many musicians make a healthy living out of these platforms. In case you are camera shy, you can also write an Ebook or guide and sell it online on your website or services like Sellify, Amazon, Shopify, etc.
Here's a short clip from my conversation with Anomalie, where he shares his various sources of revenue:
Live Shows
Live performances are the biggest source of revenue for most musicians. Whether that is DJing, playing an instrument or singing, if you're not doing shows, you're missing out on a huge chunk of revenue. But how do I get shows? You might ask. Well, firstly you need an EPK or Electronic Press Kit, which is essentially a compilation of your biography, best music, high-quality images and videos. Using an EPK is the standard way of pitching to venues, promoters and booking agents. The rest revolves around networking, that could mean sending emails, finding a booking agent or socializing at conferences and events.
The video below is a clip of Moods, talking about his approach to networking and the difference it makes in a musician's career:
Influence
Finally, if you have utilized most of the different tools and techniques mentioned in this blog, and manage to build a decent following on social media. You can now use this audience of yours, to get more opportunities such as sponsorships, affiliate marketing, and even sell your own merchandise.
Companies that develop plugins or software for music production often collaborate with music producers, offering them deals in exchange for promoting their products on their channels or providing reviews. This collaboration helps improve the credibility of the plugin or software.
To conclude and specifically answer the driving question 'Who could I become', becoming a music producer is both a challenging and rewarding profession. With the help of my research and insights from Moods & Anomalie, I discovered that I need to be aware of what makes my music unique, explore various styles and techniques, and embrace collaboration with others. Additionally, I must focus on not only branding my artist persona but also diversifying the means by which I can generate revenue from this profession.
I feel most music producers, including me, struggle with making money from our work. The techniques I found through my research have helped me understand how I can use my technical skills as a music producer to earn more. This includes selling packs, offering production services, streaming online, doing live shows, and using social media to connect with fans and promote my work. By concentrating on these aspects, I aim to make a name for myself in the music industry and earn a good living from my art.