Posted: Jul 8, 2019

Category: Show Booking

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**Guest post written by Ellisa Sun, Jazz/Soul musician formerly based in San Francisco currently full-time RVing across the USA.

"8 months ago, me and my partner/percussionist Ken quit our day jobs, sold our stuff, and hit the road in a used 30-foot Winnebago to play as many shows as possible...Here are 16 types of shows we’ve played. Remember, my experience will be different from yours."

Posted: Jul 1, 2019

Category: Online Presence

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**Guest post written by Dave Cool of Bandzoogle.com.

"An electronic press kit (EPK) is essential for making a strong first impression on promoters, bookers, media, and other music industry professionals...You can use your EPK to help you get more press, more gigs, and come across as a serious artist."

Posted: Jun 24, 2019

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post written by Nick Cesarz, drummer, producer, and blogger from Milwaukee, WI. Nick is the editor and owner of DrummingReview.com, a website dedicated to helping drummers choose gear, learn how to play, and guide them through the music industry.

"It's a phone call conversation I wouldn't wish on any of my enemies: getting dropped from a record label. Being let go from a record company is a sad tale that many acts endure throughout their careers. Today I'll explain what it's like and how you can reduce your chances of having this unfortunate conversation."

Posted: Jun 17, 2019

Category: Social Media

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**Guest post written by Scott Aumann, originally featured on The Legit Musician blog.

"The main graphics banners on social media is one thing that we need to get correct to make a big impact [on social media]. The only problem is that each platform has their own way of displaying these graphics...Let’s start with sizes for each platform."

Posted: Jun 10, 2019

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post written by Sophie D’Orléans, singer and keyboard player for The Sophistocrats (Canadian Smooth Jazz band).

"After spending 3 years and 4000km away from home, I wanted to move back to my hometown. I left my mountainous college town knowing that all my musical connections would be very far, yet it was what I needed to do for my personal growth. Trying to keep a ‘band’ together at a distance has been challenging in ways I didn’t suspect, while other difficulties I had predicted never happened."

Posted: Jun 3, 2019

Category: Fans

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**Guest post written by Jordan Gates, of Megaphone Agency.

"In this digital age of music streaming and social media, it is easier than ever to objectively measure an artist’s reach and influence. Whether you like it or not, every social media site and music streaming platform is collecting loads of data about their users. This information can be used to your advantage to draw powerful insights about your audience."

Posted: May 28, 2019

Category: Show Booking

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**Guest post written by Scott Cooper, talent buyer for Testarossa Winery and Sam's Chowder House and previously syndicated music journalist for newspapers across the country.

"As a Talent Buyer...I only book via email. Emails are a traceable record of who said what and the details of the agreement. Sometimes I can even tell if I want to book the band just by how well or poorly the email is formatted. So what to include or exclude in your email? There are certain things I want to see and other things I don’t want to see..."

Posted: May 20, 2019

Category: Fundraising

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**Guest post written by Dave Cool, Director of Artist & Industry Outreach at Bandzoogle, originally featured on Hypebot.com.

"The demise of PledgeMusic and the hundreds of musicians left in its wake are a sadly familiar story for music industry veteran Dave Cool of Bandzoogle. "The company takes on millions in investment to support rapid growth," writes Cool. "Flashy headlines ensue." But when things fall apart, too often it's the unsuspecting musicians that suffer."

Posted: May 13, 2019

Category: Touring

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**Guest post written by Ellisa Sun, Jazz/Soul musician formerly based in San Francisco currently full-time RVing across the USA.

"200 days ago, my partner Ken and I left our home base in Oakland, CA to spend one year full-time RVing and playing as many shows as we can to build an audience, learn about the industry, and hopefully earn enough money to survive...the following 10 Things I’ve Learned are more focused towards DIY Musicians like myself..."

Posted: May 6, 2019

Category: Online Presence

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**Guest post written by Dave Cool, an excerpt from Bandzoogle’s free online guide "How to make a website for your music".

"If you’re actively promoting a new album or looking to book more gigs, you’ll need to have a specific EPK or Press Kit section on your website to centralize information for media and bookers. With an EPK page, they can quickly find all the details they need. So here are the essential elements to include in your EPK..."

Posted: Apr 29, 2019

Category: Live Performance

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**Guest post written by Wade Sutton of Rocket to the Stars Artist Services.

"You know how difficult it can be for bands to create leverage when trying to negotiate better guarantees from venues? Well something is happening in Pennsylvania that is going to make that even more difficult ... and musicians nationwide should be keeping an eye on this because it is something that could spread to other states."

Posted: Apr 23, 2019

Category: Songwriting

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**Guest post written by Chris Huff, originally featured in the Disc Makers Blog.

"If you are interested in writing lyrics with depth, you need a deep artistic well to draw from. All output requires input, and as a lyricist, I recommend you begin with words."

Posted: Apr 15, 2019

Category: Touring

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**Guest post written by Ellisa Sun, Jazz/Soul musician formerly based in San Francisco currently full-time RVing across the USA.

"100 days ago, me (Ellisa Sun) and my partner Ken Michienzi decided to leave our homes in Oakland, CA, purchase a used 30-foot Winnebago, and hit the road to play shows throughout the USA. Here’s what we’ve learned so far..."

Posted: Apr 8, 2019

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post written by Matt Star as featured on The Music Entrepreneur HQ.

"Have you ever thought of yourself as the owner of a corporation? Guess what… you are. If you’re a working musician, a session or touring player, your company is called YOU, Inc...Knowing what you have to offer and what it is worth is the first step to creating a sustainable career..."

Posted: Apr 1, 2019

Category: Merch

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**Guest post written by Imri Merritt aka M, originally featured on the Rush Order Tees Blog.

"In this post, I’ll go over some of the tried and tested band merch, explain what they are, and why they are popular. This should give you some ideas for creating customized swag that will excite your fans and bring in some bucks. They asked me to list 10, but I’m turning it up to 11."

Posted: Mar 25, 2019

Category: Fundraising

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**Guest post written by Jennifer Hughes, staff writer at Know Your Instrument and enjoyer of traveling to new/obscure places and checking out new indie bands.

"Independent musicians often don’t have enough money to spend for renting rehearsal spaces and studios, paying graphic artists and photographers for album art, hiring professionals for music production and promotions, touring and the like. When a crowdfunding campaign is done right, it could help musicians get the exposure and the backers they need for their venture."

Posted: Mar 18, 2019

Category: Touring

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**Guest post written by Michelle McAfee, founder of Songbones, a small magazine/podcast for grassroots singer-songwriters..

"In September, I toured the southwest with another singer-songwriter for two weeks. We decided to do this tour differently. To weave other passions into the fabric of our days on the road. This didn’t necessarily make the tour easier, but it certainly made it an adventure! One that I will always remember."

Posted: Mar 11, 2019

Category: Giving Back

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**Guest post written by Jamie Wyman, singer-songwriter and Executive Director of The Great Blue Song Project.

"How many times have you heard people say, “I always wanted to learn to play the guitar” or, “I wish my parents made me practice the piano when I was a kid”? You are one of the few who followed through. And now that you have nurtured your musical superpower, you must use it for good. Here are five ways you can use your musical powers for good..."

Posted: Mar 4, 2019

Category: Performance Rights Organizations

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**Guest post written by Scott Aumann, originally featured on The Legit Musician blog.

"I am always surprised at how many musicians I talk with that really have no idea what a Performance Rights Organization is, or what it does for artists. I’m not just talking about indie musicians either. Some well-known national acts are in the same boat and could learn some things from this post. Let me explain how you can become a pro by joining a P.R.O."

Posted: Feb 25, 2019

Category: Marketing

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**Guest post written by Nicholas Rubright, founder and editor at Dozmia, and lead guitarist for the band Days Gone By.

"with email marketing, you have direct contact to some of your most passionate fans...While [touring] can be a great way to gain exposure to a new audience, if you want to develop good relationships with the venues you're performing in, it’s also important that you get your existing fans to come out to the show...With these things in mind, how do you leverage your email list to get people to come to your show?"

Posted: Feb 19, 2019

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post written by Donna Maurer, a contributor on multiple music blogs and lover of creating helpful articles for her fellow musicians and music lovers.

"If you want to be successful as a musician today, you must learn to diversify your income streams. That way, when the live gigs and album sales slow down, you’ll still have money coming in from other areas to keep you going until things pick up...Here are some unique and creative ways to make money when your career hits a lull."

Posted: Feb 11, 2019

Category: Music Streaming

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**Guest post written by Chris Senner, keyboardist for Vinyl Theatre and founder of Keyboard Kraze.

"Everyone knows that Spotify is one of the most important platforms for musicians in today's day and age. However, most people don't understand why...The Spotify Artists App allows musicians to track their results and see cold hard numbers on what a song that is connecting looks like."

Posted: Feb 4, 2019

Category: Touring

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"Winter is in full swing and it’s been a particularly brutal one due to the polar vortex that swept across the United States this past week...I wanted to write an article with some tips for touring during winter, as I’ve done so numerous times both as a performer and as a part of a tour crew and wanted to share some of the things I’ve learned along the way."

Posted: Jan 28, 2019

Category: The Musician Business

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**Guest post written by Carlos Castillo of Schwilly Family Musicians - music marketing strategist, web designer, live performance recordist, international road-tripper, lap steel player, and Captain of the Schwilly Family.

Posted: Jan 22, 2019

Category: Social Media

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**Guest post written by Charles Berthoud, originally featured on the iStudios Blog.

"There are basic pre-requisites to building a large following - posting engaging content, posting regularly, using appropriate hashtags - which we basically all know and understand. So I'm going to skip to 5 quick, easily-implemented tips that will boost your social to levels you would never have expected, if you carry them out on a daily basis."