Aspiring electronic music producer

[nightsabermusic]

Hey guys, my name is Ben, it is my dream to someday be a successful musician

I have been doing this a very long time, and just pretty recently created a new artist identity. it seems to be going well but,
what i really struggle with is figuring out how to monetize...

my current ideas are selling shirts online, crowdfunding or something like that? but even those aren't really great ideas, i am not famous enough to make a living with those

i know music isn't supposed to be fast lane, but i see no reason why, someone can't figure out how to make it be. Why can't it be the same as any other online business?? the problem with music is, streaming doesn't pay enough. and very few people buy. I want to figure out some kind of other solution

I am thinking about just focusing on licensing, royalty free music sites. but i am really not sure what i should do. i am kind of at a crossroads, and hoping to get some advice or ideas

thank you guys,
-Ben

 

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[Vermilion]

Hey @nightsabermusic, welcome man. I am glad someone is interested in music here and try to make a living out of it. I love music so much especially EDM stuff. Don't question music is it a fastlane or not. Fastlane is simply a mindset. I am practicing in FL Studio for quite some time and some other programs and I am having fun with it.

Making money of Spotify or similar platforms is tough, but it is definitely possible. I know some of the guys who are making a living of producing music. Key is just to put your music out there as much as possible and get a feedback that will put you on the right direction. Also read blogs like:

- EDM News on EDM Sauce | Interviews, Reviews
- Your EDM | Electronic Dance Music News & EDM Reviews
- EDM.com - The Latest Electronic Dance Music News, Reviews & Artists

This could help also:

How To Make $100,000 A Year From Spotify

About that selling shirts stuff, you definitely need to get known first before taking this step.

Good luck, and remember have fun.

 

[Parker P]

Welcome to the forum. There are very few of us here who are into producing electronic music.

Becoming a lucrative electronic music producer is extremely hard. Not only do you have to be damn good at producing but you have to have an audience, a fan base, and connections within the industry to become successful. With the things you said (shirts, streaming), those ideas are really only possible if you have a large following. If you don't, it'll be hard to profit.

If you don't have a large following already and you care a lot about making money from producing music, you're going to have to do a lot of things to make money. You can do freelancing, such as mixing and mastering, producing songs or jingles for podcasts and things of that sort. Or, you can make hip-hop beats and sell them to rappers.

But a lot of the wealthy and successful music producers out there have honed their craft, built a massive following, and utilized it. Most electronic music producers' money comes from constantly playing shows. However, you need a booking agent to be able to play a lot of shows, and you only get a booking agent if you have a decent following.

I'm only speaking from the viewpoint of an electronic music producer so what I have said does not apply to different kinds of musicians.

I hope everything goes well.

 

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[GDIBass]

I used to produce/DJ, and I have some producer/DJ friends who have "made it." I will tell you that making it in that industry is very difficult, and even making it "big" won't really make you that successful. My friends who have made it are touring ALL the time, but even with the frequent touring they live in a place with roommates. If you really want to live like a king you don't just have to make it bit, you have to make it huge.

There are ways to monetize and make a little bit of money, but they're typically very very competitive markets. If you want to make money completely based on being a producer then your best bet is to produce really good tracks, push them out to the right distribution networks (youtube channels, soundcloud, paid promotion, whatever) and get your music heard. You'll also want to relentlessly market yourself. Only then will you actually be able to sell merch.

With that said there are plenty of other routes to take. If you are a great producer and a decent teacher then you can go the educational way. Create tutorials and charge for them. Create a youtube channel where you give out tips and let people watch you produce (think SeamlessR). Stream on youtube/twitch. There are lots of options, most of them also crowded.

Good luck...

 

[GregDott]

Check out bensound.com for a potential angle.

This guy produces tons of varied kinds of music, and puts a bunch of it out there to be used royalty free (there is an option to pay royalties depending on use, if no attribution is given). By doing so, he has massive reach. I'm now aware of his varied talents because I created a mobile game for a client last year, and needed to find something that could be used for free (just need to give attribution, which further extends his market reach).
I might use some of his tracks if I need to create a commercial or another game. And look, I just so happen to be performing the task of advertising his services. For free. Under no duress.

Might not be the most appealing way to go for an aspiring musician, but if your objective is money... you might just have to bend to the market if you're set on pursuing music.

 

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[nightsabermusic]

Hey @nightsabermusic, welcome man. I am glad someone is interested in music here and try to make a living out of it. I love music so much especially EDM stuff. Don't question music is it a fastlane or not. Fastlane is simply a mindset. I am practicing in FL Studio for quite some time and some other programs and I am having fun with it.

Making money of Spotify or similar platforms is tough, but it is definitely possible. I know some of the guys who are making a living of producing music. Key is just to put your music out there as much as possible and get a feedback that will put you on the right direction. Also read blogs like:

- EDM News on EDM Sauce | Interviews, Reviews
- Your EDM | Electronic Dance Music News & EDM Reviews
- EDM.com - The Latest Electronic Dance Music News, Reviews & Artists

This could help also:

How To Make $100,000 A Year From Spotify

About that selling shirts stuff, you definitely need to get known first before taking this step.

Good luck, and remember have fun.

Hey Vermilion! Thank you for taking the time to reply.

That article about how to make a grand on Spotify a year is pretty cool. It definitely is a possible thing to do!

The only thing that i kind of struggle with, is it involves pitching your music to countless of the modern day "gatekeepers", people who own playlists and YouTube channels usually...

It is just very hard to do this endlessly and recirve very little feedback or response. I wish that there was a more "direct to fan" type approach I could take...

I hate leaving the decision of whether or not my music is good enough up to gatekeepers. They usually have a pretentious taste. I feel like this takes the control over my career out of my hands and puts it in other people's hands

But to get the kind of numbers you need on Spotify to make that much money, on my own, I would definitely need to spend on advertising. The return on investment from what you earn on Spotify vs what u spend on Facebook ads is almost always negative... unless I am just not right it right?

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Welcome to the board Ben.

my current ideas are selling shirts online

If you think music/bests is a crowded industry, you ain't seeing nothing yet. IMO, selling shits is the worst idea ever.

 

[Deleted88861]

Hey guys, my name is Ben, it is my dream to someday be a successful musician

I have been doing this a very long time, and just pretty recently created a new artist identity. it seems to be going well but,
what i really struggle with is figuring out how to monetize...

my current ideas are selling shirts online, crowdfunding or something like that? but even those aren't really great ideas, i am not famous enough to make a living with those

i know music isn't supposed to be fast lane, but i see no reason why, someone can't figure out how to make it be. Why can't it be the same as any other online business?? the problem with music is, streaming doesn't pay enough. and very few people buy. I want to figure out some kind of other solution

I am thinking about just focusing on licensing, royalty free music sites. but i am really not sure what i should do. i am kind of at a crossroads, and hoping to get some advice or ideas

thank you guys,
-Ben

Cool post - Just came across it searching if there are any other music producers alongside myself on here, lol.

BTW - Totally agree with your above points regarding streaming incomes.