Do Relationships Matter in the Music Industry?
Relationships matter. This is both good and sad. Storytime: There’s a guy I went to high school with who recorded some rap songs and pushed them suuuuper hard on our local scene. Like, the first six months after we graduated (in 2011, in case you’re wondering), he DM’d me eight times on Instagram to ask […]
What the Fragmentation of Pop Culture Means for Artists
I was struck by this article recently. It’s a column by Bob Lefsetz, and on the off-chance that you don’t want to spend your next six minutes reading it, I’ll give you the SparkNotes version of the main idea: New music is declining in popularity, not because new music is bad – but because it’s […]
How to Sell Band Merch Online
Merch fulfillment can be kind of awful. I think so, at least. A couple of years ago, Tom and I put out an EP to honor our grandparents, and as part of the project, we decided to print a (very) small run of CDs using Disc Makers. They came out great… ⬆️ I’ve had these […]
How Indie Artists Should Start Marketing Their Music
I revamped my email welcome series like a month ago. (It was past time. Trust me.) Now, whenever a new subscriber downloads one of my checklists / starts one of my mini-courses / falls victim to another one of my scams to steal their email address, they get an intro email that asks a simple […]
How to Grow on TikTok in 2022
TL;DR – Here are six steps to grow on TikTok in 2022. Start posting (a lot) on TikTok. Follow accounts for inspiration. Build your brand. Jump on trends. Create content other people can interact with. Interact and connect with people like you’re a real person. I’m going to admit something that I almost definitely shouldn’t: […]
Which Is Better for Spotify Promotion: Ads or Playlist Pitching?
There’s an age-old debate in the music marketing world: Which tactic is better for Spotify growth: Facebook ads or playlist pitching? It’s a question that’s led to a bunch of hot takes (and, to be fair, plenty of nuanced conversations, too). There are people I respect on both sides of the divide. For instance, on […]
Ditto Review: A Detailed Look at the Music Distribution Service
Okay, to start this Ditto review, I’m going to say something that I probably shouldn’t… I’m actually a DistroKid user, myself. Not a great thing to admit off the bat in this post, right? But my bet is that, if you’re reading this, you’re probably deep into the details of determining which distributor is best […]
Musosoup Review: An Unbiased Look at the Platform Based on Real Campaigns
Is Musosoup worth it? Here’s my short answer: It can be. Artists can use Musosoup to get press coverage and playlist placements for their music. There are a lot of solid curators on the platform, and thanks to their submission model (which I’ll discuss in more depth below), campaigns are incredibly easy to set up […]
9 Best TikTok Promotion Services for Artists (2023)
Here are the top TikTok promotion services for artists in 2022: Before I get into each firm, I want to note that I’ve only tried one firm on this list; the rest of my analysis is based on my informal survey of what’s out there (using the sophisticated research techniques of Google search and email). […]
An Interview with Michael Walker from Modern Musician
I had a friend in college who was pretty into a band called Paradise Fears. Okay, I kind of shortchanged that. He wasn’t just “pretty into” them – actually, I’d say he was the definition of a Paradise Fears fan. He’d get hyped on their singles. He’d blast their albums. He’d pump their YouTube pop […]
