5 Ways You Don’t Understand Your Fans and Why They’re Tuning You Out

As an artist, it’s important to take a step back and ask yourself: do you really know who your actual fans? Here Chris Robley of CD Baby explains why communicating with, and having a fundamental understanding of who your fans are is essential to capturing their loyalty and fueling your…

What Promotional Platforms Give Artists That Soundcloud, Dropbox, Do Not

As the music industry continues to evolve and change, promotion has become more important than ever but has, unfortunately, gotten anything but easier. That said, there are a number of promotional platforms which can help artists market their music at a minimal cost. Sadly, free doesn’t necessarily mean effective. _________________________…

The Truth Behind The 1,000 True Fan Theory

For some time, a theory has existed in the music industry that, for an artist to have a sustainable if not particularly lavish career, they must have at least 1000, ‘true’ fans. Here we look at the reality of the math behind this idea. ___________________________________ Guest post by Bobby Owsinski…

How Spotify’s Continued Expansion Is Killing Niche Music Genres

While the rise of streaming is, in many ways, responsible for the music industry’s salvation, the vast majority of content streamed on platforms like Spotify generally tends to lean towards the pop/hip hop spectrum. As Thomas Steffens here explains could be bad news for more niche music genres like classical…

How Americans Are Using Twitter And What It Means For Music Marketing

According to a new study from Pew Research, Twitter usage in the US seems to have peaked at around 22%, with most of its content dominated by an even smaller percentage. Here we look into more of these numbers and what it means for artists and musicians on the platform….

TikTok: What Is It?

While many unfamiliar with the platform may be quick to dismiss TikTok as yet another frivolous video sharing platform, the reality is that TikTok can be an amazing opportunity for artists to expand their fanbase. _______________________________ Guest post by Randi Zimmerman of the Symphonic Blog If you haven’t heard about…

8 Great Music Video Techniques Anyone Can Use

There’s no limit to the approaches and techniques artists can apply to create original music, but in this piece we revisit some particularly effective and often low-budget ideas that have been utilized in the past, that any artist could borrow today. ______________________ Guest post by Gideon Waxman of Soundfly’s Flypaper…

Eliminating Obstacles To Music Business Success

In this piece we look at the importance of mindset when it comes to achieving success and eliminating obstacles in your both towards music industry success, and what it looks like to transform your mindset from negative to positive. ___________________________ Guest post by D Grant Smith of Soundfly’s Flypaper There’s…

What Artists Can Learn From The Success Of Beyoncé’s ‘Homecoming’ Special [Video]

While few can ever hope to compare to level of talent and success that Beyoncé has achieved, there are some valuable takeaways from her recent Netflix documentary ‘Homecoming’ that all artists can learn from. ________________________ Guest post by James Shotwell of Haulix Beyoncé is a once in a generation talent,…

Building Your Dream Team: The Music Producer

In this edition of Building Your Dream Team, AWAL breaks down the who, what, when, where, and why of the music industry’s sonic explorer, the producer, looking at what role they perform, why it is that you need one on your team, and how you can go about finding one….