Tag Archive for: networking

Goals You Set For Yourself

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As many of you already know, I’ve been offering personal coaching services since 2016, and seen some amazing breakthroughs with my clients. In every case, it’s best to get a conversation going to learn about what goals you set for yourself. In many cases, I help them to see the bigger picture and then find ways achieve those goals in a way that is very personal, and unique to each of them.

There are many myths about making music that floats around, which aren’t helpful for producers. I feel it’s important to debunk misinformation and share the most common goals I hear from my clients to help do that.

The two most common goals I hear from my clients are:
I want to become a known producer and get signed to multiple labels.
I want to become respected enough so I can tour.

The whole point of offering my coaching service is to help people get from where they are now to where they want to be in the future.

Having someone there to push you creatively can make a world of difference, so we might as well think big right? Big goals will often require big change, and I want to share my strategy to achieving the goals my clients wanted, but couldn’t imagine achieving themselves.

After you’ve set a goal, you need to imagine working backward to determining all the small, and many steps you’ll need to make to arrive there. The thing is, hard work will keep you focused on achieving your goals, but occasionally forces out of your control will make a big difference, one being known as luck.

There are many things you can’t control in your quest to become a known producer, mainly because getting known implies that you’ve been at the right place, at the right moment. Even an attempt to duplicate the step by step actions of another artist who achieved some level of success doesn’t mean those actions will work for you.

It’s very common for artists to try and replicate what others before him/her have done, which can work of course, but, the more likely result will be to be known as someone without originality if you follow someone’s steps to closely.

Now, thinking wide, long term is all fine and good and will test your vision, but often thinking too far ahead will distract you from what must be set in motion in the short term.

The truth is, wherever you want to go in music, you first need to produce a ton of tracks and find your path in that process. Bonus (check out a fool-proof way to know if your tracks sound good)

Now, one of the most common goals I bring people to set is to begin completing one track per week. Their main enemy in this process is getting attached to where the track will end up. It’s safe to say we all hope our music will get attention, will be played, will get signed, but these points are often uncontrollable. Bonus – easy ways to create tracks, and multiple tracks from just one idea.

Being signed, heard, or played out at clubs should not your final destination, this is simply one stage in the every growing process of your life as a musician. The proof is, low-quality music can often get a lot of attention while some fantastic tunes are ignored and get no play time. Why?

This leads me to the second most important goal I generally work towards, (which has been written about often on my blog) developing your network. In my opinion and in one way or another, everything comes down to that. SO much more than your gear, or the number of remixes under your belt, the support you can really count on is the people around you in the long run. Your network can help push you towards making bold work and great things, to outdo yourself, to grow via collaboration and inspiration.

In a very digital age many people have become less social, which can make going out and meeting new people harder. I get that. Yet, not being part of a strong network doesn’t mean you won’t create great music, it simply means without having that support you may not be pushed to create your best music.

Lastly, finding your path is a matter of what path you actually want. This can come to you in two ways: knowing what you love, what you love doing and what you do magnificently well. Whether you believe it or not, everyone has a talent, and through work and practice, that talent can be recognized world wide. So what’s yours? Some people are amazing at creating dynamic arrangements, others at running a label. When you can connect what you do naturally well with what you love doing, you’ll enter a zone of flow where you can achieve truly great things.

My destination as a coach is that zone ~ This is where I want to be leading people to. I find a lot of comfort in seeing my clients reach that point as it truly creates a fullness and purpose to the work they’re creating, as well as my role in the partnership.

In the end, am I trying to divert them from their initial goal of getting signed to labels and touring? No, not at all. What is true is that I’m preparing them to get there by focusing on the only thing they can control themselves: their own personal growth. To tour and be signed, implies to be in control of your art, part of a healthy and strong network, and finding a flow and confidence in yourself as an artist.

 

SEE ALSO :  Make Your Music Bucket List Happen

What Is A Mature Sounding Track?

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Recently, a video artist friend of mine was critical of a clip we were watching, and I was commenting about the audio portion of the video. We were both interested in each other’s point of view to better understand what a professional in different fields felt the video could improve on.

In any domain you’ll eventually find the connoisseur, this is someone with a great depth of knowledge in his/her field, and is always searching for the best within his area of expertise. We can think of wine, poetry, painting, fields where true excellence is sought after. In any area of interest the more you are part of that which you love, the more you’ll be able to distinguish the highest quality.

People with years of experience in any field will have a much deeper understanding and perspective than those fresh to the scene. Without question, an experienced ear will recognize fine details and maturity in the music and can quickly tell if the producer has been around for a little while. This brings up the question –

What is a mature sounding track?

Sometimes I hear sarcastic questions such as “how can dance music be mature”? Different people will always have different standards, yet in this post, I thought I’d share how I perceive a song, both from my engineering point of view but also from the perspective of a label owner.

Firstly, I believe song maturity goes beyond if “it’s good (or not).”  I’ve talked about if a song is good or not before but I’ll comment again because many people confuse maturity with if the track sounds good or not. I believe it has nothing to do with that. If we compare it to food or art, highly acclaimed works are often not accessible from the general public opinion. In music, the more you discover and expose yourself to, the more you recognize patterns, ideas, clichés. To sum up a song by “this is good” has no resemblance to what the track/song may have been intended to do. You’re likely judging based on your preferences, which is biased by how you feel or what trends you are following.

The song brings to light it’s initial intention. An experienced producer will have a particular idea in mind that will be made fairly clear when he makes his song. In some cases, he may have a second purpose working within that track. What I mean here is, what the listener decodes from the song might not be what it is initially suggested, as there might be a second, hidden message behind what is going on sound wise. This depth of songwriting can play a huge factor in demonstrating the craftsmanship of the producer.

The song has a clear voice and something to say. Hence the “aha” moment or the “wow” you might have after listening to just a few seconds of a song. Sometimes the light bulb moment may come only after an exhaustive and focused listening session, or after listening to the full song several times. What’s unique about electronic music is that very often there are no lyrics, yet through the use of sound textures, melodies, tensions, and releases, a producer can communicate a state of mind and emotion that words may not be able to express. Just like the word Saudade which comes from the Portuguese from Brazil only, describes a definite feeling that other languages can’t clearly relate to. The use of certain frequencies can suggest specific feelings, and moods, quite powerfully.  I’ve always felt the title of a song is critical and provides context for the music. As artists, we have the power to shape information to make a statement, which can be very powerful when presented right.

It’s not a matter of complexity or simplicity. I’ve had someone who felt that complexity was a sign of maturity. All the crazy tricks and effects up front,  yet the thing is, with experience, you realize that sometimes doing less will often have more impact than overdoing it. Like I said above, creating a wow effect on people is something, but to capture their attention over the whole duration of a song is often a wow effect in a more subtle way.

Time invested in the song doesn’t make it mature. If you spend 5 hours in a row working on a song, you might bring maturity to the song yet perhaps you’ll dilute the original essence of what you originally heard. Over the years, I’ve noticed the significant benefits of letting a project in early development sleep and settle for a time before returning to develop it further.

Timelessness is one of the central points. Songs that don’t age and those that seem to haunt you are often the results of something very well planned or completely improvised. But in one way, this is the often the result of well-paired elements coming together in the right way. There’s part knowledge, culture, innovation, exploration, risk and good taste. The thing that is magical is when someone, no matter how experienced, gets inspired by a moment of grace and comes up with something even himself, cannot explain. That part, which is often pure intuition, is what fascinates me. It is in those moments that you get the best out of yourself.

Guide to shameless self-promotion

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Let’s face it, self-promotion is certainly one of the most loved & hated topics musicians face on a daily basis. I mean, you make music, it’s hard to repress that inner compulsion of wanting to share your work to the world right? Finishing music and releasing your hard work to the world feels amazing. Receiving constructive feedback from people you respect will also help unlock obstacles that make us reach the level of production we aim for. But we have to get it out for others to hear right? This post will help you be being your guide to shameless self-promotion.

Many people see self-promotion as something they need to do, which can make it feel like a painful obligation.

Music is a very strong, and personal form of expression. As artists we want to know if our message is understood and appreciated by others. In a way it’s self validating. Proper self-promotion is always about how to do it in a way that is truly authentic, and not make us look like something we are not. Now that we understand this – there are a few facts we need to check in order to make our self promotion efforts work for us. I’m not talking about going viral on social media, but specifically your daily efforts on social media as a way to leverage our network, and create something useful.

The minute you understand that it’s not an obligation but more of a catalyst to get things done, the dynamic will automatically change. This is a process called reframing your train of thoughts.

If you share your music with the intent and idea that you’re trying to unite, bond and communicate something personal, a huge chunk of guilt be removed from the idea of self promotion.  Giving up on hustling sales and popularity will create a positive pivot in your career. We need to stop seeing the act of sharing music as a way to be seen, heard, known. 

I’ve been reading a really helpful book named “Designing your life” which approaches what you want out of life through the mind of a designer. The point of the book is – to become who you want, to have the life you want, you first need to self reflect, and ask yourself what is going on to pinpoint what issue you’d like to fix. In our case, our target here is to build a healthy and strong network.

Over the past weeks, I’ve come across a few articles that state the importance of your surroundings and contacts to achieve the level of success you want. One of the main reason I am where I am right now was that I’ve been lucky enough to have amazing people helping me along the way. Behind every success story, there’s often a dedicated team working in the shadows of that success. One of the ways to keep riding high is to constantly share your wins with your tribe, and go out of your way to make sure everyone in your tribe is appreciated and part of your success.

How to build and design your music life comes with at least 4 important teamsters:

  • The feedback. That guy has the culture of the music you’re making and loves the music you also love. Therefore, his input means something as long as he’s being honest, of course.
  • The knowledge. This member is someone who has technical knowledge you don’t have and can be answering critical questions in time you need it.
  • The creative. This person feels the trends, surfs the ideas better than no one. He can propose ideas that are unusual but that can be leading you to something. See this person as a muse.
  • The propaganda. If you are shaky with social medias, let this person rave about your music while you can post about other things. This person becomes the validator and that is useful for your success.

Finding your team takes years and can also be shifting over time. But you need to connect with others and build your network to find the gems.

Ok, so how can we apply that in practice? How do we get started from scratch?

  1. Don’t ask without giving first. I’ve made this #1 because this is often misunderstood. For instance, I often get emails from people giving me lot’s of compliments about my music, and quickly send me a follow up  email asking me to listen to their music and provide feedback. There’s nothing wrong with asking for feedback, but it doing so out of nowhere makes me question the integrity of their compliments in the first place. It takes a lot of time to gain someone’s attention and trust. Involving yourself with someone is an investment, and building a genuine relationship takes time and often cannot be made overnight.
    1. For networking, try: approaching and following people at your skill or experience level. You can and will grow with them. Leave feedback and appreciation on their music whenever there’s something you enjoy. Do not ask for anything in return.
    2. For social media, especially Twitter or Facebook – share the music you are really into right now, especially from artists that aren’t well known. People love discovering new artists, and if YOU are that artist and find someone spreading praise for you the feeling will be an amazing one.
  2. Be a supporter. You probably saw that video of the guy dancing in a festival in a super weird way, someone with a huge crowd following him comes to join the dancer, and just like that the party goes off.  The second guy joining is crucial, he is the social influencer, the supporter. In the same vein as the previous point, you can be that guy by being the first one who leaves comments on Soundcloud and proposes to play people’s music in a podcast (if you’re a DJ).
    1. For networking, try: Going to shows to meet people. The in-person contact never fails. If your contacts are abroad, try engaging conversation through messaging.
    2. For social medias, try: Offering your help to labels, in any way possible. This is an important way to be part of something. You have no idea how difficult it is to run a small label, so any help can be useful and appreciated. Look at what you are good at and see if you can help. Perhaps you can help with the blog, graphic design, website, PR, etc… If it’s a small organization at least one part of the label might need a hand. Then on your social medias, you can support and champion the label, which will bring many unsuspected contacts.
  3. Curiosity pays off. People think that approaching and forging relationships with fellow music producers involves talking about music. I’ve known artists that refused to forge any kind of contacts with people who initially approached them for music related reasons. They wanted to spend time with the person first to see if there was true chemistry. I believe many artists (to some degree) are social weirdos who often lack a variety of social skills. Being patient and curious will be essential in the way you engage with him/her, to make sure that person feels comfortable talking with you.
    1. For networking, try: reading articles, start conversations, think of how someone approached you in a way that made you feel great. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t just music-related. Apply this to others.
    2. For social medias, try: Share information about your own interests. People in general hate self-promotion if it’s constant but if it’s something that is either useful or occasional, it will be seen positively. So, if your feed is self-centred it’s going to be annoying for your contacts. I’ve seen some artists spend a lot of their time sharing their passion for traveling, food, clothing, cars or memes… We all know you like other things than music and if you can share what it is you’ll attract minds alike which can become supporters of your music, later on.
  4. Consistency is crucial. Not only for yourself but in others. Successful people have no tolerance for others who are inconsistent, unreliable. If you’re going to connect with someone, be there and always come back. I’ve built some solid contacts with some people who have been always sending me messages and be there for me. They won me over and now I love working with them.

In closing – within the book I was relating to, there is talk about creating a prototype to know which method of promotion feels and works best for you. To get comfortable communicating, sharing, showing your personal side,  you need a lot of practise to get into a groove. Building your network takes time. But once you found your way to work, you know you have a formula you can repeat and always feel good about.

SEE ALSO :  Find a track tester for your productions

Is My Song Good?

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I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked that question, and asked myself the same thing – is my song good? With experience releasing my own records and working on amazing projects that inspire me nearly every day, I know what I like in a song to call it good or know it’s potential. But what defines that exactly?

 

I believe there are 3 ways to look at your track to determine if your song is good.

  • Your personal feeling about the track. Can you listen to your track from beginning to end with your eyes closed? This is usually what many people (myself included) do to test it, some people swear by a car ride listen. In the end no matter how cliché this sounds, what YOU think is really important.
  • Feedback from others. I’ve been talking about the importance of your network and how to connect with other producers you can trust. Share your track with 5 closely trusted people and take in their feedback.
  • Professionals’ (real world) views. If you can find one to two guys that can play your tracks in real events or in podcasts, this is will be precious feedback. Playing your music among others will make little difference truly know – perhaps one sound is too loud or the arrangements is too wonky to mix. Listen to what they have to say.

 

Sometimes a change in mindset is key to breaking through barriers. Starting today, let’s re-shape your way of making and sharing your music.

I’ve seen some interesting success behind the concept I’ve been sharing with those I coach and will share it with you in this post. Before I do that I want to say that if your intentions are to get signed to a label – posting a full song on Soundcloud is a bad idea.

Even if your song is really good most labels don’t like that a track has been available or overheard before they’ve released it. In an ideal world, labels want to be the first ones to hear you and discover you. But the truth is, we all know how frustrating it is to reach out to them and never hear back.
Posting a snippet of about 1 minute 30 (to 2 minutes, maximum) is a good and safe bet.

With this preview you’ll show what your track has going for it, and your skills as a producer will be front and center.

Why not focus on making and developing ideas of 1 minute 30 that you expose and share on Soundcloud?

If this idea sounds like a bad one to you, try this experiment for a few weeks. For sure you’ll soon see what tunes get people’s attention and make a buzz. For sure you’ll find out that your assumptions might very well be wrong. Then go revisit any of those projects that were appreciated by the most people.

 

What you are doing here is very similar to A/B testing, a commonly used process in marketing for testing out different products to see how people like one from another. In this case we’re posting music, watching what get’s more attention, focusing on what listeners seem to want more of, and then finishing those tracks.
It’s all about presentation. Dress for success right?
You can go so far as to create enigmatic, invested EP of your own with great artwork. People definitely love that kind of presentation and it WILL draw attention. In the best case scenario (that I’ve recently seen happen) a label may notice this full package, and sign the project as is. If a label comes calling be sure you make them wait too long 🙂

The thing that makes a success isn’t one specific thing, it’s the combination of various assets: doing the right thing, at the right time, presented to the right people.

If Micheal Jackson released Thriller today, the odds of that album having the success it had back then would likely never have the same impact.
Another thing that’s important to consider is the question of what are people usually looking for in a new song?

  • Quality samples, effects.
  • A good balance of new ideas with something they can relate to.
  • Overall, tight arrangements, mixdown, (this can make a difference but don’t bet on that alone to save a pale idea).

In the end, it’s most important to remember this –
Don’t let other’s decide if your music is good.
Don’t let commercial results determine the success of your track.

 

As always I want to hear your thoughts and comments about this post. Feel free to share with your friends, and leave me a comment below.

JP –

SEE ALSO : Checklist to see if my song is finished

Using and Choosing an Alias

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Artist aliases have a colourful history that goes back centuries. Long before techno, stage names and pen names were common in music and literature especially, with artists often wanting to separate their david Bowiepublic personas from their private identities. Voltaire (aka François-Marie Arouet) and Bob Dylan (born Zimmerman) both wanted to break away from their pasts. David Bowie (born David Robert Jones) wanted to avoid confusion with Davy Jones, later the lead singer of The Monkees. And many of history’s biggest musicians and authors have wanted to disguise their genders (if women) or ethnic origins. There are as many motivations as there are people and contexts.

At the beginning of techno music, virtually everyone had an alias. It was part of the culture of techno for producers to want to remain faceless, with the idea that techno was supposed to be all about the music, instead of the egos. At the risk of getting too nostalgic, it was one of the things that made techno different.
One of the beautiful things with aliases is that they allow artists to channel one musical direction into a distinct brand, which frees them to explore many different projects or genres without fear of confusing or alienating their followers.
Two of the biggest examples in electronic music are Richie Hawtin’s Plastikman moniker and Aphex Twin, each with their own identifiable sound and even logo. Some artists, like Daft Punk, will take the concept even further, donning elaborate costumes during live performances to avoid ever showing their faces.
For artists like these  — or like Bowie, who probably opened the door for these kinds of stage personas — using an alias can be a way to get around personal fears or insecurities and achieve complete creative freedom. In the 1990s, against the backdrop of Detroit’s urban decay, the city’s underground techno scene went all in on aliases, with many artists channelling superhero personas or other fictional characters to envision the future of music in a dystopic world.

So let’s say you’ve decided to use an alias. That’s likely the easy part. But how do you find the right one for you?

When it comes to techno music, there are often trends with aliases. One recent one was to remove the vowels and place all letters in caps. Another was to swap the first letters of the first and last names. But if you’re like for something more original, here are some tips for finding your own alias:

If you already have a nickname, use it. The whole idea behind an alias is that it’s something that is unique to you, and that people will quickly associate with your music. If your friends (especially those in your music circles) have given you a nickname because they think it expresses something interesting or special about you, they might just be onto something.

Use a vocal imitation of a sound (an onomatopoeia). Not many people know this, but I got my own alias by using an onomatopoeia (like swish, hiss, buzz, etc.) for a sound that I felt captured the feel of my music. There are no official spellings for sounds because everyone will hear them differently, so you can get really creative with this.

Do a random article search on Wikipedia. This might sound a bit strange, considering that I just said how important it was for an alias to be something unique to you. As a springboard to further research or new ideas though, Wikipedia can be a great resource. Just enter the first keyword that comes to mind and go from there, jumping off from article to article whenever something piques your interest.

Have fun with languages. If you’re having difficulty finding the right alias in your language, why not explore a different one? This can be especially fitting if you have a multicultural background yourself or speak different languages, or even if you just have a special bond with another culture and feel that its language speaks to you in some way.

Whether you follow one of these approaches or find your own, the important part to remember is that your alias is your brand. It should translate something essential about your music, and be striking and original enough that people will hear it and immediately think of you.

Have fun with it! The process of choosing an alias can be extremely constructive, since it invites you to explore what your music is all about.

SEE ALSO :  The next big thing? 

   

Hacking the Self-Release Option

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Self-releasing an album or EP has become a growing trend for producers who want to get their music out. It’s not hard to see why: with the proliferation of producers, finding a label to release your music has become increasingly competitive. Especially if your goal is to release on vinyl, you can have a long road ahead of you. Everyone wants a vinyl release, but the pressing plants have limited capacity and waiting lists are very long. This can lead many to give up on finding a label and try to go it alone.

searching label, label hunting, demo submission, self-publish, entrepreneurTempting as it can seem though, the self-release option can also be a trap. The last thing you want to do is make a rash decision based mostly on your frustrations, because you can end up regretting it for a long time to come.

The self-release option can make sense for some people, but the decision should be made for the right reasons, and taken only after careful consideration.

As artists, we believe in our own music. It’s our baby, and this self-confidence is what motivates us to keep going. The downside of this is that it makes it extremely difficult to find constructive lessons in failure, or to interpret rejection as anything other than a personal blow.

It’s not personal. The truth is that if you’ve knocked at tons of doors and no one has answered, there could be a reason. This is definitely not the time to go for vinyl! It’s important to heed the red flags, and to learn from them. It could be that the music isn’t there yet, that the label match is wrong, or that the timing is wrong for the genre/style you’re aiming for. Sometimes, ideas can be outdated… but what’s “passé” one day can make a comeback tomorrow, so it’s important to get feedback from active DJs too.

The fact is that timing is crucial. It’s been said that a hit happens when the right artist arrives with the right song, at the right moment. Today, pretty much everyone would agree that Michael Jackson’s Thriller is a classic, but at some point, the record label had to make a tough call about whether the album would resonate with people. Of course, it’s more of an art than a science to try to gauge if a song might break through. But this is what labels do.

With this being said, there are times when self-releasing could pay. But in addition to having the right reasons, you also need to be smart and strategic in how you pursue it. Here are some tips for making the self-release option work for you:

Release on Soundcloud with a free download. There are pros and cons to taking this route. On the plus side, it allows you to consolidate and build up your fan base. But be careful: if you’re letting your eagerness get the best of you, you could also be wasting an opportunity. Just imagine — you’ve given your EP away on Soundcloud, only to get an email a few months later from that sick label you thought had passed you up. Labels can take time to get back to you — a lot of time. Don’t let your lack of patience get in the way of sound judgment.

Release on Bandcamp. Bandcamp has been positioning themselves as the best new way to reach the masses, providing artists with a great platform to gain new followers while getting  paid for their music. You can stream your music, sell it in any format, and set your price, with a pay-what-you-can option that lets you set the minimum amount. If you do go with Bandcamp, be sure to link your page to your Soundcloud profile to get the most from it.

Pursue undercover releases. Finding a middleman to release your music can be a very smart move for your career. Having your music vouched for by someone with reach or influence lends it credibility, and lets you tap into established networks that can carry your music to eager ears. There are a couple different routes you can try here:

  1. This might sound controversial, but try reaching out to music blogs and pirate sites personally, sending your music to them and seeing if they’d be interested in sharing it. If you offer it to them as an exclusive scoop, they’ll be more likely to boost it. (So go site by site, giving them a week or two to respond before moving down your list). We have to think of any outlet with a big following as today’s answer to traditional broadcasters. If a huge number of people are listening to what a site pumps out, then why not try to become their ally? Plus, these sites are usually very knowledgeable about what people want to hear, so they might be able to give you some useful feedback.
  2. Give it to DJs personally by contacting them one on one, especially if they have a podcast. Here too, they’ll be more likely to bite if you offer it to them in exclusivity. Even better is if the DJ does a podcast for an awesome label. If they pick it up, your music will be touched by the label’s soft blessing in a way, and you’ll be killing two birds with one stone by riding the label’s coattails and boosting your exposure even more.

Whichever way you go, always, always be sure to target your outreach carefully, thinking strategically about how to connect with your audience. Whether we’re talking about publications, blogs, DJs or labels, the way to grab their attention is always by making a human connection. It’s hard work, but you can’t cut corners with this. The more time and energy you invest in finding the right people and personalizing your messages, the greater chance you’ll have of piercing through the noise and getting noticed.

Good luck, I’m also here to help, as always.

 

SEE ALSO :   Strategic Guide To Releases Planning And Production

2016: Studio Trends and My Clients

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It’s been a crazy first year for the audio services I founded in November 2015. Things really got started with the website in January, and it fired up right away. I thought this would be a good time to look back at 2016, and to share some of the year’s highlights: of the plugins I used the most, the projects I worked on, and the producers I had the great pleasure to work with.

Where to start?

Let’s begin with some numbers. With online sales alone, I completed over 300 projects by early December, though the number for all sales combined is closer to 350 projects for the entire year. This includes sound design, mixing, mastering, and training services, both online and in person. This was indeed my biggest year since 2004.

Add to that my online coaching service that reached 450 people in 6 months. It’s been a bit overwhelming to be sure, but being able to help so many people fuels me as well.

Overall, the breakdown of services offered by my studio in 2016 looks like this:

Mastering: 43%

Mixdown: 24%

Arrangements: 15%

Coaching: 15%

Other: 3%

And in terms of musical styles, it broke down like this:

Tech house/house: 24%

Techno: 33%

Deep/dub techno: 14%

Hard techno: 4%

Experimental/Ambient/Chill out/IDM: 15%

Pop: 3%

Hip hop: 7%

The most frequent requests were:

  • Rounded lows.
  • Warm bass.
  • Punchy.

I’m really happy that people have generally stopped asking for the music to be “LOUD,” as this was a common request years back. In 10 years, I’ve seen that people’s tastes have slowly evolved, and that they’re more and more into the warmer sound that analog provides.

Plugins

In terms of plugins, these are some of the ones I used the most this year. In general, I try to create a different chain of compressors and EQ depending on the label or client, to create a unique aesthetic. One thing a lot of people don’t realize is that the combination of various effects adds grain to the sound. It’s like combining ingredients when you cook: you can try 2 different brands of a same spice, and the results will differ subtly.

Universal Audio Ampex ATR-102 Mastering Tape Recorder Plug-In

This is certainly a very creative tool, as well as a nice mixing plugin. It adds saturation and will beef up flimsy parts. Anything that goes through it seems to come out in perfect shape.

 

Sonalksys CQ1

This is certainly the best multiband tool out there — and trust me, I’ve tried them all. You will need multiband for mixing, but you can get very interesting results if you use drastic measures for sound design. This one never fails.

 

Harrison 32C

This is definitely an underestimated player in the EQ world, as I rarely hear people talk about it. This year was when I started using it almost every day though. It has this little thing that makes lows so warm.

 

Bx_Opto

A simple compressor, but it works like a charm. Brainworx never fails to create quality products that use simple and intuitive controls. A huge help on percussions.

 

Space Strip

A fun little tool for sound design, it creates really cool spaces, as the name suggests. Throw it on the master and watch it craft lovely atmospheres out of so little.

 

Reason 9

The DAW of the year without a doubt. If you’re one of those people that has been overlooking Reason, run now to get yourself the trial and be ready to have your jaw drop in awe. Rewired with Ableton, it is the most powerful tool to get over any creative block. It also does crazy (I mean it) sound design.

 

Adaptiverb

This reverb didn’t get the attention it deserved. If you’re not familiar with Zynaptiq, they really make state-of-the-art products. These guys are machines. Adaptiverb is hard to explain, so I’ll leave the descriptions to them, but suffice to say that it is not your typical reverb. It’s certainly a nice add-on to your plugin collection, as it can form creamy textures out of simple pads.

People

 

One of the things that really got me motivated this year was having clients who were interested in pursuing a long-term association with me. They’d come to me for all of their mixing needs so that they could focus their energies on recording new ideas. Some wanted their studio sessions arranged around songs. It’s great to have multiple contracts with someone, because you start by working with a reference artist, until eventually that shifts and the producer starts referencing themself.

It would be impossible to list all the clients I had in 2016 whose work I loved, but here are a few of the highlights that come to mind:

Pachyderme

From Argentina, Franco worked with my buddies at 31337 Records, producing a superb palette of ambient sounds, intricately organized into a beautiful microcosm.

 

Kike Mayor

Kike has been one of my most loyal clients this year, as we worked together to define his sound as something “fun and sexy,” as we both liked to call it. Kike’s style is hypnotic and catchy, and he always comes to me with projects I love.

 

Debbie Doe

Debbie had a breakthrough this year, as she managed to pull her very first project together and nail down a growing number of important gigs. This Lebanese-Montreal artist is not afraid of reaching into her Arabic influences to craft some exotic moods.

 

Ghini-B

Another very serious producer from Italy/France who booked me regularly to handle mixes and mastering for his music. He’s a nerd collector with a massive modular set-up, and he prefers focusing on designing quirky house instead of spending time on his computer.

 

Andrey Djackonda

From Moldova, Djackonda was a nice discovery for me this year. The guy makes really organic techno with dub influences. It’s been a headnodder for my mastering sessions. You know you have some groovy music when you start spending time shaping the track into these groove monsters.

 

 

 

Stereo_IMG

From Montreal, Stereo_IMG is a serious sound designer who builds weird devices to extract found sounds that are both beautiful and intriguing. Working with him in the studio turned some of his tunes into Audion-sounding gems.

 

Wiklow

A programmer and kind soul, Wiklow came to me for mentoring, and we spent the next 2 months discussing music philosophy and the mysteries of human behaviour. This fantastic trip of anything-but-music-related talks led him to create a beautiful EP that would make Jan Jelinek blush.

 

Ruslan

Ruslan runs a label in New York named Minim, and he has been one of the most supportive people for me this year. We worked together closely, talking almost daily, and it was wonderful to see him at MUTEK to dance to Barac’s set.

 

Dom Varela

A young producer from Laval who I’ve seen grow slowly, finally releasing his first track this year. It’s been a pleasure to coach him and work closely with him on his development.

 

Bmind

This was my most demanding mixdown this year, but man did it turn out well. Bmind is an artist I adore. His free-jazz perspective makes his music feel like a spiritual journey through an LSD trip. Nothing easy, but never flaky.

 

Mod303

Not to forget also 2 other clients who were super busy with me, Isaac and Luis.

These guys make albums in a matter of months, and each time, it’s spot on. Not only are they dedicated, but there’s a real depth to every song they make.

There are so many others I could mention, and I have to apologize if you’re disappointed that your name isn’t featured here. But the truth is that working with ALL of my clients has been amazing! 2016 has been an incredible year, and 2017 will be too, without a doubt.

 

 

Should I Remix for Free?

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If you’ve been hanging out on SoundCloud, uploading some of your music productions, commenting on other artists’ tracks, and exchanging a few words here and there, you may have been invited to collaborate at some point. If you haven’t invested much time in networking on SoundCloud, you’re really missing out on one of the most important hubs for music producers.

There’s been a huge emphasis in recent years placed on the number of followers producers can rack up. I even get people hitting me up every now and again to offer me 10,000 new followers, if I pay them 100$ or so.

Yet this craze over followers is nothing but a mirage.

Record labels won’t bite if they see an empty profile with two songs, but 1000 followers. And it’s not only labels who’ll see right through this. Anyone who’s even slightly curious or discerning will be struck by the awkwardness of such a hollow presentation.

Genuine connections, however, can go a long way. The more you interact with people directly (through SoundCloud’s horrible messaging system…), the more you run the chance of being invited to do a podcast or a remix. It’s even a pretty frequent occurence for active users.

Remixing for free can gain you valuable exposure and connections.Yet with this being said, if you’re at the beginning of your musical journey as a producer, you honestly shouldn’t expect to get money for this, not even if they propose royalties on sales. The truth is that the current state of sales in the industry is pretty discouraging for all but the larger record labels. Exposure and connections are thus the name of the game, and networking is the way to get you there.

It comes down to these key points:

  • Gain exposure, get heard. Considering that there’s not much money to be made, and that you want to expand your visibility on SoundCloud, one thing you can hope for is that the remix or podcast you make will help you reach a new audience. The music scene is composed of countless separate micro-worlds, and you’ll never manage to reach them all. Be strategic: try to reach the ones that are looking for music like yours. It’s a common mistake to assume that casting a wide net will succeed in garnering you enough people who will love what you do. But that’s actually counter-productive. You’re better off reaching one true fan than 100 people who care more or less. That one impassioned fan will spread the word and carry your music around. But you need to be exposed.

 

  • Target the right people, make your network work. Following the previous point, if you connect with people who love the same music as you, your music will find its way to the appropriate people. Again, you have to think strategically. Too often I see someone agree to do a remix without first having done research into who they are about to work with. On the other end, you could end up saying no to someone who is close friends with one of your favourite artists, or who attends a club regularly and passes music he discovers off to local DJs who love the kind of music you craft. The point is that good networking involves enlisting others to spread the wheel of music for you. And the same goes for you if you ask other DJs to remix your music productions: if someone believes in the music, they’ll pass it to people who will play it.

 

  • The rocky road. The state of DJing is pretty interesting these days. If you think about it, a lot of DJs play digital music they get for free, and will only pay for vinyls. Digital sales, at least for underground music, are somewhat stable, but haven’t evolved much at all in the last 5 years. For some reason, people have a hard time paying for underground music. They prefer to get it for free through their DJ friends. So with this in mind, accepting to remix for a label or a fellow producer is more about hoping that you’ll connect with someone who will get you closer to your goals: to release with a specific label; to be associated with a producer that inspires you; to get more gigs; or whatever they may be. This comes with a price though, and remixing for free might be one of those little discomforts that are necessary to get you closer to your destination.

Group of Friends with Digital Tablet

So as a producer, if you’re facing the option of being invited to work for free, consider these 3 things:

  • Are you inspired by the original song?
  • Is the invitation coming from someone with an interesting reach (fans, artists, community, promo)?
  • Who else is involved? Is there anyone in their circle that inspires you?

 

Ask yourself these questions, and feel free to ask the people who are inviting you to collaborate. If you’re going to do it for free or for a few bucks, it’d better be a fun gig!

Now just one final tip: you too may at one point invite someone to remix your music, and they might be considering these same points. So if you really want to work with an artist you love, it could be worthwhile to invest some money into having that special artist remix your track. Paid artists are often a good source of promotion to get your music where you want it to be.

Find a track tester for your productions

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This might be one important post, so consider taking 5 minutes to go through it carefully. You probably already know how important it is to test the music you’re creating, but the big question is, how do you test your music effectively?

you need DJs who will test your music properly

First, there are a few traps people fall into. I’ve said it many times, but succumbing to the myth that your music isn’t important if it isn’t signed to a label is a very common mistake — even for experienced producers. No joke. The truth is that your music is important simply because it’s yours. It deserves real love and attention, and that means proper treatment.

So how do you make sure to test your music properly?

In a word: you need beta-testers.

Track testers are experienced DJs who regularly play in all kinds of events, both big and small. The fact that someone plays often will ensure that your music gets inserted into their sets alongside other tracks, and that it will be heard by live crowds. The great news is that thanks to the internet, you can work with DJs across the globe and test its reception in different countries.

Here are a few tips on how to proceed:

Find a track tester to test your music properly Follow artists/DJs on Soundcloud. I’ve said it in past posts, but the importance of connecting with people on Soundcloud can’t be overstated. If you follow artists and DJs and engage with them, you can make some great contacts that will be beneficial to you both. Find people who enjoy, support, and comment on the music you really love. This is a good way to make sure the people you invest your time and energy into genuinely share the same tastes, which is a crucial factor in finding your beta-tester.

Share music in private. If you’ve gotten into the game of sending music to labels only to have your experiences end in frustration, then working in a one-on-one setting can be much more interesting. Don’t just send a random link to a DJ though. Take the time to connect with the person first, and then share a track after you’ve made contact. It feels special to receive music privately after a nice introduction — and even more so if the music fits.

Get feedback and tweak. This part is a bit trickier. If you want the DJ to play your song in a club, you’ll need to let them download it first. Be sure your mixdown is right, and it’s even better if the track is mastered too. Once the track is played, try to follow up to get some feedback. Be clear that you’re not fishing for compliments, but that you’re genuinely seeking constructive criticism. This is the only way to improve your track.

And very importantly, make sure the person will not share the track with their DJ friends! 

difficult producerYou have no control over this of course, and that’s why you need to be extra careful about whom you share your music with. I’ve seen some really awkward situations where unreleased material accidentally got into the hands of a vast network of people. There are even online groups where members create pools of music to be shared abroad. If your music finds it way into one of these groups, the good news is that you’ll be known by a lot of music collectors (who for the most part aren’t DJs). The bad news, though, is that your track will have been burned, and there’s basically no way to release it after that.

So sometimes, a smart strategy could be to sacrifice a great track you feel could get you attention, even if it means giving it away. If it works, then the benefit in the end could be much higher than the loss. I myself have done this multiple times with netlabels, and it often paid off.

 

SEE MORE:  Guide to shameless self-promotion

Make the Leap from DJ to Producer

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Many people dream of being able to enjoy a self-sustaining life while working as a DJ or music producer. If you’re a DJ, you might be contemplating the idea of jumping into production. Both avenues can lead you to doing it full time, but not if you do it half-way. Make it your passion.

It’s always a bit delicate to talk about how to get started in a new hobby like making electronic music. There’s so much to cover, as there’s an extremely wide range of options to consider. While I already discussed how to get started with your equipment and such, I feel we can take the topic a bit further.

DJs often think about how they can make it to the next level, and it’s obvious to me that getting into production is the best choice you could make.

Channel your ideas into making your own music

Have you ever loved a track but didn’t like a certain part of it, and then arranged a hack in Traktor to get past that part, only to still not be happy with the result? Well this is actually very common, and as there are so many tracks being released every day, you can spend way too much time just finding the tools you need to make your sets.

So, while everyone is playing the top 10 on Beatport, you might want to pour your time and energies instead into looking through some of your unreleased material (or maybe starting to make some).

I do have to say that there’s nothing quite like playing your own music, and having people ask you what it is because they’ve never heard it before.

That’s the power of being a producer and making your own music.

 

DJ experience will help you as a new producer

With your DJing experience, you know what tracks will work well.

Not all producers are DJs, but if you are only producing, it might be a good idea to learn how to play in clubs. You’ll get to know how certain things sound on big systems and what it’s like to have a track that doesn’t create the proper momentum in a given space. Those things are hard to learn if you’re just hanging out in the studio and receiving feedback from your Soundcloud friends.

Listening to and mixing music, and seeing how a live crowd responds, is a valuable experience that will improve your studio work as a producer.

 

If you can score a deal with a label, you’ll get access to a whole new network of contacts, which can mean more gigs.

It’s not easy to be able to tour as a DJ, as it demands you work hard to expand your network. Making your own music is kind of like sending a business card out into the world, and the more people play it, the more it will travel around. If you work things out, it will be the leverage that gets you out there and travelling too. This is why the quality of your production work will matter so much, and so the more effort you put into getting things right, the better it will pay off.

Lastly, if you’re already a DJ, you’ll have a head start. There are many things you’ll know, from what a loop is, to how sound works in general, to having a basic understanding of technicalities.

So there’s just no reason not to try to produce; in no time at all, production will become your new playground.

 

Making the leap from DJ to producer can be easier if you know producers

Shortcuts to make the leap into production

Team up with another producer first. If you know people who produce, one of the best ways to start is to hang out with them one evening and participate in making music. If they have gear, you can try to ask questions. And if they’re open minded you can make a track with them, or at least make a sketch of a song.

The idea here is to see how it feels to you and if you like it. If you get excited, there’s a good chance it might be for you.

Also, this person will be able to give you pointers on what to get first.

Watch tutorials, use demos. There are many softwares out there that will let you try before you buy. Be sure to wait until you have a good period of time to actually try it out properly before choosing to install. If you’re in school and exams are coming, for example, you might want to wait so as not to sabotage your efforts, both in music learning and classes. Plus, there are tons of videos out there on how to start a track or how to get started. The number one mistake people do is to buy a DAW because someone told them to without trying it first. I’ve learned the hard way, trust me.

Remix. Before making you own tracks, try remixing and playing with loops. This is the fastest way to get something done at first. You can get parts on various sites such as this one. Eventually you’ll make your own when you get to see how people do it.

How Will A Music Label Find Me?

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This blog post will focus on one of the anxieties that every new music producer gets in this turbulent and busy world, which is: how to reach a music label aside from sending in demos.

Can your music make it to the ears of a label owner?

Following one of my most popular posts on how to send demos, this post will focus on the opposite approach, which is to slowly get labels to come to you instead of hunting them down. Call it reverse psychology if you want, but it could also be called the art of letting go. As Einstein said,

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

To understand how a label works and to help you prepare your strategy, perhaps I can share my own experience first. Here are some pointers:

Being a label owner is a bit like being a talent scout in sports. You have a routine of listening to music from within your own circle and of checking your preferred sources like charts and podcasts, as well as finding music through friends of label artists. Then there are moments where you’re a bit freer or more curious, and you’ll dig through SoundCloud for a few hours. I found some pretty incredible artists on SoundCloud and I find that it’s easier than ever to find unknown artists — raw talent. But while it’s easier and more exciting than ever to find unsigned artists, it’s also overwhelming.

The label owner and yourself face the same issue: how can you connect to each other to form a perfect match?

Maybe you don’t realize this, but you might not yet know which label will be your main career companion. It’s a bit like finding true love; it’s out there, but it needs the right timing to happen.

As the label grows, the owner tends to want to sign friends of the label’s artists and artists related to those that have already been signed.

Why?

Mainly because, in my case, I want to deal with people I feel are great to work with. Also, because while the music label is defining its sound, I want to keep some sort of logical progression from release to release. I won’t sign in a rush, or sign a track that sounds crazy good without knowing who I will be dealing with. Difficult and finicky personas are my pet peeve, and I will try to stay far away from them.

Running multiple projects can become messy with difficult people.

Dealing with contracts and such is so annoying, and I’d As an electronic music producer, networks and networking are extremely important for helping a record label labels find YOUprefer doing it with someone who clicks with me. I trust my friends more than Facebook or a polite exchange over email.

So what does that tell you? How do music labels get to you if they want to sign you?

Stop worrying about labels, and instead work on your network. Spend more time connecting with artists who inspire you. Befriend newer artists who also struggle. That struggling artist or that other dude you met can eventually be helpful at some point.

Some inspiration to meet people:

  • Soundcloud: Follow artists that inspire you. Comment on their tracks and go listen to people who also love the tracks.
  • Soundcloud groups: There are nice communities out there that you can join and where you can post your new ideas. Some music label owners are also there sometimes.
  • Facebook groups: If you search a bit, you’ll find many groups you can join. People will discuss topics or share a new find. There’s always something to read.
  • Google Hangouts: A bit like Facebook but one great feature is to have group video calls. Then you can talk all together. Quite fun.

The music label that needs to work with you will find you at the right moment, when they need to. It demands a certain faith in the process, but while waiting, go back to learning sound design and making new friends.