If the first goal of every young music writer is to gain access to albums from their favorite artists before those records arrive in stores, then the second goal is usually to see those artists in concert without paying the cover charge. Yes, free admission to concerts and festivals is one of the perks of writing about music, but just like advance access to music it’s a perk that doesn’t necessarily have to be extended to you.
No show or event is truly free to writers. Your currency in these exchanges is your voice and whatever audience (aka reach) you have through the outlet that shares your work. Upon receiving confirmation that you have been added to the list of any event you are entering into an agreement that you both will attend said event and that you will write about that event in a timely manner. For example, if you attend Van’s Warped Tour on Monday after promising a review to PR then it should not take a week or more to post that review online. If it does you will risk straining your relationship with the PR that granted you access in the first place. More importantly, you will develop a reputation that extends beyond that one relationship and follows you where you go in music. The industry may seem large to outsiders, but it’s actually quite small, and everyone who knows anyone will come to learn of your lack of follow through.
This is about good business as much as it is respect. People will get upset if publicists do not reply to their requests in a timely manner, but see no problem dragging their feet to complete content that was promised in advance of receiving a coverage confirmation. Those who respect others and their time/work will in turn receive the same respect.
Rey Roldan, founder of Reybee Inc., recently wrote the following on coverage requests and confirmations from the perspective of a publicist:
If you request music or tickets from a publicist and promise or confirm coverage, it’s your duty to make good on it… and if, for some reason or another, you can’t keep your side of the deal, it’s only respectful to let the publicist know. Don’t ghost them.
It’s understandable if you hated the show or the music and you don’t want to cover it because of that reason. But let the publicist know, so they don’t constantly hound you for the link.
If you confirm an interview date and time but something comes up and you can’t make it, let the publicist know ASAP. Don’t wait for the time of your interview to tell them that it’s a no-go. It only makes the publicist look bad and could create tension in your relationship moving forward.
If you get confirmation of guest list or photopasses to a show (especially the bigger, higher profile shows) and can’t make it, let the publicist know as soon as your can. There’s a chance that the publicist can use your spot to give to another writer/photographer who was cut from the list. We publicists do sometimes check guest lists after the show to see who showed up and who didn’t.
If you are requesting tickets to a show with multiple artists, either send one email with all the publicists on copy or make sure if you get confirmed on one list to let the other publicists know you’re all set. If you are on multiple lists for the same show, it can prevent other writers/photographers from covering that show. Or if we publicists cross-check our lists and see you on it more than once (or worse yet, see multiple names for the same outlet on different lists), it looks bad for you and/or your outlet.
Making relationships in this industry can be difficult. Maintaining them is easy. Just don’t fuck them up.
Respect and follow-through are everything in this business. Do your best to follow the golden rule (treat others as you want to be treated) and you’ll do just fine.
People are not machines. This may seem obvious on paper, but it’s a bit harder to discern when applied to real life. Many people feel they are put on this Earth to do one very specific thing, and every morning they set to doing that one thing over and over, again and again, until they whither and die. If they’re an accountant, they account. If they’re a teacher, they teach. Like machines, these people feel the only have one task and that is the only task they set to do. While this method of living may work in some careers, it is a recipe for disaster, or at the very least lethargy, when it comes to the creative arts. Whether you’re a writer, artist, poet, musician, filmmaker, or working under some experimental title I don’t even know exists just yet, variety is key to your success, and not just in the work you do. Let me explain:
A toaster’s sole purpose is to toast, and in order to do this it needs electricity. You can toast anything you can fit into your toaster, but virtually every toaster on this planet only functions if it has power provided through an electrical. There is no variety in the diet of your toaster. It needs one thing and one thing only to work. If you try and run your toaster of something else, like water or wind, you’re not going to toast anything anytime soon.
People are not toasters, or any other machine for that matter because we cannot rely on a single source of any kind to survive. We need a variety of foods in order to gain energy, just like we need a variety of influences in order to feel consistently inspired. We all have our go-to foods and sources of inspiration, but if we only rely on those things our palettes will tell us they have grown stale in a very short matter of time.
The same idea also applies to writing: If all you do day in and day out is write about the same thing the same way your creative drive will stall long before it should. If you’re a pop-punk critic who only listens to pop-punk your ability to denote the small differences between various artists will abound, but after several months or maybe even years you will find yourself becoming increasingly burnt out on the genre that once felt like your musical home. This is because all great writing, and by that I mean everything from criticism to novel writing, thrives on original ideas born from a variety of life experiences. Writing solely about pop-punk is perfectly acceptable, but if the only thing you’re putting into your ears is the sound of three chords and gang vocals your mind and body will begin to hate the idea of continuing to rely on that musical diet. You brain can only take so much of the same input before it stops responding as it typically would, and the only way to prevent that from happening is by diversifying your musical and/or entertainment palette.
It’s important to remember when you find yourself stuck on a creative plateau that literally every other person who has tried to create something from nothing has found themselves in the exact same place. Creativity stems from original thought, and those are born from your personal experiences, including all the media you consume throughout the day. Your creativity needs nourishment just like your body, and it can only survive on a single source for so long before it begins to breakdown. The responsibility to prevent that from happening rests entirely on your shoulders, and that is something you should never take for granted. We live in a big, beautiful world of creativity, and you owe it to your own career to experience as much of it as possible. So next time you’re feeling down, stuck, or otherwise lethargic toward your passion, step outside your comfort zone and take in something radically different. Truth be told you might not like what you find, but even if that is the case you will walk away with a new influence and a bevy of new ideas born out of what you have just experience. In those ideas you might find your next big move, and if not at least you’ll have a new story to share with those around you.
Life is short. Take my advice and experience as much of it as possible.
We first ran this post in 2015, but with Warped Tour set to begin again on June 24 we figured an updated reissue made a lot of sense. If you’re going to Warped this year as press, please comment below with your date and maybe we can cross paths!
Vans Warped Tour, the summer camp of punk rock. Every year many people get their start shooting shows by covering Warped Tour. I didn’t get my start shooting Warped, but covering it did prepare me for how to handle shooting an all day music festival in the scorching heat without water. It’s an experience unlike any other and sort of a right of passage for music photographers, especially for those in the punk/alternative field. I’ve decided that not doing a tutorial guide on how to shoot warped tour would be irresponsible, so here are some of my tips (I know Todd Owyoung has a great article on the same thing and I purposely haven’t read to avoid any plagiarism).
Gear (Technical and Professional):
You can shoot warped tour with almost any body and any glass. You’re shooting outside and your equipment doesn’t need to be top notch. Afraid of using your kit lens because of its aperture limitations? Bust it out! You’re shooting in daylight!
Remember to bring extra cards, and batteries. It’s an all day event. Sometimes we all need a reminder to bring extra cards and batteries.
Warped tour is an all day event. Make sure you have sunscreen, comfortable sneakers and appropriate clothing. And please wear deodorant, your pits will smell at the end of the day when you’re shooting verticals 😉
Check out smaller bands:
The reason for this is simple – the little bands are the ones that are going to get big next year. Imagine having photos of Katy Perry from that one summer she spent sweating it out with the best punk had to offer on Warped Tour. I wish I did!
Last, but not least, be creative.
If you shoot vigorously like I do, then you can shoot 10+ bands at Warped. Do something different. Yeah that jump shot is great, but the only way to separate warped photos from you and every other person shooting Warped is to be creative and different.
Nick Karp is a professional photographer and freelance music writer. He recently relocated to NYC and dyed his hair bright pink because that is the kind of thing people do in the music business.
Music writing can be a double-edged sword as far as fandom is concerned. The fact you’re in a position to influence a group of consumers makes it possible for you to get closer to your favorite artists than you probably would otherwise, but it also means you have to continue following those artists’ every move long after your initial interest in their work has begun to fade. This is honestly a best case scenario because more often than not writing about music means you have to not only know, but learn to appreciate the works of many artists whom you would otherwise not make time to experience. Establishing a career in writing requires that you be engaged with the wide world of music, and that entails keeping tabs on far more artists than those you personally enjoy. Over time this can make the joy of writing feel a lot more like work than most would care to admit. But that’s because writing is just that — work.
This is not a complaint, per say, but rather a matter of fact. You cannot make it in music writing simply by covering the artists you enjoy when you enjoy them. You need follow-through, and more importantly you need to engage the fans of artists regularly in order to ensure people continue to care your writing and/or publication exists.
When I began writing about music I did so because I felt there were artists I knew and enjoyed that most of the world had yet to recognize. If you could find my first hundred articles I can almost guarantee every single one would be based on an artist or group I admired at the time, and if I’m being completely honest I would also wager most of those posts are fairly similar. They each praise a group I loved at the time, and they each argue others should feel the same. I built my initial following by covering bands like A Day To Remember, Chiodos, Secret Secret Dino Club, and The Wonder Years whenever possible, and I made it a point to interview someone from the band every time a new piece of news presented an opportunity for discussion. As word of my work grew, so did interest from others bands and labels about having their talent promoted through my channels. I was completely blown away by these requests, so of course I agree to almost every one that hit my inbox, and as I began to network with the industry at large my writing began to encompass more and more bands. Some acts I enjoyed, but most were perfectly average in my mind, and looking back now I know the only reason I covered them is because I felt that it is what my (arguably non-existent) audience wanted. Whether or not that was true is something I’ll never truly know, but I do know that covering a wide array of talent helped me navigate the industry and secure full-time work in the business I love the most. Was it worth it? Absolutely. Do I continue to cover any and everything that comes my way as a result? Hell no.
It’s incredibly difficult to land a job in music that allows you to share everything you love all the time. Most jobs are far more focused than that, be it covering solely alternative music or perhaps just hip-hop. Finding a paid position that covers everything is rarer than a Morrissey performance that goes off without a hitch, and they are becoming increasingly hard to come by as the demand for specific content curators continues to rise. I used to have a big problem with this because I felt, and still do believe, that everyone is able to enjoy a little bit of everything. I might not love country music, but there are several country artists I enjoy. The same goes for musicals, top 40 radio pop, and obscure shoe gaze bands. None of these areas of music are where I spend the majority of my time, but they each are filled with wonderful talent that is deserving of exposure and praise. Just because this is true however does not mean I am the person to tell you these acts exist. I can tweet about it, sure, but I cannot dedicate every minute of my day to telling you about everything I love as I once did. That is not my job.
At first, the need to separate the work I am paid to do from the work I would like to do was incredibly frustrating. I felt as though my initial mission to help more people discover great music had been compromised by the need for a paycheck, but over time I came to realize that was not true. Having full-time employment gave me more freedom than I had ever had before as far as creative pursuits were concerned, and though I couldn’t argue the need to cover everything I could do more to help a specific set of artists and bands than ever before. Instead of writing about 40 or 50 acts a week I wrote about 10 at most, but I made sure to make each piece released as good as it could be. Having less artists to cover made it possible for me to dig deeper with my coverage and, ultimately, provide higher quality content to my readers.
But what about all that other stuff I loved? Did I turn my back on a world of talent just because they didn’t fit my 9-5 lifestyle?
Of course not.
I still love a wide array of bands as I always have, but these days I keep some things I love to myself if for no other reason than the ability to enjoy certain songs or records without turning that enjoyment into work. Before I had full-time work in music I viewed everything I enjoyed as something I would eventually cover, which in turn made everything I enjoyed some form of work. Maybe it wasn’t hard work, but it was work nonetheless, and as a result my relationship with music began to change. The idea of listening to music for the sake of simply enjoying it became an absurd concept, as I hadn’t purely enjoyed music for years on end. I liked it, and I wouldn’t know what to do without it, but at the end of the day I was trying to put food on my table based on what I was listening to, and that put a lot of undue pressure on myself, as well as the talent.
When I speak to aspiring writers and music professionals today I encourage them to experience as much music as possible. As soon as I do this I immediately tag my comments by adding that not every great song or record needs to become the sole focus of their work moving forward. It’s not only perfectly acceptable, it’s needed. If you lose your ability to simply enjoy music you will be unable to accurately critique it. The reason anyone begins chasing after a career in music in the first place is based on their love of enjoying music in their youth, and when you lose the ability to appreciate music in that way you begin to lose track of why you work in music. It’s not about clicks, and it’s certainly not about being the first person to hear the next buzz worthy release. It’s about celebrating art and the appreciation of art, as well as making others aware of undiscovered talent. You can only do this to the best of your abilities if you too are still able to be wowed by music. If you’ve lost that passion, or even if you believe it has begun to fade, take a step back from writing and unplug from everything except your stereo. Put on the records that first inspired your career aspirations and reconnect with the source of your drive to succeed. Never lose your passion.
James Shotwell is the Digital Marketing Manager for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
It has been too long since our friend Andrew Jones of Checkered Owl appeared on the blog. Enjoy this new piece on haters, which was originally written in the wake of Andrew’s latest short film being released, and heed his advice. For fun, we’ve included the film as well.
Don’t read the comments. Don’t feed the trolls. Shake It Off.
The advice is all good, but in those moments when you encounter a genuine hater, it’s a remarkable thing. All your insecurities come rushing to the forefront. Every reason you are hesitant to create and to put art “out there” rings in your head. You can ignore them but it’s hard to ignore yourself.
But first slow down. Now stop.
You’ve already won. YOU took a risk, put yourself out there and YOU created art. They lost, because they spent their day pissing on your work instead of contributing to humanity.
To be honest, this is hitting me today, because I faced a hater.
I recently made a short film called “Finding Fairies“, it was my first time getting to direct my kids in a film and was a really fun project for us. The hater didn’t like it. Which is cool, it’s a family film celebrating childhood wonder, not everyone’s cuppa. That’s fine. However instead of just moving on with life, he decided to “call me out”. I don’t really know why people do that, or what impact they hope to have, but I know it wasn’t meant as a bit of encouragement or constructive criticism.
But here is the reality, his comments only made my supporters get behind the film more! More views, more shares. His comments only pushed me harder to let people see what we made! Is it a perfect film? No. But my crew and actors and actresses worked too hard to let anyone stop us, and we are proud of it.
Don’t let the grumblers win. Don’t let the haters decide what you contribute! Grab that negative energy and turn it around. Go do what you do best instead!
Whatever your artistic endeavour is, make it, TODAY. Write the song, post the video, create the pot, paint your door, write the next chapter of your book! Creating is an act of giving to the world, being rude isn’t. So take the high road and make something today!
P.s. If you would like to see the video it’s right below the post.
P.s.s. I hope you dig it, but if you don’t that’s fine too. Go make something better.
If you’re interviewing bands, reviewing albums, or posting news on your blog, you need to have some sort of time-stamp on your piece.
See, other writers make posts and articles about bands and albums, and they might come across your website during their research. If your article has no time stamp, however, it’s damn near worthless.
If you interviewed someone but failed to include what YEAR the interview was conducted, how could I ever cite your article as a source? When did the interview take place? Last week? Last year? 2012?
Dates are important. When strung together, they create a narrative. The same band involved in two robberies in the same year – that’s a story. A band hinting at a new album on Facebook two years before the label sends a press release is news-worthy because of dates.
Think about it – if a band announces they kicked out their guitar player, and you have an interview from two years prior with that guitar player, you can now add something EXCLUSIVE to your news post. While everyone else is just reposting a press release, you’re able to say, “when I talked to that guitar player in 2013, she had this to say…"
Also, site owners: make sure you use the whole date. There was a time recently when Alternative Press didn’t include the YEAR in their published date. Just month and day. The year is pretty important when talking about something big, like say, former As I Lay dying vocalist Tim Lambesis doing an interview about his murder-for-hire trial (that was published in 2014, in case you were wondering). There’s no reason why any writer should have to email an outlet and ask, “hey, when was this published?”
This is music-blogging 101, folks. It ain’t rocket surgery.
So when you’re hacking away at your WordPress theme or whatever for your music blog, be sure to keep the time-stamps in there. They’re worth it not just for future reference, but for preserving the history of all this music media we work on every single day.
Seth Werkheiser is the quiz master of metal trivia at Skulltoaster. He’s also the founder of some music sites you may have heard of, including Noise Creep (2009) + Buzzgrinder (2001). He’s anti-Facebook, anti-clickbait, and anti-growth hacking. You should most definitely follow him on Twitter. Yes, right now.
Every now and then we stumble across something our friends in the media have written about life in the industry and we beg them to allow us to post it here on our blog. Sometimes they say no, but this time our pal Scott Fugger said yes! What follows is a piece Scott wrote about his experiences as a blogger, as well as what he feels it means to be a music blog in 2016. Whether you’re new to blogging or a veteran of the online writing game, there is something in the following post that everyone can enjoy.
If there’s one thing we know it’s that the music industry is constantly changing. It may not be clear how, why, or what’s next, but this beast never stays the same for long. What it means to be a music blog today is vastly different from what it was five years ago and in many ways even from this same time last year. With 36vultures going through structural changes and a refocus on original content, what better way to kick the year off than by discussing what a music blog can and should be?
The basic building blocks of any music site are simple: news, reviews, interviews, and features. These four things build up the substance of what is created and ultimately delivered to the audience. On a deeper level, the goals of a blog are greater – to expose others to up and coming artists, to spark conversation, and to become an extension of the personal tastes of both the staff and the readers.
With so much news continuously coming from so many bands it is impossible to report on everything. For those who enjoy a wide range of music, the unfortunate truth is that this leads to a fragmented music news experience. No one website will ever be able to deliver all of the news that you, let alone every single one of their readers, want. But is that such a bad thing? Now that social media is commonplace it is possible for fans to get up to the minute updates right from the source – the bands and labels themselves. This fosters a stronger connection by opening the possibility for great interaction as well as allowing each person to decide specifically whose information they want to see. There is, of course, always the fear of missing out on some extremely important news, which means it is still useful to canvas a variety of blogs for news stories. Throwing away the idea of covering everything blogs then necessarily focus on the news that is most important to its audience and creators; thus each site is able become a unique extension of its viewers’ personal tastes and creating a community around it. However, because news is simply a basic requirement, blogs must find a way to also make a name for themselves in other ways and to actually make a statement.
In this digital age of streaming, anyone can listen to anything with a few taps of a screen meaning that reviews in their traditional sense become somewhat pointless. Why would someone care what you think about the new big album when they can just listen to it themselves? This doesn’t mean reviews should be thrown out altogether, just that those who write them need to find creative ways to dig deeper. Just like any other type of article, a review should have a hook that makes it special. It’s not enough to say the music is good or bad while talking vaguely about the sounds coming out of the stereo. Readers are looking for a more analytical approach because most of them come in with already formed opinions. A more in-depth look at the lyrical content, an interesting point about the structure of a song in relation to the album as a whole, or a personal connection that has come out through the music are just some options for this. If something can be offered that puts the music in a different light or causes critical thinking and introspection can cause a review to be worthwhile both to be written and to be read. Similarly when reviewing an up and coming band it is important to discuss why the band is worth sinking time into and persuading others to do so while still allowing for a back and forth, furthering the conversation. Ideally a review, like a persuasive essay, isn’t just “I think this and you should too,” but a summary of assertions that are backed up and logically presented.
Property of Zack is dead, long live Property of Zack. Since their relaunch at the start of 2015 original content has become more important than ever. The site revolutionized themselves by completely removing reviews, cutting back on news, and focusing on real, substantive content. It may not have been the first website to do it, but it made waves that were felt throughout the Internet. While anyone with an Internet connection has the ability to start a blog in mere minutes, original content is what draws in readers and keep them coming back. Features and interviews offer the opportunity to shine the spotlight and give a deeper look at important artists and subjects. Interviews with artist can quickly become mundane for both the artists and readers. No band wants to be asked the same questions over and over again and no fans want to read them. When interviewers do research and plan their questions, but also allow the conversation to flow musicians really open up, revealing more of themselves than even they expected and creating a fresh, enjoyable story to bring to those who read it. Additionally, breaking new ground in features produces a similarly enticing experience. Making predictions, bringing new thoughts and ideas into others’ minds, and keeping them up to date on the cutting edge is how to do this. The most meaningful connections happen through education, the voicing opinions, and encouraging others to join the conversation. Articles like this allow sites to show off their own unique and unified voice. This in turn leads to a passionate fanbase of likeminded readers, much like the lyrics of a song do for any band.
Many of the major outlets fall into these traps out of necessity. They serve too large an audience, which leads to an overwhelming amount of news items, each only relevant to a small portion of their readership. While some articles may have proper substance, they do not shine through in the same way they would otherwise. Chasing the bigger bands and web traffic may be what makes them money, but it is also their downfall. Much like independent bands, independent websites now have the chance to shine. 2016 is the year of the passionate, individualized blog. Do it for the music, do it for the readers, and do it for the love.
Earlier today, the pop-up you see in the image above appeared while I was watching the latest Kanye West video on the popular music blog Hip Hop N More. At first, I thought the message was a mistake. I thought I had possible clicked a link to a mobile version of the site, or that the site had an app it wanted me to download, but I soon realized both ideas were wrong. In fact, I had made no mistake at all. The above pop-up was promoting a new platform that creates push notifications whenever new content is posted to a site. It’s 100% optional, and it only works for users of Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox, but it could very well be the next great user retention tool for online stores and blogs alike.
Created by PushCrew, a new startup still establishing their presence online, these blog based push notifications are being marketed as a way to engage your subscribers with your communication even when they are not present on your website. The tool is easy to install, requiring just moments of time, and once live requires very little upkeep. I’ll let this explainer video show you what I mean:
Sounds pretty simple, right? Certainly seems that way.
I never saw myself as someone who would consider push notifications of any kind to be a good idea, but in an age where traffic often still determines whether or not writers get paid anything at all for their work I’m coming around to the idea at an alarming rate. After all, whether or not users actually engage with this tool is entirely up to them, so content creators should not think twice about making such tools available to their audience. These notifications will make a bigger impression than Twitter or Facebook on users, and every single notification will automatically link back to your site, thus furthering your visits per post with each click.
It’s worth noting that Hip Hop N More is not the only site using this technology in the music world. So far, we’ve found more than a dozen sites covering half a dozen genres that all allow users to opt-in for notification through PushCrew technology. One site in particular, I Care If You Listen, even appeared in a case study that ran on the company’s blog. Here’s an excerpt:
Thomas is on a PushCrew free account. (PushCrew free account lets you send unlimited notifications to upto 500 subscribers forever.) So far, he’s sent more than 20 notifications with click-rate hovering in the range of 4% to 18%
I Care If You Listen is a music blog that Thomas has been running for more than 5 years now. On Twitter, he has a strong following of more than 60k subscribers. And an active email list to whom he regularly pushes out updates.
He found PushCrew and decided to give the free account a shot. He has a little over 150 subscribers in his PushCrew account. The best click-rate that he got was 18.18% and the average click rate stands at 11.29%. In each of his notifications, he uses UTM parameters in the landing page URL so he can trace all metrics about his subscribers in Google Analytics. I asked if the metrics were any better or if they’re following the same pattern as other communication platforms to which he replied, “I’ve been able to see better engagement from the notifications, in terms of bounce rate (lower), pages per sessions and session durations (both higher). People engage slightly more with our content coming from a push notification.”
Time will tell whether or not website push notifications catch on, but for the time being you might want to consider implementing PushCrew technology on your music blog. After all, who does it hurt? People who don’t want it never have to use it, and those that do can have it for free. Everyone wins!
The new year is about to begin and right now you’re more than likely staring at a barren inbox praying some pitch or announcement rolls through to give you an excuse to post something before the ball drops. We tried to warn you about the holiday slowdown, but every year without fail there is a large outcry from hungry bloggers in search of something worth sharing with their readers, and after the year most sites experienced it’s not hard to understand why. 2015 found many beginning to question the role of music blogs, as they have year after year since the initial boom of social media, but the last twelve months were particularly bad because of how many sites – both old and new – could not find the funding needed to keep their journalistic endeavors afloat. The lack of money in music writing has been a problem for over a decade at this point, but things seemed to come to some sort of head as fall gave way to a warmer than usual winter.
With all this in mind, we believe 2016 is going to be an important year for the world of music blogs. Whether your site is old or new, everyone attempting to make their mark online is going to have to rethink the way they operate, and that extends from editors all the way to the smallest contributors. Simply creating timely content is no longer enough to bring in hits, and even if it were those hits are probably nowhere near large enough to generate the kind of income needed to cover operational costs. There is more to running a successful online publication than simply being able to keep your site online, but all too often that is the most great content producers can hope to accomplish, and that is heartbreaking shame. We cannot provide you with anymore income than what you’re making from writing right now, but if you follows these tips in the new year we do believe your work in journalism will continue to thrive.
Focus on quality over quantity (AKA Death to copypasta)
We lost the ability to keep track of just how many pitches were hitting our inbox in 2015. The amount of bands being promoted by smart publicists who now how to write a good email has long surpassed the blogging industry’s ability to cover everything, but things seemed to be a little more out of control than usual as of late. Still, not a day went by that we didn’t see writer after writer copying and pasting every press release they could to create what they call ‘news’ posts on their individual sites. While we’re sure the publicists behind these mailings appreciate the support, this content has next to know journalistic value and rarely, if ever, contributes to a site’s overall traffic in a meaningful way. You can rest assured that if you’re taking the easy route of copy/paste that atlas a dozen other sites will do the same, and if you’re all running the same headline with the exact same information contained in each post then why should anyone bother to visit your particular site?
Make 2016 is the year of original content. Cover the news that matters to your audience (which you can decipher by learning to follow analytics), but focus the majority of your time on crafting content that cannot be found anywhere else online. It doesn’t matter if the final result is short or long, just make it yours. The artists we love earn our admiration for doing something that no one else can replicate and the same reasoning extends to the sites we frequent. Your blog should be a unique music destination, and that begins with quality original content.
Sources. Sources. Sources. (AKA Don’t be a dick)
Most the bloggers I speak with on a regular basis share their concerns over never being credited for the work they do. They don’t expect to get paid, or at least not at first, but whenever someone manages to learn a tasty exclusive through an interview or intelligent research they realize most, if not all sites who run the headline after them will not link to their original article. This is especially frustrating for small sites, as they rely the most on word of mouth to grow, and even if they have the best writers online there is no way they can scale their operation without people giving a damn about their existence.
The only way any site will be able to develop a real readership in 2016 will be if writers learn to respect and give credit to their peers. If you cover an exclusive someone else broke, make sure to give them credit. Doing so not only makes you look more professional, but it sends a message to another writer that you appreciate their hustle. That can of respect can go a long way toward developing both the brand of your site, as well as your personal efforts in music. It’s no more difficult than treating others the way you want to be treated, but you would be surprised how few have adopted this idea up to this point.
Leverage emerging technology
Twitter and Instagram takeovers were everywhere in music blogging over the last year, but with live broadcast services like Periscope becoming commonplace it’s time for blogs to think more creatively about their social media based exclusives. Live broadcast offers users a very unique way to interact with their musical heroes in real time, but right now very few outlets have adopted these services in their coverage of the industry. This will change in time however, and anyone hoping to stay ahead of the curve would be wise to begin planning their use of these platforms now.
For example, when covering festivals in 2016 it’s not hard to imagine blogs of all sizes running brief interviews or acoustic performances that air only on live broadcast networks. Likewise, we believe artist Q&As will be very popular on these services. The ability to not only see, but interact with talent in real time is something no other platform can offer. Artists don’t necessarily need blogs to use these tools, but through collaborations they (and you) can reach a new audience.
Innovative Brand Development
It’s hard to imagine many angles for digital features that haven’t been covered, so heading into the new year the sites that hope to develop their connection with readers will need to break the mold with their outreach. While it can be tempting to rely on the internet for everything you do and need, we suggest thinking of what can be done in the real world (otherwise known as ‘offline’) to help grow your site.
Two old school example of this that still have a lot of value are hosting or sponsoring local shows and releasing site-generated compilations. These efforts promote your site’s dedication to helping aspiring artists further their careers, as well as showcase your personal taste in music. The people who come to events you sponsor or host will see your name and align your site with the style of music being played. The same concept extends to the compilation, which tells listeners they can find more music like that featured on the track list on your outlet. If people feel strongly for the music they may learn to feel strongly for your writing, as the success of one can aide the success of the other.
Don’t Shy Away From Honesty
The one thing that cannot be taught to someone trying to navigate the waters of early music writing is that the quickest path to longterm success is found through accepting yourself for who you are as a person and a consumer of music. The reason this cannot be taught is because no one who has yet to embrace their true selves can force such a change to take place on command. It must happen naturally, and any writer trying to force their true selves onto paper or a blog post will only become frustrated at how unoriginal their words sound. Like all great art, great music writing comes from a pure place that worries not about clicks or finances. The best music writers, or perhaps I should say the best writers in general, are those who are unabashedly themselves in everything they do. They share with readers personal details both big and small that make their work, no matter how strange the subject, more relatable to consumers. That accessibility is what will convert blog visitors to dedicated readers, and it’s what will give readers a reason to tell their friends about your work.
James Shotwell is the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
Friday marks the end of 2015, and after what I can promise will feel like an all too short holiday weekend the vast majority of music professionals will be shaking off their Christmas break laziness in order to return to the endless grind that is entertainment promotion. If you’re a blog owner, or someone still doing everything in your power to make ends meet on a week to week basis, you are probably already working. For those individuals, and I include myself in that grouping, Christmas is a one or two day break at most. We can only survive if we have a steady flow of income, and most low to mid-level industry jobs do not come with two weeks paid vacation. Heck, I don’t receive paid vacation at all. If I take a day off I am also sacrificing a day’s pay, and I can only afford to do that a handful of times in any given year.
Let’s say you don’t get paid. Maybe you run a blog, or perhaps you intern for a label, but whatever the case you know this time of year to be a hard time to feel as if you’re still connected to the music business. When you see your peers posting updates from a beach or tweeting to proclaim they have no idea how to use all their free time you fight the urge to tweet something sardonic in response. It’s not that you hate those professionals, but you might envy them in some small way. As an up and comer, every break is more like a pause on your hustle towards the position you hope to attain. As writers, we can fight the lack of news and announcements that comes with every holiday break by crafting original content, but without anyone in a position of power to see/read/share the material you create there is a near-constant fear of having any hard work you do contribute going unnoticed.
I wish so very badly I could write to you with a creative way to expose yourself and your skill set within the industry during these slow times, but after a decade in this business I have found the best path to success is one that begins with a plan. I know that is not an innovative idea by any means, but having a plan has been proven to work time and time again in developing talent, both on stage and in professional circles. Plans make it possible to set realistic goals, as well as the steps needed to achieve them, and they help keep you on track while you’re trying to do anything or everything you can to establish yourself. I didn’t realize how much simpler my professional life could be with a calendar until I was over 25 years old. When I did, I immediately committed myself to using calendars in everything, from writing, to running a label, to simply staying in shape. Having a plan makes it possible to do more without inundating yourself with work, and as we head into the new year my hope for you is that you too learn to appreciate the possibilities the open up with a good plan is made.
With the time you have left before this year slips away I want to urge you to sit down and think real hard about everything you hope to accomplish in 2016. Once you have a few goals in mind, write them down, and follow those notes with a reasonable timeline for completion. Some tasks will take weeks, while others may take months Be honest with your abilities and build from there. Afterwards, take a hard look at each month in the coming year and begin plotting what you will accomplish on a week to week basis. If you’re running a blog, this means developing a content calendar. If you’re running a business, this means setting marketing and/or sales goals. Whatever the case, lay out as much of your future as you can think to piece together. If you don’t reach every goal or complete every task, that’s perfectly fine. What matters most is that you make a plan, stick to the plan, and wake every day knowing what must be completed to move closer to the position in life you desire.
I believe in you if you believe in me. Together, nothing can stop us.
James Shotwell is the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. He is also a professional entertainment critic, covering both film and music, as well as the co-founder of Antique Records. Feel free to tell him you love or hate the article above by connecting with him on Twitter. Bonus points if you introduce yourself by sharing your favorite Simpsons character.
