  When local music fans decide which bands and which venues to visit on a Friday or Saturday night, they often make up their minds within seconds. Sometimes it's the quality of the venue, sometimes it's the logistics, but quite often it's the name of the act that makes a difference. Giving your new band, group or even solo artist the right name is more important than you might realize; it's more than an artistic statement or a snarky social comment or literary homage. It's the one thing that will always go ahead of the artist(s) that claims it. The right band name accomplishes a lot of things for the group or artist, while the wrong one can turn off potential audiences and keep the door money low. Here are some reasons why choosing the right band name can be critical for a new group's success. If you are mainly opening for bigger artists, then your name is even MORE important for obvious reasons.
The right band/Artist name defines the band's sound or genre. Music lovers often scour the entertainment section of a newspaper or listings in an alternative tabloid to see what bands are playing soon. This means a listed band has only a few seconds to define its sound, musical influences and genre. A name like Chainsaw Kitten had better belong to a heavy metal band, while The Hayseeds would suggest an alt-country band. A generic name such as The Johnny Smith Band might not tell a reader anything, but Johnny Sicko and His Flying Monkey Robots would clearly define the band's punk or alternative sound. When selecting a name for your band, sound it out and consider how it would look if you were the one skimming the newspaper listings. A good band/Artist name is memorable and distinctive. One thing most bands want to do is develop a core audience, fans who are willing to travel significant distances to support the group. This can only happen if the band's name becomes familiar and memorable. There may be dozens of working bands/artists in the area with forgettable names like The Rocker Boys or Young Gangsta, but only one band named "The Gee Whizzers"(Just an example folks). Early fans are going to remember that names, so when they discover "The Gee Whizzers" are playing at a bar in a city 30 miles away, they know immediately what they're going to hear and they already like it. It starts with a unique name that can stir up new interest while remaining memorable enough for older fans to find the listing. A strong band/Artist name builds up mystique and intrigue. Many bands have aspirations of moving up in the music world. They hope that their unique progressive or art rock sound will set them apart from the usual bar cover bands surrounding them. One thing a well-chosen band name can do is create a sense of mystery about the band's musical direction. Choosing a cryptic or literary band name like The Doors or Pink Floyd provided those bands with an air of mystique. These were not regular musicians playing ordinary music-- they were musical geniuses taking their audiences on a quest. If your band's musical tastes run towards the experimental or exploratory, then it would be important to select an equally evocative or thought-provoking name. A good band/Artist name is easier to promote. While selecting a controversial or provocative band name may be tempting, most of the bands with staying power choose names that can be pronounced, remembered and promoted in newspapers, TV, radio and posters. A friendly artist may be able to create a graphic or image based on the band's name, and fans may come up with their own ways to promote the band's name. This is why selecting a 10 word band name is not usually a good idea. People looking for a new band to check out want to see Three Hour Tour or Tent Sleeps Four, not When The Bough Breaks, The Cradle of Rock Shall Fall. A good band name should be original and promotable, not pretentious or deliberately obscure.
7 Comments
Copyrighting your music is one of the most misunderstood processes among unsigned artists and musicians in general. There are a lot of urban legends, myths and things that I hear ALL THE TIME that aren't based in fact. First off anything you create and put in a "tangible" format is protected by US copyright laws... BUT, here is where it gets complicated: Actually REGISTERING you copyrights gives you another layer of protection and enforcement legally.
*Any recording artists who creates music which could be duplicated for the purpose of publication, performance, or display (Specifically if there are profits or revenue involved) should understand copyrights. Although your music is protected by United States copyright laws automatically, proving the date of creation is another story in the case of an infringement incident. We will get more into proving a date of creation later. Let's discuss what a copyright actually is. -THIS IS DIRECTLY FROM THE U.S COPYRIGHT OFFICE'S SITE- What is copyright? Copyright is a form of protection grounded in the U.S. Constitution and granted by law for original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium of expression. Copyright covers both published and unpublished works. Do I have to register with your office to be protected? No. In general, registration is voluntary. Copyright exists from the moment the work is created. You will have to register, however, if you wish to bring a lawsuit for infringement of a U.S. work. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section “Copyright Registration.” Why should I register my work if copyright protection is automatic? Registration is recommended for a number of reasons. Many choose to register their works because they wish to have the facts of their copyright on the public record and have a certificate of registration. Registered works may be eligible for statutory damages and attorney's fees in successful litigation. Finally, if registration occurs within 5 years of publication, it is considered prima facie evidence in a court of law. See Circular 1, Copyright Basics, section “Copyright Registration” and Circular 38b, Highlights of Copyright Amendments Contained in the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (URAA), on non-U.S. works. I’ve heard about a “poor man’s copyright.” What is it? The practice of sending a copy of your own work to yourself is sometimes called a “poor man’s copyright.” There is no provision in the copyright law regarding any such type of protection, and it is not a substitute for registration. -End Quote- So basically when you need to file a lawsuit for copyright infringement, registration is just part of the process even after the fact. My stance is why wait? Have a date attached to your work as soon as possible. Did you know that any person can research your copyright registrations if they know your name or pseudonym? Did you know that a copy of your music goes on record in the library of congress when you register a copyright? It's filed by date and you are sent a certification by the US Copyright Office and is a POWERFUL weapon that could possibly change a beat-jacker (or song stealer's) legal team's stance as far as resolving your compliant (trust me on this #experience) Proving the date of creation is vital. POOR MAN'S COPYRIGHT: Mailing your CD to yourself in a sealed package certified mail and keeping it (and never opening it) is called the "poor man's copyright". While this in theory attaches a date to your work there is no legal precedence for this counting as registration. Also you still have the factor of discovery, extensive litigation, & etc in a court: not fun. It's not effective for attaching a date to your works. My recommendation: Don't waste your time with "poor man's copyright", it doesn't do you any good to the best of my knowledge. There are services online that can time-stamp your beats and songs and give you a "witness", documentation, certification, etc to prove the date of creation in a sticky situation. You will still need to file with the US Copyright office before damages, litigation etc, but for the purpose of initially dating your creations, and having solid proof of your work, I highly recommend using Beat Brokerz Copyright services. It comes with a premium membership. It's included with membership so it is extremely affordable if you have multiple songs to register. It's effective and accessible to anyone. Here's some info from the BeatBrokerz.com and a link: "Beat Brokerz has a marketplace available to the public for buying and selling music instrumentals. An added benefit of using Beat Brokerz is the copyright protection services available for free, to everyone. Upload your tracks, submit and get a time stamped encryption file with the necessary paperwork to copyright your music legally. Get the process of initiation started and take your music to the next level. Don't sacrifice the safety of your music when you put it online. Safeguard your rights and protect your music now." www.beatbrokerz.com/copyright Thanx for reading #stealthmode *Disclaimer: I am not an attorney and this site or myself are not in the practice of giving legal advice or serving as legal counsel in any capacity, the author of this post is not legally liable for any advice given and is purely opinion based on interpretation of copyright laws, literature, experience and legal publications as deciphered by the author.
I created a new YouTube video series to help aspiring artists get television placements with their music. So far we are 3 videos in with much more to come! Check it out!
 This could be you holding a contract...
It can still happen, you can still get a deal, but....
A: Do you want one? B: Are you ready to grind? Things have changed in the music industry. Sales have gone down dramatically, major record labels have changed marketing and business strategies. Today independent artists are more internet & promotion savvy than ever. Gone are the days of every label having a bunch of high-paid A&R departments to go out on foot and find undiscovered talent. Artists are still discovered but not the way it used to be. I'm going to break down some misconceptions on what it takes to get a deal from what I have seen happen for other artists. IT'S NOT SIMPLY WHO YOU KNOW, YOU MUST PUT IN WORK: Name any hip-hop mogul, mega-star rapper, singer or performer and you can rest assured that they have friends and close relatives (possibly children) who are extremely talented and wants to be a star. If it's just who you know then why aren't these people signed? They should be famous automatically right? Not exactly, here's why. What are labels looking for? Labels are now looking for "bankable" artists: Social media impact, iTunes sales, forum chatter, successful mix-tapes (20k plus downloads), a consistent performance schedule in various circuits, etc (I think you get the point). All the factors I just mentioned, (among others) can be measured. No record business in a climate of slumping sales can afford to "take a chance" on dozens of unproven artists. Without absolute luck of a hit record, any record business would go bankrupt randomly "signing" multiple unproven acts. There are avenues to ensure signing the most potentially successful artists while seeing a litmus test of their marketability beforehand. Back in the 80's and 90's getting a deal on a chance meeting or being signed off the street was more common than it is today. Did you catch that? Now you see why there are over 15 different talent discovery television shows now huh? Now you understand why artists release minimal investment, yet hugely successful mix-tapes while signed to a provisional demo deal, THEN get offered a huge contract. I'm not spinning your wheels here, you CAN get a record deal, it's not impossible! But you cannot simply wait to be signed, they ain't gonna come knocking on your door because you got a nice flow. You need to be a brand and be a force in your market regardless. They will come for you when your train is running full-steam, I promise you. What do you need to get started? Don't be naive, You WILL need some start-up money in some capacity! How much is based on your plan. Capital: You're going to need money to invest in yourself for promotions, recording, marketing etc. You may need as little as a few hundred bucks to get started or $10,000. Your capital needed to get started largely depends on the size of your team, what impact you want to make, your short-term and long-term goals and a well-thought out, written business plan. Write a business plan or give up now Treat your potential career like a business You need a business plan, no exceptions. If you don't have a business plan, even if it's just for your own personal understanding of your goals, you aren't serious about doing this. If you can't complete even a simple 1 page written business plan for what you want to do as a life-long CAREER, give up now. Find another career and do music as a hobby. I'm being 100% real with you. After your plan is complete: Once you have a solid understanding of your plan and the industry you plan to enter, accessed your connections and strengths and weaknesses, You need great music. After great music you need to begin flooding any outlet with your music and make your presence known. Find a manager, it can be a industry manager or simply a dedicated member of your team willing to try. The plan must be in place and everyone must know the goals. It's not just about your dreams, you gotta plan to make it! Plan on being successful. Once you put it on paper and do your research, your mental focus will be sharper than ever and you will make moves. In part 2 I'm going to give solid details on where to place your music and how to promote it in my next post... To be Continued Your Music Publishing Could Earn Revenue In The Future!
Are you running competitive business? Want friends? BUY A DOG!
This is a tough law of success that took a while for me to really grasp, but you must keep business as just that... BUSINESS. Your main allegiance and loyalty is to god and your family. Perhaps this is the reason that some executives are seen as being "shrewd".
The truth is, no one will look out for your best interest better than you. People are cool with you when they are benefiting, but the second something doesn't pan out the way THEY want it to they will begin to give in to paranoia/hearsay and turn on you. Why do you think all the old artists left cash money records? Why do you think Roc-a-fella records broke up? "It's because the line between friendship and business was blurred." Whenever you are considered more than strictly a business partner, but actual "fam", watch out: It will backfire and you will feel foolish in the end for not handling your business. God forbid there is a dispute regarding anything monetary with a friend you engage in business with, classic friendship #fail 101. Do you think a major label will let you keep more of the sales profits because they "like" you? Or because you are "fam"? NO. Better yet, go apply for a loan and show the loan officer some love, be cool with him, call him "homie" and see if you get an interest free loan... NOPE, not gonna happen. If it doesn't make good business sense for you and your family that you support, don't do it. Read that previous line one more time, soak it in. I'm not suggesting doing anyone unfairly or being unethical in your business dealings... But NEVER over-extend yourself for anyone based on "oh that's my homie", "That's fam", or "oh he's cool people". I have dealt with all types of shady individuals and have learned to read people very, very, well. I study their actions, decipher their motives, and 9 times outta 10 people's motives are self serving as far as people in the music industry. The small percentage of good people you find, keep em close because good allies are hard to find! I have a few associates over the years that are great people and the relationship is MUTUALLY BENEFICIAL. That's the only friends in business you should have, otherwise buy yourself a dog, then get to the money! Now that's good business!!! #Stealthmode From the forthcoming album "Assassination" By Young Assassin  Junky and cluttered work-spaces are not good  When It comes to your personal work-space, your environment can really assist or hinder your creativity. You don't have to have a $70k console and an insulated room to get down to business. Work with what ever you have to it fullest and be sure its ergonomic and work friendly.
THINGS THAT HAVE NO PLACE IN YOUR WORK-SPACE: 1. Documents, bills, school books, magazines etc. These are distractions. Even if you only have limited space you need to find a dedicated place to place all you administrative items. 2. Media, Movies, "Videos" etc. I'm refering to physical items and files on your computer. Don't have documents & videos etc. in your FL studio projects folder, or in your sample folder etc. Keep your music related things together and organized for maximum efficiency. 3. People. I don't mean artists you are working with, I mean people: non-essential personnel, period. If its not a collaborator you only invite people to hear your work in the form of a listening session. mixing social activity into your workflow is a great way to get NOTHING accomplished. You only have 24 hours in a day, your studio time is between you and the music. 4. Phone. Seriously, unless your children/family/mom are somewhere else and you need to keep a phone near-by in case of emergency, Ditch it. People that want to call you can wait. If this bothers you just check your phone when you take a break. 5. Other peoples Music This is self explanatory, unless you are listening to music researching or for you own pleasure - NO WAY- BAD IDEA 6. Alcohol + Drugs Everyone is different but I say work sober at all times. DO WHAT WORKS BEST FOR YOU - but I been in Grade-A studios with some big names and every one of 'em, even the "best of the best" I have even seen get side-tracked because of blunts and drank, its a waste of time - while on studio time unless you're a seasoned pro. Most of your favorite artists don't even drink or do drugs period, its simply a facade that's portrayed by many to bolster their image in most cases. Save this stuff for the club or when you aren't working. 7. UNUSED GEAR I can't stress this enough, that Sp-1200 or MPC 3000 may look cool on your desk but if you don't use it, take a picture then put it in a closet. Hopefully these tips will help you get your work-space/studio more productive. #Stealthmode Amazing video and track by E.Harper Prod. By Joey Cutless. If you like visually stunning video and good music, you will love this one!   Negativity. Never worry about people being negative towards you in any aspect of your life. You can tell "criticism" from pure negativity, it has a different energy behind it. This universe we live in contains real energies that permeate constantly and can overtake you if you allow it. Why would someone willfully send negative energy your way? Nine times out of ten it's something inside them that is insufficient or insecure. They need to tear you down because it makes them feel good. It sounds cliché, but it's true. A hater feels a sense of accomplishment by hating on you. They feel as if they are more informative than those they are in the company of while hating on you. The truth is the negative energy sent your way can be harnessed and used for your benefit. Use negativity as fuel to energize your goals and pursuits and you will do them faster. You no longer are running off your OWN energy alone, but now you have the power of the haters BEHIND YOU... Its a fantastic concept if you "over-stand" the logic behind universal laws and the law of attraction. Stay focused, Visualize success, then visualize yourself among it, and you will succeed. There will always be "haters". The truth is we have all hated on someone at some point in life. Use that past perspective to nail-down the inner-workings of a "hater", and it will all make sense. Confront negativity sent your way with positive reaction! Avoid Negative people like the plague, Their energy (which may not be directed towards you) will bring you down. You need space, prayer/meditation to send your positive vibes into the ether to form the universe around you to fit your goals. Stay tuned for part 2 and 3!    When it comes to working with artists, companies or anyone as a business, YOU the artists (or producer) need to get everything in writing. Never leave any agreements to trust or simply verbal in nature. When people need you, or want a service from you as part of their master-plan, they will tell you anything to appease you. Once the money arrives and they meet their goals in the industry they WILL get amnesia. They WILL forget your agreement conveniently. The music business is no different from any other business. As artists we are sometimes naïve to this fact. We want to believe the music industry types we meet are friends and genuinely good people with a starving artist's heart and sense of morality...
NEVER ASSUME ANYTHING. If you were opening up a McDonald's franchise in your town and dealing with McDonald's corporate office, do you think they would be cool with exchanging millions in assets and resources based on a verbal agreement or "we all go eat when I get on dog!"? Not in a million years on a cold day in hell would a corporation or real business operate like that. Take your music seriously and make a contract for everything you do or make the client provide one and have someone look over it for you... If you can't afford a lawyer or have no one to turn to I don't care if you hit me up and bother me for help, It's cool. I have seen too many artists screwed over and pockets ran through. But please believe this isn't just unsigned artists that go through this. I got homies with publishing deals right now, producing hits that are dead broke living off advances and credit cards because what? THEY DIDN'T GET IT IN WRITING! Look at the music business as no different than wall street, oil companies, and any other shark-infested corporate environment. It's YOUR money potentially at stake. Be Easy!  In over 10 years of professionally producing music I have learned some great techniques to keep the ball moving. One thing that I hear from some producers is when they get "writer's block". You know the feeling, you sit in front of your gear for hours and everything comes out lame and not up to your standards. It happens to the best of us. My simple solution is to learn when to give up trying to make that hot beat and focus your energies on other aspects of your craft.
Here are some of my favorite things to do when I have writer's block: * Sampling: Go through some old records, CDs, cassettes, movies etc and find some samples you will be able to use at a later time. Who knows you may end up making a sample based BANGER by accident. * Sound Design: Tweak some of the samples you use already. Maybe just a little more decay & attack on your favorite snare can be added to you "go to drum sounds". * Handle business: Copyright you songs, book shows, contact some industry folks or artists to sell beats to. Basically, use down-time to handle the Admin tasks or boring stuff. * Reorganize your work-space: Is your set-up ergonomic and as comfortable as possible? If not now's a great time to re-arrange things. Maybe a cluttered or unproductive work-space set-up is hurting your creativity? * Shop for new sounds: Nothing wrong with buying sounds from other producers/sound designers. Lots of producers work hard on creating custom kits and sell them. I personally from time to time buy drum samples from other producers who have good sounds just to have a healthy balance of sounds on deck besides my sounds. (don't download producer's kits from pirate-bay etc. Go buy 'em from whoever the producer is directly and support the artists - #realtalk) * Study music: Check out styles of music you never heard of before or artist from earlier generations. All great artists in music usually incorporate many styles and ideas with their own twist. I would recommend studying some music way outside of whatever you now do, other-wise, what's the point? * Reading a book: Read a book on anything you don't understand related to your musical career. this can be more valuable than making a hot track anyway Don't let writer's block get you down. Do some other music related stuff to further your craft, and before you know it you will magically be creating stuff again before you know it!   Why Every Hip-Hop Producer Needs Their Own Website To Sell Beats & Instrumentals
Hоw tо ѕеll уоur beats online iѕ a сhаllеngе thаt all thоѕе whо wаnt tо license beats on the net gо thrоugh. Whо do I ѕеll mу bеаtѕ tо? What рriсе ѕhоuld I ask? Dо I wаnt to give up еxсluѕivе rightѕ? Dо I wаnt tо control the marketing of my bеаtѕ? Thеѕе quеѕtiоnѕ аnd mоrе gо through еvеrу producer’s mind whеn they start thе mаrkеting рrосеѕѕ. Thеrе is rеаllу nо ѕресifiс уеѕ оr nо answer tо аnу of thеѕе ԛuеѕtiоnѕ. It is аll аbоut whаt уоur реrѕоnаl рrеfеrеnсе iѕ аnd how уоu wаnt to influеnсе the beat mаrkеt. Thеrе are mаnу оnlinе buѕinеѕѕеѕ thаt аrе willing to help you ѕеll уоur bеаtѕ or maybe you wаnt to ѕtаrt yоur own оnlinе business to ѕеll your bеаtѕ, but what аbоut the сhаrgеѕ? Thаt is whу producers need tо think оf a wау of selling thеir beats withоut any wеbѕitе сhаrging him for that and not being subjected to the mercy of being on someone else’s domain name & Servers. Don’t be naive, You WILL need some start-up money in some capacity! How much however is based on your business plan. Hip Hор producers аlwауѕ аѕk me, “hоw dо I ѕеll mу beats online?”. Thiѕ iѕ best ассоmрliѕhеd bу building уоur own wеbѕitе tо соnduсt your buѕinеѕѕ. Thеrе аrе mаnу wеbѕitе design software рrоgrаmѕ оn thе mаrkеt thаt are еаѕу tо uѕе аnd setup. Next уоu will nееd tо establish a domain nаmе thаt iѕ unique аnd stands out frоm all thе оthеr оnlinе buѕinеѕѕеѕ. A quick ѕеаrсh оf the Intеrnеt fоr ѕеlling bеаtѕ will рrоduсе a lot оf results. So уоu have tо hаvе a uniquе nаmе that diѕtinguiѕhеѕ you frоm аll thе оthеrѕ in the сrоwd. Horror stories of hosting beats or music on 3rd party sites or social mediaOnce upon a time, myspace.com was KING when it came to marketing your music, networking etc. Some people made musical careers and sold alot of beats on myspace. Myspace, after being acquired by another company changed drastically. Some people no longer liked the site’s interface and moved to other social media platforms. In the end myspace basically became barren and no longer viable as it once was for marketing music. I once had a mypace profile with over 100,000 friends and that account is no longer there! It was deleted when the site was overhauled somehow. Just imagine if that had been my only focus to sell beats online. Long before my account deletion I might add, most traffic or leads from that profile came to a halt. Do you see where I’m going with this? Ultimately, when you have music as a business hosted on a 3rd party’s domain and promote that page, you are driving traffic to a domain or website you don’t own, bottom line. It’s okay to use 3rd party sites in a supplemental fashion to your main site, that’s it. Thеrе are businesses оnlinе thаt will аllоw you tо рurсhаѕе dоmаin nаmеѕ that have not bееn used. Thе purchase of a dоmаin nаmе iѕ inеxреnѕivе and оnсе уоu рurсhаѕе it nо оnе еlѕе саn use it until уоu lеt it go. Onсе уоu hаvе decided оn a dоmаin nаmе, you will nееd to find ѕоmе оnе thаt will host уоur wеbѕitе. Thiѕ саn be inеxреnѕivе оr expensive depending оn how mаnу раgеѕ уоu need and how much уоu intеnd tо ѕtоrе оn thе wеbѕitе. A quick ѕеаrсh оf website hosting соmраniеѕ will give уоu аn idеа оf соѕt. Nоrmаllу you want to start ѕmаll, ѕее hоw thingѕ go аnd thеn hореfullу expand. Once уоur wеbѕitе is up аnd running уоu will nееd tо mаrkеt it tо lеt people knоw thаt уоu are out there аnd ѕееking thеir business. Thiѕ саn be accomplished bу mаking sure thаt уоur website is ѕеаrсh engine friendly, uѕing kеуwоrdѕ оn thе раgеѕ thаt mаkе уоu unique frоm thе оthеrѕ on the market. Thеrе аrе search еnginеѕ that will аllоw уоu tо аdvеrtiѕе your website оn ѕimilаr wеbѕitеѕ for a fее. The оnlу time you pay iѕ whеn ѕоmеоnе clicks on уоur аdd. Thiѕ iѕ gооd, bесаuѕе уоu draw more attention from all ѕеаrсh еnginеѕ whеn this hарреnѕ. So if уоu want to ѕеll уоur beats оnlinе уоu will nееd to еѕtаbliѕh a wеbѕitе thаt identifies уоu frоm the сrоwd. You саn have the best ѕоund оn the market and аll уоur friеndѕ ѕау уоu аrе thе bеѕt they hаvе ever liѕtеnеd tо, but unlеѕѕ уоu mаrkеt your bеаtѕ, nо оnе оutѕidе уоur nеighbоrhооd will nоw thаt уоu еxiѕt. Thе short аnѕwеr tо thе quеѕtiоnѕ of hоw do I sell mу beats оnlinе is thаt when you have dесidеd that you want tо sell уоur bеаtѕ, it all depends. Dо nоt ѕеll the exclusive rightѕ tо аnуоnе сhеарlу аnd trу tо keep соntrоl of the marketing. Establishing уоur оwn оnlinе buѕinеѕѕ will help уоu ассоmрliѕh уоur gоаl оf selling уоur bеаtѕ оnlinе. Are уоu a hip hop producer whо wаnts to make mоrе mоnеу frоm selling beat оn your own wеbѕitе? I knоw уоu mау have ѕоmе fееlingѕ about ѕеlling beats оn уоur own website, аrе уоu doubting it will bring уоu еnоugh inсоmе? hеrе аrе ѕоmе tips tо ѕhаkе оff thаt dоubt. Fоllоw thеѕе guidelines tо ѕtаrt making еnоugh income by ѕеlling your bеаtѕ оnlinе!Create Yоur Own Website: Crеаting your personal рrоduсtiоn wеbѕitе iѕ nесеѕѕаrу in оrdеr tо stand оut frоm thе competition. When уоu uрlоаd bеаtѕ tо other bеаt ѕеlling websites, likе Reverbnation, you аrе ѕhаring ѕрасе with thousands оf оthеr рrоduсеrѕ. Yоur реrѕоnаl рrоduсtiоn wеbѕitе iѕ solely уоurѕ, аnd a рlасе whеrе you саn rеаllу connect with уоur audience. Yоu’ll nееd tо рurсhаѕе a dоmаin nаmе (ex. JоhnSmithBеаtѕ.соm) аnd mаkе the layout as clean аnd рrоfеѕѕiоnаl as possible. Within your wеbѕitе, bе ѕurе tо inсludе thе fоllоwing: -Production brаnd nаmе / Logo - Critical, you must have this! -Your bеаt ѕtоrе (уоu can еmbеd thе myflashstore.net player OR еmbеd аnу other mеdiа player аlоng with PayPal сhесkоut buttons if checkout is not inсludеd in player) -Cоntасt info (еmаil, Twittеr, Fасеbооk, YouTube, blоg, etc..) -Explanation оf rightѕ (lease vѕ exclusive) -***Mаiling Liѕt: Building a mailing liѕt is very imроrtаnt. Emаil iѕ оnе оf thе mоѕt effective ways tо dirесtlу market to уоur роtеntiаl customers. Thеrе are ѕеvеrаl mаiling liѕt ѕеrviсеѕ thаt аrе frее, I rесоmmеnd Mаil Chimр. Yоu саn еmbеd a ѕignuр fоrm directly оn уоur wеbѕitе. I аlѕо suggest оffеring a frее bеаt tо anyone who signs uр, ѕо thеу hаvе аn inсеntivе tо jоin. Onсе thеу sign up, уоur mаiling liѕt service will ѕtоrе thеir nаmе and еmаil address. With thiѕ infоrmаtiоn, уоu can ѕеnd оut a nеwѕlеttеr periodically tо mаrkеt tо your аudiеnсе. Prоmоtе: If уоu’vе сrеаtеd уоur brаnd, uрlоаdеd уоur beats, аnd mаdе уоur оwn рrоfеѕѕiоnаl website tо sell your beats, thеn уоu’rе all set аnd rеаdу to ѕtаrt selling! Hоwеvеr, уоu won’t juѕt ѕеll beats bу letting thеm sit thеrе. Listeners muѕt be аwаrе of уоur wеbѕitе аnd hаvе a reason to gо thеrе. This is where mаrkеting аnd рrоmоtiоn соmеѕ intо play! The internet оffеrѕ mаnу frее орроrtunitiеѕ fоr рrоmоtiоn. A fеw wеbѕitеѕ that аllоw free promotion орроrtunitiеѕ thаt I’vе fоund to be particularly effective are YоuTubе, Facebook, MуSрасе, Headliner.fm, аnd DаtPiff. Also, many diffеrеnt hiр-hор forums (like the SоundCliсk forums) hаvе a ѕесtiоn whеrе уоu саn promote уоur bеаtѕ. Stау active оn еасh of thеѕе wеbѕitеѕ аnd fоrumѕ, try not to spam forums with уоur аdvеrtiѕеmеntѕ! Bе уоurѕеlf, be рrоfеѕѕiоnаl, аnd always keep реорlе aware оf уоur brand. Thеrе аrе аlѕо еffесtivе рrоmоtiоnѕ thаt уоu саn purchase. Almost еvеrу wеbѕitе has a ѕесtiоn whеrе уоu саn аdvеrtiѕе. Mоѕt оf thе timе it is some timе оf grарhiс, likе a bаnnеr аd. I’vе found advertising оn tаrgеtеd, high trаffiс wеbѕitеѕ likе DаtPiff tо bе vеrу effective. Most bеаt ѕеlling wеbѕitеѕ also have a ѕесtiоn to рrоmоtе with a bаnnеr ad. Invest: Yоu hаvе tо spend mоnеу to mаkе mоnеу. Your production iѕ a buѕinеѕѕ аnd you nееd tо invеѕt in уоur buѕinеѕѕ in order tо grоw. Thiѕ does nоt mеаn to juѕt ѕреnd mоnеу aimlessly! Sеt уоur budgеt аnd use уоur mоnеу wiѕеlу, but dоn’t bе аfrаid tо invest. Onlу purchase рrоmоtiоnѕ thаt will bring in thе largest bаng fоr уоur buсk, аnd be confident in whаt уоu dо. Don’t Stop! Nеvеr ѕtор making beats аnd рrоmоting уоur brаnd, but mоѕt importantly, don’t gеt diѕсоurаgеd! If уоu don’t make $500 in your firѕt 2 wееkѕ of selling beats оnlinе, dоn’t bе diѕсоurаgеd. Nоthing in lifе iѕ еvеr juѕt handed tо уоu. Make рrореr сhаngеѕ to аdjuѕt tо уоur audiences nееdѕ, bе сrеаtivе and intuitive, and always bеliеvе in уоurѕеlf. Lооk at уоur рrоduсtiоn аѕ a business. Whеn firѕt ѕtаrting оut, уоu mау be small аnd ѕее vеrу littlе рrоfit. With continuation of hаrd wоrk and promotion, уоur business will steadily grоw. Hаrd wоrk аnd еffесtivе рrоmоtiоn campaigns will drastically inсrеаѕе уоur bеаt sales. Uѕе аll of thеѕе tiрѕ аѕ a guidеlinе to kickstart уоur production empire! 
“As soon as I get FL studio, buy some vst synths, a midi controller, and that waves plugin pack, Imma make some hot shit!”
DON’T BE LAME… Sometimes you gotta get the ball rolling with whatever you can use effectively to get started, feel me? Don’t obsess with the gear you can’t afford yet. -GET MONEY- You can make great music with all free stuff, trust me I have done it as a challenge to my self several times. As a matter of fact all my new beats coming up later this week are all going to be done with free Vst plugins, refills & samples JUST to prove this point. Everything you need to get started you can get ethically and free online. I’m not talking about downloading pirated software by the gig.. that’s lame as hell. You want people to buy your music right? Well don’t use stolen or steal software either, remember – KARMA IS A B**CH. Many established producers are guilty of using hot products while making tons of money and complaining about beat sales..its really hypocritical. Be a good sport and either use free software or buy the stuff you want. Dedicate 1-3 hours a day collecting legit FREE samples & plugins if you cant afford to buy stuff and you may end up never buying stuff. Seriously, alot of the free stuff online is actually top notch. Be sure to get anything you download from a trusted source to avoid viruses and malware. The music needs to be good but if you trying to have a business plan the execution of your plan and making moves is 95 percent of the hustle homie… It’s all about your GRIND, NOT YOUR HUSTLE! #Realtalk -STEALTH-MODE…OUT! 
It’s becoming more and more clear to me that hip hop artists are being used like disposable products by the industry now. I would love to blame the music industry and record labels but it’s not all them. There are a lot of factors that are making it difficult for an artist to have a career longer than 2 or 3 years. Some hip-hop artists sell a hell of a lot of singles but albums never make the cut in sales. How does this apply to you, the independent artist? I’m about to tell you and put you up on game. First let me make a few points to consider before you release your next project online. This stuff not only applies to hip hop artists but all genres. If you doubt my notion of “the disposable artist”, go back and look at the hottest songs from 2008, 2009. 2010 and so on. You will find tons of hip-hop artists you forgot about the are no longer relevant or even still signed to major labels at all any longer.
Hip hop artists longevity & things contributing to the “disposable artist” phenomena Torrent sites – People can go to their favorite torrent site and download anything they want for free illegally. YouTube – The most overlooked culprit. Some people create playlist of audio/lyric videos and listen to entire albums free daily (I do) Mp3 players – If there was ever a reason to not listen to a full album its the mp3 player. You can easily create playlist of just your favorite songs Most indie music is free - Most sites like Reverbnation, Soundclick, Purevolume etc have loads of downloadable music that some artist post for free. The free mixtape – Self explanatory. Mixtapes are great for all genres especially hip hop artists Attention span of target audience - The attention span of the masses is much shorter now, if you made an impact the previous year and did nothing the following year are considered to have “fell off”. The silver lining: How to take advantage of these circumstances: There are tons of obstacles not listed above, but lets focus on what I mentioned above. You have a huge opportunity to leverage these circumstances for promotion to increase your sales. When life gives you lemons… Make lemonade then add vodka. If you are an artist make a YouTube channel and brand every video. Post videos of yourself doing everything music related. It works, people will feel like they know you. Use the free indie sites to advertise yourself. Pick some songs you don’t mind giving away then promote them like you life depends on it (it does). Torrents? Well that’s another article entirely but basically there is a way to promote yourself via torrent, but you gotta research that yourself fam. As far as attention span of listeners, be sure to use that in structuring your music and production. I know you thought that 1 min intro to your song was a great idea but nobody cares, get over yourself and make some hot tracks that will lock ‘em in. I’m not suggesting being unoriginal, I’m suggesting being creative and clever. As far as the free mixtape, it’s obvious how to use that to your advantage, no explanation needed. Good look fam, more on this subject soon, I gotta go, I got work to do!   EQ is a very underrated aspect of a good mix! I get asked for tips and pointers on mixing and production matters in general quite often. I decided I would drop a line or two of some SOLID mixing tips and production pointers. Often times too many, the art of mixing is filled with propaganda, marketing ploys, and downright disinformation. If you are reading those “music magazines” to learn about mixing, please understand that while you may find useful info, there are advertisers and reviews intended to sell gear and software within those magazines. I have met people convinced that they need certain special plugins to get certain results. It’s simply not the case most of the time. While it is true that having high quality gear or plugins is essential in most cases, you can do most basic techniques with stock plugins & FX in most digital audio workstations. To put it more precisely, it is more essential to know the techniques and the foundations of the craft vs. having the latest shiny new toy. There is no plugin that can replace skill, but a skilled engineer can create industry quality results with the stock plugins in Pro Tools for example. Here are a few pointers and basics to keep in mind.
EQ: Cutting frequencies is just as important and often MORE important than boosting them.Simply going in and boosting the hell outta frequencies is a bad strategy. Your mix is like a puzzle, everything has it’s place. Make it all fit together! You need to get a technique down for knowing when to “cut” or reduce certain frequencies, this is crucial. Use panning to your advantage: Panning isn’t as basic of a function as it appears. Panning if used properly can define the sonic field and stereo depth of your mix. It’s not just left or right, but part of the foundation of your palate. This simple factor with other elements MAKE or BREAK a mix. SIGNAL/EFFECTS/PLUGIN CHAIN: The order of your plugins are important.What order you put your plugins can be advantageous or outright counter-productive. Let me give you a perfect example: “If you have an instrument you are trying to control the dynamic range of in a mix with a compressor, don’t place a boosting eq directly after the compressor ot any effect that will affect the dynamic range of the signal” Sounds obvious when put in that context correct? Okay great. There are no hard and fast rules in mixing, but you don’t want to do anything specifically in your signal chain that’s counter-productive or that will sound bad. I want to point out when I say “signal chain” I’m also referring to anything you are recording into your mix. If you are running vocals or synths into Fl Studio or Pro Tools, you want to be very careful about what you run them through, gain etc. If you are using a pre-amp with a compressor or limiter built in, you can over-compress your vocals on way in if you don’t know what you’re doing. I have even been sent mixes where the vocals were recorded with reverb and delay on the way in, impossible to undo that (completely) once its already recorded. Be creative! There is no “Textbook”Most importantly be creative man! Just because you got that EQ trick or a reverb preset you like to use on EVERYTHING, don’t settle. Learn the basics then develop your own tweaks to create a unique mixing style. After all anyone you consider a great mixer does something unique that is not “textbook” by nature.. Keep up the good work! You will get this mixing thing down in no time! 
As a young, aspiring hip-hop producer, I remember saving every paycheck from my after school job to buy the new Akai MPC and the Korg Trinity. The thought of saving over two grand to build my dream studio seem like pure fantasy. Once I attained this dream studio, who was going to teach me how to utilize it all? I wish then I had the options available today! The old days of getting the latest music equipment catalog and salivating over a piece of gear are no more. The new generations of hip-hop producers have a serious advantage today…. SOFTWARE + THE INTERNET!
You can do anything you can imagine with Fl studio or Reason. These apps, in combination with online tutorials, can produce sonic marvels once reserved only for hit-makers with thousands of dollars worth of hardware, and years of study. Use Google.com to your advantage: need a new set of drum samples? Need to learn how to chop samples? “Google” it! There are literally thousands of resources to teach you skills to advance your craft. Youtube.com for instance has a plethora of tutorials to help you step your game up in every aspect. From basic pointers, composition techniques, to advancedmixing and engineering, it’s all online and free. What about the software? Bite the bullet and get your main program, I recommend FL studio or Reason. I suggest FL studio for the best bang for the buck and functionality. FL studio allows you to integrate 3rd party VST/DX instruments and tools inside it, and it’s the least expensive and most expansive of the two. Reason is a full-featured workstation, yet is limited due to being totally self-contained. To put it simply, what you get in Reason, is all you get with Reason. You can integrate more tools and instruments by different companies in FL studio. Another bonus is that you are not limited to the internal effects in FL studio. You can theoretically integrate a $2000 Waves Diamond plug-in package with lil’ old Frooty loops! Incorporating synth workstations such as Ik Multimedia’s sonic synth, Steinberg’s Hypersonic or Sampletank XL can produce amazing results. The Edison in FL studio is an awesome editor for chopping up your samples. Enough said. Don’t get me wrong; reason is very powerful, fully loaded with lush instruments and samples. You can make stellar productions with it, no question. The only problem is expandability as far as 3rd party plug-ins. There will be a point where you will want to add more instruments from different sources. If you prefer an all-in one approach however, go for it! There is always the option of playing with combinators and reason’s proprietary expansion format called “refills” to get more variety in Reason. There are tons of refills out there. I have fully mixed and mastered tracks in FL studio for an elite level of hip-hop projects. Fl studio with a host of freeware plug-ins can create a formidable arsenal to rival any top-flight producer, regardless of their equipment list. Yellow tools’ Independence 2.0 is a great, free plug-in that has over 1 gig of free sounds. Do a Google search for free VST and DX plug-ins; you will be amazed at the high quality of free stuff you’ll find. Search youtube.com and Google.com’s video section like a demon for tutorials! Don’t go at it alone, letting others (with more experience) give you pointers can save you lots of time and up the ante for you in the skills department. Join producer communities to interact with other producers as well, futureproducer.com is highly recommended. These are some keys to success that I’ve discovered along the way and they will take you to a new level. Visit Joeycutless.com for articles, tutorials, and hip-hop samples. The world (wide web) is yours!  Magic… Its a word often used by not really intimately understood by the general population. Magic is the process of making amazing things happen strictly based on the will and spirit of man. Magic exists…really. Forget David Blaine and Copperfield, I mean magic in life and specifically in any craft of artistry. The Mona Lisa, the great pyramids and other monoliths are all examples of magic. Magic is an idea, a creative idea externalized in a tangible format for all to experience. An up and coming producer once asked me to mentor him and asked “why is it that your music is felt by so many and so real?” I replied, “magick!”.
The look on his face was incomprehensible before he walked away dumbfounded. If you make beats, look at them as full songs or productions. Songs capture magic of the moment, so should you beats. Hip-hop beats, are unique from other forms of production in lots of ways. First off the bar structure and tempos allow lots of subliminal punch to be added. Dig up som records and get some great “sounds” to add nostalgia to you rap beats. Sampling is okay in hip-hop remember? Be sure not to use any samples that may get you sued. Don’t sample “sex machine” by James Brown or something super obvious. A great composition or song not only contains the heart and soul of an idea and its creator but also skill techniques that cannot be learned precisely, but felt. I consider composition and engineering and my techniques a form of Alchemy. Strategically manipulating sounds to cause reactions in ones mind and soul simply from sound, it’s “magic”! Music has been proven in laboratory settings to affect brain activity, increase dopamine or decrease them and even affect heart rate! Church service and prayer has been proven to do the same. With mastery of the alchemy of music production comes great responsibility! Your externalizations affect others as your music is an extension of you. You ever notice some music fits the mood of what you are doing or what mind state you are in? It’s not an accident, its done deliberately. Some music fosters lawlessness, some order and humility. Would you listen to gospel music while leaving the club at 2am after a night of mischievous fun? Probably not. That music would vibe with your souls direction at that moment, Juicy J or Young jeezy would be more fitting. I love music and creating it. I can’t imagine not being an artists. Read, study, and do some research you will discover a strong connection between music, alchemy, Magic, etc. Do your own research, don’t take my word for it, after all…. I’m just a magician  If you gonna operate as a business and be an entrepreneur you need a business plan. So many artists in hip-hop plans are: “go platinum, get rich, get women, smoke purp!” – you need to get real. When the average business owner opens a pizza shop or a dollar store, sure earning money is a goal, but they also are planning on taxes, employment cost, business licenses, inventory, future locations, etc.
YOU NEED TO THINK LIKE A REAL BUSINESS. So many people are chasing distribution deals, that’s cool but you gotta be a REAL business for a major corporation to take you seriously and invest in you. You need to have Ledgers and books on your earnings and all that shit, business license, copyrights for your catalog, publishing established etc. This sh*t is not a game.. play it like its a game and you will get played in the end. Go to the local bookstore or amazon.com and buy books on running a music business and get your f***** weight up! #Realtalk 
Success. how do you define success? Well I will tell you what success is not. Success is not reaching the pinnacle of your work then “enjoying” it. This is a destructive mentality that will rob you of future successes. You must continue to stay working during times of success. Do you think Michael Jordan practiced less than his teammates? No. Success alone does not make you great. Success alone does display excellence. Real success is being consistent and dedicating hard work towards your craft or purpose in life. Certain forces are at play in the universe and are bound by universal laws.
The moment you take your success for granted and rest on you achievements, LOOK OUT! There is someone working harder and wants success more than you that will gladly take your spot. When you have huge achievements match them with even more relentless work ethic and you will see even more success. You see successful people like Jay-z, Bill gates, Oprah, they are really wealthy right>? Why haven’t they sat back and taken it easy? Once you develop driven work ethics you enjoy working and being even more successful. you realize there is more to your pursuits than personal wealth and accolades. Maybe what you do is an inspiration…We all play a role in this universe, be sure to find yours and never stop playing it! 
When It comes to your personal workspace it can really assist or hinder your creativity. You don’t have to have a $70k console and an insulated room to get down to business. Work what ever you have to it fullest and be sure its ergonomic and work friendly.
THINGS THAT HAVE NO PLACE IN YOUR WORKSPACE:1. Documents, bills, school books, magazines etc. These are distractions. Even if you only have limited space you need to find a dedicated place to put all your administrative items. 2. Media, Movies, “Videos” etc. I’m refering to physical items and files on your computer. Don’t have documents & videos etc. in your FL studio projects folder, or in your sample folder. Keep your production related things together and organized for maximum efficiency. 3. People. I don’t mean artists you are working with, I mean people: non-essential personnel, period. If its not a collaborator you only invite people to hear your work in the form of a listening session. mixing social activity into your workflow is a great way to get NOTHING accomplished. You only have 24 hours in a day, your studio time is between you and the music. 4. Phone. Seriously, unless your children/family/mom are somewhere else and you need to keep a phone by in case of emergency, Ditch it. People that want to call you can wait. If this bothers you just check your phone when you take a break. 5. Other peoples Music This is self explanatory, unless you are listening to music researching or for you own pleasure – NO WAY- BAD IDEA 6. Alcohol + Drugs Everyone is different but I say work sober at all times. DO WHAT WORKS FOR YOU – but I been in Grade-A studios with some big names and every one of em, the best of the best I have seen get side-tracked because of blunts and drank, its a waste of time – while on studio time. Most of your favorite artists don’t even drink or do drugs period, its simply a facade that’s portrayed by many to bolster their image in most cases. Save this stuff for the club or when you aren’t working. 7. UNUSED GEAR I can’t stress this enough, that Sp-1200 or MPC 3000 may look cool on your desk and for instagram pics but if you don’t use it, take a picture then put that stuff in a closet…#REALTALK  Beat-Jackers are usually funny-looking, fat, lazy, and loser looking types... like this guy Beat Jacking. It’s a phenomena that if you have produced long enough it will inevitably happen to you. Major/mainstream producers (some of them, not all) will steal ideas from you if you have beats posted online. It’s a fact of life today. Some producers even go online or on soundclick specifically with the purpose of finding beats they can get ideas from or completely steal them. There a few scenarios that will result in you beats being jacked. The main temptation is that it’s easy! A lot of these industry guys aren’t as skilled as you think and run up on deadlines and are struggling, so it’s easy to get ideas from people who have talent on the internet. Sometimes they change stuff up just enough to avoid a lawsuit, sometimes they entirely steal a beat… like, literally.
How do beat-jackers find your beats? Sometimes it’s management or the artists fault. Artists who forgot where they downloaded beats or have tracks they made that they don’t want to pay full-price for will find some one else to “re-make” a track (I have been asked to re-make tracks HUNDREDS of times to no avail). This is an insidious practice that is all to common in the music industry. If the “re-maker” is signed to a slave publishing deal with whoever is getting the remake done.. BOOM! Instead of paying you, someone they don’t know, they pay the label’s lackey producer or beat jackers some beer money who will never see a dime of the publishing. This looser is just happy to work with whomever the artist is and will think nothing of “re-making” someone else’s beat. Simple huh? Now that you have an understanding, (I hope I’m making it clear) that people WILL steal your shit, here are a few pointers to avoid it. EMAIL SUBMISSIONS W/ FAMOUS PRODUCERS: Don’t submit any instrumentals to any industry producer ever. EVER. Why would someone who produced hits be eager to get unsigned producers to send him beats via email? Common sense folks, common sense. VOCAL TAGS, GOOD ONES: You need to tag any beats you have online heavily. I mean distinctive identification when I say vocal tag. Some way to contact you needs to be enunciated in the beat vocally several times… got it? METADATA: Tag your MP3′s with metadata, most will still steal but it at least is worth the effort, maybe beat jacker will have second thoughts. COPYRIGHT: Copyright your effing beats man! It only costs like $40, put them all on one disc and send it to get copyrighted at the very least! RECORDS: Keep in-depth records of leases, especially exclusive rights or any tracked-out beat sales! Sometimes a previous customer can be the main culprit behind a beat jacker or a major producer or artist unbeknownst to you! Example: Buyer “A” Buys a beat from you, then somehow some famous rapper, lets call him “MC tartarsauce” ends up hearing it while they are hanging out, smokin blunts etc… he makes a song with no idea where the beat came from because he doesn’t REALLY hang out with buyer “A”, but the song has hit potential, he has the beat remade by his well known famous producer homie to avoid any liability issues and to avoid you coming out the woodwork later for publishing $. You just got beat-jacked on the low. This scenario happens very often. Another pointer is, when people contact you about using beats or buying exclusive rights, be sure to find out if they used the beat already before giving a price, if so ask them to send you a copy or email it to you, possibly with a descriptive email subject like “EXCLUSIVE RIGHTS” (to make it easier to search these emails in your inbox later). That way if they end up getting your beat “re-made” instead of paying your price later and you find out you can go back and look over your records to see the date they sent you the original song with YOUR beat… Then? LAWYER-UP!!! More coming soon! 
Yоu mау nоt be аwаrе of it but choosing the right recording ѕtudiо саn bе one оf thе most imроrtаnt dесiѕiоnѕ уоu hаvе to make early on in уоur career. In fact, thiѕ mау еvеn spell thе diffеrеnсе bеtwееn уоur ѕuссеѕѕ and fаilurе in thе nеаr future ѕо уоu bеttеr lеаrn hоw to do it right. Arе уоu rеаdу tо lеаrn some tiрѕ аnd tricks thаt can help you mаkе a mоrе infоrmеd dесiѕiоn when сhооѕing a recording ѕtudiо? If ѕо, thеn hеrе аrе ѕоmе things уоu dеfinitеlу need to consider.
Advice In Finding the Right Rесоrding Studiо
Consider your budget. Whilе уоu ѕhоuld tаkе your budgеt intо соnѕidеrаtiоn, еѕресiаllу if уоu аrе financing уоur оwn rесоrdѕ, going for ѕtudiоѕ thаt оffеr thе lоwеѕt hоurlу rаtеѕ may nоt rеаllу bе whаt’ѕ best fоr you. Keep in mind that thе lowest vаluе iѕ nоt necessarily the ѕаmе as gооd vаluе. Expensive rates also doesn’t mean great results either. Thеrе iѕ a world оf diffеrеnсе bеtwееn these two extremes. You also don’t want to overpay for facilities or resources you don’t really need. If you are recording a solo rap song over a 2-track instrumental for a mixtape, you may not get full use out of a multimillion dollar facility that charges over $150 per hour. Finding the ideal rесоrding studio thаt can givе уоu what you nееd at a рriсе you саn аffоrd can be quitе a difficult tаѕk, but the rеѕultѕ will dеfinitеlу bе worth аll thе еffоrt. Also you have the option of recording at one location and getting mixing done elsewhere today. The fact that you are looking into booking studio time means your interest is probably not an idle one. Take your time and lock-in at the best location that fits your criteria and budget.  Keeping Your Computer Files Organized Is A Must. Alot of artists in general including hip-hop producers struggle tо gеt thе mоѕt out оf their соmрutеrѕ file organization heirarchy. Onе оf the еаѕiеѕt thingѕ thаt musicians can dо to make thеir computing еxреriеnсе mоrе productive and enjoyable iѕ tо organize their project and sound files. In thiѕ аrtiсlе, I оffеr a few quick pointers for having аn оrgаnizеd studio or production computer.
A Snapshot Of One of Joey’s Snare Drumz Folder #1 – Save Yourself Some Fruѕtrаtiоn. The biggest bеnеfit оf hаving аn organized соmрutеr iѕ bеing аblе to find files quiсklу and withоut frustration. For еxаmрlе, if уоu chop up alot of sounds, loops and samples, it can bе diffiсult to find a ѕinglе sound or sample in a fоldеr of twо thоuѕаnd WAV or MP3 files. It соuld take tеn tо fiftееn minutes tо find a sound you saved on the fly, if not more. Hоwеvеr, organizing sounds by type, utilize folders and keeping them in order will maximize your music production endeavours. If your PC ever crashes, it’s a hell of alot easier to locate files if you have them in some sort of familiar order. Organized Studio Cоmрutеr Bеnеfit #2 – Sаvе Timе: Whilе bеing able tо find уоur files quiсklу ѕаvеѕ уоu time, another timе-ѕаving bеnеfit оf hаving an оrgаnizеd music workstation is that уоu саn easily revisit оld projects оr sessions. Let’s say you need session files or track-outs for a beat you made last year. Wouldn’t it be great with just a few clicks to find that session? Thiѕ iѕ especially true for project files, session files, аnd mixing projects. For example, a you may have a beat that you want to rework from a few months ago that you never finished. Ultimаtеlу, hаving аn оrgаnizеd соmрutеr соuld save you hоurѕ of rеѕеаrсh and еffоrt to find the files for that session. Make sense? *IMPORTANT* #3 – Sаving Your Wоrk: Whether you аrе a hip-hop producer оr аnуоnе еlѕе thаt dоеѕ numеrоuѕ рrоjесtѕ with a computer, losing a random dосumеnt, sound, оr folder could bе fruѕtrаting fоr numеrоuѕ rеаѕоnѕ. Frоm time to time, however, it iѕ nесеѕѕаrу tо ѕwitсh соmрutеrѕ оr reformat hard drives. Lоѕing imроrtаnt рrоjесtѕ during a trаnѕfеr is less likеlу tо hарреn if your соmрutеr iѕ оrgаnizеd in the first place. Orgаnization Bеnеfit For Musicians #4 – Back Up Yоur Wоrk: Tips 2 аnd 3 bоth imрlу thаt аn artist thаt dоеѕ wоrk оn his оr her соmрutеr should back uр ѕаid wоrk оn an еxtеrnаl hard drive. *I would also strongly recommend having other locations with your important files like Google drive, dropbox, or carbonite “offsite”.* You never know fam, your studio could catch on fire or something and having data just on an external as back-up won’t matter at 500 degrees. Final Note #5 – Organization iѕ Self-Sustaining: Onсе a соmрutеr iѕ оrgаnizеd, it iѕ fairly еаѕу to kеер it in order. All you have to do рlасе filеѕ in thеir рrеdеtеrminеd spot. It’s kind оf like keeping a dеѕk or bedroom оrgаnizеd. The organization itѕеlf iѕ thе most diffiсult раrt and dreadful part. Maintaining it is muсh еаѕiеr from thаt point fоrwаrd. Finаllу, соnѕidеr thiѕ – whаt iѕ the bеnеfit оf having an unоrgаnizеd соmрutеr? You will only end up frustrated in the end if you have to go back and organize it later. Start off organized and its a smoother ride in the long run. #Stealth-Mode Out |
About Joey CutlessJoey Cutless is a Music Producer, Composer & Engineer that has been a pioneer in online beat sales, TV licensing, and marketing of all things production related for over 15 years. Archives
August 2016
Categories
All
|
RSS Feed