Every day, all over the world, people are investing in their career. Maybe they’re investing in ads, web design, flyers, or even business cards, whatever it may be, they are still investing. Have you ever heard the expression, “It takes money to make money”? It refers to the fact that you have to, at some point, invest your money into something to get more money back.
What does this have to do with music? Well think about it. Lets say you’re a music artist, a Rapper for example and you want to sell your hip hop album. The first thing you need is to do is find some beats for sale. This could cost you anywhere from $10 to $30 if you’re looking for a lease or non exclusive license. Alright so you got a beat, now you need to write some lyrics. So you go out and buy a notebook, $1 – $5, and a pen which is around $0.99. Without even realizing it, you’ve already invested $11.99 into your music career, you see where I’m going with this. So now that you understand what investing means, let’s go ahead and get into what you should invest in and why it is important.
1. Beats / Instrumentals: If you’re a rapper, r&b singer, or music artist, it is very important that you have some professional, high quality beats for your project. It’s crazy that a lot of people don’t see the importance but a catchy beat can really go a long way. For example, have you ever turned on the radio and heard an artist you don’t particularly care for but you like the song anyway because of the beat? Or have you ever bought a new CD and as you heard the beginning of a song you changed it because you didn’t like the way the beat was sounding? That’s the power of a beat. It can make you stay if it sounds good or make you leave if it sounds bad. So in a way, beats are the most important thing you can possible invest in.
2. Studio Time: Having your vocals recorded by a professional can really make a difference in the quality of your music. People don’t want to buy a CD and hear home studio quality, they want to hear clean clear vocals.
3. Microphone: If you would rather record yourself, then investing in a good high quality mic is very important. I myself use a Shure SM7B microphone and it works really good for a variety of different vocals, but the key is finding the best mic that works for you and your style. Most recording studios don’t just have one mic, they have a bunch for different mics for different song genres and vocal tones. For example, one mic might sound great for rap, but not so good for r&b where you have to hit high notes. So investing in a good mic would be a pretty good idea if your going to be recording yourself.
4. Website: The days when record labels would go to local shows and gigs in search of talent are over. Now in days you need to be all over the internet and in their face for them to even notice you, and if you don’t have your own website they won’t even bother listening to your music. Plus a website is an awesome way to keep people engaged in your music. Lets say you sell a CD to someone on the street. Cool! But wait, how do they find more of your music? How do they buy your new albums down the line? If you had your own website you could write your web URL on the CD and if they liked it they could easily find more of your music! So make sure you invest in a website.
5. Ads: Facebook ads are a great way to get people to find your music or your website. They can be a little tricky but if done right you could beat your competition and get a whole lot of new fans listening to your music.
I know spending money isn’t easy, but if you’re serious about your music career, these are some of the things you’re going to need to invest in. And don’t beat yourself up, sometimes the money won’t start coming in till later. That’s why it’s called an investment. Your planting a tree that could take years to grow, but one day you’ll sit under the shade of that tree. So don’t give up and keep moving forward!
