Experiment In The Box
We’ve all heard the saying “Think outside the box”. This assumes that the box is well defined and can’t be changed. You can only work within the box or have to think outside the box to make something new. It’s easy to say to think outside the box but how much do we really know about the box?
You Won’t Score Christopher Nolan’s Next Film
Unless you’re Hans Zimmer or Ludwig Göransson, it’s probably unlikely you’ll be hired as the Composer for Christopher Nolan’s next film. I’m not saying this to be negative but I want to take focus away from your Director heroes and help you focus on what’s in front of you. Then maybe down the line, you will be hired as the composer for your favorite Director.
Less Is More
We’ve all heard the saying “Less Is More”. This is usually targeted towards musicians who like to write complicated intricate music and that’s ok. Do you have difficulty finishing a song? Do you constantly add and change parts of a song and never end up releasing it? If this sounds like you, you are not alone.
Show, Don’t Tell
The holidays can be tough. You may of had to visit back home and spend most days explaining to family members and old acquaintances about how your little art career is going. You may had to sit and listen to everyone’s advice on how to get a real job when we fail or warning you not to quit your current job.
Great works aren’t finished, They’re abandoned
It takes 2 people to finish a painting. One person to paint and the Second person to pull them away from painting and say it’s done.
How Quantity Can Increase Quality
Not every song I make is going to be good. But I do my best to start then finish it. Because I believe over time, the more songs I make, the better I will get at it. My songwriting skills get better, my production techniques get better and I find interesting things that make my sound unique from anyone else.
It’s Not Who You Know. It’s Who Knows You.
We’ve all heard the saying “It’s who you know” when people talk about how others have gotten successful. We see signs of nepotism throughout the art world all the time whether it be a new up and coming actor who is actually the child of an already famous actor or an artist who’s family runs an art gallery. We can simply look at those cases and say “it’s who you know”
Mother Nature Is The True Artist
“Great chefs have three things in common. One, they accept and respect that Mother Nature is the true artist, and they are the cook. Two, everything they do becomes an extension of them as a person. And three, they give you insight into the world they were born into, the world which inspired them and they serve it on their plates”
You’re Not An Artist, You Solve Problems
Sometimes being a working artist doesn’t feel like being an “actual” artist. You may be partly expressing your creativity but most of the time, you are solving a problem for a client. You are providing a service and delivering a product to someone who will pay you…
Artists Need To Eat Too
Artists are expected to give away their art for free. If you are charging for your art, others will look at you as a sell out. Businesses use this narrative to get free art for their own Marketing. A business by design is to make profit so why would they want to spend more money on our art when we give it away for free?
Take Up Space For Your Art
I’m an artist but when someone asks me what I do, I usually reply “I work in software development”. Both are true but sometimes I fear of being judged by others if I tell them I’m an artist. Making art is not looked at as a real job by many and sure…
A Day In The Life of a Part-Time Artist
In this article, I walk you through a typical day for me where I spend the first few hours working on my music, work my day job then prep for the next morning. I like to work on music first thing in the morning when I’m motivated vs. waiting till after my day job when I’m usually brain dead.
My Minimalist Recording Studio
I need these 5 Tools at a minimum to create music. These are the tools I use that give me the ability to create music anywhere and usually everyday.
5 Principals to work on your art everyday
In this article, I share the 5 principals that allowed me to work on my art everyday. I am mainly a musician and composer and I used to wait for inspiration to hit me before working on anything. And when I sat down to work on music, I would often quickly distract myself by scrolling through social media.
7 Steps To Book Better Music Gigs
I describe the 7 Steps that got my band to play in front of 100s to 1000s of people. After playing numerous shows where nobody would show up, we made a simple change to only seek out Free Public Events in our local area that would fit our niche.
Do This 1 Thing To Get Better Music Gigs
Performing to an empty venue is horrible yet I did it again and again. We would invite everyone we knew but close friends had already seen us perform so why would they come again?