Music Promotion and Marketing tips for Indie Musicians
For independent artists, the most reliable way to earn a living from music isn’t streaming, social monetization, or even lucrative opportunities in sync licensing. It’s merch sales!
In this episode, Dave Cool of Bandzoogle talks about creating merch items your fans will love, how to make effective offers, and using the best tools for selling online.
Want to bring your listeners on a journey? To send them on an adventure that goes deeper than bonus “behind the music” content? How about a multi-player RPG your fans can play together on Discord!?
That’s exactly what celebrated songwriter and Twitch livestreamer Emma McGann did with her newest album “The Monsterverse.” She created an immersive experience for fans that combined her recordings, videos created with 3D graphics, an RPG built using a Discord Bot, and more.
The Monsterverse takes “music promotion” to a whole new level. In this episode of the podcast, Emma tells how (and why) she constructed a whole world around her music.
If you’re releasing new music in 2023, of course you want it to “succeed” and reach as many listeners as possible!
But you’ll need much more than checklists and rote release strategies; making your music relevant in a world of infinite songs takes the right combination of good marketing mechanics AND exceptional tunes, videos, messaging, and more.
In this episode we’re gonna go deep and help you build a great foundation for any new singles or albums you release this year.
In some ways, 2022 felt like another year on pause. In other ways, the past 12 months passed in the blink of an eye. How did music trends (and the music industry) change this year? And what are our biggest predictions for music marketing, music creation, and music consumption in 2023?
TikTok is a powerful platform for music discovery; your songs and videos can reach the right new fans because of TikTok’s algorithm. But did you know it’s also one of the best places to find inspiration and showcase your quirkiness.
TikTok travels at the speed of memes, and that means there’s a constant churn of humor, skits, trending audio, fun filters, and more. Conversations to join. Creative collaborations. Things to imitate or spin your own unique way. More than other entertainment or social apps for artists, TikTok frees you of always needing to be the prime instigator and driver of every piece of content.
In this episode we talk with multi-instrumentalist, TikTok connoisseur, and CD Baby’s social media expert Rachel Bearinger — all about the culture of TikTok, how to source inspo, stay organized on the app, and keep up with the pace of a platform that thrives on memetic energy.
How does niche music reach millions on TikTok? In this discussion from 2022’s DIY Musician Conference, CD Baby’s Chris Robley spoke with Jeremy Carter-Gordon of the vocal group Windborne.
Not only have Windborne’s videos gone massively viral, but the group grew their TikTok audience while staying true to how they want to perform and represent their music.
In other words: Windborne didn’t work for TikTok. TikTok worked for them. And in this session, we break down the story, the strategy, and their editing and caption tricks. We also analyze fun example videos along the way!
Whether you’re new to music, new to town, or finally getting back out there after a break, it can be really beneficial to make solid connections in your own hometown before you try to conquer the world. How do you break into your local music scene and build a loyal audience?
Want to know how to make yourself more desirable, marketable, and overall employable as a side-person or session musician in today’s post-pandemic climate?
In this session from the 2022 DIY Musician Conference in Austin, TX, you’ll hear from Damon Grant (who has worked with Charlie Hunter, Madonna, and many more) and Stephen Bidwell (of Black Pumas), all about good preparation, the right tools, memorization hacks, professionalism, and heading off personality conflicts with artists, managers, or other players.
Though both presenters are percussionists, this conversation is relevant for any instrumentalist or vocalist who seeks to work in a supporting role, on tour or in the studio.
What ELSE do you need for a successful music release besides the mastered music files? A lot! Let’s talk through both the big-picture and nitty-gritty things you’ll want to prepare before you launch your next single or album into the world.
Let’s be honest, there are some things about being an independent musician that kinda suck. There are (at least) five common personal and professional struggles that go hand-in-hand with creative pursuits.
And in this episode we’re gonna gripe, we’re gonna reach collective catharsis, and then we’re gonna figure out how to move beyond the unique hurdles that musicians face.
In this episode Montse chats with musician Madisen Ward of the folky-blues-roots duo Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear.
Madisen tells us about his “Quarentunesâ€, how he built his artist team, on writing, starting a podcast, “Little failuresâ€, and lots more.
In this episode Montse chats with Shelby Means and Joel Timmons of the folk-rock duo Sally & George. They are independent artists releasing an album during the pandemic and they tell us all about that experience.
Birds of Chicago are a husband and wife folk/soul duo based in Nashville, TN.
In this episode of the DIY Musician Stories podcast, Alli and JT chat with Montse about their origin story, writing process, and what it’s been like to pause and pivot from a life on the road. They also talk about collective grief, the rejection every artist encounters, finding your tribe, and much more.
Maya de Vitry is a singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist.
In this episode Maya tells us about releasing her beautiful album How To Break a Fall just as the pandemic started to hit. Maya and Montse also chat about holding day-jobs as an artist, self-forgiveness, and social media breaks.
Sunny War is a Folk-Punk musician based in LA.
In this episode, Sunny talks about moving from addiction into music, on the perils of social media, on her experiences busking, on finding meaningful ways to stay in touch during quarantine, and she tells us what she’s listening to right now.
Mary Gauthier is a Grammy-nominated folk singer-songwriter who has struck a balance between her own artistry and penning songs for singers such as Blake Shelton and Jimmy Buffett. In 2017, Mary was the keynote speaker at CD Baby’s DIY Musician Conference, and had 1000 attendees wiping tears from their eyes after her talk about the transformative power of songwriting to heal trauma. In this episode, Mary conveys that power, while discussing her songcraft, and her new memoir “Saved by the Song,” the way her life has changed since the pandemic, and much more.
If you’re a songwriter, or want to be, this episode is a must listen.
EPISODE 2: Singer-songwriter Amythyst Kiah is a solo artist, and can be heard alongside Layla McCalla, Allison Russell and Rhiannon Giddens in the Grammy nominated project Our Native Daughters. In this episode of the NEW DIY Musician Stories podcast, Amythsyt talks openly about overcoming trauma and pain and how music was her emotional vehicle to process deep feelings. She speaks on the transition of music in her life from an escape into a career, on being a part of the Grammy nominated project Our Native Daughters, and how she’s been leaning into live streams during this time.
DIY Musician Stories delves deep into the struggles, triumphs, process, and inspiration of trailblazing musicians and songwriters. Hosted by Montse Andrée Carty, this CD Baby podcast also gives you a chance to sit in the interviewer’s seat, as listener questions are solicited for the artists before every episode.
The first few episodes of this brand new podcast will appear in the feed of our established DIY Musician Podcast, just to be sure people know about it. But please subscribe to our DIY Musician Stories podcast separately on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and more. In case you’re worried, the DIY Musician Podcast isn’t going anywhere; we now have TWO awesome podcasts to inspire your creativity and music marketing.
EPISODE 1: Misty Boyce is a singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. She is part of Sara Bareilles and Lord Huron’s band, and has an incredible solo career to boot! Misty talks about what it’s like being a “sideman” vs. a solo artist, the artist/manager relationship, and her recent collaboration with Dawes frontman Taylor Goldsmith.