I Need Music Career Advice BADLY

[SonicSynthesis]

I really do need help. I'm in college studying music and i've been given a project where i basically have to plan out the next 10 years of my life and how i'm going to suceed in my chosen area of music. Thing is i have no chosen area in music, i have no idea what i want to do.

I don't know where i'm strongest. I'm good on the guitar and have been playing for a number of years, i enjoy working with DAW's and composing songs. I like the idea of working in my own home studio making music, but i don't know what careers would involve this. Maybe something in making music for the media or games or something? I honestly have no idea, it's kind of hit home that i don't know what i'm doing with my life and i was just hoping i'd figure it out later and something would happen for me.

So basically something that involves making music in my own studio, what careers involve that kind of thing? It would be a massive help if you could offer me advice and send any useful links to information. Thanks in advance.

[Moseph]

Grad school?

Production library music?

[JJT]

i can think of two "jobs" (though a lot of people do both): film scoring and/or music production.

if you want to be a producer there's no real set career path for that. it's like being a movie director. you just have to do it. pretty much the same with film scoring. you've gotta put yourself out there and hustle work, something they don't really teach you to do in college. there are some internships you can score which would help tremendously, in terms of gaining experience/connections, but those are often contingent on what college you're at and how connected they are to the industry in question.

anyway, hope this is of some help. if you honestly can't think of what you want to do though, that's not a good sign. you've gotta be really, really driven to succeed in the music business. nothing falls into your lap.

[Charlie's Angel]

As long as you keep your options outside of music open, your perspectives right and realistic and take nothing you get from this for granted, you should be ok. Music is one of the hardest careers to "succeed" in and I agree with JJT that the best thing to do is just jump in.

[Damashii!!]

I don't have experience, I just have the advice from former mentors and those who have walked down that road.

but it seems to me (as of now) you'll either be gigging around (if you like performing guitar as much as playing), taking the hard, lonely road as a freelance producer (fun, but EVERYONE that has given me advice from that has said that it takes a ton of willpower and responsibility, and a bit of luck), or a combination of the both.

and it depends on if you're finally bored of college or if you'd like to take a few more years of learning music in school.

I think you should try to get as many connections as you can while still in college (don't be a mooching, freeloading, leech. Nobody likes those types of interns). My brother has recently got immersed into the Jazz scene and he's been nominated by his school for several Jazz camps and concerts and stuff. Before, he was thinking about music production, but now he might focus his career path on music performance; so maybe you need a bit more thinking time (and connections, as stated above).

in short, learn and make as many connections as much as you can, or just make a senseless one hit wonder pop hit so your career can be set for at least 2 years.

[munchi]

If you are pursuing a career in music you have to decide if you are going to focus on music performance or music creation. Either way, you'll be doing both, but deciding which you want to be your bread and butter will give you a clear path to take (as clear as a music career path can be).

If you want to perform then expect lots of gigs, touring, and generally NOT being in the studio (whether it's in your home or elsewhere).

If you want to create music then you'll be in the studio...a lot...probably too much.

Either way, the importance of networking cannot be stressed enough. I'm pretty sure everybody on this site can produce a better song than the disasters of Kim Kardashian and Rebecca Black, but if nobody knows who you are, it doesn't matter. Networking increases your sphere of influence, your potential fanbase, the resources that are available to you, and a bunch of intangible things as well (like luck).

One other thing I'll say is that outside of performing, music is usually something that is done behind the scenes (meaning it's made to accompany something else 9 times outta 10). I say that to drive home the point that a career in music requires you to think outside the box. You won't find ads in the paper requesting the aid of a producer to write a companies new jingle or that song that's playing during a commercial. Well, you might, but it won't be often and the competition is going to be fierce. You've got to get yourself out there, CREATE work for you to do (whether that's setting up gigs or literally writing songs), make sure people know who you are, and then people will seek you out....maybe.

That's my two cents, hope that helps a little.

[zircon]

One other thing I'll say is that outside of performing, music is usually something that is done behind the scenes (meaning it's made to accompany something else 9 times outta 10). I say that to drive home the point that a career in music requires you to think outside the box. You won't find ads in the paper requesting the aid of a producer to write a companies new jingle or that song that's playing during a commercial. Well, you might, but it won't be often and the competition is going to be fierce. You've got to get yourself out there, CREATE work for you to do (whether that's setting up gigs or literally writing songs), make sure people know who you are, and then people will seek you out....maybe.

if you want to be a producer there's no real set career path for that. it's like being a movie director. you just have to do it. pretty much the same with film scoring. you've gotta put yourself out there and hustle work, something they don't really teach you to do in college. there are some internships you can score which would help tremendously, in terms of gaining experience/connections, but those are often contingent on what college you're at and how connected they are to the industry in question.

Seconding this advice. I'm a full-time composer/producer myself, but I really created this career from scratch. I don't work at one place and collect a paycheck. I have maybe 10 or 15 revenue streams, many of which change every year.

[Nabeel Ansari]

I don't know where i'm strongest. I'm good on the guitar and have been playing for a number of years, i enjoy working with DAW's and composing songs. I like the idea of working in my own home studio making music, but i don't know what careers would involve this. Maybe something in making music for the media or games or something? I honestly have no idea, it's kind of hit home that i don't know what i'm doing with my life and i was just hoping i'd figure it out later and something would happen for me.

If you really like DAW work even though you're great with performing guitar, you might just become a solo artist and do music for production libraries. That, meaning you make your own albums, manage the digital distribution yourself, etc. in addition to producing works that could fit into stuff like this. It seems like a pretty solid point to make money on a per song or per job basis, but since the pay isn't regular or consistent (and if you don't work on your networking), you might wanna have something on the side at the same time to fall back on (i.e. a day job) while you work towards the stuff you have more interest in (music production)

There's really no set career paths unless you follow the footsteps of someone else in the industry. You might end up doing something totally different than me, even though we both compose music and play guitar. I was planning to do work for film or game soundtracks when I get older.

That was the original intent, but I learned that the instability of the industry is too rocky to support life financially, so in addition to that, I want some sort of comp sci day job, hopefully (but not likely) related to my musical side (example: working at Image-Line or Native Instruments on DAWs or VSTs)

What I'm trying to say is that being a semi-professional might be safer for the first ventures in your career.

[SonicSynthesis]

Firstly thanks to everyone who's replied, i've found all your advice very helpful. In response to Neblixes post, i too liked the idea of composing game soundtracks but there are no courses in Scotland that cover it, and i won't be able to get tuition fee's payed in England.

I've decided i definetly want to focus on the music creation more than performing. I would like a job where i can settle down, and i know gigging about in a band is definetly not the way you do that. I would probably get into a band as something to earn a few extra pennies. This summer i'm also going to try and get an unpaid internship or something similar at one of the local recording studios so i can get some hands on experience. If i do end up starting my own small studio i know quite a few bands who i'm good friends with around the country, so hopefully they would let me record their stuff for them. On top of that i'd be composing and recording my own work too. AND on top of that i'd need a day job to keep a steady pay. If i could eventually get a job in more of a 'big shot' studio after i've gained a certain amount of experience it would be helpful for some extra money. That or i could continue with my day job and try to expand my own studio.

This isn't going to happen any time soon, i'll need to work to get money for the equipment first haha.

[zircon]

You don't need to take a course to learn how to write music for video games. There are lots of resources online on the topic, and practice (along with a solid knowledge of basic music theory and production) is by far the most important factor. Also, you need to make a distinction between wanting to create music and wanting to work at a studio. They are very, very different. Working at a studio is primarily very technical. It is rare that you would have any opportunity to actually produce or write anything, even if you're working full-time. Most likely your duties would be pretty menial, and even if you ascend the ranks, you'd primarily be running sessions as opposed to doing creative work.

Some people absolutely love being in the studio and doing mostly recording work. That's fine. But it's not what I want to do, for example. I would rather focus on writing and producing my own music as opposed to working on other people's work. So, what do you want to do?

[SonicSynthesis]

Some people absolutely love being in the studio and doing mostly recording work. That's fine. But it's not what I want to do, for example. I would rather focus on writing and producing my own music as opposed to working on other people's work. So, what do you want to do?

Hmm, when you put it like that i would much rather create music rather then just record and master other peoples. I've never been much of a lyricist, i'm more interested in the music itself and what sounds good. If only submitting to OCR was a paid job, i'd be right on that haha

[SonicSynthesis]

What is it that you actually do Zircon that gives you a steady income? Sorry to hassle, i'm genuinely interested. I figure i may as well ask the experts while i can.

[zircon]

Well, since I just did my taxes, I can give you a pretty accurate breakdown as of 2010...

Synth + Sample library development: 42%

Video game music: 33%

Album sales: 14%

Music licensing: 5%

Teaching: 3%

Royalties (radio airplay, TV broadcast, etc.): 1.2%

Miscellaneous gigs (mastering, non-game composition): 1%

Of course, it varies quite a bit. For example, in college, I made more money (in absolute terms, and as a percentage) from licensing than I do now. But that's because I'm focusing more now on original music and sample development, which I really enjoy. Oddly enough, money from album sales is higher than ever, even though I put months/years into creating them earlier in my career. Likewise, royalties are a pretty small percentage, but maybe 10 years from now they'll be much higher.

[SonicSynthesis]

So is synth and sample development creating packs and such for FL Studio etc, which are then bought?

Also video game music, do you actually make game soundtracks? Did you compose for any well known games?

[zircon]

Most of the sample development I do is through Impact Soundworks. It took a few years to build it up to the level its currently at, and I handle most of the business, accounting and marketing tasks in addition to creative ones. Still, I love it, and can't wait to release even more sample libraries this year (all for Kontakt.) However, I do also design synth presets for Zebra 2. I haven't done any lately but I've made over 180 patches total which still sell a bit.

As for game soundtracks, yes, I do. In 2010 I worked on Monkey Island 2: Special Edition with several other members of this community. That was more arrangement and production than composition, since we were essentially giving a complete update to a MIDI score (literally MIDI files) including scoring for live performers, etc. I also started a gig for a PSP/PS3/360 game which is not announced yet, and which I'm still working on now. I'm the sole composer for it and have already written almost 30 tracks.

[The Legendary Zoltan]

I'm trying to go down kind of the opposite path. My dream is to be a touring metal band very similar to Amon Amarth's playing all over Europe. I still don't know how to get to that point though. I have an awesome band with awesome songs but our day jobs suck up most of our time so we can never play a show outside of Niigata prefecture. Everybody says that sending demos out to record companies is the ultimate waste of time so I haven't tried that. Maybe I should. I don't suppose there is anyone in this community that has a performance career is there?.

Getting back to your original topic, I second the notion that you do not need college to learn how to write music. If you can learn a bit of music theory then you just need to practice. Since you can play guitar, you can probably already write music in at least a couple of genres. Use college to meet lots of people, just like that other guy said.

[SonicSynthesis]

Most of the sample development I do is through Impact Soundworks. It took a few years to build it up to the level its currently at, and I handle most of the business, accounting and marketing tasks in addition to creative ones. Still, I love it, and can't wait to release even more sample libraries this year (all for Kontakt.) However, I do also design synth presets for Zebra 2. I haven't done any lately but I've made over 180 patches total which still sell a bit.

As for game soundtracks, yes, I do. In 2010 I worked on Monkey Island 2: Special Edition with several other members of this community. That was more arrangement and production than composition, since we were essentially giving a complete update to a MIDI score (literally MIDI files) including scoring for live performers, etc. I also started a gig for a PSP/PS3/360 game which is not announced yet, and which I'm still working on now. I'm the sole composer for it and have already written almost 30 tracks.

So seeing as i'm more into music creation and not wanting to record other peoples stuff, what would you recommend as a good path for me to take?

EDIT: I just finished watching your Making Music from Hobby to Profession videos on your Youtube channel and found them very insightful. I like the idea of composing for and Indie game company to get my foot in the door. I spend a lot of time checking out Indie games (mainly 2D ones) as their soundtracks tend to interest me more than a full orchestral piece in a Star Wars game for example. I recently discovered an Indie game called Night Sky, even though it was out in 2009. I have to say i've never seen a game soundtrack compliment atmosphere so well since way back when i first played Soul Reaver. I love how the soundtrack alone has the ability to immerse you in the games world. And i have to say when you mentioned Super Meat Boy in your video it put a smile on my face because i think that game has one of the catchiest soundtracks in history. Kudos to the composer.

I can definitely see me wanting game soundtracks to become part of my life, even if it's not the main part. It's just other things to keep me on my feet which i'm having trouble figuring out.

[JJT]

I still don't know how to get to that point though.

Make good records. Find management. Hire a booking agent.

[Arcana]

Something you may want to do (as a general exercise) is to sit down and write down:

- What you like to do in your spare time

- Why do you like doing these things?

Then, from there, distil two things. First, what are the SKILLS required to do the things that you like to do? Second, what are the inherent BELIEFS and VALUES that drive what you like to do?

Beliefs and values are things like, "I like mental challenges" or "I enjoy watching people's reactions to what I make". Distill those down into short phrases and try to get a sense of what really motivates you.

Then, repeat these steps for not just the things that you enjoy doing, but for your biggest personal accomplishments. It doesn't have to be something that is an award - just something that you are personally proud of.

What this exercise does is that it helps distil what your core beliefs and motivators are and then allows you to help write about them. This doesn't apply to just music but might apply to your life in general.