Happy New Year and thank you to all my followers for your support. I thought I’d start the new year off on the topic of music releases, so today I’d like to share with you 3 things you can do to release more music in 2022.
FOCUS
With the multitude of distractions we have these days, it’s very easy for your focus to drift. Before you know it, months have passed and you may not have released that single or EP you had planned to. We’ve all experienced this in one form or another I’m sure. One suggestion I have for you to help you stay focused on your musical goals is to regularly remind yourself of the reason why you got into songwriting and music production in the first place.
Revisiting our early inspirations can be a useful reminder and helps ground us and re-centre ourselves in the right creative headspace. You could even have a poster on your wall in your studio or creative space with some words that connect you back to your initial inspiration. I remember when I first started playing guitar and how much I was influenced by Dire Straits and Mark Knopfler. Then over the years as I gradually wrote and produced more songs, if ever I was feeling creatively lost or uninspired, I would remind myself of those times when I would sit on the edge of my bed learning all those songs by Dire Straits and the feeling of wanting to progress and improve my playing.
Looking back on your journey in music and seeing how far you’ve come is also a great positive reinforcement, as we can often get lost in that sea of comparing ourselves against others without acknowledging our own achievements. Always be seeking the creative fulfilment and remember it’s totally ok to do things just for the fun of it sometimes.
LISTEN TO MORE MUSIC
It may seem like a simple solution, but listening to more music is always a fantastic way to get inspired. Ultimately, many of our musical inspirations often come directly from what we have listened to in the past, even without realising it. Think about a time when you might have been obsessed with a particular album and listened to it on repeat over and over again. I know that I’ve done that myself many times over the years and I often look back at those times as important moments in my creative development. When we immerse ourselves in art and music, we place ourselves in that creative space and ideas will naturally develop as a result. It’s no different to reading an immersive book that you can’t put down. We visualise the author’s words and the world that they are creating and virtually create a movie of it in our minds.
I think it’s also a good idea to keep an open mind and aim to explore at least one new genre that you’re not familiar with. In music, we can often place ourselves in a certain genre’s box, so to speak. Without realising it over time, we can gradually conform to a certain genre or sub-culture and potentially end up feeling creatively trapped and constrained. Getting out of your musical comfort zone is one of the best ways to find new inspiration.
LESS SOCIAL MEDIA & MARKETING
In our modern digital lives, it’s easy to fall into the trap of scrolling and constantly thinking of fresh content. If you’re a songwriter or musician, it’s important to balance out how much time you are spending on this element of music. So, spend less time obsessing over social media and marketing. Remember, promotion is only one part of the puzzle when it comes to music releases. If you continually focus on likes and streams and comparing yourself to others, you’ll continually be putting yourself in a negative mindset, which will affect your productivity. So, stay positive and always keep the big picture in mind.
Thanks for stopping by and I hope today’s topic helps you release more music in 2022! All the best with your musical pursuits this year!
Until next time,
Mike
