LISTEN TO THE ARTICLE HERE
A couple months ago we were booking tours for indie musicians, then a scary new virus came out of nowhere and forced us to place those tours on hold, and the worst part is that no one knows exactly when anyone will be able to plan their next live show. Talking with our clients and reading the many disgruntled posts from today’s hard-working indie musicians it is clear to me that the entire world feels like it has been placed on pause. For many artists, there is a real sense of missing the window of opportunity that was starting to open for them prior to the arrival of this plague. We all know that the music industry is a fickle beast, ever changing in its opinion of what is currently relevant, and it does not take kindly to a musician’s hiatus; no matter the reason behind it. Let us look at some of the most likely roadblocks that are now in your way now that this pandemic has decided to stay for coffee.
FEAR.
Fear is going to crush the confidence of many indie musicians. It is going to tell those musicians that the money they put in is all going to waste now, that there is no point in putting any more effort in until the world finds a vaccine, and that might be years, so maybe now is not the right time to do music. Fear is going to play on the already fragile confidence of some of these unknown artists. Fear alone is going to weed out the weak from the strong here, it is going to show us who believes in their music and who does not. Covid-19 will undoubtedly end some hopefuls dreams right here and now. What you need to know is that fear is a liar, and all the effort that you put in to promote your music has not gone to waste. Your audience still cares about what you are doing, and they want to hear more of your music, so you must make sure to keep posting on your social media pages and keep then in the loop; and fuck fear!
ISOLATION.
Isolation is not for everyone. For some, it is a beautifully peaceful time to collect their thoughts, plan out their next move and reconnect with themselves; for others, it is an extremely lonely and inconvenient experience that only serves to further separate bandmates from coming together to practice their music. To weather isolation properly, one must understand that this is only temporary, and that one must lean on the latest technology to overcome the distance now forced between us. The most dangerous side-effect of isolation is the ‘hiatus’. Nothing can kill a musician’s chances of succeeding faster than hanging up the ‘Back in five minutes’ sign. Isolation does not mean that you can take time off, in fact, it means the very opposite. In isolation you need to study how to effectively promote your music and build your audience, it is the best time for you to put in the work that you have been putting off. During this incredibly unique time, you can either treat this like a vacation from the band or you can treat it like a golden opportunity to study and try new marketing tactics; one leads to a dead-end while the other leads to a larger audience. What will you do with your time?
MONEY.
Some have it and some do not. It may have sucked before the death cloud arrived, but for some, Covid-19 has absolutely decimated their finances, leaving them with the dark potential of selling their equipment to pay some bills, and I do not have to tell you that I am completely against you doing this, but I will…
I know, easy for me to say as I am not in your situation, but from the amount of evidence I have collected through personal experience and through watching other musicians prematurely end their music careers by selling their gear, I can honestly say that if you truly believe in your music career then selling your gear is not an option, ever.
If no one is hiring around you, you can always find a business online to work for, there are always unique ways to collect some extra money on the side, you just have to look further than selling your music gear. This is a great time to consider starting a YouTube channel, adding a Patreon account, learning about music licensing and more. If you want money then you will have to work for it, but it is there for you, trust me. You must look beyond the usual ways that musicians make money and keep an open mind about the process.
TOO MUCH FREE TIME.
When you know that you potentially have another few months off it is easy to burn a few too many hours catching up on the latest episode of Tiger King, but make no mistake, this time in isolation will eventually come to an end, and you will be expected to resume your day job as soon as possible. You must not forget that right now you are being given an unusual amount of free time to work with, and that this may not happen again any time soon (or it will, and then I don’t know what I am talking about). The point is, you should not be acting as if you have days to burn, you should be using this time to study the music scene, the social media scene, and any other scene that your music career would benefit from learning more about.
You need to stay sharp, stay focused, and stay prepared for the journey ahead. They say that ‘luck is when opportunity meets preparation’, and I could not agree more. If you want to succeed with your music after we get this pandemic under control, then you need to prepare for that opportunity that will be coming your way. Utilize your free time and do not make the grave mistake of wasting it. Every day is a new day to learn and understand something new about how to build your audience.
NO LIVE GIGS.
As I stated at the beginning of this article, my company was working with some artists to plan their tours for 2020. They were hopeful, like any musician excited about their recent album release. The venues were booking up, the dates were closing in, but then the venues started to talk about closing…then they closed, and our hopeful clients had to put the emotional breaks on their excitement. It sucks as a company to have to let clients go, even if temporarily, but it sucks even more when those clients are your friends and you must let them down. I know, the pandemic is not my companies fault, the lockdown is also not my companies fault, and the venues didn’t close because of my company either; but it doesn’t change how much it blows to have to talk optimism to a friend when they feel like they may have just missed their chance to break into the music industry. For many musicians, the live show is a great source of feedback and audience building for their music, it is the best way to sell some albums and merch, it is the important step they need to take to launch off of, and when that one area was cut off for artists, the entire industry felt it like a shockwave of disappointment. You could feel the entire emotional climate of the world change when the venues closed, suddenly the world did not feel like it was singing anymore; and then beautiful videos started to surface from all over the world. Musicians everywhere were starting to defy this silence and fear by playing their music from rooftops, patios and living rooms. The mission of the artist has never been more clear than it is today; we are to help everyone get through these difficult times, to remind them all that we are connected, that no one is truly ever alone, and in this case, that music can inspire hope.
The ‘COVID Concert Series’ is now a thing. ‘Songs in isolation; is now trending. ‘Social distance shows’ is fully acceptable. It has been said that when you play, whether in front of thousands or in front of only one audience member, that you are expected to play with the same level of professional intensity. Using Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitch, or whatever else you fancy, now is the best time in the world to set-up an online show, or better yet, an online tour!
Has any seen what Machine Gun Kelly or Post Malone have been up to? If not, here are a couple examples of musicians doing isolation right.
LISTEN TO MACHINE GUN KELLY HERE
LISTEN TO POST MALONE NIRVANA TRIBUTE HERE
UNCERTAINTY.
Perhaps, the most damaging symptom of COVID-19 is how it leaves everyone without a sense of security. We are left with some terribly stressful questions to ponder. We want to know what will happen next. We long for the security found in the illusion of safety that we are used to living with. In the end, we just want our lives back…and we have been warned by the powers that be that we should not be expecting this to happen any time soon.
“If we wait another day it might get better?” This is absolutely the wrong attitude for any indie musician looking to build a music career in this strange new era. It is a belief that will guarantee that you will waste the potentially productive day ahead of you.
So, then what should you really be thinking if not about hope for the better days ahead?
You should be acting as if this inconvenient virus is not going anywhere any time soon, because it will not be, and that is the hard truth.
Knowing this should help in getting you back into the right headspace, and that is that you need to work at your music career every single day, without fail. You should be reaching out to a new audience daily, tweaking your website, cleaning up your social media, setting up a ‘Live in Lockdown’ show, running ads, and working on new music. You should be using this uncertain time to do certain things.
Uncertainty is not an excuse to put the breaks on your daily efforts, and it should not play a part in whether you chase your dream of having a successful career in music or not.
CONCLUSION
Is COVID-19 killing your music career? That is completely up to you.
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