7 Tips for Putting Your Music Online
** This post is brought to you from our first guest contributor, Mike Winch. He is a sound designer, composer, and Irish fiddle player based in the Washington D.C. area. Check out his website for more details, and stay tuned for more audio tips from him!
Traditional music is a genre that relies heavily on people playing with people. Since we’re all in quarantine this has become impossible to do, and we all need our tune fix. The closest substitute you’ll find is the internet, but getting your music online can be a huge leap outside your comfort zone. Here’s a list of the top seven things to remember when putting your music online:
Don’t Be Afraid! When was the last time you saw somebody playing their music online and thought less of them? Get out of your head, have a little faith, and share your tunes! I know I’d rather see my friends doing literally anything right now more than I want to watch any fresh new Netflix series.
Don’t Give Up! The first thing every audio technician/engineer/gear lover learns is that literally any problem can be solved by giving it time, and you have more time right now than ever before. You’ll find that after you get your workflow working the first time, it gets exponentially easier to troubleshoot every time after that. If you’re frustrated, take a break and come back to it. I promise it’s something really obvious you just haven’t noticed yet.
Stick to a Schedule! We’re all stuck at home and I KNOW you want a schedule of some kind. Commit to putting out regular videos, recordings, streaming events like you do to your practice and you’ll see similar growth and similar wellbeing. Learning to stream is just like learning an instrument: it takes persistence and discipline with a strong dose of personal creativity.
Have the Right Equipment! I don’t want to hear your Macbook’s built in mic for your solo. The features built into your computer are for communication, not music. You’ll need a microphone with a stand and cable, an analog-to-digital audio interface and headphones at minimum, along with a computer and internet access. Don’t know what to buy? Ask a friend, or ask me! I’m obsessed with this stuff!**
Spread It Around! Don’t know where to put your video/music? How about everywhere! Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, your own website, Tik Tok, Posts, Stories, Internet Radio, get it copyrighted and slap it on Spotify, record to VHS and send it around in the mail, FaceTime your parents and play for them. Forget the likes, subscribes, comments and all the other points that affect the algorithm, just do it™
Don’t Forget the Likes, Subscribes and Comments! I take it back, follower interaction is a ton of fun and if possible you should respond to every comment with a like and a followup comment. Growing an online presence is like gardening: you’ll get what you give and sometimes there’s flowers. If somebody follows you on insta, follow back! It’s the polite thing to do.
Be Creative! People like seeing people being people, and people are unique. The more you’re willing to reveal about who you are online, the better your content. Say hello, show us your favorite novelty effect pedal, a riff you came up with at 3AM last night, don’t overthink it. We’re all in this together.
P.S. Mike wants everyone to know he does not recommend the mic in this photo for music streaming.
