Music FAQ’s the answers that the music side of the internet wants to hear.

Hey guys! Today, I’m writing a blog post trying to answer the questions that we all have about music. 

Music industry and music composition, whatever the case is from a musician who has done it. 

This FAQ list is not from people I’ve asked, but rather they are questions that I think everyone wants answered. So, I’m going to post up the question but it will be a question that I will be asking in the form of the internet. 

Without further ado, let’s get into it.

How do you get signed to a record label?

This is a good question. 

There are many people that say different things about getting signed to a record label. 

There are many different approaches to getting signed as a recording artist or songwriter. 

Some people say you have to be born into it, other people say that you need to hire the right people and be in the right places in order to actually get signed to a record label. 

But there are some common areas where all record labels look at in order to actually consider you as part of their label. 

And that is 

1. Have great music
2. play shows
3. have a large following

If you have these things, you are almost always guaranteed that you’re going to get signed. 

Now, if you have a substantial talent or skill in another area, then you might be able to get signed still by the record label 

So say for example if you have great songs but you don’t play live shows, but your social media following is rather large, then you could get by just as long as your songs sound really great. 

Or if you play large venues and have great songs but you don’t have a big social media following, then you could get by as well. 

In almost all of the cases, you’re going to need great songs. 

What is a demo

A demo is a sample of your work. 

It can be fully produced or just guitar and vocals, but a demo is usually a collection of between 1-3 songs that you want the record label to take notice of. 

Usually the songs in your demo have to be the most recent and most updated sound that you’re going for. 

So yeah, it’s just a sample of your music. 

What is an EPK

An EPK is an online musical resume. 

It’s meant to give a more in depth background to record labels. 

When record labels sign you on, they want to see what they’re getting. 

So an EPK can include pictures, videos of your shows, a demo, artistic things that you do a little bio. There are many things that an EPK can do but it’s mainly a musical background. 

How can I start gaining a following on the internet without having anybody to start on first?

That’s a good question. 

And really, the internet has made it easy for people to gain a following. 

I personally started with 0 followers on Tik-Tok. And my first video had around 140 views within the first day. Every once in a while, I will post up a video on Tik-Tok and I still get around hundreds of views to my videos. 

But literally just start making content on whatever platform you decide to start your journey on and just keep going at it. 

That’s literally all that you need to do.

Just start making content and you will go far. 

This is literally the way that I did it and it’s literally how everyone else does it as well. 

I picked a blog for my promotional efforts though when I first started. 

It’s actually this blog. 

Currently, I’m getting between 500 and 700 views per month. 

So if that tells you how efficient this method is, it works. 

Now, I will say this though, that even a small following can be beneficial for you to get signed to a major record label because what happens is that just recently, I had been sending demos to record labels and the biggest record label that I had sent my music to responded and they asked me to send them more demos. 

However, there were some things that I said to them first before I think they took me seriously. 

I told them this, “Hello, my name is German and I’m a Christian musician. Currently, I am getting between 500 and 700 views per month to my Christian music blog, I have around 460 followers on X and I get several hundreds of views to my videos whenever I post them up on Facebook. This is a song that I wrote and I hope you like it.” 

And then I attached an MP3 song to the demo submission and they absolutely loved it. 

This particular record label accepted MP3s 

and they asked me for more demos. 

Yes, I’ll take that any day. 

And it’s true, actually my biggest video that I have on Facebook had around 900 views to it. 

It’s me teaching the guitar. 

My video with 

How can I make great songs?

So let’s be real, if you want to get signed to a record label, you have to go for that record label sound. 

You really have to make music that’s going to get played on the radio. That’s what they really want. 

And there are a multiple ways that you can make that, 

But the primary way that you’re going to do that is to learn about musical contours, how yo create hooks, and create chord progressions. And be able to use all of that in a song is a unique skill that you need to develop. 

I will give you a tip though, write every line like it’s a hook and save your best hooks for the chorus. 

that’s something that Ryan Tedder said on Songland. 

Focus on making the elements that make a great song and you should be fine. 

Should I learn music theory or just do it all by ear?

There are musicians who do everything by ear. 

And they get away with it. 

But in all reality, their music usually falls back onto the rules that music theory says to do. 

Like, I have seen many songs and read their music too, and I will be honest with you, if you learn music theory, you will be able to see why those songs sounded so good. 

I always heard that the Beatles never knew music theory, and they did everything by hearing what sounds good.

But if you hear the song Hey Jude, it literally falls almost entirely within the Key of F and uses diatonic chords within the Key of F.

It’s just that you might say to yourself, “I don’t need music theory.”

But in all reality, it’s the easier way to do it. 

What is A&R

A&R is Artist and Repertoire or some people like to call it Artist and research. 

And A&R is the part of the record label that’s meant to find new talent. 

It’s the part of the record label that you’re supposed to send your music to. 

A&R can make your music career. 

What is a producer?

I see many people asking what is a producer, and a producer is supposed to be someone who takes a song and elevates it to a new level. 

It can act as a beat maker, it can act as someone who is recording and directing you on what to record for your song. 

They can direct you on how to do your song. 

It could be the songwriter himself when he self-produces his own songs. 

It could also act as the mixing engineer or mastering engineer. 

But this is the simplest way that I could picture a producer. 

Imagine someone who wrote a song on the guitar and vocals and it sounds great. 

That songwriter could take it to a producer and he will add drums, bass, synthesizers, choruses, background vocals, effects, noises, mix, master it choose instrumentalists to record the song. That’s really what a producer does. 

What is a mixing engineer?

A mixing engineer starts the final process of finishing your music. 

As a mixing engineer, you will balance out the volumes on individual tracks, clean up acoustic noises, add effects to create a product that’s ready to go into mastering. 

What is a mastering Engineer?

A mastering engineer is someone who finishes the song. 

It takes a mixed song and basically makes it loud, but loud with the proper balance for a commercial release. 

They also add some effects, but for the most part this engineer is the last part of the production process.

What is the one way that you need to get better at music?

Practice, patience, and perseverance. 

And then practice some more. 

What would you recommend to an adult who wants to get into the music industry

It’s possible and it’s been done before. 

But I will say that music is a big spiritual journey. 

You shouldn’t get dismayed by your first sign of trouble. 

What you should do is keep working in your day job, keep doing the things you want to do and need to do and work on music on the side. 

It takes years to develop the skills needed to do this game though so always work hard at all that you do an you will get far. 

Broadcast

I sure hope that I have been an inspiration and a hope to you all. Please remember to pray, read your bible, go to church, and love God above all else. Like, comment, share, subscribe, and I will see you all next time.

If you want to go to heaven, then believe in Jesus and you will go to heaven. (John 3:16)

Thank you all for listening in on this blog post. 

German Gonzalez, signing out!