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i think you have the right atitude to suceed Boinkeee. but as the saying goes “if it was that easy, every one would be doing it”.
i’m one of the newcomers in this business in comparison to some of the pro’s here so i’m still on that slippery ladder. here are a few of the lessons i’ve learnt along the way.
– knowledge is key. really do your research on this business first before you dive in. that means researching the type of deals on offer, researching the libraries you are planning to submit too etc. there is a wealth of knowledge here on MLR.
– take the advice of composers that are already in the business. this is tricky because depending on your goals and genres you may get polar opposite opinions on the best strategy (just take this thread for example).
– focus on quality over quantity. if i had just pushed out 30 medicore tracks that all sounded exactly like the other millionsof tracks out there i dont think i would of got into any exclusive libraries. why would i if i’m not offering anything unique.
beaslinger thats great to hear you are making a living on 200 tracks. that sounds alot more realistic and managable than composing 2,000 music beds. at my current speed i can compose 1 track per week so that would be a realistic target of 50 tracks per year. in 4 years i could have a nice catelogue of 200 tracks. i think for me anyway that would be alot more fullfilling than slogging away at making 1000’s of average cues to send out into the world.
but once again this is my strategy based on my experience and my goals.
I see now that overanalyzing to make sense of it all is not the answer. stressing out on what to do, figuring out the right path and avoiding pitfalls the vets have made before even stepping into the jungle does not help or guarantee anything.
Truer words were never written. It’s not one-size-fits-all and you will never replicate another person’s performance or results and the circumstances that got them there.
Hard work is essential. Timing and luck can’t be overlooked. Be ready to size the opportunity when it comes.
I don’t know why everyone keeps coming up with “1000 average or mediocre” songs to make a living. IMO, it’s 1000 + AMAZING pieces of music. You need numbers, you need diversity, and you need them in different places. That’s the key. With 200, your accuracy and focus has to be perfect. With 1000-2000 you can make mistakes like we all make. I’ve got a HUGE mistake with over 100 KILLIER tracks signed with A level PMA companies that are stopped dead due to internal politics and poor management. That was unavoidable on my part. I was stoked to place those and sure it would take me over the top. But no, if that was over 50% of my “200”, I’d be dead in the water right now and working at Starbucks.
This perspective, these numbers are what I see from many, many production music writers who have spanned decades. Not just myself.
If one can make a living off of 200, fantastic. But that would – from my experience and from those who went before me – be the exception, not the rule. If you “shoot” for 200, you’ll almost certainly come up short. I might make the bulk of my income from 2-300 tracks, but I had to write close to 2000 to get there.
— It must be stated — You will never know which tracks are going to “make it” until after they have. My dumbest tracks are some of my best earners. Figure that one out?
Quality is key, but if you are being honest, you know that not everything you write is exceptional. Numbers and diversity are your friends like any other investment opportunity. Many will fail, a few will succeed and hold up the failures if you are good enough.
Excellent thought @LAwriter !!!
Lets face it fellas, you have to put out some serious quantity to gain traction. Quantity breeds quality. So while some may advise “Shoot for 5 super high quality tracks that will earn you 50K over 5 years in sync fees…etc.” The bottom line Mark and all is that it did take you writing 2000 for 5 to take off! Everyone of us vets here is saying “I wrote 1000 or more tracks”.
I advise that one should always shoot for high quality. Why are we tossing words like “average” around? Who mentioned “average”.
Every time you sit down and write, record, mix, and master shoot for a quality piece. It’s that simple. But yes, as LA writer has stated, many professional and seasoned writers who have been around for 3 or 4 decades make their income from thousands of tracks, not dozens or hundreds. The majority will tell you that it takes a thousand. If anyone can send links to composers making 6 figures and up who have done it with 100 to 200 compositions in their career, please link me to their music, I’d love to hear it. I’m not saying it can not be done, it can. John Williams can write 200 tunes and make big bucks. But for the majority, you better start with 200, then 500, then 1000, then on and on. Then you will discover your “hit tracks” your “gems” …your money makers.
I have big money makers that took 3 hours to produce. Then I have (what I thought were) amazing high quality tunes that took a long time to produce, and do not produce meaningful revenue. Only the market decides which tunes will make money.
One final goal all should have. The KING of compensation is still, in my opinion, landing a track (with a vocal) on a national TV commercial from a big brand in an “image” advertising campaign. I am not talking about cookie cutter tv spots like monthly promos “run and buy the new car, hurry we have good financing this month.” I am talking about beautifully filmed commercials for the big boys: micrsoft, IBM, Chase, All State, Kelloggs, Proctor and Gamble, General Motors, Mercedes, budweiser, and so on.
If you get a tune on a huge campaign in heavy rotation for 6 to 12 months and are on the SAG contract as vocalist, look out, mountains of cash in vocal residuals and back end performance royalties will be raining down on your head quarter after quarter.
While 50K for 5 tunes over 5 to 10 years is nice, this scenario above is more like 100K in 1 year.
There are no solutions other than to grind it out for years and years until you have a massive catalog built up and repped by folks who know what they are doing.
I see the word “Amazing” thrown a lot when it comes to the music…I am still uncertain on what that really pertains to.
Amazing Production Music =
1. Eminently Useable. An amazing piece with a 3 minute blazing guitar solo might be musically amazing, but it has minimal usages.
2. Amazing is also defined by being in the right hands. An amazing piece in the hands of a sub par library will fail. If it fails, you fail. If it fails is it amazing? This is quite possibly our #1 nemesis.
3. Produced at the highest level of excellence. You’ve got to be at major feature film, major record label quality in the writing AND in the production. If you’re 100% ITB, you’re already cutting your own throat. Get analog gear involved. There’s simple dumb, and then there’s simple elegant. They are not the same thing and they do not compete. Simple elegant sells. Simple dumb defines you as an amateur and gets you passed over the next time.
3a. To tag off this idea, there should be a recognizable level of musical maturity, production maturity, and uniqueness that pulls your piece above the others. That takes years. You do not accomplish this when starting off. I’ve been producing music for 35 years and am still learning every time I sit down in the studio. Do not expect to produce unique, musically mature, quality produced music right out of the gate. Doesn’t work that way. If you think you can, you don’t know what you’re doing. You’ll figure that out a decade down the road though…. 🙂
4. Which brings up Unique. If you’re using the same loops, sounds, synth patches etc. as every one else, the music may be excellent, but it will be eminently forgettable – even with a memorable melody and good production.
5. Which brings up melody. Often not needed or wanted. If you spend a day out of 5 crafting your melody, you may be wasting your time. They are going to use one of the “bed” alternates. That said, I personally find that anti to what I got into this biz for. BUT, I’ll often put the melody version as an alternate instead of the main theme.
6. It has to be what people want to use. That means style, genre, etc.. If you’re writing string quartets or french horn trio’s, you will probably not get a lot of uses. Forget the probably – you won’t.
7. Which brings up the subject of diversity. If you’re not diversified, you’re killing your chances before you start. If you’ve got 200 EDM tracks and nothing else, you’re competing against yourself. When I get a brief, I ALWAYS choose the pieces that I don’t have a lot of in my catalog. Even if I’m uncomfortable with the style and it means it will take me longer to pull off.
8. Unless (IMO) the genre demands pure electronics, it should have real musicians on it where real musicians are called for. Otherwise it’s cheap.
9. ULTIMATELY, all that matters is that you convince who is searching that it is amazing. Against all the other pieces on their computer screen – YOURS has to stand out. If you fail at that, your music is not amazing – it’s just clutter.
I could go on and on and on and on….. I often listen to soundclouds that people put up as their work. VERY RARELY do I ever hear stuff that I find compelling – or amazing. Yeah, it’s fairly pro – more or less – and will easily work, but it doesn’t inspire me to hear more and find out about the person who’s producing it. If you can’t get beyond that, you’re doomed to obscurity. Being able to write and produce on a “competent level” will not get you noticed.
Bottom line – to be able to write and deliver amazing and have a successful LONG term career :
– your music has to be musically better than 90% of what you hear on A level libraries.
– your music has to be produced, mixed, and mastered better than 90% of what you hear on libraries.
– your music has to be not ITB produced. Not all samples, not all plugins, not mixed ITB with no “real gear”, microphones, outboard, consoles, etc. attached to it.
– your “hustle” has to be 90% better than those you are competing against.
– you need diversity in your music, diversity in styles, diversity in types of placement and NUMBERS. Without that, you will not make it long term. If all you do is EDM, you might be killing it today. But what about 5 years from now when it becomes passé?
– most of all you need a $#!@ ton of luck. It was damn hard when I started. I can’t imagine starting now. The business is so *&^%$%^&*’ed up. I would not do it if I had to start in 2015 or later. I’d keep music for fun, and find a different way to make a living.
And BTW, as an aside, I consider “making a living” something akin to pushing towards 6 figures. Not an extra $1000-1500 a month. Often people are from different regions and even different countries where a thousand a month is the median income and totally livable on. That’s not what I’m talking about.
I have big money makers that took 3 hours to produce. Then I have (what I thought were) amazing high quality tunes that took a long time to produce, and do not produce meaningful revenue. Only the market decides which tunes will make money.
I wanted to quote this because THIS ^^^^^ is reality. The market decides what is “amazing”. Not us.
I often listen to soundclouds that people put up as their work. VERY RARELY do I ever hear stuff that I find compelling – or amazing. Yeah, it’s fairly pro – more or less – and will easily work, but it doesn’t inspire me to hear more and find out about the person who’s producing it.
LA and Music,
We have heard the term “Amazing music” many times in this thread. Being in this business for a few years, not decades, I highly respect your opinions and life experiences.
Perhaps you can post some of your Soundcloud so we can get an idea of what the norm is for high bar music.
I would not do it if I had to start in 2015 or later. I’d keep music for fun, and find a different way to make a living.
A decision that I made 17 years ago, after 2 decades in the business.
Because…
I personally find that anti to what I got into this biz for.
For most people, there are easier ways to make money and better ways to make music.
— It must be stated — You will never know which tracks are going to “make it” until after they have. My dumbest tracks are some of my best earners. Figure that one out?
Ain’t THAT The Damned TRUTH!! I have a Cue, that was on it’s way to The Recycling Bin; but I needed to fill 2 slots to complete a CD project. I said, “BOY, this is some Corny Sh^T”. Mixed it anyway, and threw it on.
When The CD was uploaded onto the site. I saw that the “Filler Track was put in the number one slot”. I thought they were trying to mess me up, or were smoking something..
Now, I see the numbers, and Cackle My Ass Off!! “That throw away track” gets about 100 Placements a quarter..
Also, I did not say I plan to stay at 200 tracks. The catalog is “Briskly Growing”lolol
I have been in the Production Music side as part of my overall music income since 2004. Due to NOT doing my research, stupidly having faith, and sleeping with crooks. I had to give away several hundred songs..@Danny, I do not have a soundcloud account. Just do some research on where to find high bar music libraries and you’ll be in good shape. We can not post those links here as it is against MLR’s rules. We also don’t post links to our music on a public forum as it’s inappropriate. Ask some colleagues and I am sure someone will point you in the right direction of quality “high bar” production music.
I am not sure you are understanding what LA Writer is saying. While it may seem like stating “amazing” is being boastful about his own music, he’s not bragging at all. He’s communicating a message about what’s important (to succeed) based on his 3 or 4 decades of experience working in the music business. If you don’t get it, keep grinding and working until you do, as we had to.
Also, remember, we are offering our opinions, and our opinions are shaped by our experience(s).
I posted earlier in response to Danny. Not sure why my post was curated or held back. This seems to happen often on this website and I’d really love to know why. Don’t have time to repost it now, and unfortunately, didn’t make a copy before I hit “submit”.
Bottom line – I don’t have a sound cloud acct, and don’t intend to get or use one. No need for me.
I agree with those above – “AMAZING” is in the ear of the user. Not my expectations by any degree. I try to do my best, then push to add 10-20% better and turn it in. That’s all I can do. It turns amazing is when it earns boucou $$$.
@danny, I do not have a soundcloud account. Just do some research on where to find high bar music libraries and you’ll be in good shape. We can not post those links here as it is against MLR’s rules. We also don’t post links to our music on a public forum as it’s inappropriate. Ask some colleagues and I am sure someone will point you in the right direction of quality “high bar” production music.
Hmm. I have seen plenty of SC links to tracks on this forum. Did not know it was against the rules.
I am not sure you are understanding what LA Writer is saying. While it may seem like stating “amazing” is being boastful about his own music, he’s not bragging at all. He’s communicating a message about what’s important (to succeed) based on his 3 or 4 decades of experience working in the music business. If you don’t get it, keep grinding and working until you do, as we had to.
What LA is saying is perfectly clear and I do not feel that he is being boastful by any means.
Most of the MLR participants are quite insightful and eager to learn from the experienced. If I was on an oil painting forum and heard about some great paintings, I’m sure there would be some pics posted.
I am not trying to be rude and don’t take it the wrong way. It’s just a little odd how we were told about excellence throughout this whole thread with nothing tangible to help convey the message 🙂
Making amazing Music – production value
… your music has to be not ITB produced. Not all samples, not all plugins, not mixed ITB with no “real gear”, microphones, outboard, consoles, etc. attached to it.
What outboard gear would you say is absolutely necessary to raise the production value of ITB?
FYI – As I replaced my gigging work with music production work, and not having the benefit of working in a recording studio, I learned production techniques ITB. I record all guitars/string instruments live with quality mics (electrics w/amp simulator) through a quality interface, and use samplers for other instruments.