RadioAirplay.com Blog

https://www.radioairplay.com/bands/login The holidays represent a lot of things: Time with family, a break from work or school, delicious food…. some more delicious food, and of course gift giving!  But maybe not so obvious, is that the holidays also represent opportunities for musicians as the season means more free time to discover and purchase new music.  So as the holidays start to kick in, we’re giving Radio Airplay artists an early gift and promotional opportunity with the release of a brand new feature: Holiday Song Targeting! We’ve released holiday specific targeting, allowing you to promote your songs of goodwill, faith, peace, or holiday fun directly in the most popular Jango.com holiday stations! You must have play credits on your songs to take advantage of this special feature. Our Holiday Genre Targeting feature allows you to choose from 15 different holiday genres and a total of 27 holiday stations. The stations in parenthesis are the Jango.co...

Many musicians are known to be procrastinators - " We procrastinate from doing The Thing we know we need to do for a variety of reasons that can usually be rolled into two categories: The Fear or The Overwhelm." Since we're inevitably going to procrastinate,  why not develop some skills to procrastinate like a boss? Take a look at this helpful article recently posted by our friends at DIY Musician with tips on how to master your procrastinator personality.  http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/procrastinator-personality-master/

"As a working musician in a social media-focused world, you should always be on the hunt for great content. You will find yourself constantly needing something to post or to save for another day, and snaps from a concert can be the perfect filler. If you’re in the beginning stages of your career, keeping a photographer with you at all times (especially when touring) probably isn’t an option, so why not rely on your fans to supply you with the pics you’ve been looking for?" Take a look at this recent post by our friends at Tunecore , with some great ideas to get concertgoers to take more photos, and in turn help boost your promotional efforts.  http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/08/6-things-can-get-fans-take-photos-shows-matters.html

" Part of the beauty of recording in a small home “studio” (mine is basically just a bedroom filled with gear) is that you can  use limitations to your advantage . So I’ve been obsessing lately over the basics, wanting to break my gear, my signal path, and my creative process down to something that allowed for quick tracking and decision making." Check out by Chris Robley on the  DIY Musician blog with great tips and the  bare minimum amount of gear you need to create great digital recordings at home. http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/5-essential-components-home-recording-studio/

" So much has changed in the music industry over the last few years that affect an artist’s ability to be successful. Some of it is brand new and a result of the technology we use, while some of it is good common sense that’s been used over and over during the past decades of the business." Take a look at this recent article posted by our good friends at Tunecore, with ten business fundamentals that all musicians or anyone in the music industry for that matter, need to understand in order to get along in this constantly changing music environment. http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/07/10-fundamentals-for-getting-along-in-todays-music-business.html

"Music promotion is something a lot of people struggle with. It can be tough to find something that actually works. After all, your goal is to be able to sell music, merch, and tickets and ultimately make a living from your music, so just getting followers or being “internet famous” isn’t going to cut it." Take a look at the following article posted by our friends at DIY Musician , with a helpful overview  that will make promoting your music more efficient, profitab le, and fun. http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/music-promotion/promote-music-set-content-marketing-plan/

" The vast majority of people creating music also need to find another way to pay the bills, at least at first. Making a living from any form of art, be it acting, dancing, singing, playing an instrument, etc., is incredibly difficult, and as the economy stands at the moment, only a certain number of people can be supported. There are plenty of ways to work your way into the biz as a musician, but doing so at the right time, when you’re prepared and truly ready, is an important part of ensuring this is correct for you." Take a look at this great article recently posted by our good friends at Tunecore  with crucial things to keep in mind before you consider quitting your day job.  http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/07/3-reasons-shouldnt-quit-day-job-just-yet.html

" Whether you’re a solo artist or with a band, the amount of tasks you have to fulfill can be overwhelming. The act of making music is just one part of the music industry and just because you are a musician doesn’t mean you don’t have other obligations. It may be hard to find time to get all your tasks done while also making a business out of your music." Take a look at this great article posted by our friends at Music Think Tank, with essential time management tips for musicians, so you can step it up and take your music career to the next level!  http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/top-3-time-management-tips-for-musicians.html

" Fear can come in many varieties for an artist who’s just about to release a new album or single. Everything feels heightened when this music you’ve poured so much into is about to meet the world. The excitement, the doubt, the highs, the lows."  Take a look at this recent article posted by our friends at DIY Musician which lays out the most common fears you might be feeling, and how to cure that fright.  http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/5-things-youre-afraid-put-new-music-cure-fright/

" Building out your team as an artist is a very difficult process. Young musicians often believe having a manager, a publicist or a booking agent onboard will be the core to somehow expediting the process of launching their career. The truth is that in today's music industry, there is no magic bullet.  Be sure that you're not wasting your money on business relationships that you may not be ready for during this time in your music career. After all, timing is everything.  Take a look at this great post recently shared on the Tunecore blog, with very important questions to ask yourself before deciding whether or not to pull the trigger on bringing a publicist into the fold.  http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/06/need-publicist-just-research.html

It finally happened: that hot music blog called your album “inspired” and urged its voracious readers to give it a listen. You do a happy dance and text your mom to tell her you’re on your way to bonafide rockstar status. This one 300-word post has made your entire day, week, and month. But before you get too swept away by seeing your band’s name in print, don’t forget whose fingers typed it. You likely either cold called the writer or blog, worked with a publicist or PR agency to facilitate the review, or had a friend of a friend pass along your music to his or her music journalist pal. No matter which way you took to get reviewed, it is crucial that you take a minute and ensure you thank some people. Take a look at this helpful article recently posted by our friends at Tunecore, with four things that should be on your immediate to-do list!  http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/06/4-things-music-journalists-expect-reviewing-album.html

" It can be tough to find time to sit down and write songs with all the career-building tasks musicians have these days. On top of that, switching gears is hard and writers’ block is real. What do we do when we’re no longer beginners but we still want to grow, or need to rekindle that love affair with music making?" We hear the same advice over and over again. If you're looking for some fresh ideas on how to hone your songwriting craft, read this article recently posted on the MTT blog!  http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/5-out-of-the-box-ways-to-hone-your-songwriting-craft.html

" Whether you like it or not, when you’re touring, selling merch, and making gig money, your band is a business—a limited liability corporation (LLC), if you choose to register that way. As such, it pays to think about how you’re going to manage the business, particularly if you’re touring abroad. Granted, a manager can do this for you—but you have to pay her, don’t you? Why not handle this stuff yourself?    Foreign tours are a high-stakes game. You stand to make money, but you can also lose your butt on an expensive tour. You’re probably going to want to do at least some tourism, see the sites, taste the local food, enjoy the local, uh, substances (no judgments here). At the end of it all, you’re lucky if you can break even. " Check out this article recently posted on Music Think Tank, with great tips to ensure you return home with more money than when you started!  http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/top-7-money-tips-for-bands-touring-abroad.html

"Whether you’re pursuing music full- or part-time, you’ve likely been asked by family, friends, or perfect strangers about how you plan to make it in the music industry. Annoying, sure, but it’s a fair question. It’s a tough industry to crack and success takes much more than musical talent. Unlike in the past, however, making it big as a musician isn’t just about who you know. The good news is, with a bit of marketing, you can start to set yourself apart from the musicians who simply continue to hope the right person happens to walk into a near-empty bar for a listen."  Here's a great article recently posted by our friends at Tunecore, with a  few quick tips for building your music brand so you can stand out amongst the competition. http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/05/build-online-music-brand-24-hours.html

Finding the best band name ever is no easy feat. In fact, many famous bands don't even like their name, they just wound up choosing the least bad band name!  Our friends at DIY Musician recently posted a handy guide to make naming your band just a little bit easier. Check out these 10 steps to naming your band  http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/naming-band-10-easy-steps/

"Believe it or not, not all artists write their own songs. For various reasons many of them “cut” songs or even sometimes buy them outright from songwriters that pitch songs to artists. When an artist “cuts” a song, it means the songwriter and artist or label will enter into a contractual agreement that allows the artist (or label) to license, record, and release the song, either as a single or on an album. The term “pitching” — sometimes called “plugging” — is when the songwriter submits a song to an artist or artist management through various methods including publishers and professional song pluggers." Get some tips from this great post recently shared on the DIY Musician blog, on how to ensure that your song is ready to pitch to an artist. http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/know-song-ready-pitch/

" You have to work very, very hard for a just a little bit of luck in the music industry. There are so many beautifully talented artists in this world, and it’s so easy to become overwhelmed by the idea of being one small fish in what feels like many oceans. Instead of being intimidated or striking up ugly green competition with your counterparts, use the multitude of likeminded artists around you to your advantage." We recommend you check out this great article recently posted by our good friends at Tunecore, with navigation tips on connecting with other writers to help you build a meaningful and long lasting career.   http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/04/industry-navigation-tools-songwriters.html

"If you want to get anywhere as a songwriter or a performer, it’s crucial that you learn how to market yourself and your music.  The issue is, occasionally a songwriter will get a “lucky break” with his or her music and fall into fame and fortune without having put in much effort. When that happens, every other songwriter on earth thinks that’s the way to make it happen. You just have to be lucky. After all, we all want a quick fix, right?" Waiting around for a lucky break is not really a strategy, and could lead to disappointments and loss of precious time. If you're serious about being a successful musician, you'll need to learn how to market yourself that way.  Take a look at this great article posted by our friends at DIY Musician, with three tips that will get you closer to your goals.  http://diymusician.cdbaby.com/musician-tips/how-to-market-your-music-the-personal-wa/

" A hard truth of the world is that it’s never what you know. Rather, it’s almost always who you know. It doesn’t matter how skilled you are, or how much time you’ve put into honing your writing or performing talents. If you can’t make valuable connections in your local music scene, odds are you’re going to have an incredibly difficult time in making any significant process in your career as a musician." That being said, there are a number of ways you can open up doors of opportunity for yourself. Take a look at this great article posted by our friends at Tunecore, which focuses on Open Mics, and how you can use them to help launch your career as a musician in your local music scene.  http://www.tunecore.com/blog/2017/04/28245.html

"Success is built on determination, hard work, and being in the right place at the right time. Many attribute the last part to luck; I attribute it to asking for what you want and being open (aka ready) to receiving it.   Many musicians have mastered the determination and hard work parts, but they still haven’t built the following and/or garnered the consideration they desire from the industry." Take a look at this great article recently posted by our friends at Music Think Tank, with some crucial questions you should ask yourself that could help expand your network and visibility, which in turn could open new doors and possibilities for your music career. http://www.musicthinktank.com/blog/why-youre-not-getting-what-you-want.html