THE BREAKOUT MUSICIAN SERIES

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A Career in Music? Can YOU do it?

You might be asking yourself that very question. And if you are, or if you did in the past, maybe it led to some of these questions as well:

1. Is it possible to make a living doing only music?
2. If so, what do I need to know?
   1. business
   2. marketing
   3. bookkeeping
   4. contracts
   5. internet presence (seo, site, etc)
   6. social media
3. What will it cost me in terms of education, or time, or promotion/marketing.
4. Can I possess all of those skills? Do I need other people?
5. Will I need start up money?
6. Where do I start?
7. Who can I talk to?

I’m sure some of those questions look familiar. If you have one not listed, let me know! Email me.

Then you may have leapt into Google and found article after article about “a career in music” that gave advice that either: 1) didn’t apply to what you want to do or 2) was only partial. Commonly, articles I found only discussed one or two aspects of a much bigger topic like how to market, or how to hire, rehearsing, or contracts or bookings and so on. But they rarely give all encompassing views and understandings of WHAT to expect and HOW to get through the barriers. And so you are left piecing together bits from here and there. That is a pretty tough thing to do.

Well, I’m starting this series for you. And for a book I’m writing on the subject 😉 The long and short of it is this: I’ve gone pro in more than one niche of the industry and I’ve worked with a lot of amateur musicians who aspire to go pro. I even hosted a Meetup for some time on that very subject. I listened intently and collected the questions, concerns and fears of these musicians. I was determined to help create more professional musicians, and if I could only create one, and arm them with everything I knew, as well as a healthy curiosity to learn beyond that, then it would all be worth it.

Alan Currens with Jerry Bousquet

So I’ll (Alan Currens) be working through the content of this series and my book in this blog here on our Denver Music Institute website. I’ll be holding workshops at the school to educate students about the series as well as anyone else who wants to come. They’ll be announced in the blogs and to our email list. I’ll revisit the content after hearing your questions and update it accordingly (much like the editions of a book) so that new comers can not only catch up on the content they’ve missed, but so they’ll have the added benefit of the questions of those who came before them!

I’ll be taking questions throughout this series to help guide the future writings. You can submit those questions to me directly at alan@denvermusicinstitute.com. What do you most want to know or understand about creating and sustaining an income with music.

Stacey Riley is a consummate pro entertainer, shown here with the Twilight Band

HERE ARE JUST SOME COMING CHAPTERS/BLOGS (not necessarily in order)

• MYTH POPPING
• WHAT DO YOU ALREADY KNOW
• WHAT ARE YOUR EXISTING RESOURCES
• MUSIC INDUSTRY INCOME FIGURES TOP TO BOTTOM (KNOW THE PLAYING FIELD)
• WHY BANDS FAIL, COMMON PITFALLS & HOW TO AVOID THEM
• MORE MYTH POPPING
• WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS? WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT?
• DEFINING SUCCESS
• BREAKING INTO THE SCENE
• HOW MUCH MONEY SHOULD YOU MAKE
• WHAT CREATES THE “VALUE” OF YOUR PRODUCT

Thanks for reading, be sure to subscribe to be notified of other post like this:) — Alan Currens
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DMI Band Rehearsal Room