5 Hot Networking Tips for Music Artists

The music industry is a vast space that young upcoming artists may sometimes find hard to navigate. It is essential to both upcoming artists and also already established ones to have a community they can rely on whenever they need it. This post highlights 5 networking tips for music artists.

The music industry is not just about music and entertainment, the business aspect of it takes up the larger percentage of the art. It is a people-oriented industry and it is therefore vital that upcoming artists understand how important networking is for their careers.

The importance of networking in the music industry

What is networking?

Networking is a means of building connections and relationships with the people in your field of work and people you have similar interests with. This is done to share information, resources, and ideas. Networking is done in every stage of one's career, the more people you meet and build solid business relationships with, the more exposure you get.

In the music industry, it might be sometimes difficult and expensive for young upcoming artists to get the right attention for their craft. These artists must have a support group or team that can help them further expand their reach and give them much needed exposure. This can only be achieved through networking.

Meeting and building relationships with important personalities in the music industry will give upcoming musicians increased visibility. It creates an avenue for artists to get record label attention and most importantly attention from the global music audience.

This article helps those who have an interest in entering the music industry understand the importance of networking and how to use it to their advantage.

Below are the 5 networking tips for music artists:

1. Collaborate with other artists

One of the easiest ways to get noticed in the music industry is by collaborating with other artists. Collaborations can be with other musicians, producers, and DJs. This helps you to grow as an artist and also improve your discography. It is also important to seek out the opportunity to attend music recording camps.

At recording camps, you get the opportunity to meet and work with many artists and producers in the same space. At music camps, you not only get to meet with artists and producers. You also have the opportunity to meet with record label executives, artist managers, and music publishers who might take an interest in your work.

2 Make productive use of social media platforms

It is essential to have a very strong social media presence. Almost every personality in the music industry can be found on various social media platforms, it is essential to network with them via social media. You need to seek out other artists, producers, DJs, entertainment journalists, and label executives. Follow them on every social media platform and engage their tweets or posts as often as possible. You should also post your songs, freestyles or videos on social media and try to tag these influential people.

A repost from a big fish in the industry could influence their fans into streaming your songs and watching your videos. The goal of Networking on social media is to build relationships with as many influential people as possible. This can help improve your streaming numbers and your social media following.

3. Attend social events

As an upcoming artist looking to get exposure to the Entertainment industry, you must attend as many industry-related events as possible. Concerts, open mics, music workshops, and entertainment events are great networking opportunities. There is no better place to grow your network than in places like this.

Open Mics allow you to not only perform your music but also have your music heard by important Industry personalities. Apart from performance opportunities, attending these events will enable you to have real conversations with important people and other musicians. While you might have to perform a lot of free gigs, you have to see it as an opportunity to achieve something greater.

4. Networking in the entertainment industry is usually based on a form of Quid Pro Quo

Most people in the industry will not render help to an upcoming artist unless they know that they are benefiting from the relationship. So while you are looking to get favours, you should also be ready and willing to give favours. These favours can be in the form of performing at a free event or concert, recording a free chorus, writing a song for free or granting a free interview.

5. Be consistent in your networking goals

You should always seek out opportunities to meet and have conversations with influential people in the industry. Persistency in networking also involves following up on important leads. Once you make connections with people you believe can be of help, do not neglect to keep in touch with them. Put a call through, send an email to their company. This will not only make them remember you but also enable them to put you in consideration when important opportunities arrive. Always have a copy of your music or demo at hand, make sure you have built a reputable work catalogue that you can always share when networking.

While embarking on networking activities, always remember to be humble and show that you're ready to learn. Always show up early at events and make sure you look the part. Most importantly, never stop making music. The more you record and write, the better you become at the profession.

Treat your career as a full-time job and not a hobby, Industry Executives are always on the lookout for upcoming artists with a solid body of work and an impressive catalogue. Always keep your social media pages and YouTube page updated with new content.

You might also be interested in 'Ways to Connect With the Right People'.