mistakes to avoid in 2024 as an edm producer

So you wanna avoid messing up in 2024 like you did in 2023 eh?

Here's mistakes we as EDM producers shouldn't do anymore after this year.

What mistakes am I talking about?

1. NOT goal setting:

OK so kinda obvious but kinda super duper important is to properly goal set.

Even if your goals are lofty and "unattainable" - having something to shoot for as a means to measure progress is key.

Not having goals means you’re not sure when your not doing well and what you need to do to get back on track.

Study the S.M.A.R.T Goal setting framework.

To explain it briefly, SMART stands for

S - Specific

M - Measurable

A - Attainable

R - Realistic

T - Time bound

So let's say your goal is to finish more music consistently so you can grow your artist project and then start playing shows.

To make this SMART we should say

I want to finishing and release one song a month every month for the next 12 months. By the end of the 12 months, I want to have atleast 1000 followers and become friends with 1 or 2 event managers and move to playing my first 3 shows.

This is specific, there are dates, numbers and deadlines.

Its measurable since you can see how many songs you release vs how many you might miss

This is attainable and also realistic. With the right skillset and guidance, this is possible for you.

And this is time bound. We set many deadlines. One track a month and leading up to 12 for the whole year and it must be done in 12 months.

Now there is a lot more to the science of goal setting and maintaining motivation but to be brief - the more specific and measureable you get, the better.

2. Skipping Music Theory:

Don't underestimate the importance of music theory.

I know - most edm songs are usually either in minor and sometimes in major.

But there are incredible benefits to understanding theory, even at the basic level.

Chords are more than just 7th and 9th lol and learning even just 2 or 3 modes unlocks a whole new world for you.

You can learn so much and have incredible interesting progressions with understanding

- voice leading

- counter melody

- modal interchange

- harmony

- borrowed chords

- melodic and harmonic minor modes (Phrygian dominant is an easy one)

Understanding chords, scales, harmony, and rhythm can significantly enhance your compositions and give you a better grasp of musical structure on those who don't get it.

3. Overlooking proper Mixing and Mastering:

Whether you choose to do this yourself or work with a mix and master engineer for your releases, its vital you invest into learning how to mixing and master.

This is especially so if you are going with another mix and master engineer.

You want to make sure their work is good and you can know what they are doing and judge whether its good or not.

Not just based on what you feel or think is good, but also objectively you know and can verify their work via your own experience or skills.

Imagine you are running a software company but you've never written a line of code before...

How do you expect to be able to effectively tell or understand what your team and coders are doing and whether the work they are doing is good and what you want?

Let alone making sure they aren't doing anything bad or malicious?

4. Ignoring Networking and Collaboration:

Building relationships within the EDM community is crucial.

Don't isolate yourself and solely work on your music.

Now, its hard to do any networking if you don't know anyone or don't even know where to get started.

But that's where creating value from what you have and know will come into play.

Learn to create somethign unique and valuable related to your music and leverage that for outreach.

This will make it 10 times easier to get responses from people you message.

It will let you collaborate with better producers, vocalists, and instrumentalists.

Networking can open up opportunities you could never imagine.

5. Disregarding Feedback:

Avoid being defensive about your work.

So many producers have a huge ego around themselves and this stops them from reaching their goals.

Ask for feedback from peers, mentors, or listeners, and be open to constructive criticism.

Whether its your mix, your sound design, sound selection or just the song idea itself, take any and all feedback.

It's more important to have someone tell you the truth vs lie to keep you happy - so listen to your haters.

6. Failing to Adapt to Technology:

Stay updated with the latest tools and software in the industry.

Live 12 just came out and its incredible.

With AI also there are countless new things and methods or work we need to learn inorder to just stay in the game, let alone get ahead.

Don’t be afraid to feel like you’re a beginner at technology.

Fearing the advancement of technology and new things is what our grandparents did,

and we all know an older role model in our lives who are technology inept - lets avoid that for ourselves too!s

7. Not Developing a Brand and Marketing Strategy:

Its 2024 - if you don’t realize the importance and value of a brand - you’re literally sleeping under a rock and should quit now (seriously).

Don't solely focus on producing music.

Cultivate your brand identity and establish a marketing strategy.

Use social media, branding, and promotional tactics to reach a wider audience.

If this bothers you, then you may need to re-evaluate your thoughts on pursuing music.

If you want it bad enough, you’ll have to push yourself to to do things you dont want to or are uncomfortable with.

Then again, even if you leave music, having a brand is going to our future.

Our social medias are our living and breathing resumes. Lets make them incredible this year.

Peace,

Vig

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