Making money in the music industry is not seen by many as an easy task as royalties are really low these days. However, there are more possibilities than you think…
4 THOUGHTS FROM ME
1. You can start by selling preset / sample packs. Make a preset pack with your favorite synth to start making some side money in the music industry. You can start selling it for a low price and then increasing it as you release more and better quality presets or samples. Like anything, the hardest thing is to start and it will take less time for each preset once you get to a more advanced level, but eventually, you’ll get the gist of it. After that, contact a company that you like and try to sell the pack to them, or just release it by yourself.
2. Help your friends by doing mix and master services. First of all, you need to have quality songs to be able to show your friends that you can do mix and master. But, even if you don’t have a catalog, you can start by offering a ‘hassle-free’ payment where your friends would only pay you upon full satisfaction. Even if they don’t like it, the practice and the feedback you will collect can be really valuable to your development as a musician. Another place you can offer your services is on Fiverr.
3. You can start teaching your friends music production. As we do here at Abstrakt Music Lab, giving 1on1 classes is a pretty good way to earn some income with your knowledge in music production. I recommend you to study what you want to teach and be proficient at it, but, honestly, you only need to know more than the person you’re teaching. As you grow, doing courses on teaching and developing your music production, as well as releasing tracks people want to know how it’s made, could be a good way to further expand your 1on1s.
4. Lastly, and as expected, the more you release, the higher royalties you’ll possibly get. Royalties depend on plays, features, and the deal that you have with the label so I can’t really say it’s a viable income solution. However, sometimes you hit the jackpot and get 200k / 300k plays on a song, which is also featured by Above ‘n’ Beyond on ABGT, and so on. This would get you some income on royalties, however, the payout from labels is not as instant as the other three mentioned above. Again, the more you release and the more your songs develop, the more you tend to earn.
1 QUESTION FOR YOU
Now it’s your turn. How can you implement what you know into something that you can sell?
1. Really good at productivity? Musicians are often not so good at it, and it could be a way for you to teach them;
2. Do you know Vital / Serum / Diva inside out? Consider making some presets for selling. Worst case scenario, you’re gonna get better at sound design;
3. Do you have an amazing voice? Consider making voiceovers for other companies.
There are multiple ways, and you can discover more by watching this video by Multiplier on 57 ways to make money in the music industry!
