8. Spending Too Much Time Comparing To Other Artists
9. Making Excuses
10. Waiting For ‘Approval’ From The Music Industry
90% of ALL artists fail.
Yes, even the talented ones.
This is because your success as a musician isn't down to talent.
Mindset, hard work, patience, consistency... all of these and more are what shape successful artists.
Failure is all too common and I see artists making the same mistakes every single day.
There are reasons why the most successful musicians have achieved their goals, but what about the musicians that fail?
Here are the top reasons why so many musicians never make it, and how to avoid this failure in your own career.
1. Not Taking Marketing Seriously
Marketing your music isn't an option if you want to become successful.
It's a necessity.
A lot of bands and musicians are clearly aware that they need to adopt music marketing strategies in order to reach the right people and gain new fans.
But there is a difference between being aware of it, and actually taking it seriously.
How are you supposed to grow your audience, get more Spotify streams, more views on your music video, or more followers on social media if you aren't marketing your band or solo project effectively?
I'm going to assume that you understand the importance of having the foundations of amazing music.
In fact, I think all musical people understand that to make it in the music industry, you do need to have talent and the ability to create art that resonates with people.
What contributes to the failures of these musicians is not being fully committed to marketing that very same talent, or taking the concept of marketing seriously.
2. Expecting Music Success Overnight
There is no magic hand.
You will not get famous overnight.
You will fail over and over again until you get there.
The truth is, growing a music fan base from scratch takes time.
We're not just interested in any fan base. We want to create a legacy, one that stands the test of time. Doing this comes from showing up every day and consistent actions that ultimately lead up to a larger sum.
It's also important to talk about what your measure of 'success' is.
Redefining 'success' for musicians is one of the best ways to avoid failure.
If all you're interested in is fame and money, you might be in this game for the wrong reasons.
You have to love what you do and enjoy the journey.
Being a musician isn't a game that ends with the final boss of getting a record deal.
Redefine success and don't expect it to happen overnight.
3. Releasing Content Inconsistently
Inconsistency is one of the most common reasons for bands and singers not making it.
Consistency isn't an interesting topic, I know.
But it is the most important difference between making something of your music career or not.
Growth. Real growth comes from consistency.
World domination doesn't happen without hard work and consistent action.
The problem is, musicians are the worst at showing up in 'waves'.
They'll post on social media really frequently in the lead-up to their new album or single release, and then go missing in between.
How are people supposed to connect with you and join your journey if you keep going missing?
If you struggle with not hitting your social media goals, here's what to do:
Create a calendar.
Plan your content ahead of time.
Set deadlines.
Break down existing content into smaller pieces.
Get into a rhythm of providing quality content for the world, your fans, and your followers each day. One of the best ways to promote your music is by showing up every day.
4. Taking Fans For Granted
A fast track to failure for any musician is not recognizing the value in their fans.
Not seeing them as individuals.
Staring at their Instagram follower count and only seeing the number, not each person behind it.
If you want to grow properly and have a proper career in the music industry, you need to make connections with people.
Not just likes, follows, and comments.
Real connections with real people.
Musicians are obsessed with numbers. They'll put loads of hard work into trying to increase their Instagram following, looking at Spotify algorithm hacks, or getting more subscribers on YouTube.
All of this is great, but the value behind those followers is sometimes missed.
Look after your fans. Take a genuine interest in them and they will, in turn, take a genuine interest in you and your journey.
Always remember to give more than you take and show your fans that you actually do care.
I always find it interesting how artists and musicians see themselves as creatives but are so afraid of doing anything different, exciting, or taking risks with their content.
Here's the thing. There is NO rulebook as a creative.
At the moment it can feel like you’re scared to do something differently, because you’re scared whether it’ll negatively impact your numbers, not realising it’s going your own different path that really elevates you.
When you truly know who you are and your reason for doing what you do, this is where your creativity shines through.
And believe me, the numbers follow.
Don’t always play it safe in music.
Stand for something. Be different.
Be unapologetically you.
7. Always Looking For Shortcuts
Artists fail normally because they're constantly looking for shortcuts and hacks.
Just think, if you put this effort into actually releasing music properly, you'd see way more results.
The 10% of successful artists understand that experience is built over time and repeating the process.
Results come from painstaking practice, hard work, learning, and education.
If you understand and accept this, you're already bypassing the 90%.
Let that sink in for a moment.
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8. Spending Too Much Time Comparing To Other Artists
At the heart of it, each of us are completely individual.
So comparing yourself to someone else doesn't mean anything - your aim is to be the best version of you and to compare yourself against past you.
Comparison is good in small doses. It helps you understand who you are up against and what you could do better.
Too much of it though can spoil your enjoyment.
If you compare yourself too much to others you just can't enjoy yourself as much. It means you'll regret what you aren't, rather than celebrate what you are.
Remember, people only post their best selves on social media. You're not seeing the full story and to spend your time focusing on someone else's highlights is time wasted.
How many times have you not released that song because comparison put you off? ⠀
Or haven’t promoted your music properly because you after seeing what others have achieved, thought that was unachievable for yourself? ⠀
Don't let comparison lead to paralysis.
The time is right now. Don’t waste it.
9. Making Excuses
I understand why we make excuses.
We're scared of failing, we're fearful, we don't know what to expect, we're scared of making mistakes, we think we don't have the resources or we compare ourselves to others and think we can't make it.
But excuses ruin your career.
How many times have you thought "the Instagram algorithm means that my content doesn't get seen" and leave it at that.
When instead you should work out why it's not working and how to find ways around it.
Or how many times have you thought "Facebook ads don't work"
The world's largest companies spend billions on Facebook Advertising every year.
Could it more be you don't know how to execute it properly or you haven't tested enough to work out what actually works for you?
Or "I haven't been able to make more music because I haven't felt inspired"
The problem is, whilst you're making excuses you're not taking action and this holds you back from making real progress.Perfectionists often make excuses and this leads them to not take action on shaping their future.
The harsh truth is when you make excuses, you're just one more excuse away from giving up.
10. Waiting For ‘Approval’ From The Music Industry
I believe the best time to make music and be an independent artist is now.
Why?
Because there are no gatekeepers anymore.
It used to be the case that you'd have to wait for the 'industry' to let you know whether you were allowed to have any musical future or become a famous superstar.
Whether this was getting signed on a record deal, being noticed by 'the man', or getting a music manager, there were real barriers towards making it as a musician.
Things have changed.
Too many musicians are still chasing approval from the music business, but it's a free for all now.
Directing all your energy towards this instead of focusing on your craft, your content and your audience is a path towards failure.
With the right mix of talent, strategy, and work ethic, musicians are able to be all they want to be, without the need for industry 'approval'.
Stop chasing validation.
Build your own audience. Then the industry will take notice.
You must know exactly what you want, what steps need to be taken in order to get it and allocate time and resources to work on those steps. A solid strategy is the foundation on which you build your career because if it's not there, everything you do is just hit and miss.
You must know exactly what you want, what steps need to be taken in order to get it and allocate time and resources to work on those steps. A solid strategy is the foundation on which you build your career because if it's not there, everything you do is just hit and miss.
Creative burnout is another common reason why musicians quit. It's easy to get stuck in the constant grind, especially when you're under pressure to create new music — and new content — all the time.
The hardest thing about being a musician is coming to terms with the fact that sometimes, no matter how much time or effort you put into your music, you will never be able to make a living off of it.
The biggest factor why most producers fail is that they are not willing to put in the work required to make it last, regardless of what your goals are with music. In addition, it's not just about working harder, but most of the time it's about working smarter and in the right direction.
This is because it can be a highly technical subject, and it may take time to internalize the large amounts of information necessary. First, there's 12 keys in western music, so every chord and scale you learn will have to be learned in 12 times. Each key has its own set of chords, scales, and chord tones.
Musicians exhibited elevated levels of rumination and stress in comparison to non-musicians. This combination of a ruminative thought style and high stress appears to be a toxic combination potentially leading to higher incidence of depression and health problems.
As a singer or musician in a band, you can grow tired of playing your “old material” and performing can sometimes feel repetitive and monotonous! However, there are strategies you can use to keep your performances fresh and engaging, no matter how many times you've sung the same song.
Rather, the high-pressure and hectic lifestyles of many artists may lead to depressive symptoms, as tight deadlines, high expectations, fierce criticism, and intense travel are common for such individuals.
surveyed over 2000 musicians, from award-winning artists to small independent bands, and found 71.1% self-reported high anxiety and/or panic attacks and 68.5% self-reported depression, which is approximately thrice the rate of the general public.
Quit when music doesn't excite you anymore and it feels more like a task than fun. If you're bored with what you're making, assess if you're bored with your genre or with music, and ask yourself if you're quitting something you don't see a future to or just running away from a problem you don't know how to face.
From their initial survey of more than 2,200 self-described professional musicians in Britain, they discovered that 68 percent experience depression, while no fewer than 71 percent suffer anxiety and panic attacks.
Findings suggest that the boundary work of 'matching' relationships to appropriate understandings and forms of transactional exchange is enormously complex for musicians, leading to 'mismatches' in musicians' methods of relationship management which can be upsetting or emotionally destabilising.
Especially with these artists, it may feel as though they work all the time and have little to no time for you and the relationship. This is something that you'd most likely have to adjust to if you'd want to be their partner.
Key Findings. 48.6% of Americans consider themselves to be “broke,” and 66.2% feel they are “living paycheck to paycheck.” There is a gender gap in the results: Females are more likely to consider themselves “broke” at 55.8%, compared to males at 41.1%.
In the tough world of music production, where aspiring artists pop up faster than a bass drop at an EDM fest, a staggering 90% don't usually make the cut. But you might be asking yourself why most music artists fail.
Thus, to be successful in life and in music, one must work hard, embrace failures as learning opportunities, and never stop pursuing their dreams, no matter the obstacles they face. In order to gain real fans who will support you for the many years to come, it is essential to regularly post truly engaging content.
You can go all the way back to the 1950s and it's almost always a one in a million chance that an artist would break through. Even as the democratization of music creation has developed in the 2000s, it's apparent that accessible music distribution and marketing on social media still hasn't made it any easier.
Introduction: My name is Errol Quitzon, I am a fair, cute, fancy, clean, attractive, sparkling, kind person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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