Developing Your Talent
Practice, practice, practice. Sing all the time to exercise your voice and keep it strong. Practice singing a variety of songs with different tones and ranges. The goal is to get as much practice in as many different areas as possible. Sing in your room, in the shower, in the car, with friends.
Take singing lessons online or in private to improve your vocal skills. Finding a good vocal coach is probably one of the most important things you can do to further your music career. Even people who naturally have an amazing singing voice can benefit from professional lessons. Singing lessons teach you more than just how to sound good, they also help you to: Use proper breathing techniques Stay in key while under pressure Clearly enunciate and articulate your words Access a wider vocal range without straining Build your confidence
Find something unique about yourself and develop your own style. The goal here is to discover what makes you stand out from everyone else. You may have to experiment to find your own voice and what sets you apart from everyone else. If you have the ability to alternate between alto and soprano, use that skill to show off how your talent spans a wide vocal range. Maybe you have a raspy voice and a gritty vocal style that works great for soul music. Playing an instrument like the guitar or piano can also set you apart and help you stand out.
Sing on a stage to get familiar with performing in front of people. Once you feel confident in the strength of your voice, take the next step to showing it off to strangers. It’s typically much easier to sing to yourself or in front of friends and family who care about you. Singing in front of a group of strangers takes a lot more courage! Sing karaoke at a local spot or join a school or church choir. While these types of performances are “safe” because they are done for fun or with a group for a good cause, they are still a good starting point for putting yourself out there.
Perform in places that take you out of your comfort zone. After you’ve nailed stage performances, branch out and try something new. Try being a guest singer with a local band or singing on the patio at a restaurant. Singing at any sort of venue that is new or different for you will help. You may not get paid when you are first starting out, but you will probably be able to set out a tip jar. If you do get paid for performing, consider it a bonus! No 2 venues, performances, or even songs will be exactly alike. Give yourself opportunities to experience as many different factors as you can. All of these experiences will work to prepare you to be able to give a successful performance no matter what the circumstances. You can’t be shy. Put yourself out there and introduce yourself to the people you want to work with. If there’s a particular band you want to play with, ask if you can come to one of the practices. Using mutual acquaintances can also be helpful in finding venues to perform at and/or people to sing with. These experiences can also help give you a sense of what kind of performances you want to do. You may discover that you would rather sing with a group or a band instead of solo. Beyoncé Knowles Beyoncé Knowles, Singer & Businesswoman Be confident in your abilities. "Your self-worth is determined by you. You don't have to depend on someone telling you who you are. Do what you were born to do. You just have to trust yourself."
Have a go-to song that you nail every time. Always be prepared. If you’re asked to get up and sing unexpectedly, or the instrumentals or background music don’t work during an audition, you need to have something to fall back on. Choose a song that you can sing perfectly, every time. Your go-to song should be familiar to most audiences, well-liked, and within your natural vocal range. As you become more experienced, this list will become longer and you will have multiple songs that you can sing perfectly no matter what.
Practice singing a variety of cover songs. A lot of singers don't write their own songs, and that's OK. Particularly when you're first starting out, you want people to pay more attention to the quality of your voice than the quality of your songwriting. Build up a "set list" of 10 to 15 cover songs you know you can really knock out of the park, and practice getting better at them. Choose a good mix of current and classic songs. A good way to get a cover noticed is to drastically alter the tone, tempo, or instrumentation of a popular song. Compare the several different versions of "Hallelujah," or listen to the Civil Wars' cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" for ideas. Don’t worry about royalties for performing cover songs live. Copyright and licensing issues only come into play if you are recording and distributing those songs.
Expanding Your Opportunities
Set lots of small, achievable goals for yourself. Choose a goal that is specific and achievable, and then give yourself a timeframe to accomplish it. Don’t just say, “I want to be a famous singer one day.” Try something like, “I want to sing at an outdoor venue this summer.” Then take the steps to get there.
Find a singing gig that pays. It may not pay a lot, but getting paid to sing will help you validate your potential as a singer. You may have to do a few initial gigs for free, but once you get yourself out there, it will become easier to find paying work. Look for gigs singing at a restaurant or lounge, for weddings or parties, as a backup singer for another group, in a theatre production, or even a talent competition.
Start working on your own music to increase your credibility. Writing your own songs would be a huge boost to your credibility. But don’t feel bad if writing isn’t your thing—a lot of singers rely on others to write their songs for them. The goal here is to put out some fresh new music instead of relying solely on cover songs. If you opt to have someone write your songs for you, you then have to decide whether to give them credit or contract them as a ghost writer. In general, fans appreciate the honesty.
Connect with other music professionals to expand your opportunities. Network in person and online to get to know more people in the music field. Other singers and professionals were once in your position and they may have experiences and advice that they would like to share with you. Just ask. The more people you know, the more opportunities you create for yourself. By meeting one person, you have the potential to connect with their other connections as well. If there is someone who you want to know, try flattering them. Say something like, “You are an amazing performer. You always look so calm and at ease on stage. How do you do it?”
Get involved in the local music scene. Spend as much time as you can hanging out in places where successful musicians/producers meet. Go to clubs and dance halls and act like you're part of the industry, even if they don't know who you are. When planning a vacation, try to go to a city known for music. Travel to places like Nashville, Memphis, NYC, LA, New Orleans, Austin or Las Vegas and mix it up with the local musicians.
Get yourself a manager if you need help handling the workload. As you get more into your music career—especially if you are balancing other responsibilities like work, school, or family—you may find it difficult to keep up with everything. A manager can help you stay organized and will help with promoting you and advancing your career. Use your manager to help find gigs, plan events, handle money, and make long-term plans. The standard pay for managers is a 15% commission. However, you may be able to save some money in the early stages of your career by enlisting the help of a supportive and business-minded friend or family member. The most important thing about finding a manager, is finding one that fits you. Make sure they are trustworthy, personable, and have the skills needed to help you succeed.
Promoting Yourself
Establish a strong presence on social media. The more platforms you use, the more exposure you will get and the more connections you will make. Set up accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Snapchat. You may have personal accounts set up already, but consider making separate accounts—like a Fan Page on Facebook—specifically for your artist profile. If you like to write, consider blogging. It’s a great way for your fans to get a more in-depth look of your journey.
Make your own YouTube channel and post to it regularly. With over 1 billion site visits per month, having your own YouTube channel is an easy way to get yourself more exposure by reaching a global audience. Once you create your channel, share it with your family and friends and on your social media accounts. Ask everyone you know to support you by sharing your link as well.
Make a demo to promote yourself locally. Visit a professional recording studio or make your own home studio to record a few of your best songs. You can put your demo on CDs, flash drives, or an online playlist. Give your demo to club DJs, local radio stations, and recording studios and labels.
Share your music on an online music distribution platform. Sharing your music digitally will give people across the world access to stream, download, and purchase your music. You can even get paid royalties for it! LANDR, CD Baby, Ditto Music, Record Union, Reverbnation, and iMusician are a few distributors you can look into. Each company has different terms of service and fees, so it’s important that you educate yourself about which service will be the best for you.
Create your own business cards to hand out when needed. Handing someone a business card has a different feel than just giving out your phone number. Plus, once someone puts your number in their phone, who’s to say they will remember who you are afterwards? A good business card will have your contact information as well as what you do, and will make you stand out as a prepared professional. You can design and make your own business cards at home or through a local or online print company.
Dealing with Setbacks
Learn to brush off negative criticism to keep your focus. If someone says something that is hurtful, simply ignore it. Do not spend your time dwelling on anything that doesn’t benefit you or help you achieve your goals. It’s a hard lesson for some people, but you have to learn to be okay with people not liking you, making negative comments, and even acting out. Remember that there are some people who dislike Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift. This dislike doesn’t take away the fact that they are famous and successful.
Accept constructive criticism to make improvements. You can recognize constructive criticism by the balance of positive and negative feedback. Someone may tell you about an area that you need to improve on while also letting you know something you did well. Feedback that you can actually use will usually come from other singers, your vocal coach, and professionals in the music industry. Be aware that sometimes friends and family can be too nice. They may think you are perfect just the way you are and may not be able to give you real, helpful advice and/or suggestions for improvement.
Keep moving forward if you get rejected. Being rejected is probably one of the most difficult obstacles you will face on your journey. The music industry is extremely competitive and as such, some artists have to get rejected—it’s the nature of the business. Do not let it get you down. Continue to practice patience and perseverance. If you are rejected for a show or during an audition, ask for the reason why. It’s possible that it may not have anything to do with your talent or ability, but rather the look they are aiming for in their show, etc.
Implement the feedback you receive to help improve yourself. Understanding why you were turned down is only one part of the process. The next thing you need to do is reflect on the feedback and then take steps to implement it. This will only make you better. If you were told that you weren’t loud enough—sing louder during your practices and training sessions to help strengthen your voice. If you were told that you don’t have a good stage presence—work on your facial expressions and think about incorporating some more movement or adding an instrument while you sing.
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