Life As An Indie Music Artist

Be Yourself

Mon, 23 May 2011 10:50:54 -0400

I have spent years trying to be what other people wanted me to be. Not just in every day life but in the music arena too. I think it is common for most of us to fall into that pit. When I was just starting out pursuing the music thing I tried to sing whatever was popular at the current time... Power singers were really big so I did my best to sound like Barbara Streisand and Celine Dion. I just wanted to blend in. I wanted to be what was popular ... but that style really didn’t suit my voice or have anything to do with the kind of music I wanted to make.
When I started writing I hit that same brick wall. I was pulling out my hair trying to write in a style that was current and popular...and it just didn’t work. I was constantly second guessing myself trying to squeeze into a square peg.....uggg...Isn’t that what the music industry is all about? Isn’t that what sells???
Ok so I tuned into an internet show on TAXI (taxi.com) because I wanted to hear the pearls of wisdom from guest speaker Kara Dioguardi ... who I think is expert at writing a hit song....Of course she didn’t disappoint with tips and suggestions about song crafting and what sounds are working in the business these days BUT she really caught me off guard when she said ....”DON’T BLEND IN. If someone tells you that you don’t blend in...give them a great big hug and say Thank You”

WOW......so much freedom in those words. Isn’t that what it’s all about? Finding and connecting to who YOU are and creating something that is fresh and alive? Isn’t that what the music world is so desperate for?????
BE YOURSELF : It’s your uniqueness that jumps out and grabs your listeners. Resist the urge to copy and imitate. You just might find a diamond hidden inside of YOU :)

You can check out the whole show with Kara here ... http://www.ustream.tv/channel/music-marketing-online

Beating Discouragement

Fri, 13 May 2011 10:17:32 -0400

In this life of trying to be an Independent music artist it is sooooo easy to get discouraged. Most of us have BIG dreams of quitting our day job and living off profits from either our CD sales or other music ventures. On good days I'm high on a mountain I can see miles and miles of green fertile land below...Then I wake up from that dream and see all that is front of me and all the junk that needs to move out of the way ... and I just don’t know how to make it move. Days like that can be like climbing up a hill with a backpack full of 20 pound cement blocks ....
But then I was recently reminded of a very realistic and encouraging point of view from Independent Music guru Bob @mrbuzzfactor Baker not to expect big things to happen over night. Just keep trekking and taking those small steps. This may seem obvious to some but for me this was huge because it comes from someone who is in the business and sees success everyday .... and probably has seen discouragement and set backs as well ....
It helps to paint a realistic picture of where you are today and where you want to be tomorrow or even a year down the road. A great thing that I have found useful is to make a goal list every night of things I want to accomplish during the next day. This really helps blow the blues away. It focuses me on what I can do today as opposed to the giant mountain that is looming in front of me. Just tackle one step at a time ....
So you keep going. You find people who have walked the road ahead of you ... you step out.... you stay realistic and you keep dreaming :)

A MAC, A PIANO, AND CHILDHOOD MEMORIES

Sun, 31 Oct 2010 13:07:35 -0400

Macintosh computers are just the best computers for creative people. Just getting my hands on one a few years ago changed my life. All the music and photos that you see on my website ... and my website itself are a result of this.
I have discovered a new use for my little mac friend. Macs come loaded with with software called ilife ~ which contains iweb, iphoto, idvd, imovie and garageband.
I will say that all of these programs are entry level and I outgrew them and moved on to the professional software ... BUT ... I was drawn back to garageband for an added feature in the latest upgrade ... Guitar AND Piano Lessons.
I’m pretty hip on guitar but I decided to check out the piano lessons. I took piano lessons as a kid but OMG they were sooooo boring. Like most kids I wanted to play the popular songs I heard on the radio ... but my teacher was very traditional and on the elderly side and she saw no value in playing pop music. I really hated those lessons so much that it made me think that piano was just a drag and I avoided playing ever since I stopped the lessons.
Enter Garageband. Out of curiosity I clicked on the piano lessons and went straight to the chords section. They have a basic section that teaches your introduction to theory but I slammed past that. The thing that was exciting to me about playing was that they have a backing track that you can play along with...you can change the tempo to learn and then speed it up when you improve.
As I’m playing these chords and playing along to the track my memories from playing piano from childhood came back to me and I was just having a ball playing along to the band and I realized that I LOVED playing the piano!
Everything just sort of clicked for me and how the piano is used in pop music. 90% of all my new songs have been written on piano and it has opened up a whole new level of creativity .... I still don’t like theory and I’d rather not know the details of what chords are “supposed” to go together. I just start playing chords and let my hands fall on what sounds cool....result. really cool and different chords progressions for my songs. If I end up playing a chord that I don’t know ... no problem ... I just hook up my midi keyboard to garageband and it will show me the exact chords that I am playing ... AWESOME!!!!!! My new BFF!
Examples of the new “sound” are on my demos page. “Fly High Butterfly’ and “It’s Complicated” were the first 2 songs I ever wrote on piano .... bear in mind these are very rough demos and a work in progress ... but so exciting ;)

Stay creative .... Mara

Week 9 ~ Thanks Ariel

Fri, 8 Oct 2010 12:37:12 -0400

I can’t believe that 9 weeks have already passed. I feel like I just started this challenge. So many great things have started to happen for me. I’m getting more radio play and I’ve gotten so focused and encouraged that I can make a living at being a singer/songwriter and musician on so many different levels.
I think chapter 9 although being the most important is probably the scariest for me. I have spend a lot of years sitting in the back and not pushing myself forward. I feel so empowered with the tools I have been given through this challenge.
I already have a few things in place to create my funnel. I have the free mp3 downloads and my music is streaming all over the internet. I have made sales in my online music store but have not been aggressive about it. This will be a big challenge for me. I’m not at the level of asking for big ticket items ... it will be exciting to see what will happen in the future.
Thanks Ariel for sharing your wealth of knowledge and years of experience with us :)

Week 8 ~ Genuine

Wed, 29 Sep 2010 15:51:53 -0400

Chapter 8 was such perfect timing. I had just decided to start going out and doing the open mics here in Atlanta which would mean getting me away from my computer and out around real live people.
I did not have a business card so I promptly made one using my mac software. So I'm feeling armed and dangerous or at least a LOT more prepared than I would have been going out into this situation. I'm the type that feels that i have to work a whole room. I also HATE selling ... and in particular I hate selling myself. It is SO awkward. Being focused on the other person and learning to open them up really works for me. It’s tons easier for me to get someone else business card than to worry about when I’m supposed to push myself on this person and try to do handstand so they will remember me.
I LOVE the tip about writing memorable stuff about the person you just met on the back of their card. It reminds me of Michael Scott from “Office Space” when he wrote crazy color coded inappropriate insults to remember people on the back of index cards...hopefully I wont go that route.
Anyways It’s refreshing and confirming that I don't have to panic or over work. I can just be my self and let the dice roll and see what kind of genuine connections that I can make.
GENUINE. That is my new favorite word. I don't want to do ANYTHING any more unless it is something that is true and real for me. Life is too short to spend it doing things that don't make you happy.