The ultimate branding guide for musicians
Finding success in the music industry is not easy. Creating good music is just not enough these days. To make it big, you need to showcase your talent in a way that stands out from the rest.
The music industry is extremely competitive. If you want a career in this line of business, you need to step up your game. Unless you can create a brand image that attracts a large fanbase, you cannot find success.
But what exactly is music branding? What are the prominent branding guide for musicians? How do you create your unique image as an artist? Well, that is the primary focus of this article.
What is Music Branding?
Musicians are known to be an emotional group of people, and there is nothing wrong with that. However, you need to understand that this is business, and although a passion for your music is good, it does not offer you much from a business viewpoint.
You need to set up an image as an artist that involves everything from your personality, musical style, ambition, identity, etc. In other words, your brand is everything that you are in the musical world.
Music branding helps keep you in a straight line in your musical career. It can help you identify opportunities and also help set up different marketing and PR strategies that reflect your brand image.
In essence, it is the most pivotal part of your musical career. Your brand image dictates your story and how you interact with your fans.
How to Brand Your Musical Image
Knowing what music branding is and setting it up are two different things. It can often be quite difficult for newcomers to set up the proper branding, which can affect their entire musical career.
To help you sort through this mess, we have sorted some branding guide for musicians. Here are a few easy tips that can help you identify your brand image.
1. Be Yourself
The best advice we can give you is to be yourself. It’s that simple!
Music is a spiritual expression of self, and you should never try to fake it. Be honest with your music and your style, and in return, the fans will relate to you more. Remember, your music is unique, and your brand should reflect the same image all the time.
Besides, the music industry is so densely populated with fake people that they can smell from miles away. Being dishonest about your brand image can severely hurt your chances of attracting investors.
2. Think of your message
This point sort of picks up from where the previous one left off.
Everyone has a story. That is where it all begins. Think back to why you started writing and creating music. What are your visions? Is it a fair world? Love? Or are you protesting against racism through your songs?
Your message is an integral part of your brand image. For instance, the band Rage Against the Machines write songs against wars, racism, and the capitalist system. On the other hand, looks inwards at potent feelings of love and romanticism.
Once you know your message, you need to spread it through your lyrics, music, imagery, videography etc. That way, your audience will know exactly what they are getting from your music.
3. First impressions matter
Before releasing your work to the world, think of the effect it will have on the people. Your first release is what often dictates the rest of your career. If you are releasing a full album, think carefully about the cover art, the logo, the merchandise, etc.
Everything from your tours to your music should promote the image you are trying to convey. Visual tools such as cover arts or merchandise graphics can really come in handy to spread your brand to your audience.
4. Music is a business
End of the day, music is business. And like any successful business organization, you need a team of experienced professionals to help catapult your musical career. The capabilities of your team will directly affect the brand image that you create.
You need people who can create excellent strategies to help you gather more fans and followers. A good graphics designer is a must for any artist to design logos, merchandise, or even cover art for albums.
Besides, you also need a lawyer to help oversee musical contracts and deals with other organizations. No one can make it on his own in this line of business. So the sooner you get a group of people working behind you, the better.
Final Thoughts: ultimate branding guide for musicians
You should always have a clear goal in mind when you set out on your musical journey. Whether you want fame or money, without proper branding, you will not be able to get there.
As long as you are faithful to your music and set up your brand accordingly, nothing can stop you from finding success in the industry.
