Hi,

One of the questions that I receive the most is how people can get their foot in the door of the music industry. I get this question fairly often from those in college looking for internships, folks in different industries looking to make the jump into music, and various other situations.

It’s a great question - from the outside looking in, the music industry can be daunting, confusing, and even overwhelming at times.

So…how does one get started? Part of what makes it feel overwhelming is that there’s no clear, one path however that’s also part of the beauty - people can create and take many different paths to get their start.

I thought it’d be worthwhile to share a few tips and suggestions…

This newsletter highlights:

• How to get into the music industry today

Let’s dive in ⬇️

Before jumping into these recommendations and suggestions, I thought it’d be worth giving some context and sharing how I got into the industry myself.

I graduated college in 2012 and upon graduating, I was looking for the first job I could find.

Literally!

I had graduated at a time when the job market wasn’t as strong as it had been in previous years and it was suggested to myself and my peers to just join the workforce, take something to get some income, and be grateful for it.

Shortly upon graduating I landed in real estate - I was working as a marketing / administrative assistant to a realtor in the Northern, NJ area. While I didn’t necessarily love real estate or have a passion for it, I needed a job and that took precedence.

Over the two years that ensued, I learned a ton - I wasn’t aware of it at the time but I was actually learning skills that would help me in my career within the music industry and that are pretty much applicable to almost any role. For example:

• Networking / interfacing with people - real estate is in many respects a people business. As a realtor, you’re interfacing with clients, attorneys, contractors, those in construction, lenders, bankers, and more. I learned quickly the importance of building and maintaining relationships.

• Project management - I was helping to oversee the administrative and marketing responsibilities of properties from start to finish. I learned how to manage a project from beginning to end, implementing systems, attention to detail, & more.

While the above two things were certainly valuable, one of the biggest things I learned during those 2 years is what it takes to be a high performer.

The specific realtor I was working for happened to be one of the most successful in the entire state and his year over year growth was explosive - he doubled, then tripled, then quadrupled his growth in the first few years.

For lack of a better term, he literally grinded his face off lol. I witnessed a lot of 8am-1am work days, sacrifice, and outright hustle. I watched as he lapped his peers and started setting records.

Learning all of these things was great but I knew I wanted to work in music - the real estate gig was just to pay the bills. On the side, I was doing whatever I could to build relationships and try to crack open the door in music.

In the early days of working in real estate I worked 7 days a week - 4 days a week part time in real estate and 3 days interning for an independent record label in New York City.

On the side, I started writing for a now defunct hip-hop blog. I remember being enamored and blown away at the chance to actually speak to, interview, and work with artists as a result of the connections writing for that website gave me.

I built up some decent connections and one day in 2014, did cold outreach to the record label that would end up hiring me. This past summer, while reflecting on my 10 years in music, I found those early emails and saw I had followed up like crazy. In some cases I followed up 2-3 times until I got an answer. That helped progress the conversation and once I got in the door, have been fortunate to have a career in music 10 years later.

I share this story because it highlights what is so easy to lose track of while finding your footing - that the journey isn’t linear. There isn’t a singular entry point that everyone has to follow in order to get your foot in the door.

The above also isn’t meant to harp on my personal story (I literally hate talking about myself lol) but moreso meant to illustrate and show that opportunities can come from anywhere, you need to create them yourself, and persistence is key.

Okay so…now that that rant is out of the way, here are some tangible tips for getting your foot in the door today. Before I do though…

Always lead with value!

This means that in whatever situation or capacity you’re in, try to provide as much value as possible to the other person, people, or situation.

1) Learn tangible digital marketing skills or hacks

A few years ago, I was introduced to someone who was graduating college and looking for an internship in the music industry. After speaking with him, I learned he was already incredibly social media savvy - he was running his own Soundcloud marketing campaigns and had a network of Facebook pages he had built relationships with that he could market and share content to.

He wasn’t waiting for the internship to first start to learn and develop those skills - he came to the table already possessing those skills and that knowledge. His value immediately helped him surpass his peers and not only got him the internship, but he was such an amazing marketer that he got hired some time later.

So many people wait for the internship or the job to start learning skills - the beauty of today’s day and age is everyone has access to the same thing - it’s all on social media.

There’s an opportunity to study rollouts and releases and why certain things happen.

What makes something successful?

Are there specific trends on a given platform that you can learn to help develop a skillset?

You can learn these things yourself and come to the table with the ability to make an impact.

2) Internships

Internships are a fantastic way to get your foot in the door of the music industry. It’s a great way to learn from folks already in the business and gain hands on experience. Many internships lead to jobs, either at those companies or others.

One piece of advice for those looking for, or already in internships is to be as proactive as possible! Don’t wait for your supervisor to assign you work to get busy - study the roster, look at what other artists are doing, suggest ideas, point out trends or patterns, etc.

It’s so easy to feel like “I got the internship, I made it!”

The truth is though, is that making a real impact in your internship could have a ripple effect that takes you farther than you realize.

3) Create content

Content can act as a magnet and attract opportunities. There are countless individuals who are building up their own audiences, creating leverage, and providing value simply by creating content.

For example, there’s tons of music reviewers and curators on social media who share their favorite songs - you don’t necessarily have to go down this path but this is a great example of how to share music you like with your own unique spin and build your own audience.

Build your audience high enough and the music industry will come knocking. Labels and artists alike will likely reach out looking to have their music highlighted.

4) Networking

Going to IRL events is still a thing! Look for happy hours, mixers, networking events in your city and try to you attend when you can. One suggestion is to make a list of record labels in genres you have interest in working, follow all of them on social media, and keep an eye out for their events. Many music companies will throw parties or events open to the public where you just have to RSVP.

These are great opportunities to be in the same rooms as those in the industry and get your foot in the door.

5) The Cold DM

Ah yes…everyone’s favorite lol. There are some huge misconceptions about how to cold DM people and some people do it better than others.

Pointing back to the recommendations above is always leading with value!

“Let me intern for you” is not a DM leading with value lol. Here’s an example of one that does though -

“Hey ____! I really love the work you’re doing at (insert company name). (Here you can mention a specific artist they work with and a recent campaign they just did as well as what you enjoyed). By the way, have you seen (reference another campaign, tool, platform etc that could be of value to that person based on their work.”

This is showing love and providing value without asking for anything in return.

Giving giving giving will inevitably lead to opportunities being created instead of trying to ask for things or “take”.

Sorry this one was so long but hopefully there’s value in it.

Thanks for reading, until next time.