Is it still worth releasing music for DIY/independent artists?
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@elifyalvac Yes with a few considerations:
- worth it if you want people to listen to your music as a release (doesn't suit all modes of music presentation but maybe it's important to how you want the music to be approached)
- maybe worth it as a marketing tool (increased / repeated visibility, affirms your status as a musician who releases music, etc)
- maybe worth it to appeal to music industry funding bodies who want to see certain types / volumes of recent activity@dried Having released music helped me change my life when it was released by a label, changing many things for me including finally changing where I live but I won’t go into too much detail into it. I agree. although a bit unsure about the 2nd part as I am sick and tired of The Wire magazine putting the same stuff all the time
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Is it still worth releasing music for DIY/independent artists? Why?
I don’t have a yes or no answer yet. I’m questioning… if you have an answer please can you explain it? Thanks!
@elifyalvac I vote yes. Partially because I enjoy the process of creating releases - creating the running order, making the artwork, etc. That’s a highly enjoyable thing for me. Philosophically, I think it’s more to do with the act of creation and putting things out into the world. Music is a form of communication, and even if the audience is limited, you’re always looking to make that connection, which you can’t do if your music is confined to your own speakers.
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Is it still worth releasing music for DIY/independent artists? Why?
I don’t have a yes or no answer yet. I’m questioning… if you have an answer please can you explain it? Thanks!
@elifyalvac When I look back on my career, the releases I have made, has become highlights of the periods it's released in. And I have periods where I wouldn't release anything, because why should I when it wouldn't sell. But I sooo regret.
You can release for others as a DIY artist, but you should actually mostly do it for yourself. Making a release means taking decisions: Where am I now, what's important for me and how would I like to share it. It's the best way to remember your development.
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@toffo Nice perspective. Thanks. I was asking this more in the context of “too much music”, though. There is too much being shared and put around already. so many things get lost in the crowd. I am always motivated to share my music but I am concerned about potentially adding to bombardment of content people have to see
@elifyalvac @toffo I’m interested in this concept of “too much”. To me, one of the joys of music is that there is SO MUCH out there, more than I will ever hear all of. And music comes forth from me constantly. I know that it’s likely my own music won’t reach many ears that might enjoy it, but to worry about taking peoples attention away from your art feels like a devaluation of your art.
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@toffo Nice perspective. Thanks. I was asking this more in the context of “too much music”, though. There is too much being shared and put around already. so many things get lost in the crowd. I am always motivated to share my music but I am concerned about potentially adding to bombardment of content people have to see
@elifyalvac oh, so..
yeah it still makes sense. the more music you have - the better.
it gives people choice on what they want to listen to, after all.
every artist will eventually find sokeone who likes their stuff - good for both sides i think?its hard in general but becomes easier when you realise that some people are more than willing to find your stuff
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@elifyalvac @toffo I’m interested in this concept of “too much”. To me, one of the joys of music is that there is SO MUCH out there, more than I will ever hear all of. And music comes forth from me constantly. I know that it’s likely my own music won’t reach many ears that might enjoy it, but to worry about taking peoples attention away from your art feels like a devaluation of your art.
@logickal @elifyalvac yeah thank you thats kinda the way i want to word it but being fatigued doesnt help with communication at all
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@elifyalvac When I look back on my career, the releases I have made, has become highlights of the periods it's released in. And I have periods where I wouldn't release anything, because why should I when it wouldn't sell. But I sooo regret.
You can release for others as a DIY artist, but you should actually mostly do it for yourself. Making a release means taking decisions: Where am I now, what's important for me and how would I like to share it. It's the best way to remember your development.
@elifyalvac what really made me think of this, was the story of danish composer Tekla Griebel Wandall: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tekla_Griebel-Wandall
She had some acceptance when she lived (late 1800th start 1900th hundred), but not in anyway to the extent she should been have given. Luckily for us today, she knew this, and during her life she collected letters, articles, reviews, sheetpaper, released music and more, and saved it all in a box, for when people would remember her - and wanted to read about her work.
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@elifyalvac @toffo I’m interested in this concept of “too much”. To me, one of the joys of music is that there is SO MUCH out there, more than I will ever hear all of. And music comes forth from me constantly. I know that it’s likely my own music won’t reach many ears that might enjoy it, but to worry about taking peoples attention away from your art feels like a devaluation of your art.
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@elifyalvac I voted "yes," because I think it's part of building the world we want to live in. I suppose I should specify that I don't think releasing stuff through corporate surveillance platforms is worth much (that is, not much of anything good), but I do think building and contributing to alternate platforms that could be the beginning of something better is worth quite a lot. I'll include Bandcamp in my "yes" because even tho it's part of the "old way," it has been kind of a stepping stone.
@fstateaudio yeah and it can be a nice way of bonding with others. and i like my bandcamp collection. your 1st point about shitty platforms 200% agreed
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@elifyalvac what really made me think of this, was the story of danish composer Tekla Griebel Wandall: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tekla_Griebel-Wandall
She had some acceptance when she lived (late 1800th start 1900th hundred), but not in anyway to the extent she should been have given. Luckily for us today, she knew this, and during her life she collected letters, articles, reviews, sheetpaper, released music and more, and saved it all in a box, for when people would remember her - and wanted to read about her work.
@elifyalvac last year, for the first time, a version of her Opera Kong Roars Skjalde was performed.
This opera took her 30 years to write, and more than a 100 years before someone found it suitable for concert.
I have so much respect for the trust she had in her work, and it has really inspired me, to start making an archive of my own (not that I presume someone will do an opera 100 years from now, that I write during the next 30 years).
‘Kong Hroars Skjalde’ og de glemte kvinder
Ny opera komponeret af Josefine Opsahl undersøger kærlighedens væsen og den klassiske opera med afsæt i myten om Ekko og Narcissus.
Copenhagen Opera Festival (www.operafestival.dk)
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@elifyalvac I vote yes. Partially because I enjoy the process of creating releases - creating the running order, making the artwork, etc. That’s a highly enjoyable thing for me. Philosophically, I think it’s more to do with the act of creation and putting things out into the world. Music is a form of communication, and even if the audience is limited, you’re always looking to make that connection, which you can’t do if your music is confined to your own speakers.
@logickal much to enjoy as a journey, creatively, and just that can be rewarding. and definitely— i made some of must most special connections through that way of communicating initially, including my partner
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@fstateaudio yeah and it can be a nice way of bonding with others. and i like my bandcamp collection. your 1st point about shitty platforms 200% agreed
@elifyalvac That's a good point too. I doubt very much that I'd have made as many music friends if I wasn't releasing stuff, because I'd probably just hide in my cave without that reason not to lol.
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Is it still worth releasing music for DIY/independent artists? Why?
I don’t have a yes or no answer yet. I’m questioning… if you have an answer please can you explain it? Thanks!
@elifyalvac I agree with so many other points here about doing it for yourself and also doing it to help create the world you want to live in.
That said, I have also realized that for myself, not worrying about releasing things in the way they used to be released can be extremely freeing. Meaning, if I don't want to keep working on something until it's completely spit-and-polished and I just want to release it on my YouTube channel or wherever, I can do that and that's okay.
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@elifyalvac When I look back on my career, the releases I have made, has become highlights of the periods it's released in. And I have periods where I wouldn't release anything, because why should I when it wouldn't sell. But I sooo regret.
You can release for others as a DIY artist, but you should actually mostly do it for yourself. Making a release means taking decisions: Where am I now, what's important for me and how would I like to share it. It's the best way to remember your development.
@mosgaard
this. it can be a documentation of your journey, at times like talking to your inner child or your different versions. you capture a time. thank you. i was feeling very discouraged by marketing pr people but we sometimes need to remind our strength and confidence, without giving others power. I don’t want to see it as shitting content every second as people see too much. don’t want to add to that endless flow. would like to continue to release without having to advertise much, which I am doing nowadays -
@elifyalvac I agree with so many other points here about doing it for yourself and also doing it to help create the world you want to live in.
That said, I have also realized that for myself, not worrying about releasing things in the way they used to be released can be extremely freeing. Meaning, if I don't want to keep working on something until it's completely spit-and-polished and I just want to release it on my YouTube channel or wherever, I can do that and that's okay.
@alisynthesis Thanks for this!
I’ve stepped onto that stage of not worrying and it definitely makes things much more fun.
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@elifyalvac what really made me think of this, was the story of danish composer Tekla Griebel Wandall: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tekla_Griebel-Wandall
She had some acceptance when she lived (late 1800th start 1900th hundred), but not in anyway to the extent she should been have given. Luckily for us today, she knew this, and during her life she collected letters, articles, reviews, sheetpaper, released music and more, and saved it all in a box, for when people would remember her - and wanted to read about her work.
@mosgaard wow! really inspiring. maybe that was one of the reasons that made her a good educator also
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@elifyalvac yes, but not all the music and not all the time. It's worthwhile to build your catalogue but everything published will have a life of its own. Also, there is more than 120 000 tracks published daily so there is no real need for more tracks.
However, publishing is a good practice as suggested also by others. It forces you to develop your musical ideas and that's a good muscle to train.
I also think it's fine to have some aces in the sleeve for a different publishing mode.
@t3hh indeed, yet more tracks among thousands are not the no. 1 thing the world needs.
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Is it still worth releasing music for DIY/independent artists? Why?
I don’t have a yes or no answer yet. I’m questioning… if you have an answer please can you explain it? Thanks!
@elifyalvac It's a valid question, imo! Prior to finding Mastodon, I was reaching a point a few years ago where it felt it wasn't worth it - the psychological cost of investing so much in something, knowing it was likely to land in an overloaded void. The paradox of hating to ask people to do anything / to listen - with [strangely] wanting to share. It felt better to just make tracks and send them to a few friends. No disappointment that way (apart from when even they couldn't be bothered to listen.
) You don’t want to impose on anyone; you don’t want to self-advertise - yet the work itself seems to say it wants to meet listeners.It should perhaps be talked about more, I think, how dispiriting or even traumatic it can be to put out music. (I wrote more about how I felt back then on a forum: https://rllmukforum.com/index.php?/topic/319131-feeling-like-a-failure/ ) Some people I think are going through that and aren't even admitting it to themselves - they're keeping up something of a picture of success, but cracks are showing. One artist I know eventually had a breakdown over it. Someone could judge that, given other suffering going on, but it is a strange place to navigate psychologically for many sensitive souls. (They didn't want fame or accolades; just the barest acknowledgment.)
It changed with me due to health issues (and other things, including encouragement from certain folks here) - and the basic realisation that it is probably still better to share than not to, in case the albums work for others. I had also seen a fair few people [suddenly] drop dead in recent years - and as mentioned, had my own scares (not to get heavy!)
- so there's been a stronger sense of urgency to...actually get to see the music come out. Music as a willing to life, too. Even if some outwardly “bigger" possibilities suggested themselves earlier on in music life, I've killed (or am trying to kill) any set expectations of anything specific happening; the bare fact of it being available, should anyone care to engage, in itself tips it to "worth it." 
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Is it still worth releasing music for DIY/independent artists? Why?
I don’t have a yes or no answer yet. I’m questioning… if you have an answer please can you explain it? Thanks!
Release music on old media first. CD/cassette/vinyl. In that way there is Proof Of Life. It's physical evidence that your music was released before it was copied endlessly. There are different copyright jurisdictions, and each one operates by a different rule set.
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Is it still worth releasing music for DIY/independent artists? Why?
I don’t have a yes or no answer yet. I’m questioning… if you have an answer please can you explain it? Thanks!
@elifyalvac If you want to make and release music, it's worth it. If you're trying to make money, probably not.
