September 24, 2010

Fifty-Two Weeks of Music Do-It-Yourself advice

52 Weeks of Music DIY Advice
The link to each week is below. To learn about the project read under the sexy photo of me.

Week 1: Posters and Handbills (9/24/10)
Week 2: Social Media (10/1/10)
Week 3: Merchandise (10/8/10)
Week 4: Publicity (10/14/10)
Week 5: How To Write a Press Release (10/21/10)
Week 6: How To Release Your Music: Part 1 of 3 (10/28/10)
Week 7: How To Release Your Music: Part 2 of 3 (11/4/10)
Week 8: How To Release Your Music: Part 3 of 3 (11/11/10)
Week 9: The Rock Star Treatment (11/18/10)
Week 10: What's The Point? (11/25/10)
Week 11: Keep It In Your Pants (12/2/10)
Week 12: Where's Your Glass Ceiling? (12/9/10)
Week 13: Basic Ground Rules (12/16/10)
Week 14: It's Christmas - Comic Time (12/25/10)
Week 15: Steps to Advertise on Radio (12/30/10)
Week 16: Who's Talking? (1/6/11)
Week 17: Be A Gracious Host (1/13/11)
Week 18: Who's Voting? (1/20/11)
Week 19: Come To My Show... Please? (1/27/11)
Week 20: Entertain or Perish (2/3/11)
Week 21: DIY Poster Child: One Eyed Doll (2/10/11)
Week 22: Promotions One Oh One (2/17/11)
Week 23: Check Your Music (2/24/11)
Week 24: The Hustle (3/4/11)
Week 25: Reviewing the Role of a Reviewer (3/10/11)
Week 26: The Banter (3/17/11)
Week 27: Keep It Real (3/24/11)
Week 28: Interviewing 101 (3/31/11)
Week 29: Notes From The Cubicle (4/8/11)
Week 30: Standing Out (4/14/11)
Week 31: Playing Festivals (4/26/11)
Week 32: What Are You Wearing? (5/4/11)
Week 33: Tell The Truth (5/17/11)
Week 34: The Average Lifespan of a Band (5/24/11)
Week 35: What's The Big Idea? (6/6/11)
Week 36: How NOT to Treat Fans (6/16/11)
Week 37: It's A Job (6/23/11)
Week 38: Five Ways to Brand Your Band (6/30/11)
Week 39: What Goes Around... (7/8/11)
Week 40: Wasted Potential (7/14/11)
Week 41: Standing Out or Outstanding? (7/21/11)
Week 42: Know Where You're Headed (7/28/11)
Week 43: What's In A Name? (8/4/11)
Week 44: Treat People Right (8/12/11)
Week 45: Promote From Your Phone (8/19/11)
Week 46: The Plan (8/29/11)
Week 47: Ian Moore (9/6/11)
Week 48: Which Comes First? (9/23/11)
Week 49: Your Stage Self (10/13/11)
Week 50: Are YOU in THEIR Life? (12/2/11)
Week 51: To Play Free or Not To Play Free (12/29/11)
Week 52: Bands As Retail Stores (1/5/12)
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Sean Claes



Earlier this month I completed my first personal weekly challenge, I reviewed 52 Austin-Based CDs in 52 Weeks. When I finished that, I took a little time-out. Then I thought about my next challenge. What if I do a weekly blog for a year that gives advice to do-it-yourself bands out there? I've been on both sides of this one.

As a magazine editor and owner I have been on the receiving end of promotional attempts by indie bands who don't have a label or publicity firm driving their promotions. There are a few out there that do it really well. They promote themselves online, via e-mail, they call, I see their promo out there, and I see the results at their shows. On the other hand there is a vast majority that don't. They either don't know what to do, who to reach out to, or just flat don't care to promote themselves... and I see the results at their shows as well.

As a freelance writer and promoter I've also been on the "sending end" of the table. I realize how hard it is to promote a band, project, show, or music release. I've learned something along the way there as well.

So, take a deep breath and let's see how this goes. Welcome to my new challenge, Fifty-Two Weeks of Music Do-It-Yourself advice. Admittedly this is a challenge that will likely help DIY bands more than the average reader... but I think you may be entertained even if you aren't in a band. Let's see.

As I did with my last one, I'll post a link to each week via this page so they'll all be in one nice tidy spot. I hope you enjoy the journey and learn a little bit in the process.

This is a hand's on blog... your comments are appreciated.
Let's go for a ride together.

Thanks to Austin's Annie Ray for taking this shot of me at ACL 2009.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've personally helped multiple bands and musician friends of mine out of pure love for good music...and speak from experience that it's a LOT of work. Promotions, production, legal concerns, merch, financials...you name it. It never ceases to amaze me how many people think it's fast and easy...including bands out there that think everything will fall into their lap somehow. Kudos to you for tackling these subjects as a challenge. For the readers that aren't in the DIY biz...consider helping your favorite local band(s) with some of this stuff. If you're crazy about an up and coming artist or band, become part of their support system in a tangible way.

Sean Claes said...

Thanks Anonymous. It's going to be an interesting year. :)