Money can be an ongoing challenge for musicians and studio engineers alike. But a musician can’t perform without instruments, and an engineer can’t record without studio gear. For some, taking out a loan might be a good way to get the ball rolling. For the most part, I don’t advise going into debt or securing…
Many guitarists are interested in building up their speed. It’s cool when you can pull it off, but the work you need to put in to get there isn’t necessarily glamorous. For the most part, it just requires persistence and diligence. Whether it’s sweep picking or speed picking, you must keep at it until you…
Are you looking for a few apps to download and install on your mobile device? There are some cool apps out there for guitarists and musicians, from virtual amps and pocket studios to jam tracks and drum machines. Whatever it is you need, there’s probably a solution out there. If you’re the kind of person…
If you want to sell your music on as many different stores and platforms as possible, then you must distribute it. Distribution is more efficient and affordable than it’s ever been. There are many services to choose from, and while most of them are comparable, they aren’t exactly the same. This makes it difficult to…
We must face facts – getting likes for your Facebook page is getting tougher by the minute. Everybody can promote anything on social networks, and many are. And while getting a new page off the ground might not be easy, this does not mean that it’s impossible. There are still many ways to get likes…
Every songwriter and composer knows they need to work on their writing. Mastery only comes through regular practice. But if you’re serious about your music career, it’s unlikely that you won’t ever need to write an email, bio, or social media post. You might be able to hire someone to handle those tasks down the…
To the untrained ear, jazz music may sound like a sort of “pleasant chaos”, and even those who have been playing music for a while might strain to understand how it works. Fortunately, there is method behind the madness, and like any other musical style, it’s just a matter of studying the form. Although jazz…
Perhaps you’ve watched Don Ross or Andy McKee (or virtually anyone on CandyRat Records, like Calum Graham, who is a friend of mine) and thought, “gosh, that’s so cool – how do you play guitar like that?” Percussive style acoustic guitar has grown in popularity considerably in the last 10 years. But that doesn’t mean…
Normally, a guitar is tuned E, A, D, G, B, E, from the sixth (thickest) string to the first (thinnest) string. But this doesn’t mean that you must tune your guitar this way. In terms of string tension, “standard tuning” may well be ideal. But in terms of playability, other tunings may offer easier access…
Pinterest is currently the fifth most popular social media site on the web (just behind Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn). Although its user base is primarily made up of women between the ages of 18 and 49, the male user base is also starting to grow. This is important to know, because if your fan…
Today you’re going to learn how to get fans for your music. It used to be that if you wanted to build a fan base for your music, you had to subject yourself to years and years of grinding. Now though, using the tools and technology available to you, you can hack your way to a…
New to playing guitar? Looking for some easy guitar songs that you can learn sooner than later? Then you’re in luck, as today we have 41 such songs for you to get started with. I’ve included many 1 chord, 2 chord and 3 chord guitar songs, and split them up based on music genre and…
Slide guitar is a bit of a lost art. You don’t see too many players out there using a slide to play their guitars any more. Or, if they do, it’s for a little flavor and not much else. This, in part, is because playing with a slide is hard. You must use the right…
There’s one inescapable truth about music careers – you need money to make them happen. And though it’s perfectly fine to work a day job or a side gig to piece together the funding you need for your recording projects, tours, merch and other expenses, it’s also good to be aware of other sources of…
In some ways, getting started is the hardest part about playing the guitar. Once you’ve built some finger strength, things get a lot easier. But until then, everything you try will feel awkward, because you’ve literally never had to use your fingers in this way before. Your goal should be to get passed that awkward…