How I Made $1,000,000 As A Music Producer In My 20s
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- Опубліковано 18 гру 2022
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What is Dark Label Music?
Dark Label offers 1-to-1 business consulting. creative development, and career strategy for music producers and songwriters. Since 2018 we’ve directly served over 500 clients from emerging producers to working freelancers to multi-platinum, GRAMMY winning producers and songwriters.
Our consulting roster / business support group is made up of (50%) producers making the transition to full-time, (35%) full-time producers growing their business, and (15%) major label producers building new projects.
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In this video:
How I Made $1,000,000 As A Music Producer In My 20s
In this video I walk you through my experience of moving to Los Angeles and becoming a full time music producer working in the industry. I also share the two 'superpowers' that made all of this possible.
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Have been trying to reach you, the form on the website doesn't seem to work and the 1-on-1 link above generates "account not active" when I try to submit
Just got the confirmation e-mail though so it seems to have gone through!
@@mikaelkallin Okay cool! Ha! You scared me for a second. Looks like the link is back up and working. Got your email :) Speak soon!
This is SUCH a helpful insight on how there is much more to making money in music than just the traditional route in the studio in person, great video thank you for making this
Glad you enjoyed it!
Good info, thanks! And congrats on finally getting there.
“I gave myself the time I needed”-- PREACH.
Thanks for putting this out
You bet. Thanks for watching!
An honest man right here. Thanks for the depth sir 🤜🏼🤛🏽
Appreciate the kind words. Thank YOU for watching!
Awesome advice
Awesome video Daniel. I'd love to hear your story, long form. Perhaps a Q&A. I know it's hard to find time.
Thanks for watching, Timothy! I've never done a Q&A here on UA-cam but that would be a fun idea. Not sure how to promote it. I guess I could go live and see what happens sometime? Ha. If you have any tips / thoughts on that then feel free to share.
Belief is a MAJOR KEY 🔑 I’m still working on that but I’m getting much better. Mindset is everything.
Hope you're well Jack! Thanks for watching buddy.
@@darklabelmusic Yessir this video really is helping, keep them coming
Belief is nothing without hard work
@@miniaxe4026 but hard work is nothing without belief. Like what are you doing it for? Inspired action is the key
great video thank you sir!!! :D
Wonderful listening to you
great points made dude. 🙏
Thanks for watching!
Great video. Funny this came across my timeline. I just did a similar video but damn makes me wanna do a second run cause this quality is amazing!!!
As a freelance producer, I have been producing music remotely since 2015. Prior to that, I was producing music as a hobby since 2001. However, at the beginning of 2022, I decided to change careers and move into the IT industry as a programmer. It can be difficult for producers to make a living in the music industry due to the high saturation of producers and the fact that many artists do not have the budget to pay for production services. This creates a challenging climate for those looking to make a career out of producing music.
Thanks for sharing your experience! I know for me it was ALWAYS a challenge... Even back in the mid-2000s. The challenges are just different now. But the opportunities are different now too. Cool thing is that I get to see producers make it happen every day in my line of work. This has definitely never been an industry where the majority of folks are able to make it work. Even back in the "glory days". I also don't think every NEEDS to do it for a living. Making music while having a great day job is a super solid route for people to take as well. Appreciate ya watching!
I’m at the same path, studying front end and python right now. Do you regret being a programmer? How is it now? I know it’s a. VERY future secure business and a GREAT salary. It’s also something that is just good to know in general in my opinion when it comes to branding etc.
@@PRODMUDDY whats your income though and how ”secure” is it? UA-cam can be great but its far from a sure thing.
@@mezter Surrounded by* Regardless, my UA-cam grind and income has changed my whole damn life. From the people I met, to finances and what I’ve learned. The producers I know are living very comfortably. You have to believe you can achieve it, which is the first step in anything. Then figure out the smartest way to get there. Have the right attitude.
@@PRODMUDDY Gotcha, good for you man. That’s great! yeah no that’s Why I’m right now going for becoming a developer. Regardless its a good skill to have, good pay and also a great Future for years to come. I can build up my passive income of Music on the side.
Binging ur videos now.
Great video Dan! Thanks for the advice :)
Thanks for watching!
Real talk 💪 faith & patience
Excellent video!
Appreciate it Tom!
great video bro you deserve more views and subs 💯
Thanks buddy - working on it!
@@darklabelmusic im starting to produce and im watching this channel to learn more 💯, im having a hard time being consistent with the learning. how did you begin being consistent? did you have a schedule or? trying to learn everything i can ‼️
UA-camr;" I have two superpowers, Autism and ADHD ", in laymen's terms;" He can sit for hours working and problem-solving ". Most can't.
You can, years of psychology training on human behavior and people still don't understand how habits are formed and how you can maintain healthy habits.
@@aigoated Thats right, you dont need to have Autism or whatever type of mental problems, just sit down on your desk with a piece of paper and a pen and ask your self what you want, what you want to become and what are your goals. If you can writte it you can make it, obviusly it will take time and dedication like Dan told in the video, but big empieres were built by small begginings. Luck to everyone and keep strong 🕉
it's also baffling how people use a learning deficiency such as ADHD and Autism as an excuse when the average person is able to learn at a faster pace than those with learning disabilities. Hyperfocus basically comes at the cost of investing all your focus on one thing because you literally can't focus on anything else for those with learning disabilities. But the average person can also enter a flow state basically the same thing as hyperfocus, it just comes with practice if you're trying to keep it consistent. It just comes more naturally to those with disabilities because they exclude everything else and are forced to pin point into one subject at the cost of everything else.
But seriously tho ADHD is a superpower
Only problem is, once it starts to feel like a chore, I lose all motivation.
Good stuff Daniel. Couldn't agree more about the current overvaluing of videos on "how to be a full time, Six figure producer". NOBODY'S path is the same and nobody does this overnight, the lean years leading up to any success ARE part of the success
Yessir. Thanks for watching, Paul. Gotta wrap the pill in cheese with these vids lol.
@@darklabelmusic haha
I have those ’superpowers’ :) Started making music in early 1996 and in 2015 finally went full-time with it which was the intention all along. Hasnmt been easy but there was no other path.
yeah!
MESSAGE FROM DAN: Hey everyone! Welcome to the channel. It appears that this video has gained some traction over the last week and is bringing a lot of new viewers into our world. Nice to meet you! Our mission at Dark Label is to be the antithesis of the "starving artist mindset" and that's why I decided to make a video like this (even though I knew it would open me up to criticism / skeptics). There are a ton of music producers that make a great living doing this. My story is not that crazy or that uncommon (once you've been in this business for 10+ years). With that said, I encourage you to go watch some of the actual business tutorials on our channel so that you can learn and implement for yourself. Most of the biz stuff on UA-cam was only for beatmakers selling beats so we wanted to share biz advice for everyone else. That's what this channel is about. Have a good one.
Nice video. Sounds like your path was kinda like deadmou5's: working in studios and record shops.
I'm just starting on music production career right now. I was a full time musician(drummer) in Philippines. Since I moved here in Canada, my music life ended. There's no band life for living here. Became a prep/cook in restaurant for 2.5 years. Now I'm doing housekeeping. But where does this end? I wasted 3 years not doing my passion. I feel rusty. I want to get back to music. It's what I love. I can't keep doing things that I don't like. Besides, music production was one of my dream when I was in high school. I wanted to make soundtracks for films and games. I have very small time to practice now that I have 3-month old baby and I'm just starting to learn music theory. I know this will be a very hard journey for me. I don't even know if I'm gonna make it. But I don't wanna stay on jobs that I don't like til I grow old. I'm planning to take online music production course at Point Blank school in LA this October. Any advice for me guys?
Its always better to have a full time job funded working on music then not funded working on music. You just need to sacrifice spare/ entertainment/ relax/ self time. I went to school for sound engineering, it aint worth it. There is so much more free resources from sources around like people, reddit, youtube. Full time in music for a year, I wish I could go back in time and took my old mans advice and get an electrical engineering degree. Atleast then i could have active income to invest in marketing, equipments that could take me further in my music career and up my game. Everything is out there we just have to be willing to accept discomfort and hustle it out
I agree with the above comment. You can have a "day job" and still do music no problem. ALSO... if you are a pro-drummer, why start over? You can make money as a drummer in a same-but-different kind of way. What I have learned is making ANY living in music is the most important 1st step, and you're not going to make it being a noob and starting over (or it will take forever). Sometimes what you're best at in music isn't your "dream" but it's a foot in the door. Also, rely on your Phillipino heritage. They will support you, even from afar. 👍
Really going for the retention rate on this video
The thing I struggled with last year was the lack of external validation. I work hard and I believe that I can be a music producer full time someday but after I complete my first album, it was like nothing changed for me. Life over a year later is still the same. I still yet to even produce anyone else besides myself. And maybe because some of that is time. I only discovered music production in 2016. Transferred schools and I didn't have any way to practice more after I graduated. Then covid hit. I moved to Nashville but it's looking like I'm going to have to move out because it's too expensive. I feel confident that I can do what I want to do in time but I'm still looking for a next step. I've come to terms with the external validation but it doesn't mean that I don't get discouraged sometimes when I feel like I haven't made any progress.
Not sure if this helps... but for me I never tried to put too much weight into one thing. Like "If I do X then Y will happen and my life/career will change". It was a lot of little events that led up to it. If you're in Nashville, jump into the YEP Nashville Community Group on Facebook and start booking some co-writes with artists. Get in the rooms with people. Reach out to some studios and see if you can grab an apprenticeship. Find a busy producer and take stuff off their plate. I live in Nashville too. You're in one of the BEST places to do this. It is getting more expensive but if you can then hunker down with more roommates and live farther out of the city. You may be doing all of that stuff already but just some suggestions.
@@darklabelmusic I appreciate the comment back! It took me a while to learn that but I do have the XY thing out of my head.
I hadn't joined YEP yet so I'll look into it. I appreciate the suggestion. I haven't had the slightest idea of where to start when I moved. I talked to coworkers and other people I met and they didn't have any good suggestions so everything helps. I made myself a list of a lot of the weekly open mic nights and song critiques so I'll be using those when my evenings open up but this is a great suggestion that can help my days coming up. I haven't had much breakthrough reaching out to producers but I did try last year but the world was a much different place.
@@trevorkeith3813 Right on. Keep it at!
Stick with it.
It takes most musicians 15 years to get anywhere bruz. You gotta jsut keep pushing.
Nice! I’d love to work on something with ya!
I have two super powers, perseverance and tenacity.
thnak you
I have a decade of experience and I fall into the music producer/song writer category. I want to learn how to do the business of production.
i went from a producer engineer, to a beatmaker who gave up on working for others, to an electronic music producer after discovering my voice and songwriting skills, and my goal is to become a successful producer songwriter 😊
Man this is great. Please tell more how to get into this. I mean I'm a full on musician. I play 3 to 4 instruments, song write and, mix and master my own shit. Im a truck driver and enjoyed listening to my own music. But trucking ain't shit these days so it's dead and really ready to get out of it so definitely tell me how I can dive more into this as well. Thanx
Glad you enjoyed it! Stay safe out there on the roads. This video will be a good one for you to get started: ua-cam.com/video/FXGA6aZRiAI/v-deo.htmlsi=SQZQ-YQCXjWfQCdb
Ok thanks so much....
omg 6 years working before you could make a living mean you rally wanted to mKe it in music. I love poeple with this king of attitude.
Thanks for watching! 6 years is nothing when you plan on being in music for 50+ years :)
Do you have some advice on how to network for mix engineers?
Thanks for watching! I don't manage any mix engineers (just producer-songwriters), however if I were a mix engineer I would probably be trying to get into environments (groups, courses, networks, etc) where producers are learning business. Many producers don't also mix so you could be their "go to". I'd rather have 5-10 producers sending me multiple projects per month then try to network with hundred of artists . However, networking with artists is still important too. And last thing I'll say is that networking is always easier when you're just trying to make friends vs sell people stuff. Have a good one!
@@darklabelmusic
Thanks a lot, really appreciate it!
I think it's important to realise that all of your skills and hard work as a producer have been part of the journey to making to $1,000,00 but a big contribution factor to it was to start a music production agency. What does making $1,000,000 means? turnover? profit? what about your expenses? was this money made from the company or did you make it personally? I would argue the time you put into making these videos, editing and uploading it is still part of that business model. I'm sure you care about sharing and helping others as you seem like a nice guy, regardless you're still putting the grind in even with a $1,000,000. I spotted on another comment that you do production producer mgmt & and some consulting/education stuff. does that means you're not producing anymore? I think have more detailed outcomes would be of a huge benefit to the community and potentially a wake up call to many of us (myself included). thank you for sharing
“I think it's important to realise that all of your skills and hard work as a producer have been part of the journey to making to $1,000,00 but a big contribution factor to it was to start a music production agency.”
- Production agency = fancy way of saying I had a team. But, I had to get to a level myself first to event warrant needing a team. Many producers doing multiple 6-figures a year have a team of some sort even if it’s it’s just 1 other person. On average it’s anywhere between 1-4 people. That isn’t ALWAYS necessary though because there are dozens of ways to earn that amount as a producer. For example, some producer/composers can earn that amount from one sync placement and may not need a team. Others may get there by having multiple income streams which can increase the complexity of the business thus requiring help (most times). The latter was our story.
“What does making $1,000,000 means? turnover? profit? what about your expenses? was this money made from the company or did you make it personally?”
- That number refers to the total revenue earned. The first $100k was earned from 20-24 (I wasn’t full time yet). The rest came in from 25-30. At 30 I moved into what I do now and that income is not counted. My personal earnings varied because at some points I was a sole proprietor so all earnings counted as personal income, but at other points (most of it) I withdrew a small salary from the company which typically just covered living expenses (but on paper I was 100% owner of the company and it's assets). Most of the profits were reinvested into trying to grow/expand the business. Some were good investments and more of them were very stupid financial decisions because we were kids lol. Expenses varied this entire time as well… I had a less expensive lifestyle in my early 20s than in my late 20s. We tried to keep profit margins around 60-70% on services. Things like digital products, royalties, etc. had higher profit margins of course. It’s also important to keep in mind that this was the sort of the ‘early days’ of remote production and leveraging the internet to make a living as a producer. We were all trying to figure it out. So in my opinion, our numbers were no where near as impressive as what many modern producers are pulling off today. It’s pretty incredible.
“I would argue the time you put into making these videos, editing and uploading it is still part of that business model.”
- This UA-cam channel didn’t exist when I had the production business and is unrelated. However, we did dabble in UA-cam and had a small channel (which later on turned into a big channel called Make Pop Music, but that was a very very very SMALL piece of the revenue during my production company days because this was before that channel really blew up). But in regards to your comment, yes a lot of your time as an independent working producer is all of the stuff outside of actually producing music (until you bring in help).
“I’m sure you care about sharing and helping others as you seem like a nice guy, regardless you're still putting the grind in even with a $1,000,000.”
- Sure. Those are unrelated.
“I spotted on another comment that you do production producer mgmt & and some consulting/education stuff. does that means you're not producing anymore?”
- Correct. I solely run Dark Label which is a consulting firm and mgmt services company for working producers. It’s a much harder business to run than my production company was but my unique background put me in a position to do this.
“I think have more detailed outcomes would be of a huge benefit to the community and potentially a wake up call to many of us (myself included). thank you for sharing
- Hope that helps and thanks for watching!
@@darklabelmusic Appreciate the detailed breakdown and answering all the questions.
Sure thing! No problem at all.
Great story and very interesting. I have a similar journey. I moved to La at 19 had big success and lost it all on drugs. I’d love to share my story with more people. Cause you can make a million and spend 2
Struggles with addiction is part of my story too so I feel ya. Glad you're here to type this comment. We're lucky.
@@darklabelmusic yup I went from doing live audio for Kanye to addicted to heroin. But I am back now 💯 keep grinding kids !!!!! Your time is coming.
🙏🙌
hi. what's your advice for singersongwriters when it comes to find and work with a producer and getting a record deal? I saw this video and thought you might have some advice on that. thanks a bunch.
Hey Peter. I don’t have general advice for that unfortunately because it depends entirely on the situation. General advice wouldn’t be worth much. If you want to go more specific with the question /give me some context then I’ll try my best. Thanks for watching!
Ok thanks. So Im a singer song writer. I've been writing songs for 10 years, but I want to get a record deal. I have over 80 songs, half are very good. The thing is that I don't know what steps I should take into getting a record deal. Also Im from Portugal but I want to internationalize myself. Maybe go to the usa next year. also want to make my own band while im in Portugal in Europe. Im just confuse to what steps I should be taking. its a very blur way. And I don't know what to do. Im thinking about posting an ad saying that im looking for a music manager and maybe that's the way I should go for. what do you think? portugal doesn't have a lots of bars or pubs to play original music, only covers. Im very lost and need some guidance. Maybe you could help me with some advice on this. Hope I explained it well. Thanks man!@@darklabelmusic
How many songs/projects have you released that are produced at a high standard?
@@darklabelmusic none. Maybe next year i'll b3 able to do it.
Start there
Crazy how you also moved from North Carolina to Los Angeles!
Born in Greensboro and raised in Charlotte!
NO WAY! I was born in Charlotte and raised in Greensboro!@@darklabelmusic
Good tips. The Jazz track in the background made it difficult to focus, though. Maybe it's just me but the loop is too attention grabbing and also too short, I think.
-Cheers
Thanks for watching and for the feedback!
so what made you decide to stop producing music full time?
Great question. Could probably do an entire video on that too. As the team grew I found myself leaning more into the business side and really enjoyed that. Around 2017 I realized that everyone that had worked under me at my production company were getting bigger and better opportunities which was awesome. They came into my biz talented but with very little work experience as producers/writers. By the time they moved onto their next opportunity they were business savvy, confident, wicked fast, song making beasts lol. So without knowing it, what I was really doing most of the time was “producer development”. Around 2018 I decided to pivot and start down the path of becoming a producer manager. A path I’m still on now that will probably take another 5-10 years realistically. It felt weird to shut off a business that was working. Big identity crises lol. But learned a lot from it. Thanks for watching!
@@darklabelmusic thanks for that detailed answer
just in a small bedroom studio like you....with a huge teamof songwriters and engineers ..... wow what a secret
Keep at it my friend
First thing you need to do is rewire your mindset, and also your habits.
Be positive.
Strive to be the person the finds a positive out of a negative.
Give yourself the patience you deserve.
What exactly did you do from 14-24? What does “working with artists mean”, it’s just not specific all, I’m sure you are crushing it, but I’ve learned nothing about what it is that you are doing or what you have done for or with whom..
Anyways, keep grinding and hope to learn from you in the future.
Hey for sure. I'll try to add some clarity. By working with artists I mean producing, songwriting, recording, etc. for artists. This video is how I got into the business (which was via launching one of the first fully remote music production agencies). That experience is what led me into what I do now many years later (producer mgmt & and some consulting/education stuff). From age 14 to 24 it was all... Playing in bands, writing/recording for clients in my home studio, did like a year at a recording school, worked some corporate jobs during all of this, and apprenticed under a bigger producer in my city. Hope that helps.
@@darklabelmusic Thank you for clarifying - it's beyond bad ass that you've made a living doing this, congratulations and keep up the good work.
You're very welcome and thanks for watching!
I'm missing the part where SXTM got visibility. Just starting a company, even if the concept revolutionary isn't enough for it to find success
Hey Ian - thanks for the comment. I assume by "visibility" you are referring to how we procured work? If so, that's what the rest of this channel (and our podcast) is about and is more up to date. However, if it would be helpful I can do a run down on what we specifically did back then. Your comment along with a few others have actually inspired me to just turn this story/experience into a series where I go more into the details. Have a great day and thanks for watching!
Year 78 of making beats. 😂 I’m not giving up!
Keep it up - Your beats are super fun. I'm a huge fan of that era lol. Get some awesome artists on there so we can hear the full picture.
@@darklabelmusic ahh jeez thanks a lot!
Only $15, that’s an absolute steal.
one thing I've learned, don't put the cart before the horse
100% - Thanks for watching! Appreciate ya.
Hi my name is Albert Francis See Jr And I'm a music producer and hiphop song writer to can I join business
How u know I was in a studio apartment 😂💀
One room to rule them all lol
@@darklabelmusic fr tho 🤣💀💀
a mili dollars is 500 millions cfa francs in my country ... gosh
If you stuck with the real estate selling you'd be making six figures per month, rather than all that grind per year.
Probably not. I was in real estate marketing/agent services, not investing or selling. And in that era (end of the housing crisis) it was still tough times for many in that industry. The companies I'm involved with in the music industry (serve on their board) do yield six figures per month. And to me that's way cooler than real estate. Thanks for watching!
why do you not share any songs you’ve worked on? i searched your name and no songs even come up.. suspect really
Thanks for watching. As the video shares... I'm on the mgmt/biz dev side. I ran a production team, so most the songs were credited to the company (SXTM Music/The Songwriting Team) and/or the individual producers (Christian Fiore, Austin Hull, Thomas Daniel). Here's a playlist of some of that: soundcloud.com/sxtm_online/sets/2015-collection
PS - The repertory search for Ascap or BMI is generally where I start my search when I'm trying to find someone's work. Based on your comment, it's apparent that you didn't search there. No worries though :)
@@darklabelmusic ah thanks for clarifying. i misunderstood what you meant by “music producer” in the title. no problem i get it now!
All good my friend. I came up as an audio engineer working in studios for the 10 years prior to this story starting. Technically I was the first producer/songwriter at SXTM, but it grew into a team rather quickly and everything moved to be credited as a team. We had a pub company on the backend as well. We also had a UA-cam channel back in the day too, but it was re-branded to a channel called Make Pop Music (which still exists). So yea, a lot of the stuff is sort of "buried" (by today's internet standards) so I get where you were coming from originally. I'm pretty sure there's still a SoundBetter profile out there too somewhere lol.
How do I make a great song that sells
Hooks 👍 make every element of the song hummable, is definitely one part of that
How in the hell did you afford to move to LA in your early 20s lol
Worked corporate jobs (with freelance audio on the side) for a number of years. I think I saved up about $5k ish to move out there. Slept on a friends couch for a few months and immediately starting diving into whatever freelance work I could find out there. It was also over a decade ago so it was cheaper. Not by much but definitely cheaper which was an advantage. I also lived in a kind of random crappy neighborhood (SMB / Western Ave) but it was fine for what I needed at the time.
Point being…know somebody and live with them. Outside of that it ain’t happening unless you’re already really talented from all the work you put it brah
u can move to la and live in ur car.
you don’t move to LA without a dream … if you’re passionate and determined enough you’ll start to sacrifice comfort to make your dream reality. you’ll be surprised to find out how many celebrities got their start in Hollywood broke af couch surfing or even living in their car so they can just be there to make connections/audition.
...have you made a million sense? ;) lol just curious :)
Yes. I’m in my mid 30s now, and this time I’ve done a better job investing it. Wasn’t so great at that in my 20s when I was running the first business lol. Maybe I’ll make a video on that. Thanks for watching.
@@darklabelmusic please do! I’m 34 but just now getting into making music. …hope it’s not too late for me lol.
That's 100% up to you