In terms of "success," it seems to ring true fairly often that 3 is the magic number. If you can release 3 albums, 3 books, 3 movies, etc., that's usually when the big boom happens IF it's going to at all. Consistency and proven growth, that's what really makes the difference.
I’ve been watching your videos for the last month or so and yesterday I finally finished my first song! I’d written several for my church but we never really had any decent recordings to go off of for the band to learn, so it felt great to finally finish one. Really enjoyed the process and can’t wait to get more done!
Dean, your videos are honest and truly helpful. Thanks for these. I have songs that are streamed regularly and I wasn't surprised at how little you made. But, it makes me feel good that people are playing my music.
I would have thought you would have made a few hundred dollars with your first song. I have been following you for awhile and started the home recording thing as I stopped touring because the bug. Wrote a song for a bus driver about a year ago and believe he has over 10k in hits on it. Time to try one of my own. Thankyou for all you do
Great job, I don’t know how the music industry works today, but I remember watching an interview with Randy Travis (years ago) and how he explained that he was a “Ten Year overnight success.” I would like to think that people who want to make music do it for the love of music, anything else folks are going to see right through it. Up and comers would benefit from this video. Keep em coming!!!
Great info here... The snowball effect is spot-on. It takes years of hard work and LOVING what you do...building an audience and enjoying the process. If you don't enjoy it BEFORE you make the money, you certainly won't enjoy it when you finally do make some money and the pressure is on to continue to put out material (which you never enjoyed making in the first place). So the snowball works both ways. LOL.
Really interesting Dean, thanks for being so honest with us. I am surprised you made that little. I thought for sure with your online presence you would've made at least 5x that, but then again I have no baseline with which to judge.
Yeah, same here if I'm honest. It is tough to make any kind of significant income from a first time release without a big pre existing audience. I had more than the average person might but still a very small number of people to send it to relative to a more established artist :)
Really great video Dean! Thank you for all of your helpful tips. I use Distrokid aswell and have released 3 EPs and a few singles so far just using my home studio! It's been a great process learning the ropes and I'm definitely not in this for the money otherwise I would've quit along time ago. To date I've made around $50 total for all of my music combined. Of course I would love for my music to get heard but I'll always write and record music because I just love it so much!
Amen! I would just say that, if you are making music for sake of it because you enjoy it, maybe 75$ to have your song mastered is price worth to pay because the difference is huuuuge and you will have your piece of art forever, nevermind how many streams it will get. I just did it for my first song (also recorded with garageband) and I am superexcited by the result! Peace :)
Thanks so much for sharing Dean! I still will hope for The Big Hit😁 but will keep working regardless. It’s really helpful to know how you did it. I’m very surprised your song earned so little. Have you shared on TikTok... I’m told it’s a good place to share. Thanks for another great video 👍🏼🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 I was reading the story of how Old Town Road was shot to succes from tic tok ( there is a video about how) but I believe he put a lot of work into it . 🌹🌹
I've been writing songs since 2014 and I have a ton, about sixty, I just bought an iPad Pro 12.9 exclusively for Garageband, and after watching this, I'm getting excited, thank you Dean.
Hmmm. 22 dollars. Hmm. I appreciate your personal efforts. I also would mention i love your song and for me, this is the most fulfilling. You did it. 22 dollars gain doesn't make the ... It's that you FULFILLED the mission of God, for the song. Im so much desiring to become my own producer. Been seeing this bandlab thing but you sound like i can fall back on it, as i plan to put out my songs. God bless you.
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 how much time did you spend in the recording process. I’m literally stuck here and maybe I just need to focus on recording one section at a time over and over.
@@marissainthesunchinestate that's hard to say exactly ha as I didn't log my hours on just the recording but I definitely took my time! And yes, I did lots of takes and recorded in small sections and would sing the same part over and over until I was satisfied! -Dean
I think just getting a return on your song is a big win regardless of how much. I would think it would give you more motivation and show you that you can do even better next time. good video
Your VID is productive and insightful, honestly, i was expecting more revenue than what you had.I believe it is not all about incomes but the desires to make good music. Thank you for sharing and your tips about publishing, mastering etc.. are useful for many of your followers just like me. As we may cross the same bridge one day! which I think was great and shared with others and received encouraging feedback!. Currently am
Thanks for your honesty. It's certainly a labour of love and not money. Lots of discussion on revenue share from the large streaming services but it is important to understand, you are unlikely to make a living from this unless you are extremely lucky. What lyric video software would you recommend?
Hey StLeven! Yeah, it's tough for sure, I think the only sure route is to make incredible music and release with extreme consistency over the course of years, then you have a shot! As for lyrics video... I like to recommend iMovie as it's easy to use and has plenty of great features. I did a course on making creative music videos with your iPhone here! ua-cam.com/video/SF-HsCF6m3I/v-deo.html
A Very Good Day To You Dean, I Pray Your Keeping Well & Safe Too... What A Journey Dean, Thank You So Much For Your Transparency & Kind Enough To Discuss & Share This With Us All... Your Contents Is Always Formative & I Always Come Away Equipped With Obtaining More Information & knowledge... Thank You So Much For All That Your Hard Work In Producing These Video's.. Also Dean, Thank You So Much For The Information On The Acoustic Panels... I Haven't Had A Chance To Make Them As Of Yet, Due Health Issues Regarding My Heart... Which Was Scary, But As You Know Nothing Is Impossible For King & The Greatest Doctor Jesus Christ!!! As My Reports Came Back Yesterday With Everything Normal & No Surgery Required... All The Glory Goes To Jesus & Jesus Alone.. Dean, May I kindly Ask If There A Possibility Of Having A Chat With You In Person On The Phone At All??? I Look Forward To Hearing From You Soon.. Take Care & God Bless You... Steve
Unless you are doing music licensing you probably won’t see any real money (10s of thousands of dollars per release) in music anymore. I mean you can do it the album and release way but that may take 5-10 years of consistency. I did the band thing for 5 years and was at the level we were talking to record labels and getting $2500 per show. To be honest money in music is a real myth...you can make money , but we had to put about $25k in our marketing and promotions for us to start getting what we got. We also hired a manager for $1500 a month who was connected and got us opportunities. We did that for a year. That was our most successful year too. i want aspiring artist to know that a great song is only part of the solution. There are thousands of artist with great music that won’t see the light of day because they don’t have management and a promotional plan that will connect them to the money and opportunities. Getting to the money isn’t capitalistic ...money is a resource that allows you to keep doing your craft and taking it to the next level. Music is a money hole ...but making music for a living is one of the most rewarding careers
The problem with music these days is.... it's turned into background ambiance. People don't want to pay for anything anymore! With the overflow of bedroom studios, and let's face it here, kids grinding out all kinds of stuff and I'm being kind here... imho(" most of it is pure crap") so naturally they have literally changed the face of what they call production, and the drone repeated templates of today's sound? It's no wonder people don't care about music. It's a shame but it seems to be the future of music. When you suddenly have millions of people doing there own thing with no skill of really learning a craft of playing anything , today's music, for the most part is the realistic result.
Hope you are not offended by me calling you son...but I’m an old guy... almost 70 and just yesterday I was contacted by an old band mate fro 1969 whom I haven’t seen for 51 years...lol...!!!
I expected that as I use DK but they claim we get 100% royalties but with me withdrawing from my bank fees were deducted so they wasn't as honest as advertised, but its 3rd party company's im guessing.
Well, 22$ isn't much, but for me, as a teenager, it would be actually a good amount; and as grow older, I will have a good amount of experience because I started making Music in GarageBand, when I was about 10/11 years old. And besides that: You/Dean made (produced) the song yourself and "only" in GarageBand. It surely is a fairly capable Program, but definitely not what one would really call a "professional" Program.
ha true :) ... but I would call GarageBand a professional program :) as I produce for paying clients on a regular basis using GB! I also use Logic and the differences are smaller than you might think :P
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 Well yes, it is definitely capable as a professional program. But I mean it isn't payed separately and it isn't the high-end professional stuff either.
Hey James! I don't currently copyright my music (or have my students/clients) because it is an extra expense and typically a song is not at risk of being stolen unless it is from someone who is really making headway and has amazing music. Some people like to do it for the peace of mind but I don't see it as necessary for a new artist. Other have may have a different take on it though! :)
Hey Ryan! I use the Blue Bird large diaphragm condenser mic ($300USD new) but I also highly recommend the Berhringer B1 at about $118USD new. They have a very similar sound and both do a fabulous job!
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 is it possible to maybe drop a link so I can follow you guys, your tutorials got me into music and I'm doing it just for fun when I have time, thanks for all the advice man, hope you're still pursuing music, you really are good
Hey Virgil! I don't currently copyright my music (or have my students/clients) because it is an extra expense and typically people will not steal a song unless it is from someone who is really making headway and has amazing music. Some people like to do it for the peace of mind but I don't see it as necessary for a new artist. Other have may have a different take on it though! :)
In terms of "success," it seems to ring true fairly often that 3 is the magic number. If you can release 3 albums, 3 books, 3 movies, etc., that's usually when the big boom happens IF it's going to at all. Consistency and proven growth, that's what really makes the difference.
Hey I made 25 cents on Spotify.
I’ve been watching your videos for the last month or so and yesterday I finally finished my first song! I’d written several for my church but we never really had any decent recordings to go off of for the band to learn, so it felt great to finally finish one. Really enjoyed the process and can’t wait to get more done!
Love that Billy! Fun stuff, keep going! -Dean
Dean, your videos are honest and truly helpful. Thanks for these. I have songs that are streamed regularly and I wasn't surprised at how little you made. But, it makes me feel good that people are playing my music.
What a beautiful song. And your album covers look so beautiful. Your teachings are very inspiring.
I would have thought you would have made a few hundred dollars with your first song. I have been following you for awhile and started the home recording thing as I stopped touring because the bug. Wrote a song for a bus driver about a year ago and believe he has over 10k in hits on it. Time to try one of my own. Thankyou for all you do
Great job, I don’t know how the music industry works today, but I remember watching an interview with Randy Travis (years ago) and how he explained that he was a “Ten Year overnight success.” I would like to think that people who want to make music do it for the love of music, anything else folks are going to see right through it. Up and comers would benefit from this video. Keep em coming!!!
ha I like that "ten year overnight success", that seems to be true of most endeavors, music included! :P
Great info here... The snowball effect is spot-on. It takes years of hard work and LOVING what you do...building an audience and enjoying the process. If you don't enjoy it BEFORE you make the money, you certainly won't enjoy it when you finally do make some money and the pressure is on to continue to put out material (which you never enjoyed making in the first place). So the snowball works both ways. LOL.
Really honest, I trust you son... good voice!!! Let’s collaborate...
So glad you are back
Really insightful. Thank you Dean.
Glad it was helpful Vicky! -Dean
Amazing! Thanks, Dean!
Really interesting Dean, thanks for being so honest with us. I am surprised you made that little. I thought for sure with your online presence you would've made at least 5x that, but then again I have no baseline with which to judge.
Yeah, same here if I'm honest. It is tough to make any kind of significant income from a first time release without a big pre existing audience. I had more than the average person might but still a very small number of people to send it to relative to a more established artist :)
Great stuff - thanks for this!
Seen a few of your videos now and they've all been extremely helpful in my personal musician journey. Keep up the great work!
Glad to hear Dan and thanks for sharing!
Honest and sensible advice. Good work.
It so doesn't matter amount the money. It's about the art, the music and the fun.
Great video Dean. Very helpfu! Thank you once again!
No problem Lori, glad to share! -Dean
Really great video Dean! Thank you for all of your helpful tips. I use Distrokid aswell and have released 3 EPs and a few singles so far just using my home studio! It's been a great process learning the ropes and I'm definitely not in this for the money otherwise I would've quit along time ago. To date I've made around $50 total for all of my music combined. Of course I would love for my music to get heard but I'll always write and record music because I just love it so much!
Amen! I would just say that, if you are making music for sake of it because you enjoy it, maybe 75$ to have your song mastered is price worth to pay because the difference is huuuuge and you will have your piece of art forever, nevermind how many streams it will get. I just did it for my first song (also recorded with garageband) and I am superexcited by the result! Peace :)
Thanks so much for sharing Dean! I still will hope for The Big Hit😁 but will keep working regardless. It’s really helpful to know how you did it. I’m very surprised your song earned so little. Have you shared on TikTok... I’m told it’s a good place to share. Thanks for another great video 👍🏼🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹
Hey Marion! Glad it was helpful! No, I didn't publish this one on TikTok but I don't think that would have changed too much on this release :)
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 I was reading the story of how Old Town Road was shot to succes from tic tok ( there is a video about how) but I believe he put a lot of work into it . 🌹🌹
I've been writing songs since 2014 and I have a ton, about sixty, I just bought an iPad Pro 12.9 exclusively for Garageband, and after watching this, I'm getting excited, thank you Dean.
Love that Dennis!
Like they say - Success doesn't just happen overnight, it takes months or even years to make it to that level. 💪
yoo great vid man 🔥
Hmmm.
22 dollars.
Hmm.
I appreciate your personal efforts.
I also would mention i love your song and for me, this is the most fulfilling.
You did it.
22 dollars gain doesn't make the ...
It's that you FULFILLED the mission of God, for the song.
Im so much desiring to become my own producer.
Been seeing this bandlab thing but you sound like i can fall back on it, as i plan to put out my songs.
God bless you.
Thanks for making this Dean!!
Glad to Marissa!
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 how much time did you spend in the recording process. I’m literally stuck here and maybe I just need to focus on recording one section at a time over and over.
@@marissainthesunchinestate that's hard to say exactly ha as I didn't log my hours on just the recording but I definitely took my time! And yes, I did lots of takes and recorded in small sections and would sing the same part over and over until I was satisfied! -Dean
I think just getting a return on your song is a big win regardless of how much. I would think it would give you more motivation and show you that you can do even better next time. good video
Your VID is productive and insightful, honestly, i was expecting more revenue than what you had.I believe it is not all about incomes but the desires to make good music. Thank you for sharing and your tips about publishing, mastering etc.. are useful for many of your followers just like me. As we may cross the same bridge one day! which I think was great and shared with others and received encouraging feedback!. Currently am
So glad it was helpful Frank! -Dean
Thanks for your honesty. It's certainly a labour of love and not money. Lots of discussion on revenue share from the large streaming services but it is important to understand, you are unlikely to make a living from this unless you are extremely lucky. What lyric video software would you recommend?
Hey StLeven! Yeah, it's tough for sure, I think the only sure route is to make incredible music and release with extreme consistency over the course of years, then you have a shot! As for lyrics video... I like to recommend iMovie as it's easy to use and has plenty of great features. I did a course on making creative music videos with your iPhone here! ua-cam.com/video/SF-HsCF6m3I/v-deo.html
A Very Good Day To You Dean,
I Pray Your Keeping Well & Safe Too...
What A Journey Dean, Thank You So Much For Your Transparency & Kind Enough To Discuss & Share This With Us All... Your Contents Is Always Formative & I Always Come Away Equipped With Obtaining More Information & knowledge... Thank You So Much For All That Your Hard Work In Producing These Video's..
Also Dean, Thank You So Much For The Information On The Acoustic Panels... I Haven't Had A Chance To Make Them As Of Yet, Due Health Issues Regarding My Heart... Which Was Scary, But As You Know Nothing Is Impossible For King & The Greatest Doctor Jesus Christ!!! As My Reports Came Back Yesterday With Everything Normal & No Surgery Required... All The Glory Goes To Jesus & Jesus Alone..
Dean, May I kindly Ask If There A Possibility Of Having A Chat With You In Person On The Phone At All???
I Look Forward To Hearing From You Soon.. Take Care & God Bless You... Steve
Monetarily it might be low, but experience wise priceless.
agreed!
Oh, almost forgot... Jon Roger Lalanne on UA-cam!!!
Thank you for the mastering tip! (I accidentally deleted my question 😉)
No problem!
Unless you are doing music licensing you probably won’t see any real money (10s of thousands of dollars per release) in music anymore. I mean you can do it the album and release way but that may take 5-10 years of consistency.
I did the band thing for 5 years and was at the level we were talking to record labels and getting $2500 per show. To be honest money in music is a real myth...you can make money , but we had to put about $25k in our marketing and promotions for us to start getting what we got.
We also hired a manager for $1500 a month who was connected and got us opportunities. We did that for a year. That was our most successful year too.
i want aspiring artist to know that a great song is only part of the solution. There are thousands of artist with great music that won’t see the light of day because they don’t have management and a promotional plan that will connect them to the money and opportunities.
Getting to the money isn’t capitalistic ...money is a resource that allows you to keep doing your craft and taking it to the next level.
Music is a money hole ...but making music for a living is one of the most rewarding careers
Interesting video
The problem with music these days is.... it's turned into background ambiance. People don't want to pay for anything anymore! With the overflow of bedroom studios, and let's face it here, kids grinding out all kinds of stuff and I'm being kind here... imho(" most of it is pure crap") so naturally they have literally changed the face of what they call production, and the drone repeated templates of today's sound? It's no wonder people don't care about music. It's a shame but it seems to be the future of music. When you suddenly have millions of people doing there own thing with no skill of really learning a craft of playing anything , today's music, for the most part is the realistic result.
Hope you are not offended by me calling you son...but I’m an old guy... almost 70 and just yesterday I was contacted by an old band mate fro 1969 whom I haven’t seen for 51 years...lol...!!!
ha no problem with being called son Jon, my dad just turned 70 this year!
I expected that as I use DK but they claim we get 100% royalties but with me withdrawing from my bank fees were deducted so they wasn't as honest as advertised, but its 3rd party company's im guessing.
Well, 22$ isn't much, but for me, as a teenager, it would be actually a good amount; and as grow older, I will have a good amount of experience because I started making Music in GarageBand, when I was about 10/11 years old.
And besides that: You/Dean made (produced) the song yourself and "only" in GarageBand. It surely is a fairly capable Program, but definitely not what one would really call a "professional" Program.
ha true :) ... but I would call GarageBand a professional program :) as I produce for paying clients on a regular basis using GB! I also use Logic and the differences are smaller than you might think :P
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 Well yes, it is definitely capable as a professional program. But I mean it isn't payed separately and it isn't the high-end professional stuff either.
Did you need to get copyright licensing for your music?
Hey James! I don't currently copyright my music (or have my students/clients) because it is an extra expense and typically a song is not at risk of being stolen unless it is from someone who is really making headway and has amazing music. Some people like to do it for the peace of mind but I don't see it as necessary for a new artist. Other have may have a different take on it though! :)
I get it my first son has made 5 dollars so far.
What is the mic you use?
Hey Ryan! I use the Blue Bird large diaphragm condenser mic ($300USD new) but I also highly recommend the Berhringer B1 at about $118USD new. They have a very similar sound and both do a fabulous job!
thats about right lol, maybe i thought it would be a little higher 30-50
Does he still make videos somewhere?
Yes I do! ... but now it's with my wife full time over on the DIY Wife channel! :P
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 is it possible to maybe drop a link so I can follow you guys, your tutorials got me into music and I'm doing it just for fun when I have time, thanks for all the advice man, hope you're still pursuing music, you really are good
Where does your copyright come in on your process?
Hey Virgil! I don't currently copyright my music (or have my students/clients) because it is an extra expense and typically people will not steal a song unless it is from someone who is really making headway and has amazing music. Some people like to do it for the peace of mind but I don't see it as necessary for a new artist. Other have may have a different take on it though! :)
@@thesongwritingstudio5783 just mail your song to yourself in an envelope and don't open it, right? :)
Uhhhh.....👀 it was way less bruh, 😂.
WAY LESS!!!