Click here to read the first part on how you can make money as a musician.
- Become a freelancing recording engineer/arranger where you produce Music Recordings for Other Musicians
- Rent your studio to other musicians to record their music. You may even use the studio to teach Music Lessons
- Record backing tracks, sound files (VSTs) and sell them (Online or offline), if you’ve access to a studio (its quite easy to setup one at home). You can even offer sounds for sampling licensing.
- Make your own music videos and try to Win Video Contests
- Provide Music for Corporate Videos, for Commercials, best to team up with a videographer
- Offer your own ringtones and making them available in iTunes.
- Create Music for Video Games such as Wii, Xbox, or PlayStation.
- Work as a DJ and mix-in your music to get exposure for your music.
- Start a music niche blog/website and share your expertise (teaching, buying instruments, recording, performing, etc.) and earn affiliate commisions or sell your own eBooks/courses, Join the CD Baby, Amazon, and iTunes affiliate programs.
- Create a YouTube Channel, upload your videos, and share a link to Buy Your Music, also earn from advertising
- Sell your Single online with CD Baby, Just sign up with CD Baby, upload your first single and you’re in business.
- Sell Your CDs at the Local music store
- Crowdfund Your Next Album or Single – Crowdfunding technology (Kickstarter) allows you to fund your music project. Let the world know about your music project and let them help you make it monetarily possible.
- Create a Premium Fan Club, sort of a membership club/site where you sell premium monthly or annual subscriptions to be in your fan club.
- Sign Up for MicroSync Licensing with YouTube – you could get paid when someone uses your music as background on one of their home videos posted to YouTube. Sign Up for All Media Sync Licensing that will extend your license to all forms of media, like commercials, TV shows, and more. CD Baby can make this possible for you.
- Create a music education app or an app that makes music sound better or make a fun app for your fans – something they can use in the audience at your live show. The Dan Deacon app allows users to participate in an audience-wide light that is synchronized with his on-stage performance.
- Submit your original music to sites/service like Feedbands.com, they will stream your music to their listeners, and if the listeners like it enough, they’ll promote it further and pay you.
- Get paid to review and Demo Instruments, works if you have a huge fan following on FB, twitter, Myspace
- Write and produce jingles, you can even use site like Fiverr to market your services globally
- Offer acoustic versions of your music to your fans, Go acoustic and promote it just like new music.
- Land an advance and/or sign-on bonus from a Record Label, easier said than done though.
- Earn performance royalties from your original compositions – owed to the songwriter and publisher
- Earn mechanical royalties – every time your song is manufactured to be sold in a CD, downloaded on a digital music retail site, or streamed through services like Spotify and Rdio.
- Land an Endorsement Deal with a music industry company, if you have enough influence among other musicians or have a huge following
- Start a celebrity management service, managing other Musicians, you should have the right connections and marketing skills
I hope you discovered several new ways to make money as a musician. Feel free to suggest more ideas in the comments below.
KeytarHQ editorial team includes musicians who write and review products for pianists, keyboardists, guitarists & other musicians. KeytarHQ is the best online resource for information on keyboards, pianos, synths, keytars, guitars and music gear for musicians of all abilities, ages and interests.
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