For quite some time, like the Frank Sinatra song, I thought ‘I did it my way’ with my musical achievements. I believed I developed my music hobby into a professional music business all on my own steam. I felt I carved my path and forged my way with no input from anyone else. That I figured it all out, through epiphany.
But, while I was compiling my music business plan on a course I attended 10 years ago, I learnt something quite significant. I learnt that although there were moments of revelation in my journey, I did not achieve half of what I had without someone else’s input.
The people who point the way; those who offer a shoulder to cry on; individuals who pass on opportunities; fans who take it upon themselves to be my ambassadors; colleagues who make the time to explain concepts so I can do my business better; and so on.
By the way, your own connections are not too far away.
Everything you do or achieve has a connection to someone else.
Maybe you think your connec...
I’m pretty excited about this! Last July the women of my online membership group ‘Time For My Music’, put on a private online concert to close friends and family. This time it's going public! Next week Saturday, 29th January 6.30pm (UK), they will be performing again and you can be there too.
It will take place on my YouTube Channel It’s free to watch wherever you are but we are encouraging donations to help the homeless.
More will be said about the performers, the Charities, and of course the details about this great night over the next few days so stay tuned, share and see you there.
Credits:
Flyer graphic design by Angela Schuster my PR & Community Manager
Photographers:
Angela by Sharon Jones
Angie-Lee by Delano Lewis
Anouck by Andreea Tufescu www.andreeatufescu.com
Janice by Laurence Stephenson www.laurencestephenson.com
Joannie - Steve Spurgin https://stevespurgin.co.uk/
Melody by Peter Keay
Millicent by Keri J Hunt www.kerijhunt.wixsite.com/kerijhunt
What do you think about this word, ‘Plan’? What does it conjure in your mind? Hard work that you don’t want to do, or glee because you relish identifying parts and their connections, and seeing if they work?
I’m a planner, but not everybody is. Don’t get me wrong. Some people are more holistic, top-down, see the bigger picture. I’m the opposite. I see the big picture but I get down to the detail of how to make it happen. Actually, it doesn’t really matter too much which approach you prefer, as long as things are achieved.
How does this relate to your music?
Well, when you move forward, you are moving forward to something: your targets. How you move forward has to be decided. This is planning, deciding what, when, why, how, etc.
Most of my music life, pre-42 years old, I just ambled along. I performed when invited. I had dreams of what I wanted to become, but no plans on how to get there. At 42, one of the significant things that made a difference and propelled me forward was maki...
Following an approach by the Campaign to Protect Afghanistan’s Musicians the EC has agreed to provide a year’s free membership to Afghan musicians seeking asylum in the UK.
This gives the musicians access to legal support including a non-work related legal help line, a community of musicians to connect with, access to professional networks and advice and guidance on building a career in the UK.
Please help spread the word to reach any and all Afghan musicians elegible for this scheme.
Success Beyond The Score is not an official media outlet for the Musicians Union. For more information, please check their official website directly.
Today’s episode of the podcast is perfect to start the year: from each guest, we are going to hear at least three essential tips that you can do now to make it in the music industry and build a full-time career. It condenses all the other advice and experience we have enjoyed through all the season, which is great and so useful, isn’t it?
Find the perfect platform to listen to the audio version in this link, or watch on YouTube.
The last weeks of December and the first of January are a time to relax and look back, but also to look forward. It is a good moment to decide on what you want to achieve in the new year, which is important because, without goals, you could find yourself drifting and not getting anywhere fast.
With this in mind, I tend to write my yearly music business plan around this time of the year. Yes, it is a scary word for some, but I have found that writing a plan has helped me to achieve more goals in better condition, than not having any outline at all.
It is a good exercise to write it out. Doing so, I have learned to differentiate elements that could be done efficiently from those that would take longer, and also distinguish between the urgent and the important. Using the plan as a guide, I have also been able to go through the year seeing the opportunities that match my goals and go for them, and reject those that, even if they look beneficial, don't match and would only be distracting...
As we are close to the end of the year, this episode of the podcast "Success Beyond The Score" is dedicated to reflection, in particular about the critical event that marked 2020 and 2021: the coronavirus pandemic.
How did it affect the music industry? Specifically, how did it impact musicians? Today you will hear true stories from Anna Brooks, Tony Bean, Louise Dengate, Dan Whitehouse, Abigail Kelly and Ruby Turner MBE, in which they will tell us about their hardships, opportunities, the good and the bad.
Find the video of the episode on YouTube and choose your favourite podcast platform to listen to the audio version on this list.
Recently, I’ve been binge watching ‘Race To The Center of the Earth’. It has adventure, dizzy heights even from my sofa, a little drama, great scenery and of course teams competing for the prize of one million dollars. I love shows like these because I find them inspiring, a little scary (when someone gets hurt or they have to climb up a super high cliff face) but also interesting.
How does this relate to music? Last time, I mentioned I would share with you one of the things I still do now to keep me moving and growing as a musician. On reflection, there are 3 things, but today I’ll illustrate the first one through the Race.
Each of the racers in the Team have a goal. A goal to win the million-dollar prize. They are focused on that goal and all roads lead to that goal. They train for that goal; they strategize towards that goal and at the end they will know if they achieve the goal.
This is something I do. No, not extreme sports although I wish – lol! But at 42, when I gave ...
A new episode of my music business podcast “Success Beyond The Score” is now available on YouTube and all major podcast platforms!
This time, I asked my guests about their careers’ highs and lows. What did they learn from both the brightest and the darkest times of their careers? What do they value the most after all the ups and downs? You let me know what you think, leaving a comment.
Also, remember that there is a new free download, dedicated to some key actions you can do to always get paid before gig day.
Welcome to a new episode of Millicent's podcast, Success Beyond The Score. This episode is a juicy one, as the guests will talk about the essence of the business side of music. Record labels, contracts, financial planning, education and training, networking, all that is going to be covered by the brilliant Ruby Turner MBE, Dan Whitehouse, Anna Brooks, Abigail Kelly, Louise Dengate and Tony Bean.
Give it a watch on Youtube, or visit this page to see all the podcast platforms where Success Beyond The Score is available.