What’s up people? Last week I promised to list a
couple ways you can make money with your music without online music stores and
as promised here it is, note this is not 100% assured cause the success of an
artiste depends on the effort and dedication of that artiste no matter how many
people help you, so this post isn’t for you if you’re looking for easy money
but if you’re looking to make a living out music then continue reading, thanks
Most people think of videos when you
mention YouTube, YouTube monetization has become an important income generator
for Artistes, yes YouTube is for videos but if you know your way around you can
make it work even if you don’t have a music video yet, here’s how to do that
First get your audio and your album art
(Assuming you have one) Use a video editing app to combine the audio and the album art together and
now you can upload on YouTube (or just upload your music video if you have one), at
first you won’t be making any money until you can get over 1k views and 100 subscribers or so and after you’ve gotten those you’ll be
able to monetize your page (This means adverts will play on your videos on YouTube)
and you get paid directly from YouTube, I currently make money through this so I
can say its 100% legit and people don’t need to pay to listen to your music
which is why most Nigerians don’t buy music on iTunes or amazon music.
2. Play at Bars
A lot of famous artistes and bands started
this way and it pays, now I can’t assure that every bar you go to will pay you
but I know some will, if they think your music is worth it, The key is to look,
talk and act like you’re worth the money, appearance matters a lot, don’t be
too greedy, take whatever you can get at first then when you start pulling
crowd you can re-negotiate.
3. Do Event Gigs
Small bars and restaurants might be some of
the easier places to start, but events can pay better. I mean parties, small
festivals and art fairs are other possible events where you might find work.
4. Sing in Church
You don’t need to raise your eyebrows lol
yes churches, it isn’t a common knowledge but some churches pay their singers that’s
if you’re a gospel artiste o, don’t carry “Shake bum bum” songs to church lol.
5. Sing at funerals
I know some people reading are like “God
forbid “ but I did say it won’t be easy but it’ll be worth it ,singers at
funerals typically make N45,000 or more.
6. Play Wedding Gigs
People prefer live music at their weddings
than recorded stuffs ( DJs ) that’s a known fact, the thing is to always keep
your eyes and ears open! Know when there’s a wedding coming up, you can follow
wedding pages so you get the update first, contact the bride or groom and offer
to sing at their wedding for a reasonable price, send them your music so they
know it’s worth it (Preferably a love song) and watch the magic happen, people talk,
if you do a good job they’ll recommend you to their friends.
7. Write Songs
You can write song for artistes and make
money, it takes time to get discovered but once you do! It’s a smooth road from
there on.
8. Make Music for Video Games/Apps
Nigerians are really moving forward in the
app world, last year alone I saw over 50 apps/games made by Nigerians on play
store, most of these games/apps need soundtracks they can call their own,
offer to take care of that but don’t give away all their rights to the music,
talk royalties so you know you’ll still be making something off that even after
its been sold.
9. Enter Singing Competitions
10. Teach In Person
Yeah you can make music but some people are
dying for the chance to learn how to make music, if you can teach how to play
an instrument that’s even a plus! More money, if you know how to play the guitar,
you can probably teach others. If you sing, you can give singing lessons.
I hope this was helpful
If you have any question you can send a mail or drop a comment and i'll do my best to reply
Niyibernard@gmail.com