In 2019, I attended 3 super cool Music Conferences and gained a TON of knowledge about the current music industry, made incredible industry contacts and I even made some friends along the way. :)
The first conference I went to in 2019 was SYNCKEEPERS in LA and I was absolutely CLUELESS as to what I’d need and found myself STARVING because I didn’t want to leave to get lunch because I was busy meeting such amazing people! Plus my phone died halfway through a session and couldn’t charge it because I was in the middle of the row!
My second conference was the CD BABY DIY Musician Conference in Austin, Texas, and I wised up! I found a grocery store right when I got into town and stocked up on snacks and even packed lunch on a super busy day and saw that my friend had a portable battery charger! SO SMART!
My third conference was the TAXI ROAD RALLY in LA and let me tell you, I CONFERENCED LIKE A BOSS! I figured out all the tips and tricks and felt WAY more prepared and confident.
I’m going to the Durango Songwriters Expo on February 20th-22nd, and I’ve been thinking of all the things I did at the other conferences that made them successful! I hope that some of these tips help you with your music conference adventures!
Here we go…
1.) MOST IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER WHILE CONFERENCING: Be kind to every person you meet & be your authentic self!
Everywhere you go, every person you meet, whether it be the people checking you in, a panelist or a musician. BE KIND & BE AUTHENTIC.
You never know who you are sitting next to! I met so many people in the hallway, bathroom and EVEN AT DINNER that were industry professionals. I ended up sitting next to a Music Library owner and panelist one night at dinner and we were just chatting it up and he asked if he could listen to my music! I ended up getting his email and sent my music directly to him!! CRAZY!
Also, I think that people can sniff out the folks that are overselling themselves at these conferences. Don’t be too hungry or pushy. You’ve got to build relationships first, then share your music. Be authentic, don’t be sales-y!
2.) When you get the opportunity to share your music, BE READY.
Have EVERY form of media on hand in case you get a chance to share something. I carried around a Bluetooth Speaker (I have an Ultimate Ears Wonderboom that sounds fantastic) in my backpack and used it quite often! My friends even borrowed it from me a few times!
Also have a QR code linking to my Disco Playlist ON EVERYTHING (Business card, postcards, lyric sheets), Physical CD’s, A Dropbox link to your music (MAKE SURE IT’S WELL ORGANIZED), and a UNIQUE Thumb Drive. On my thumb drive, I attached a keychain with my name and Logo to make it stick out and it TOTALLY DID! It got picked for a listening panel because of its uniqueness and they commented on how great the branding was! I got the Key Chain with my logo on it on www.zazzle.com
2022 Update* I JUST went to a conference pitching music to music supervisors and on my postcards, I made in CANVA, I put a QR code with a Flowcode (free) that linked to my Disco Catalog of songs! I got a bunch of downloads right in the moment. I also put the code on my lyric sheets as well.
Below is an example of the front of the canva cards I made! (I crossed out the QR CODE) Also an example of the key chains I got on Zazzle!
AREN’T THESE CUTE?!
3.) STAY HYDRATED & PACK SNACKS & COFFEE.
Bring a refillable water bottle and every time you go to the bathroom, fill it up! I didn’t bring a reusable water bottle to the first conference and I felt soooo dehydrated by the end of the day.
My second conference, we found a grocery store right as we got in town and I got a bunch of hearty snacks that would carry me through the day. I got a black ICED coffee bottle at the grocery I could throw in my backpack to help give me some pep in the afternoon! The lines at the Starbucks were INSANE in the afternoon and you don’t want to miss a session just to get some coffee!
4.) Bring a Portable Charger Pack for your phone.
My second conference, my phone was dying midday!! LUCKILY my friend had a charger pack that I plugged into. I figured out QUICKLY, these are a MUST HAVE! You can get them for under $20 on www.amazon.com/portablecharger
5.) STAY FRESH.
This one is funny but SO TRUE!! Bring gum, mints, even a small mouth wash because YOU’LL BE TALKING TO TONS OF PEOPLE!! I also packed deodorant in my backpack plus essential oils to stay pleasant-smelling throughout the day. hahaha!
6.) Have UNIQUE Business Cards or “One Sheets”.
I made my own “One Sheets” on www.canva.com and they are basically a postcard-sized website with a Photo, Website, social media, bio, and recent accomplishments. Lots of folks were impressed by it and I even saw a Music Supervisor post an Insta Story of all the business cards she got at the conference, and mine stuck out in the pile! :) Definitely have a smaller business card on hand too though!
PRO TIP Put a QR Code (I used Flow Code) on your business cards and postcards that link to a Disco.ac playlist or a place where they can listen to your music on the spot. Disco is great, because they can download your songs DIRECTLY into their library if they like what they hear.
If you are going to listening sessions sharing multiple songs, make a stellar lyric sheet in Canva and put a QR Code on it linking to the songs they are listening to.
Front of the card made with www.canva.com
back of the one sheet!
7.) Know why you’re going to the conference and have a clear vision of what you want to get out of it.
I went into the DIY MUSICIAN CONFERENCE with a clear vision of what I wanted to learn and anything that didn’t fit into that vision I didn’t invest in or go to. I had a laser focus to learn everything about SYNC Licensing and put all my effort into it and I learned a ton and even got to talk to all of the panelists and got their email addresses because I knew my goal!
8.) Bring a Backpack to put everything in!
I had a super cool leather backpack from Target that is trendy, but also fits a lot of stuff!
9.) Stay Healthy.
Bring Hand Sanitizer, bandaids, ibuprofen, eat healthily and TRY to get enough sleep. The days are LONG if there is an open mic night, choose one of the nights to stay out late and try to get to sleep early the rest of the time! (OR just drink lots of coffee!)
10.) Dress like an Artist.
Represent yourself well as an artist and dress how you would for a gig or photoshoot! Be professional and people will treat you that way.
I saw a few people dressed in sweats and comfy, which yeah, everyone wants to dress like that at a conference! BUT is that how you want industry professionals to view you? SHOW UP AND BE PROFESSIONAL!
11.) WAIT UNTIL AFTER listening sessions to give your card, music & talk to panelists and music professionals about your music.
Everyone else does NOT want you to high jack their collective time while you pitch yourself. There is usually a time limit they give you to present, so make sure you honor that!
12.) Receive the critiques, feedback & encouragement with GRACE.
Glean everything you need and realize that they are sharing their opinion. If they don’t like a certain part of the song, hear it with an outside view and ask yourself “is this helpful feedback or is it just their opinion?”. DO NOT DEFEND YOUR MUSIC IN THAT MOMENT. Take the feedback with professionalism and grace.
One critique I got from an AD agency mentor was one of my Women’s Empowerment type song was DEAD ON with the sound and lyrical content, but it was too slow to be used in an AD!!! I took that to heart and thought about how the next song I make could be more uptempo with the same feel.
13.) STAY AT THE HOTEL the conference is held in.
If you can afford it, I highly recommend you stay at the hotel. If you forgot something, want to take a midday nap, want to bring extra food for the hotel refrigerator or want to change or freshen up it’s sooo nice! Also, by staying at the Hotel you can bump into industry folks you met earlier in the day and create relationships with other musicians! I ended up doing a co-write with an artist in the lobby because of that! You never know what can happen and being at the hotel is a HUGE deal.
If you can’t afford a hotel, find an AIR BNB ultra-close and take an UBER to get to the hotel so you don’t have to find parking.
14.) Go with Friends!
Every conference I went to in 2019 I went with friends. Every time it was with 3-4 people.
#1 you can share travel expenses, share the hotel room or Air BnB, get food together and get an uber together. Everything gets cut in half when you do that!
#2 you have a safe place to go back to and can share information. In between sessions we’d meet up and talk about what we learned! I never felt scared or social anxiety because I had people I knew with me. We’d also divide and conquer and go to different sessions and share notes. We made friends easily because people would want to hang with us! :)
15.) FOLLOW UP.
This is ultra important and most people get super overwhelmed when they come home, so they forget to do this. Keep track of all the business cards you get and either follow up that night, or when you go home after the conference. Keep note of people by writing on the card who they are and how you met. I even found folks on LINKED IN and friended them there.
LINKED IN is the BEST way to professionally connect with Music Supervisors or Music Industry Professionals at these sorts of things. Instagram is ok too sometimes! Especially if you a posting about someone on a panel. They appreciate having a memory of the moment!
I looked up one of my mentors on LINKED IN BEFORE meeting with him for my one on one session in the morning and messaged him saying I was looking forward to meeting with him! He totally messaged me back! Then after our session, I messaged him to say thank you. He ended up friending me on FB and we created a great relationship!
I also got to know one of my music supervisors on a panel that played one of my songs and we got to talk at an open mic I went to. That night, I followed her on Insta and we talk through Instagram!
It’s all about cultivating those relationships and being a good hang. DON’T PITCH to people unless they ask.
16.) Stay up on your social media at the conference.
I was posting regularly on my Instagram Stories about what was happening at the Conference and I got a TON of reposts by the conference. Through those reposts, artists at the Conference started connecting with me and I met up with a few people through it! The Conference will also be on a first-name basis with you and they really appreciate that you are sharing your experience with others. Think about not just yourself, but how you can help others.
17.) Get to know people.
Go out to lunch, have a drink or just hang with Musicians at the conference! One of the coolest things about these conferences is the sense of comradery. The fact that everyone in that room knows what it’s like to be a musician, you automatically have common ground with people. We hung out with so many cool people all over the world and if I ever go to Florida, Maine or Tennesse, I have friends I could team up with on a show. I can’t even tell you how valuable it is to be kind, welcoming, and have a friendly face. Many people are coming alone and when they find a group of kind, welcoming people they’ll want to hang with you!
18.) Realize Panelists and Music Industry folks are people too. This seems silly, but remember, Panelists, speakers, and mentors are coming alone, probably feel weird about talking to a bunch of people they don’t know, so be sensitive to that in your conversations! Also, don’t treat them differently just because they are someone “important”. They are just people! They can sense that inauthenticity a mile away. Be kind and be yourself!
At one conference we were all sitting around a table and a mentor would come to the table every 15 minutes and we’d get to ask them questions plus give them our music. Well, as the mentor would approach our table, no one was greeting them and you could tell the mentor felt AWKWARD! I ended up sensing that awkwardness and as a mentor would come to the table I’d greet them with “Welcome to Table Lucky 13!! We can’t wait to hear what you have to share with us! Tell us who you are and what you do..”. The mentor would smile and felt at ease that we weren’t super awkward! hahaha!
Also when you see an industry professional in the lobby or somewhere, be aware and respectful of their time. If you approach them, ask politely, “Do you have a moment to talk? If not I understand!” If they don’t let them go, but if they do, ask them about themselves FIRST! Have it be a conversation don’t just blitz them with your pitch. That’s ultra annoying. Ask them how they are enjoying the conference, where they are from and what they do. They will probably be aware of how to have a conversation and ask some questions about you too. :) Then you can answer but definitely keep the convo on them, not all about you. If you get an opportunity to share a card or get their email address go for it, but don’ t have it be the main point of your convo. You can follow up with an Email after your convo and it’s more helpful to have a face that goes with the name.
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19.) LISTENING SESSIONS - What you need to be prepared.
If you are going to a music conference with Listening Sessions with Industry Professionals, here’s a few tips to help you stand out!
a.) BE ORGANIZED & HAVE A PITCH READY.
Don’t waste your precious time fumbling with your stuff, be ready and prepared!
Have a Dongle that connects to your phone or device just in case. Have your laptop to connect to the speakers and have various ways to listen, just in case the internet stinks!
Have your lyric sheets handy and ready to pass out!
Greet the Music Supervisors and thank them for their time. Have a BRIEF pitch ready. Tell them about who you are what you do as a musician and be relatable! Have a fun fact ready that helps them remember who you are.
b.) MAKE A REEL.
A reel is usually a mix of different songs showing the best of the best of what you do. a typical reel is usually 3 minutes or so. I suggest doing a verse and chorus of a few songs! You can edit a reel together in Garage Band, Logic or whatever DAW you use.
Put the reel in Disco, make Cover art for it that you can link to : Here’s an example in DISCO.ac REEL EXAMPLE IN DISCO
Also put the FULL versions of the songs in the reel playlist so they can listen later.
c.) Make Lyric Sheets
I made really professional lyric sheets with Canva.com that had my bio on it and socials + my disco catalog linked with a QR Code.
Have the lyric sheet follow the lyrics in your reel.
Again receive feedback with grace. Say thank you for your time!
I hope this helps give you a game plan for your conference experience!! Please Comment Below if you have any other tips! I’d love to hear what you do to make your conference experience better!!
