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.
