When it comes to music, people tend to think that it all depends on natural talent and if you weren’t born with it, you will just never have it. Yes, there are people out there that seem to have been born with the natural talent of being able to master any instrument, but that does not mean that these people don’t need to practice. If you are someone who wants to improve your musical ability, there are multiple ways that you can do it.

Find Inspiration in Other Music

A very common way that some musicians are able to work on their own abilities musically is by listening to music made by others. When you are working on your own music all of the time, you can kinda get stuck in a genre loop and it can be hard to break free from your usual routine and what you tend to do all of the time. A great way to break free of the loop is by listening to music by other genres and different artists to the ones you usually listen to, as this may give you some unique inspiration.

Practice

You can’t expect to just one day pick up a guitar and be able to magically play every song in the world and know every chord, to do that you need to put in the time and effort to practice. For some people practice is something that they like to do everyday, as this is a guaranteed way of slowly developing their skills and becoming more capable with their instruments. As they say, practice makes perfect, so it is important to find the time to practice whenever you can.

Inspiration From Substances

Now, it is no secret that a lot of the world’s most famous musicians credit their ability to write a great song to the assistance of substances. Usually, a lot of singers like to enjoy weed to enhance their abilities and get those creative juices flowing. Lady Gaga has openly said that without weed, she would not be able to achieve a lot of what she has achieved. I understand that weed is not legal in a lot of places and so I would suggest the alternative of CBD, in particular I would suggest you try full spectrum CBD oil as this will have the greatest effect on your abilities.

Work With Other Musicians

If you look at the example of writers, something that you will have heard of is that writers tend to work better when they are in writing groups, as this allows them to bounce ideas off each other and they are able to create work that they would not have been able to create if they weren’t together. If you want to find inspiration and improve the quality of what you can produce, something that you should try is working with other musicians. Doing this will allow you to seek advice and get it from actual musicians.

Enter Competitions

Sometimes, in order to encourage ourselves to improve our skills, something that we need is something to motivate us and force us to work on ourselves. A good technique that a lot of people use to encourage themselves to improve their skills is entering themselves into competitions. This gives musicians a goal that they have to prepare for and it can help to prevent them from being incredibly lazy, which we can all be very guilty of doing. Make sure the competition doesn’t have incredibly high stakes, as this may be too much pressure on you.

Ask For Criticism

When you show your music to people, it can be easy for them to just agree that it is good and not give you any real feedback, just because they don’t want to hurt your feelings. The music that you make is very intimate and important to you, so of course nobody wants to tell you that something is not working, but you need to know in order to make improvements. It is always better to ask for advice from a musician, as they know just how important honest feedback is and they will not be afraid to tell you what is working and what’s not working.

Seek Education

A lot of people tend to think that going to school for music is a waste of time, as you don’t need a qualification to make it as a performer. However, there is a lot of depth to what they teach you at university and college about music, such as how to read music and how to develop your skills as a musician. Not only will going to school help your performance, but it will also put you on a situation where you could make friends with people that will be in the industry and it is important to have these connections.

It wasn’t that long ago that if you wanted to listen to the hot new single, you’d heard on the radio you would have to drive to the store and buy the CD, assuming it was out and not simply on the radio as a promotion for the new album. With the birth of the internet, we’ve seen the way we consume music change drastically. Of course, the music industry changed alongside the customers, and nowadays the internet has created a fully living environment online through multiple platforms to both consume and post your own music and share it directly with your listeners. So, let’s see how deeply impacted the world of music was by the internet.

As the internet and music first intersected, many people feared piracy through programs like LimeWire and Napster. The programs allowed people to share music peer to peer and this trend caused many artists to start investing in selling their music online. So, music platforms like iTunes and Google Music started to pop up and become the new and hip storefronts for artists to sell music and make their music more easily available to people who wanted to buy a single song or simply didn’t have access to music stores. At the same time, we saw the birth of platforms like Bandcamp and many other similar platforms that allowed many up-and-coming artists to post their music online and sell it without having to make deals with Apple or Google.

Nowadays most music is consumed either for free on YouTube or Spotify. Of course, Spotify offers a premium subscription that allows listeners to listen to everything they want and download the music to their phones without any limits. Which of course is insanely beneficial when it comes to democratizing music and making it available to more and more listeners all around the world. The drawback for artists is pretty unclear for listeners still. But when it comes to Spotify plays many artists have complained about how little Spotify gives back to them. This leads many people to encourage fans to buy merchandise and albums if they can to support their favorite artists. This is still a wildly discussed subject and we can only expect it to remain topical in the future.

Many artists are also faced with the reality that to get eyes or rather ears on your music you need to learn how to use the internet and surf the trends. There are hacks to get your music on algorithm playlists and many younger artists starting in the TikTok sphere or starting as Twitch streamers have teams who have a great understanding of this. People have learned to utilize search engine optimization to get the most of the visibility they can get online. This is especially difficult as these are not one-time deals and constantly need to be adjusted to the new trends and the updates in the algorithm. Learning to best utilize the TikTok tagging system or the best categories for your music on youtube is a real headache and you should look into hiring a specialist who can direct the most attention toward your work without having you do the heavy lifting.

As you can see the internet has not only drastically changed the way we see music as art but also the way we consume it concretely. There’s also the reality that things have changed even more for artists who are trying to get their music out there and gain visibility through all the many social media platforms that are pretty much required nowadays if you aim to be a public personality or connect with an audience, especially with a younger audience. Whether all these changes are for the better or the worst remains a heavily debated subject but if you love listening to music right now is a great time to be a music listener. We can only hope that all the positive changes we’ve seen for those who enjoy listening to music can eventually be just as positive for those who produce and create it. Through the constant discussion surrounding the subject, we might see these positive change blossom from a constructive exchange of ideas from engineers, fans, and musicians themselves.

Since the very first days of the internet, people have been posting all sorts of creative content, may it be music, videos, or even drawn art. Music especially has taken a very large place on the internet through its constant flow of new platforms to post and host music on. Though the question can be asked if the availability of all these platforms and mediums makes it easier to succeed as a musician or if perhaps it hinders the many possibilities of success. Let’s check out how the internet can affect aspiring musical artists’ careers.

Soundcloud has been one of the most well-known and prolific music-centric platforms online. Soundcloud has become most popular for its host of rap music and rappers who has sprung out of this platform and reached massive success. One good example is the rapper Lil Yachty, although many people consider his studio debut somewhat derivative, his early experimental work online has not only gained him a lot of clout but participated in creating a whole movement. Soundcloud rap grew from an internet trend into a full-blown musical genre and even the dominating genre of music for many years now. This genre completely embodied the generation Z and millennials’ angst on top of their nostalgia for the 90s which they never really knew.

Yachty is not the only one to have gained fame through the internet. Another great example of this is the now incredibly famous and beloved internet rap icon Doja Cat. She is now known as Dr. Luke’s protégé, but she used to be one of the foremost YouTube rappers, making use of internet culture and memes as she rapped over beats made out of video game sounds. Doja Cat doesn’t exactly fit the usual description of what we know as SoundCloud rappers though. She is more of a pioneer in lo-fi hip-hop that’s heavily influenced by niche internet culture, which we’ve seen infect so-called SoundCloud rap later on in its popularity.

Of course, the internet is not the only platform on which people have grown in popularity. YouTube is one of the best examples of this as well. One singer has sprung from internet fame simply for her covers. Madison Elle Beer now incredibly famous for her singing got her start by posting song covers on YouTube. She first got a taste of fame when Justin Bieber shared links to her music and nowadays she fills arenas and is a more relevant popular artist than Justin Bieber is nowadays. While Madison Beer has grown extremely popular, she still maintains a large following online, may it be on Instagram, TikTok, or even YouTube.

YouTube has also birthed some SoundCloud rapper types though. The oddest one of them all is the story of Filthy Frank also known as George Miller. Not to be confused with the famous film director who created Mad Max, George is the creator of the most well-known and controversial YouTube channel of the late 2000s. His channel TVFilthyFrank became an immense success for its raunchy content and gross-out humor. He had many collaboration contents with other famous YouTubers such as IDubbbTV and MAXMOFOE. Following these collaborations, George started to create and post music online has his character Pink Guy. While his music was incredibly successful for its incredibly sardonic and crass humor, many criticized him for going too far and George himself seemed to lose interest in creating such content as the years went on. George used his platform to build himself an audience before going into music for real.

Nowadays George is known by his new stage name Joji, he captured the world through his strong presence in the sad boy emo rap vibe of SoundCloud rap. All these YouTubers and SoundCloud artists raised the bar when it came to transcending internet fame and making names for themselves in the music industry and the music community at large. A lot of this music that once was only an internet phenomenon has grown larger than life and reached the extent of being considered as music proper, giving internet-based artists more legitimacy.

As you can see many artists have managed to make their way into the music through their internet fame. While many think these careers started with the benefits of buying TikTok likes or faked YouTube views, many of these careers started with legitimate and homegrown fanbases giving these creators the financial backing and the popularity needed to boost and start their careers both online and in the musical world at large. Many people still hold prejudice against internet-grown creators. Still, there is clearly a strong interest from younger generations to support those creators and somewhat dictate the new mainstream by propping up their favorite online creators and making them figureheads of new cultural movements. So as you can see the internet is a tool that can make it easier to become a successful musician online and at large.

It feels as though the last few months have flown by and Christmas is very slowly creeping up. Christmas is an incredibly exciting time for all and we all look forward to spending time with our families and enjoying the festivities. If you are not sure where to get the majority of the gifts for your family, you can find Kris Kringle gifts for both men and women here. Though it may be easy to find a gift for the majority of the people in your life, it can be very challenging to find a gift for your partner, especially if you have been together for some time now. Well, if your partner is somewhat of a music lover, then this makes it much easier for you to find a gift, as you can focus on this hobby. Here is what to get the music lover in your life this christmas.

1. Concert Tickets

If you know someone who loves going to concerts, buying them concert tickets is a great gift idea. Tickets to their favorite artist’s concert would be an ideal present, but even tickets to a local show would be appreciated. Concert tickets show that you listen to and care about the music they like, and that you want to share in their enjoyment of live music. If you are not sure which bands they like, why not take a look at their spotify and see who they have been listening to, if you are lucky then one of these performers may be touring near you.

2. Buy Them an Instrument

If you know someone who loves music, but doesn’t play an instrument, buying them one for Christmas is a great way to show you care. There are a few things to consider when purchasing an instrument, such as what type of music they like and what size instrument is best for them. You can also buy them accessories, such as a new set of strings or a music stand. For a musician, buying an instrument can be a very big deal and if you want to make them happy, I would definitely recommend that you take them to the store to pick out which instrument they want. This will give them a feel of what is available and it will let them pick exactly what they want.

3. Music Lover Gift Ideas for Any Budget

Something that can be hard is finding a gift when you are on a tight budget. We are living in pretty difficult financial times and this means that you may not have what you need to be able to splash the cash. I would definitely recommend that you consider making your own musically based gift. For example, if you are someone that is musically inclined, you could always consider making your very own song for the person that you love. This may take a lot of time, but it can be completed for almost nothing, meaning that you can save a lot of money.

4. Vinyls

Vinyls are having a moment and what better way to show the music lover in your life that you care, than by gifting them a record or two. Whether they are a seasoned pro or just getting into the format, they are sure to appreciate your thoughtfulness. Not to mention, vinyls are relatively easy to come by these days and can be found at most major retailers. If the music lover in your life does not have their own vinyl player, something that I would suggest is that you buy them a vinyl player of their own so that they can collect albums on vinyl and still have something to play the vinyl with.

5. Personalized Music Gifts

Personalized music gifts are a great way to show your loved one how much you care about their passion for music. Whether it’s a custom-made playlist, a personalized music box, or a unique piece of music-themed jewelry, a personalized gift is sure to make any music lover’s holiday extra special. Something that is very common is getting a glass print of your partner’s favorite song and this is a great decorative piece.

6. Fun Gifts for Music Lovers

If you do not really like serious gifts at Christmas, something that I would suggest is finding some fun gifts for your partner. You can get a number of novelty music gifts, such as funny musical keyrings and other similar humorous gifts.

When people are unfortunate enough to go through the event of a home blaze it is often the case that they will want to get rid of the property as soon as possible so that they are able to move on from the horrible experience. This is of course very sad for the people involved but if you are prepared to purchase these properties you will actually be doing them a favor by providing them with the funds that they need to live and taking away some of the stress from them. Buying these properties that are fire-damaged is a great opportunity to get land with building permission already established so that your project can go ahead and you can start from scratch.

Salvaging From the Damaged Property

There is also the opportunity for you to salvage materials and household items that could have survived the blaze that you can use in the project. As a courtesy, you should of course let the previous owners of the property try and salvage personal items before you start taking your pick, but it is likely that there will still be things left after they have done this.

This article will be looking at how you can use home wrecks to source valuable items like musical instruments and decor that you can refurbish and sell to be showcased in new homes. Buying a fire damaged house with burned instruments left behind can become a great hobby and money-making scheme for you, while also allowing you to get creative and transform something damaged into a unique item that people will pay a nice amount of money for.

Refurbishment

The refurbishment process would be great for those of you with a creative side, this can be a great outlet if you have a passion in this area and many people who would buy musical instruments are likely to go for something that has a backstory. You will need to source quality materials and don’t be afraid to get bright with your paint choices. This is a real opportunity for you to create instruments and decor pieces that stand out and are unique as this is going to hopefully generate a more memorable response with your customers.

Building a Business

If you want to build a business in this line of work then I would recommend that you expand your searches to scrap yards and secondhand stores as there should be lots of different pieces that you could restore to brighten up a new home. In order to build a reliable business, I would suggest that you start using social media and other platforms for marketing to document your process and advertise any items that you have for sale. This is relatively low risk as you can manage the business online until you start to get an idea of the demand in your area. You could also consider taking on customer requests with specific orders for items as this is a service that you can offer more money for.

Expanding the Business

When you get to the point in this business venture when you have reached a suitable success level for expansions, I would suggest that you start looking for premises for you to sell and work from. You could set up a workshop also where you can work on new projects in a space that is dedicated to working. A great opportunity that comes with buying fire-damaged property is the fact that you have a suitable space where you could build working premises and a small store where you showcase your work and generate custom within your local community.

When you are trying to build your music career in the modern era it is important that you make an effort to be seen on the many music streaming platforms that are available, although there is still interest in buying more outdated forms of music via CD’s and vinyl it is now common for people to use services like Spotify. With this in mind, you will need to boost your Spotify account ratings and followers so that more and more people have access to your music, it has become very important for new musicians to ensure that they have a strong presence on the platform in order to see the best results and success rates from a career in music. 

There are many things that you can do to ensure that you stay relevant and seen on Spotify and many of the processes are actually very easy to do with little stress or inconvenience to the other things you have to do within your busy lifestyle. The great thing about Spotify is that it is very easy to use both as a listener and a creator and once you have posted your music all you need to do is advertise it effectively to get people listening.  

Producing Regular Content

As is the case with any career that revolves around the success of your social media and Spotify accounts you will need to make sure you are keeping your listeners satisfied by posting on a regular basis. If you do not stick to a strict posting schedule you may find that people get bored with your existing content and turn to other creators, posting regularly will keep you in the mind of your listeners and encourage them to continue listening to your work.  

Improving Your Quality

Another way that you can boost your Spotify ratings and ensure that you are staying relevant would be to be constantly working on improving the quality of your productions. As a creative mind in the music industry, you shouldn’t be complacent with the quality of your work and you should always be looking for ways that you can make improvements. If you make the effort this energy is going to be felt by your fans through the music you are producing, you don’t want to release something that is going to disappoint people as this could be very negative for your career.  

Switch Up Your Style

Another great way that you can stay relevant on Spotify would be to change up the style of music you are producing, if you are able to clearly show that you are a music creator of many talents who is able to work within different genres it is likely that you are going to attract a more diverse range of people and listeners. If you are working specifically under one genre of music you may feel limited in terms of the fans you are attracting to your profile.  

Social Media

Social media is a great tool to use with Spotify as you can very easily share links to your albums and your Spotify profile, when you work in the music industry your fans and the number of people who listen to you are the most important factor towards your success. Spotify promotion can be done using social media by notifying your followers of any upcoming releases and successful moments that you would like to share. Social media has the potential to open up a wide range of people from all over the world to your work and if you do not already have a social media account dedicated to your music you should definitely make one.  

Diversifying Your Content

A great way to boost your music career and ensure that you are staying relevant both in the public eye and on your music platforms like Spotify would be to diversify your content. What I mean by this is that you should be producing extra things such as music videos, advertising content, promotional posters, and even graphic design tools for your album art. Building a career in music is much more than the tracks you produce and if you want to be taken seriously in the industry you will need to put in the hard work.  

Aim For the Charts

It may seem redundant to say that in order to stay relevant on Spotify you should be aiming to get your music in the charts and on the more recognizable public playlists. With the humongous amount of users on Spotify if you are lucky enough to find your music on the top playlists or in the charts I would say that you have reached a very important milestone in your career that will give you the longevity you need to retain your popularity and your fans for many years to come.  

Video games have always been an extremely popular source of entertainment and form of escape for children and adults alike. As the world went into lockdown in 2020 and life as we knew it came to a halt, video game sales rocketed. From March 16 to March 22 of that year, a total of 4.3 million games were sold worldwide (partly due to the release of Animal Crossing), however still proving the sheer interest in this hobby.  

Video games have always had a long-standing negative reputation due to the addictive nature of gaming, yet playing them can actually provide a vast range of benefits such as an increase in children’s self-confidence and self-esteem as they master games as well as providing a common interest and opportunities for socialization when in multiplayer.  

Due to this mass influx of players in the last year, gaming hacks have also soared. These can be various methods to create an advantage beyond normal gameplay to make the game easier and enabling players the opportunity to succeed in their multiplayer battles. For example, these include a wallhack cheat for Warzone and you can even use an aimbot for hunt showdown.  

Importance of Sound Effects 

Sound design and music play an important role in the overall experience of video games, helping to build on the narrative by creating tension, adding emotion, and building immersion in the gaming world.  

How gaming studios create their sound effects 

Gaming studios create sound in conjunction with their design and animation team in order to successfully create audio that fits into their virtual world. This type of sound is an art form and brings the entire game to life. Game studios must create an entire library of custom sounds effects to achieve a sense of realism and uniqueness. Typically, gaming studios will have a team of sound designers, who generate and manipulate audio elements for the game.  

This involves creating several layers of audio to match each of the player’s choices and movements and to compose background music that is appropriate to what is taking place on-screen. Typically, sound designers will collaborate with out-sourced composers to produce music for the game and therefore the sound designer much ensure the composers understand the vision of the game. One thing that it is important to be aware of is audio bugs or mistakes so, in the later stage of development, sound designers must test the game to check everything is perfect.  

Top audio tools to make your game sound great 

Audio tools are important as they allow sound designers to both create an original sound and construct sound libraries which are helpful in allowing you to manage these sounds in-game to deliver a first-class experience to users. A popular audio tool platform for achieving this is wise. This is a very advanced interactive audio solution for games that features an audio authoring tool and a cross-platform sound engine. It also allows you to adjust sound effects whilst the game is in play.  

Along with this, FMOD is also a popular audio tool, essentially a sound effects engine for video games and applications that play sound files of diverse formats. This also allows for multiple team members to work on the same project at the same time, proving to be an efficient tool in assisting the development of any video game.  

It is clear that without sound effects, video games would not be the same. These sound effects exist to provide an entertaining experience and provide players with key feedback from the game, all key ingredients in creating a successful video game.