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  • Aren Lodge

Top 3 Books to read as a new music artist

*FTC Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn (~3%) from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you. None of the products mentioned are sponsored. All opinions are my own. All products were bought with my own money.

So, you want a career in music, but don't know where to start. There's too much information online, some of it similar, some... a whole contradiction to the previous article you read. Well, here's 3 books on my shelf that I think would look superb on your shelf.

I got this book back in 2017, recently gave it away to a good friend of mine (who's also starting her music career), and bought this new one. This book has been dubbed "Industry Bible" by so many movers and shakers in the industry, and reads like a textbook to be honest. This is an all-in-one resource that you can mark up, sticky note, highlight, study, and damn near turn yourself into a walking encyclopedia. Even if you plan to be independent, but especially if you ever dream of signing to a major, you absolutely need this book. Some of my favorite chapters in here are on producer/songwriter deals, publishing, and licensing for motion pictures. *There's a 10th edition out now, however, the 9th edition is highly recommended.

Showing the thickness. It's not a quick read. That's a good thing.

I actually asked my parents to buy this book for me ( I believe it was my birthday present back in 2018) because I'd discovered Ari's blog and had been following his content for a while. This book is almost as thick as the first one, but the tone is much more personal. The author of the first book is an entertainment attorney and Ari is an independent musician and blogger. Two of the most helpful topics I've read are "The 26 year marathon" which helps you make a longterm plan for your music career. Where do you want to be in 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, and 26 years? This to me is a more slow, steady and practical approach, especially in the age where a lot of people want to be insta famous. We all know that type of success isn't sustainable. And the other is "The pyramid of investment and the pyramid of engagement". Honestly, this can be applied to any brand niche and in summary it helps you understand support that pays and support that grows your brand.

The last book is "Reality Check: A common sense guide to breaking into the music industry by Matthew Walt."

This book is a pretty quick read, there's less pages in comparison to the others. Matthew is a talent agent, tour producer, and indie music consultant. So you see the 3 books share 3 perspectives: Legal, Creative, and Administrative. But Two of my favorite chapters are The 3 P's: Patience, persistence, and perseverance and the other is Everything Takes Longer than you think. The titles are pretty self explanatory however, It dives a little deeper on the subject so you can focus on building a sustainable brand.

Remember, change is good and change is inevitable.



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