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I’ve been wanting to do another over-the-top post with a horrendous amount of tips for a while now. The last one was on mixing. This one’s aimed more at the new producer who might be a little confused or overwhelmed with the whole thing.
Of course, I don’t expect all these tips to apply to everyone. In fact, some may be incredibly controversial. Be prepared to ignore the whole article and do it your own way, because in the end – that’s all that counts.
At any rate, I hope you find this somewhat helpful.
1. You will start becoming wildly influenced by an array of different kinds of music, it’ll be overwhelming but helpful in the long run
2. Realize that this isn’t easy
3. Listen to different kinds of music. Even music you don’t particularly like
4. Analyze your favorite artist’s work in great detail
5. Books tend to provide more value than YouTube tutorials. Read them
6. There is no best DAW. Pick one and run with it (alternatively, try out demos and see which one suits you)
7. Be wary of potentially misleading forum posts
8. Don’t keep your early work under the cover. Seek out feedback constantly
9. Call yourself a dubstep producer but feel like making a trance track? Go for it. You can’t disappoint your fans if you don’t have any
10. Produce Other Geners
11. The second most important purchase after your DAW should be a decent pair of headphones
12. Produce for at least one hour per day
13. Learn sound design from the get go. Your future self will thank you for it
14. Most ‘shortcuts’ are detrimental. This craft takes time
15. Contrary to popular belief – you don’t need a Mac to produce music
16. Don’t worry about promotion and marketing. You’ll know when the time is right
17. Collaborate with other producers that are better than you
18. Following trends won’t make you famous, make the music you want to make
19. High-pass everything
20.Learn basic theory if you haven"t already.
21. Not sure how compression works? Don’t use it
22. You’re only as good as your ears. Take care of them and train them (use reference tracks)
23. Get out of the house and talk to other people in the industry. You need some sunlight
24. Listen to Mat Zo, Noisia, Koan Sound, BT, Andrew Bayer
25. Your music sucks at the moment, and it will probably suck 6 months from now. Keep pushing through
26. Study your craft as much as possible, but don’t neglect practice
27. Don’t be afraid to ask stupid questions, everyone starts somewhere. Google first, always.
28. Don’t spam people. This leaves a bad impression
29. Mastering? Forget about it.
30. Practice
31. That $200 plugin isn’t going to make you a better producer, despite the enticing tagline
32. The plugins in your DAW are more than enough to start with
33. Being a 14-year old EDM producer does not mean you’re special
34. Being a 45-year old EDM producer does not mean you’re too old or late
35. Browse the EDM production subrredit. I don’t care if you don’t use Reddit, you do now
37. Music production involves problem solving. There isn’t a tutorial for everything
38. Learn to DJ if possible
39. Enjoy yourself
41. Copy other artists. You aren’t big enough to get sued (yet?)
42. Also, remake your favorite tracks. You’ll learn a hell of a lot
43. Keep your plugins and samples to a minimum and learn to work with what you’ve got
44. Playing an instrument of any kind is beneficial
45. Learn how to do things manually, then see if you can replicate them automatically (self-modulationfor example)
46. Go to events, festivals, and clubs. Capture the vibe
47. People will ignore you from time to time. Get used to it
48. Try to produce tracks as fast as possible. As a beginner, this is the quickest way to learn as you cover all bases
49. You don’t need a Soundcloud pro account yet
51. Don’t waste your time with labels, you’ll only be disappointed
52. Learning sound design? Focus on one synth, not ten
53. Tackle one thing at a time, music production is a very wide and diverse field
54. Unless this is a mere side hobby, you’ll need to make some sacrifices
55. Do something related to music every morning and every evening
56. Read The F***ing Manual (RTFM)
57. Producing music doesn’t get you girls, it just makes you more of a geek at the end of the day
58. Never delete your work. The stuff you make as a new producer may be incredibly creative musically
59. Making a living off music isn’t impossible, it just requires a huge amount of determination and patience
60. Don’t spend $1000’s on gear. Read Starting Electronic Music Production on a Budget
61. Review what you’ve learned each week
62. MIDI keyboards are helpful, but not essential
63. Develop good habits overall in the beginning. It’s harder to fix bad habits than to form good ones
64. Don’t worry about using a template. Find your style first (see Naden interview)
65. Constructive negative feedback is far better than a “nice track bro.” It hurts, but it’s worth it
66. There are people out there who physically can’t make music. Consider yourself privileged and you’ll find a lot more joy in it
67. Don’t give up your day job
68. That ‘professional’ sound you want? Yeah, that’ll take a while to get
69. There is no set period of time that it takes to become a good producer. For some it takes months, others it may take years
71. Capture and cultivate inspiration
72. If it sounds good, then leave it. Unless you can make it sound even better
73. Don’t stress the small stuff. You’ll progress faster if you focus on the fundamentals
74. Read a lot. Did I mention that? Yes, books. (Check out our Resources page for a few recommendations)
75. If you want to make a song that sounds like it was produced in 2006, then do it. No one’s stopping you
76. Many of your favorite producers are active on Twitter and will answer questions (within reason)
77. Don’t expect to be able to listen to music normally again. You’ll analyze everything
78. Creating mashups can be a good way to develop particular skills (EQing, automation, tempo matching, ear, etc)
79. Surround yourself with music 24/7
81. If you think your music sounds great, you’re wrong
82. You’ll always compare yourself to others, this is natural. My advice: focus on yourself, and the music
83. Take some time off if you’re not feeling it, but no longer than necessary
84. Putting a reverse clap every 4 bars does not make you a creative genius
85. You don’t need to release an EP or album. I’ve been producing for years and haven’t done either
86. Silence is incredibly important in music. Don’t feel you need to fill in all the gaps
87. You don’t need to upload everything to the internet
88. When asking for feedback, be polite. Don’t just send a link to all your producer buddies without a message to go with it
89. Ask if you can sit in on a studio session. Pay 100% focused attention if it goes ahead
90. Remix packs can be a great way to get inside other artist’s productions.
91. Listen to a person’s music before taking their advice. Some people study without practice, and therefore only teach by analogy
92. Disable your internet connection when producing music
93. At the end of each production session, organize, name, and color your tracks
94. Having source material (samples, patches) that sounds good is paramount to having a sonically intact track
95. Repetition and variation are equally important
96. Keep tension and energy present throughout your track
97. Be unorthodox
98. Back your work up to an external HDD and/or the cloud
99. Focus on the music primarily. The technical side can wait
100. Practice.
Got any questions or tips to add? Leave a comment below.
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