098: Today's Music Industry and Finding Your Fans, with Todd McCarty (Heat on the Street)

Today we’re joined by Todd McCarty of the Heat On The Street blog where he shares insider insights on the music industry and how to find fans for your music.

You might be wondering why we're discussing music industry stuff here on the Musicality Podcast, where we normally focus on the music side rather than the business side of being a musician. Well, we're not suddenly making a shift to focus entirely on career topics, but we were really keen to feature Todd on the show because we know that a lot of musicians, particularly hobbyists, would love to get their music heard - but are either intimidated or overwhelmed by the modern landscape of music publishing. Streaming services can in theory provide immediate listeners - but may not. And record labels are still doing what they did in the 1950s - or are they?

We wanted to ask Todd about the real story behind the successes in the music industry and what the opportunities are - not for the rare "talented" virtuoso, but for the passionate amateur musician who just wants to get some fans.

Todd was a professional drummer who went on to act as tour manager and promoter, run a record label and be a Senior VP of Sales at Sony Music. He has several platinum and gold sales awards to his name and so he's certainly a man who knows what it takes to make it in the music business.

In this conversation we talk about:

• Todd's own background as a professional drummer and how a pivotal audition hammered home an important lesson about the music business

• We find a polite way to ask Todd: What's the point of record labels these days?

• And he reveals the one thing that musicians get absolutely backwards when it comes to getting fans

Todd has a refreshingly clear and frank perspective on the music industry, something that can all too often seem confusing and overwhelming, and he provided some really big insights and mindset shifts that we know will help you, whatever stage you're at in getting your music out there.

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Full Show Notes and Transcript: Episode 098

Links and Resources

• Heat on the Street

• About Teachers, Coaches, and Mentors

• 35 Ways to Make Money with your Music

• How to Get Followers on Spotify

• Sign up for the Heat on the Street mailing list

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