The music industry is fickle and if you think any differently you need to step out of your bubble and open your eyes. If you want to have a future in the music business you have to get one thing clear – Networking is king. If you have your networking down to pat, your future is more or less guaranteed to be successful.
You may be wondering why it is fickle and why networking is important. Well, have you considered what Eminem’s qualification is, to be a star performer? Or for that matter Steven Tyler of Aerosmith, and whether he has a PhD in vocals? The point here is that in the music industry, qualifications do not exist. You become a star because you get a shot at it. Whether you are a singer, musician, producer, marketer, talent hound, etc it does not matter; when you get your shot, you better be ready to grab it with both hands, both feet and whatever else you have got.
But there is a problem here: How do you get your shot? Because if there is no qualification involved, how do you get an interview or in other words a shot? This is where your networking comes in. Who you know and not know becomes very critical. You need to make friends in all the right places and make the right noise because when the time comes, the name they recommend for a job should be yours. The industry works on referrals and recommendations; that is how it has always been and that is what has worked for it. So if your dream is about getting into the music industry, make the right connections and you will get your shot at your dream.