So, you want to learn how to become a better music producer and become more successful with your music.
Perhaps you want to be DJing to bigger crowds, or have your music listened to by more ears. Of course, we all aim for this level of success. But we must respect and enjoy the journey, otherwise, we can lose our passion and love for our music.
If you’re like me, you want to be successful sooner rather than later. You are happy to put in the work to learn and grow as an artist, but you are also eager to get to a point that you are confident in your music and are playing gigs and selling music. Let’s look at how to become a better music producer and improve our sound, so we can get to that level.
How To Become a Better Music Producer
Here are eight more ways that you can fast track your success to be a more knowledgeable and professional producer.
Let’s fast-track our way to playing in front of big crowds and selling tons of music!
1. Stop listening to everything people say online
Don’t rule out everything, either. But a lot of producers have a certain way they like to do things, and what works for them might not work for you.
Aside from that, a lot of producers might not actually know the ‘proper’ answer to the question you are asking. A lot of techniques are subjective, and a lot of techniques are simply incorrect or not as proficient as others might be.
I would highly suggest doing your own fact-checking, cross-referencing with other producers, or getting the information from a trusted and proven source.
2. Try experimenting
When learning how to become a better music producer, experimenting is key!
Grab that and twist it! Turn that fader way more than you normally would! Reach for a sample or synth you normally wouldn’t reach for!
Experimenting is a great way to get some unique sounds and force yourself to not rely on the same techniques you always use. You can discover new ways to approach things or discover techniques and sounds that help set your music apart.
3. Set aside time to work on your weaknesses (outside of your DAW)
My weakness was sound design and songwriting. When I started, I was more focused on my mix quality than anything else.
It came to a point where my mixes were sounding decent, but my songwriting and sound design were not up to par.
What I did next is what I suggest you do as well. I set some time aside to specifically work on sound design and songwriting, and not just inside your DAW.
I know it sounds a little counterintuitive but you also need to learn and not just practice (more on that in a moment).
Experimenting is great, too. But understanding what is happening ‘under the hood’ of what you’re doing can really elevate your understanding and work.
4. Don’t just practice, learn
Just like almost every other activity, the more you practice, the better you will become. This is also the case when learning how to become a better music producer.
But practicing the same things can only get you better at what you know.
What if you’re VERY well versed in what you are doing in your productions, but those things aren’t actually the best things for your sounds?
I can’t imagine how many times I thought I was compressing or EQing something properly, to later find out that I hadn’t really been adding as much value to my music as I could have.
How is your sound design? Is your mixing up to par? How well do you compress things?
Choose a few of the biggest hurdles within your production and start to set some goals to chip away at. Like mentioned before, inside and outside of your DAW.
Learn how to use them efficiently, and your practice will become much more beneficial.
I offer private 1-on-1 lessons and group sessions for producers via video call. If you’re unsure of or working on how to improve we can sit down and work together to maximize your overall production quality.
Click here to learn more about the 1-on-1 coaching
5. Waste less time with trial and error
When I first started producing music it was complete experimentation and trial and error. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing and where to begin even learning.
Experimentation is great because you can learn at your own pace, and you can discover some really interesting sounds and ideas that you would never have primarily thought. The downside is if you rely solely on trial and error it can take a very long time to learn everything you need to in order to write successfully.
I suggest learning the tools properly first and then spend some time experimenting.
6. Stop repeating the same mistakes over and over
There are vital key tools and techniques that define how electronic music is created, and not learning how to properly use these tools or techniques properly can hinder your performance dramatically.
I was guilty of throwing a compressor on every channel in my mixer because I thought it was the ‘right thing to do’. I didn’t know how to compress properly, and it was sucking the life out of my tracks and I didn’t even know it.
Once I learned how (and when) to compress things, my tracks instantly improved in quality. If you don’t know how something works, take the time to really learn it.
7. Try to have some collaboration
Meet up with a fellow producer and work together on some tracks. Even if it’s just for fun, and even if you both are completely different genres. Everyone learns differently, and at a different pace. You both will most definitely teach each other things!
8. Don’t rely only on yourself
Most producers turn to YouTube or Google when learning how to become a better music producer. Both of these outlets are great for learning! But there are a few really big downsides to relying solely on search engines to teach you.
YouTube is VERY time-consuming. Searching through hours of YouTube content to find simple answers to simple questions is very frustrating.
You don’t know what to look for, or what you’re missing. You can search for specific things like ‘how to make a kick drum punchier’ and get some good results, but what about the information you don’t know to search for? Techniques or tools you don’t even know exist, and won’t until you somehow stumble upon it through your hours of digging.
There is a lot of misinformation. Unfortunately, a lot of people think their methods are ‘the correct’ way to do things, and sometimes they provide the wrong information. This can leave you repeating mistakes and wasting valuable time.
I have three solutions for you to consider.
1. Work closely with a knowledgeable producer
If you know a fellow producer who is a bit more experienced than you, feel free to reach out to them and ask if you could sit in on one of their studio sessions. You can learn a lot just by watching!
2. Take lessons
This is great especially if you don’t have the opportunity to sit it on another producer’s sessions. You can specify exactly what it is that you’re looking to learn, or you can just allow someone else to teach you how to produce. It can be extremely beneficial.
If you’re interested in taking production lessons, I offer 1-on-1 and group sessions. You can book them here!
3. Music Production Online courses
This is where an online course can really help you dramatically reduce the time it takes for you to learn music production properly.
Benefits of an online course
- You can learn many skills all in one place. No hours spent searching for simple answers
- You can trust the information is accurate and correct
- Investing in a course will encourage you to finish it and learn
- It can provide you with the skills and tools you didn’t know to look for
- You can drastically cut down the time it takes to be producing higher quality music
- You can feel a sense of accomplishment and have proof of education
I offer online production courses for three stages of your production career.
Each course will bring you from your current stage, into your next stage by teaching you the required knowledge for your skill level.
Ask yourself, where do you want to be in 12 months with your music production skills? Now, what if you could make that happen in just a few days?
