Caleb J. Murphy is a singer-songwriter and music producer based in Austin, Tx., and the founder of Musician With A Day Job, a blog that helps part-time musicians succeed.
Sometimes it’s nice just to listen. So instead of generating production ideas from my experiences or from deep research, I’d like to present some great audio production advice from a few of the top producers ever. I’ve included a little background on the producer as well as their production advice. And make sure you check...
When you think about your music career as a video game, it makes it less overwhelming. But I get it. The title of this post is silly. However, I want to share how you can go through your music career with purpose, organization, and focus. All by pretending you’re in a video game. Because playing...
There are two basic types of music royalties that I’ll be talking about in this post: composition royalties and sound recording royalties. Think about it this way: composition/songwriter royalties are one half of the pie, and sound recording royalties are the other half. So let’s breakdown the details both sides of that pie… Composition Royalties...
It can be difficult to choose a digital audio workstation. There are so many, so how do you know which is the best DAW for you? Here’s a tip: choose a DAW based on what type of producer you are. That’s what this post is all about. I’ll share the best DAWs for each type...
You might be stuck at home. Or you may prefer to work in your own space. Whatever the case, you can still work with other musicians. Thanks to the internet and people who make useful internet tools, recording music remotely has never been easier. Here’s how to collaborate with and hire other musicians, regardless of...
Apple decided all songs would cost 99 cents. Then Spotify decided the value of someone listening to a song once was worth fractions of a penny. Is that happening to the music licensing world? Are the big companies devaluing the use of your songs in visual media? Let’s explore that idea and look at what...
I’m guessing you’re a self-starter. You must be — you’re reading a blog post about how to mix music. That’s how I am too. And when I set out to learn mixing techniques in April 2017, I went straight to YouTube. There were some super helpful videos and some not-so-helpful videos. So I want to...
It’s so easy to distribute your music nowadays. And Amuse is one a service that makes it so easy — and free. I released a single and a commentary album through Amuse. So I want to share what I thought of it. Overview Amuse charges nothing to distribute your music and you get to keep...
Today’s world of being a DIY musician is becoming more multifaceted. You’re expected to do more things on top of making music. One thing a lot of musician do is start a blog — and the benefit of blogging for musicians is clear. But maybe it’s not so clear to some of you. You may...
As a DIY musician, you need to get creative. Innovate or die, as they say. And that’s why it’s smart to explore non-traditional ways of making money. I’m not against the way we’ve been doing things — playing shows, selling merch, getting streaming and performance royalties. I’m just saying it’s smart to diversify your income....